Thursday, June 6
     Labrador City, NL to Churchill Falls, NL
     157 miles; overcast with snow showers; temps mid 30′s

Labrador City to Churchill Falls

Satellite phone

A couple miles outside of Labrador City we stopped at the Wabush Hotel in Wabush to pick up a satellite phone made available for free by the Provincial Government. In the event we get in trouble we can use the phone to contact the police and request help. We will turn in the phone at the other end of the Trans Labrador Highway.

Rest stop on NL Highway 500

Our ride was only 150 miles today, but the weather conditions were not particularly favorable — mid 30’s, snow showers, and strong side winds. We had to make a rest stop at least every hour, and since there were no cars we used the facilities right on the road. Paul is NOT checking the map.

Highway 500 miles west of Churchill Falls

The road was paved except for the last 24 miles into Churchill Falls. The roadbed was in very good shape because they are preparing to pave it this summer. We were make about 40 mph on average. One of the upsides of today’s weather — no black! The locals tell us the weather the past few days is unusual. The forecast is for some sun and warmer temps beginning tomorrow.

Arriving at Midway Travel Inn, Churchill Falls

We made it to our motel by 2:30 today, cold and ready to get inside and warm up. Our motel is in a large building shared by schools, a library, a very nice food store, and a restaurant. Churchill Falls is a company town for Nalcor Corp, the provincial energy company that runs the Churchill Falls hydro-electric generating station, the third largest in North America.