Located in Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula, Bell Island is only 9km by 3.5km and has mostly sharp cliffs falling off into the sea. It's only a 20 minute ferry ride from Portugal Cove (which is only 20 minutes from St.John's). Finally, Isaac got to see whales...the bay was full of Minke whales. They don't come very far out of the water, but they were close and easy to see.
The Iron Ore mines on Bell Island closed around 1949, and now no.2 mine is open for tours. It is well worth the trip, a really great experience and the tour guides are fantastic. Although this mine extended out into the ocean, the tour doesn't go out there as the tunnels are mostly flooded. We went about 160 feet underground...walking on a downward slope the whole time. A little harder coming back up.
The pile of rocks outside the mine was made by young boys who went to work at the mine at age 8. They had the job of picking the rocks off the conveyor belt (separating the rock from the ore).
The lighthouse is also great to see...or rather the view around the lighthouse. The lighthouse was moved from out on the point to it's current location a number of years ago. It was a cold day, so Ella stayed in the car. We had to hold on tight to Isaac. It was a little scary near the edge.
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