Hiking the War Path/Otter Rub Trail

Tuesday, August 8, 2023 

Hi Blog!

We have one more day in Arnold's Cove. After yesterday's epic 7+ miles (11.5km) adventure on the Bordeaux Trail, we were looking to take it easy. While we wanted to get out and stretch our legs, we weren't ready for anything too strenuous. We decided to do a shorter hike along with some beach combing. The War Path/Otter Rub Trail is approximately one km each way and promises views of Placentia Bay. 

The trailhead was easy to find.

As you drive around Arnold's Cove, you will see these "Pictures in the Streets" at most intersections. It's one of the efforts the town is doing to help preserve their history. There is a walking tour app that shows the locations of some of the 103 houses which were moved here during Resettlement.

Just as we started down the trail, we met two RVers and their dogs, from British Columbia, who had boondocked at the trailhead overnight. After discussing how great Newfoundland is, we soon found our way back to the trail. The wide gravel path was perfect for getting our legs moving again.

We learned that Charles Peach had a garden at the end of the point which he called Otter Rub. As we came out from under the spruce trees, we could almost picture a garden here. We did find several blueberry bushes, but the berries are not ripe yet.

Just before you reach the Otter Rub Lookout, a set of stairs heads down to a beach. At the north end of the beach is an arch. We decided we would definitely head down there after we finished hiking out to the lookout.

There are a number of "hysterical" markers at the lookout. Arnold's Cove became part of the huge American Defense system in Newfoundland during World War II.  The American Military set up Anti-Aircraft Artillery units and Watch Towers to patrol the area from Arnold's Cove to Come By Chance and along the coast line in Placentia Bay and Trinity Bay.  They set up their barracks, mess hall and dog kennels at Arnold's Cove Station. The U.S. Military leased a portion of Otter Rub to set up a lookout post.

On our way back down from the lookout, we spied a couple red chairs!

Always fun to add another set of red chairs to our collection! We took a few minutes to sit back and relax and see how many of the hundreds of islands in the bay we could spot from our vantage point.

As we were leaving the red chairs, we noticed a new section of trail has recently been added. We followed it through the woods until we came out to a lookout. From here we could see the inlet on the east side of Arnold's Cove that leads to the Big Pond Bird Sanctuary. We noticed a wooden boardwalk leading across the marsh. If we had more time and more ambition, we might have continued out to the inlet. Instead, we followed the trail as it looped back around the head to the red chairs.

The trail follows along the edge of cliff. Kathy thought about going out to the point, but decided to live to hike another day.

The trail led right to the edge of this secluded beach. It was tempting to try and find a way down, but there was another beach just around the corner that had stairs!

As we turned back to the beach stairs, we heard a boat approaching. Dave went out on the point to catch a photo before they disappeared around the head.

From the point, Dave could look back and see yet another hidden beach. We debated whether or not to climb down, but, as we said before, there was a beach just next door that had stairs!

You can always count on the Newfoundlanders when it comes to building sturdy stairs.

Below, Dave is adding some scale to the sea arch.

While the beach was small, we did find a couple pieces of sea glass. However, that just got us excited to head over to Arnold's Cove Beach and see if we could find some more.

To access the Arnold's Cove Beach, there is a picnic area and boat launch just off Hollett Avenue. Next to the gazebo is a sign board pointing out to all the islands where folks came from during the Resettlement.

Next to the picnic tables is a replica house and punt.

We took this picture of the beach yesterday. What a difference a day makes.

After a nice leisurely stroll along the beach, we had found a good amount of sea glass, as well as some really cool rocks.

We finished our adventures with lunch at Arnold's Cove Inn. They have a nice sit-down restaurant, the folks are friendly, the food is fresh and the beer cold. Tomorrow, we travel down to the Burin Peninsula. Until next time, stay thirsty my friends.