10 Things to Know Before You Visit Gros Morne National Park

Gros Morne National Park is one of the most remote, yet popular national parks in Canada. Having gone there personally, I was very surprised and at times disappointed that I didn’t research enough about this place prior. It would have helped me have a better time in hindsight which is why this article is going to help make sure you don’t have the same experience I did and in turn an awesome one instead. 

Basic info:

• Name: Gros Morne National Park
• Location: New Foundland Canada
• Things to do: Scenic drives, hiking, tide watching, whale watching, fjord boating and more
• Hotels? See best options
• Tours? See best options

10 things to know:

1. The best way to Gros Morne is by plane (avoid the ferry)
2. How to get to Gros Morne by plane
3. You can see icebergs on the eastern shore of Newfoundland
4. The main spot to see is Western Brook Pond (fjords)
5. Here’s a list of what else there is to see besides the fjords
6. Visit Tablelands, it’s the volcanic part of Gros Morne
7. You can see the high low tides in many places there
8. The best place to see the northern lights is around St. Anthony
9. Beware of the moose (there’s many)
10. Make sure to check out Trout River

Getting there:

Gros Morne National Park is in Newfoundland but that happens to be a giant island basically and if you wish to get to there, you have 2 main methods:

1. Ferry (worst option).
2. Plane (best option).

If you’re coming into Newfoundland from the south like we did which would be from Nova Scotia, there is a popular Ferry ride available that goes there. The ferry is available (by reservation) in a place called North Sydney. One of the few right decisions my friends and I made while headed to Gros Morne National Park in New Foundland was reserve a spot a day ahead for the ferry, but in hindsight we regret it and here’s why:

• There are 2 ferries which travel from North Sydney to Newfoundland.
• One is in the morning and one is at night (we chose the latter).
• The ferry ride itself is about 7-8 hours.
• On top of that long ride, unless you register a cabin to stay in on the ferry, you’re likely not going to have a very unpleasant experience.

On the boat ride there, we slept in seats and on the carpet floor. The heater was also turned on very high so it was difficult to sleep. Very few areas in the ferry were open so there wasn’t much to do except perhaps star gaze (that’s actually not a bad sight, but it’s cold outside the ferry).

The food wasn’t that good either, and overall, it’s an experience I do not wish to repeat (but we had to do it again on our way back so we could get home). And on the ferry ride back, it was even worse, there was basically no heater and we were all freezing for hours before we finally got back to North Sydney. 

You can technically save more money with the ferry ride because you can take your own car, but it’ll add up and so I recommend the next option.

Flying into Gros Morne (details):

We didn’t know that Newfoundland has an airport and it’s called St. Johns International airport. It’s located on the eastern side of Newfoundland. There is another one, but from my knowledge, most commercial flights don’t go there (it’s actually closer to the park). Anyway, the drive from St. Johns International airport to Gros Morne is about 4 hours one way.

Depending on the prices for the ride there and renting a car, you may end up paying more or less the same than you would if you took your own car and did the ferry ride (which is also about 4 hours from the park) and remember, if you go into Newfoundland on ferry, you also have to leave it by ferry too, so that’s another expense to consider.

How to get to Gros Morne by plane:

1. Fly into St. Johns airport (check ticket prices)
2. Rent a car and drive about 4 hours to Gros Morne.
3. Stay there for 3 or more days, then go back.

3 important things:

1. There are only 2 main roads in Newfoundland and one of them leads to Gros Morne.
2. There isn’t much to see most of the time you’re on these roads until you reach the national park.
3. Additionally, there are a few towns in Newfoundland to check out for restaurants and hotels and they are Stephenville, obviously St. Johns, St. Anthony, Corner Brook and Rocky Harbor (closest to Gros Morne). There are other very small towns, but these are the biggest.

Where to find the icebergs:

For the most part, the best areas to see them is:

• St. Johns which is on the eastern side of the province.
• St. Anthony’s which is the northern most point of Newfoundland.

Your odds of seeing icebergs near Gros Morne National Park are highly unlikely and I’m just letting you know this because I saw several photos of them associated with the park so I assumed they were in the area, but they aren’t. Now another thing to know is that seeing the icebergs is also dependent on when you visit Newfoundland. The more towards the colder seasons you visit (past September) the more likely you’ll see them, including the gigantic ones and there are even boat tours you can take around St. Johns to get close to them (whale watching is another attraction there).

Western Brook Pond is the main attraction:

The most popular photos you see of Gros Morne National Park are the fjords and what you need to know is that this particular section of the park is called Western Brook Pond. I have included a link with everything you need to know about visiting that spot, but the short summary is this:

• Western Brook Pond is a very remote area in Gros Morne National Park.
• You can take a boat tour to see the fjords.
• The very famous overlook is here.
• This is the most popular Gros Morne hiking trail.
• Hiking here has many restrictions, options and costs money.
• It is truly a stunning area to check out.
• There’s more to know but that link above will explain what you need to know.

