More exploration of St John’s
Back on Water Street we strolled in the sun stopping to look at some street art hidden up an alley before we had a large ice cream.
Back onboard
Across the harbour from the ship we could see three Canadian Coast Guard vessels. In front of Sapphire was the National Geographic exploration ship that had arrived while we were on our tour and behind us the oil supply ships.
After 5 pm the Captain explained that the ship had been asked by the Port Authority to take part in a piece of music using ships horns. The other ships in port would all join in at 5:30 pm.
Out on deck we listened to Sapphire’s horn blasting along with others all around the harbour.
Leaving St John’s
The tour guide had explained that the Narrows were about 200 meters wide and had a 35 metre deep channel. This meant that in high winds or foggy conditions this would almost always stop cruise ships from entering the harbour.
As Sapphire approached the Narrows I could see where anti-submarine nets had been placed in WW2.
Above us we could see crowds on signal Hill as we passed through the narrows.
Just like at Spear Point we watched the Atlantic rollers crash on to the cliffs after passing through the Narrows.
We stopped at the Crooners Bar for a drink before going down to the restaurant. We were placed on a table for two at the side of the restaurant in an alcove. There were just three tables in the alcove and just one other was occupied. I started with prawn cocktail, then the beef stroganoff with noodles and finished with ice cream. We chatted with the couple next to us and heard about their experiences on Cunard.
In the theatre we watched Jonathan Johnson who played the flute and entertained us with a wide selection of music.
From the Cruise Log
Thursday l9th September 2019
At 2 am, Sapphire Princess adjusted her clocks 30 minutes back, in order to align herself with Newfoundland’s unusual time zone of UTC-2.5. In the early hours of the morning, Sapphire Princess made her final approach to Newfoundland from the East, embarking the local pilot at 07:42 en route to the berth. After proceeding through the narrow harbor entrance, she berthed bow in, starboard side alongside the quay. Sapphire Princess ran her first lines ashore at 08:25, marking the end of her 5-night, westbound Trans-Atlantic voyage. By 08:44 all lines had been made fast and both Deck 4 gangways had been rigged and ready, safe for guest use.
Having spent the day lying quietly alongside Berth No.10/11 in St. John’s, Sapphire Princess was ready to sail at 17:40, so she commenced letting go all lines. Five minutes later, at 17:45, all lines had been recovered and Sapphire Princess was underway, thrusting laterally to port off the berth and proceeding astern to the swinging basin. After manoeuvring the vessel to an easterly heading, she exited the harbor and disembarked the local pilot.
An initial south south-westerly course was steered throughout the evening as she paralleled the eastern coast of the Avalon Peninsula en route to her next port of call, Sydney in Nova Scotia.
Noon Position: Alongside in St John’s
Wind: Gentle SSW’ly breeze, Force 3
Sky: Sunny skies (1/8 cloud cover)
Seas: Calm Rippled (Alongside), Slight Seas + Short Low NNW’ly swell
Pressure: 1020 hPa
Air Temperature: 15°C / 59°F