(click here to find location on the map)
To reach Cow Head you will take Route 430 north through Gros Morne National Park. Shortly after driving through the community of St. Pauls you will come to the exits for Cow Head on your left. Take the first one, you are now on Main Street. You will drive for a couple of kilometers. Signage for the trails are in short supply so follow the ones for the Sea Breeze B&B. In town turn left on Veterans Drive, formerly Pond Road. When you reach the beginning of the causeway stay to your left to take you over to Cow Head - Summerside. If you turn right you will come to the Sea Breeze RV Park, next to the B&B. At the end of the causeway take the first left to reach the trail head. You will pass a small cemetery on your left and at the top of the hill you will come to a parking lot, bright sheds and an outdoor amphitheatre.
The trail is very clearly marked and well maintained. If you follow the Lighthouse Trail and then continue down on the Point of the Head Trail it will be approximately 4 km return. By the map you will see that you have a number of options. The first part of the trail will take you through forest, climbing towards the lighthouse that is on the north side of the head. You will then enter a meadow called Big Hill, that has a lookout on the western edge. From it you will see Cow Head and the Long Range Mountains in the background. You will continue on till you reach the lighthouse.
(click photos to enlarge, click caption for mapped location)
Just past the lighthouse you will come to a Y in the trail. The Point of the Head Trail will take you out to an area of spectacular rock formations. Your other option is to stay on the Lighthouse Trail which takes you through more forest and open meadows, finally looping back to the parking lot.
Proceeding on The Point of the Head Trail, you go through some really amazing forest. Dense pines, without needles, covered in strange moss, unusual ground covers, wildflowers, mushrooms. We did not hear a single sound the time we were in there. It is like another world. You will begin to hear seabirds and the water as you emerge out of the forest onto The Point. This is quite a large area with lots to check out. If you decide to go down to the water you need to pay attention to the tide. These rocks are 500 million years old. Thats 500,000,000!
(click photos to enlarge, click caption for mapped location)
The Jacques Cartier sign above reads:
Jacques Cartier landed and spent a night at Cow Head on June 16, 1534! He named Cow Head "Cap Pointu". Later the French called it "Tete de la Vache" meaning Head of the Cow. At one time a rock shaped like a cow's head could be viewed on the southern tip of the peninsula. This French name was later translated to Cow Head, the name used today.
Get your camera ready because you will see awesome rock formations everywhere! If you look closely and have a great imagination you will see the above Jacques Cartier rock formation that was discovered by a member of the Cow Head tourism Committee in 2012.
(click photos to enlarge, click caption for mapped location)
Hikes of Western Newfoundland by Katie Broadhurst and Alexandra Fortin is an excellent guide if you like to do trails. The book covers Western and Central Newfoundland as far east as Twillingate. They don't cover every trail, that's almost impossible. You'll find information on a good range of trails that you should consider.
You start with the area map where they show the trails that are covered by the book. The pages about each trail include GPS co-ordinates of the trailhead and a good map of the trail. They also tell you the level of difficulty and distances.
We bought a copy ahead of our June 2015 trip to scout out the trails we wanted to do ahead of time. The book is available on Amazon and you can purchase it through this link.