Make sure to see the Tablelands:

Another section of Gros Morne I didn’t know existed until I came here is a place called Tablelands which is actually amazing and highly recommended. Tablelands is a desert like area of the park that has awesome trails and there’s even a divide in the land where the green area of Gros Morne cuts off and the desert begins and I’ve included a photo of that so you can see what I mean.

I did a short hike in Tablelands to get a great view of this spot, but it is absolutely amazing especially when you see the divide area between the volanic land and green spots. I later learned that Western Brook and Tablelands are 2 of the most popular attractions in the park to explore, so make sure you don’t miss this one and there are tours, hikes and even a waterfall in this area too!

More places to see in Gros Morne National Park::

Let’s say you’re on your way to check out Gros Morne or perhaps you finished exploring it. What else is there to check out in terms of scenic spots? Well there are other parks and regions in Newfoundland besides this area to explore:

1. Pistolet Bay Provincial Park (mellow park in the northern section of Newfoundland).
2. Cape Norman Lighthouse (near Pistolet Bay).
3. Rocky Harbour (great place for restaurants and sunset views).
4. Barlett’s Point Park (great high and low tide views).
5. Barachois Pond Provincial Park (south of Gros Morne, great hiking trails).
6. Terra Nova National Park (close to St. Johns, also has good hiking trails).
7. Steady Brook Falls (giant waterfall at the southern entrance of Gros Morne).
8. Arch Rock (north eastern coast of Newfoundland, hard to reach but good views).

Obviously you should prioritize visiting Gros Morne National Park first as it is the main attraction of Newfoundland for good reason.

High and low tide info:

Something I didn’t see talked about when I was looking into this park was the high tide experience, but it is absolutely one of the best attractions in Gros Morne National Park. The key is knowing where to see it and that would have to be Norris Point. Additionally, one of the things that apparently makes Eastern Canada worth visiting is the fact that some of the biggest high tides happen in this area, particularly Nova Scotia’s Bay of Fundy that I mentioned earlier, but they are also amazing to witness in Gros Morne National Park too.

I’ve included a map that shows you where the best high and low tide experience is. In fact, I missed an opportunity to stay at a hotel right by Norris Point to actually witness this and it was right around the time high tide was supposed to start. Unfortunately, a 10 minute delay in decision making led to the last hotel room being filled up there but the actual bay near Norris Point is very scenic and you can see it up close from that spot, or from a distance if you travel to Tablelands.

Northern lights info:

There are several times throughout the year where you can see the northern lights in Gros Morne National Park and the nearby places to it. Most often though, the town of St. Anthony’s is the northern most place in New Foundland that has them. 

Wildlife warnings:

Moose are by far the most common dangerous animal you may come across when you visit this area. In fact I’ve never seen so many warning signs for moose until I visited Gros Morne National Park. If I were you, I’d only travel during the day and keep your eyes open, especially when you hike here. And it’s just as important you be careful when driving around Newfoundland as you may get distracted by the views.

In fact, on our way to Newfoundland, we were traveling through Maine at night and ran into a moose on the road. And they are apparently just as frequent (if not moreso) to run into further north. I’m happy to say that at least for us, we didn’t see a single moose in Gros Morne while we were there but there’s a strong possibility you might if you visit this place. In addition there is other wildlife in Gros Morne (like bears).

Visit Trout River:

One of the last locations my buddies and I visited before leaving the park was Trout River, a cove like location similar to Rocky Harbor and it is located south west of Tablelands. It’s officially not part of Gros Morne National Park, but the landscape is amazing and worth the visit. Basically the cove itself is a beach with large cliffs, wild sheep and a few great restaurants. There’s also a trail called Eastern Point trail that I recommend exploring that has amazing costal views.

I’ve compared the views in Trout River to some spots I saw on the California coast as well as the Oregon Coast, although I’d say the coastlines in those states are better in every way. Yet if you visit Gros Morne National Park, I assure you that you only stand to gain great views and experiences by hiking to Trout River and it’ll be a great way to mix up your experiences in the area.

Last Things to Know:

For a one time visit, it’s a pretty awesome spot to visit. If you’ve never seen icebergs, volcanic rocks, fjords or the amazing high/low tides that this place is famous for, then you’ll get all of that here. You can do that by following the guidelines I mentioned above. If you have any questions about visiting this place, do let me know!

Related:

• Cabot Trail
• Bay of Fundy
• Hopewell Rocks