The first major village north of Cape Harrison is the predominantly Inuit community of Makkovik. The people of Makkovik take great pride in their village, and are exceptionally hospitable and helpful. Here we take on fuel, water and some stores, as well as go out to the local lodge for a rare meal off the boat. While in Makkovik in 2001, a Canada Fisheries and Oceans Officer informed us that he had just received satellite imagery that showed that the pack ice had cleared off Cape Harrison on July 6th - we cleared the Cape on July 8th.

While tied up to the wharf at Makkovik, we're able to observe the common docking procedure of the coastal freighters that serve the Labrador coast. As large wharves are not feasible due to cost and the remote location, the ships are instead moored stern-to the wharf, enabling them to lower a stern ramp for vehicles and roll on/roll off cargo. This maneuver necessitates dropping anchors off the wharf, pivoting on the chain, and then backing down until mooring lines can be passed ashore. In the confined harbors, without bow thrusters or even twin-screw propulsion, this requires an extraordinary degree of seamanship.

A day's run from Makkovik, through numerous islands and rock outcrops, lays Hopedale, a Moravian village established in 1781 by Jens Haven. Haven, a Dane, was a master carpenter who felt called to the church. Aware of the tragic attempt by the Moravians to establish a mission near Makkovik in 1752, Haven studied the native language and customs in Greenland prior to making reconnaissance voyages to Labrador. This preparation allowed Haven to avoid the violent confrontation with the Inuit that had scuttled the 1752 attempt, and enabled the future success of numerous mission sites. An original mission building remains in Hopedale, and is Canada's oldest wooden structure east of Quebec. An abandoned Cold War DEW Line radar site overloooks the village. At one time it housed American soldiers, and was complete with a bowling alley and movie theater.

Kangekluktanna Bay, 56º 04' N, 61º 13' W, we call Wooden Shoe Cove. It was recommended to us by a couple from Portsmouth, NH whom we had met in Cartwright, Summer 2000. They were returning from several years in Greenland, aboard their husky North Sea work boat style motor-sailor. Their red Little Bear reminded Mark of the nursery rhyme, "Winkin, Blinkin and Nod, sailed off in a wooden shoe", as well as the red wooden shoes his Danish stepmother had once worn to garden. Unable to pronounce the Inuit name, we simply penciled that moniker on our chart. Although quite deep, the cove offers good protection from all but west winds. In 2001 we held up here during 30-35 K easterlies.

The first successful Moravian mission set up by Haven was at Nain in 1771. The timber-framed buildings were prefabricated in England, and erected on site by Haven and three other missionaries on land granted by the Crown of England. The Moravians initiated mission and trading activities in that year. The Crown facilitated this effort, as it furthered the policy of precluding intrusion by the French, and was in an area that the Crown monopoly, the Hudson Bay Company, had ignored. Thus the missions could bring the influence of the Crown to the region, while costing the exchequer nothing, as the missions were to be self-supported by trade in fish, fur, whale oil and baleen.

Today, Nain remains the primary center of the Labrador Inuit population, is the northernmost settlement on The Labrador and serves as a regional government and service center. It's the last opportunity to top off our fuel tanks, take on final stores, drop mail and prepare for the spectacular section of coast that leads to Hudson Strait. The village runs a quarry mining labradorite, named for the type of feldspar found in the local anorthosite that surrounds the area. Labradorite can exhibit iridescence, a brightly colored internal reflection of blue, green, yellow and bronze. The quarry uses the granitic rock, with its spectacular luminescent blue crystals, to make 12"x12" floor tiles.

Nick, skipper of Belvedere, had told us of John Hayes Harbor, a half day south of Nain, where labradorite could be picked up along the beaches. On our first visit in 2000 we entered the small opening to the harbour in extraordinarily thick fog with the aid of our radar. The entrance seems only a few meters wide, but with Mark navigating by radar and Nancy on deck trying to see, we inched our way into the entrance. Once inside and anchored, the fog began to lift and we found ourselves in a beautiful small anchorage. The next morning we took the dinghy to the beach, and just as Nick promised, we found crystals of the iridescent blue mineral at the edge of the water.

Nain also marks the tree line. Although isolated forests occur but in a few places beyond Nain, the natural beauty of the region is in no way diminished, as spectacular geology comes to dominate the geography. Caribou, bird rookeries, the beginning of polar bear range, and superb Arctic Char fishing all combine to make one easily forgo trees for a few weeks.

In 2002 the ice had been persistent along the Northern Labrador coast. Nain was our last opportunity to get a current ice chart, available from the Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans. The ice chart showed that there was a large pack of heavy sea ice moving slowly en masse south and located at Cape Mugford, 2 days north of Nain, blocking our progress north. A few days before we arrived, the Nain High School principal reported seeing lots of ice on the outside of Port Manvers, approximately 40 miles north of Nain. Not needing to spend time in the village we got out the local chart and choose an anchorage on the east side of Paul Island. Much to our delight it turned out to be a beautiful anchorage affording us a vantage point from which to view the ice pack. Two days later we made our way up the inside route of Manvers Run and exited Port Manvers in ice free waters. But as we rounded Cape Kiglaplait, just south of Cape Mugford, we ran once again into ice. We knew of an anchorage to the west that seemed like a good place to wait, once again, for the ice. The enforced layover allowed us to spend two days hiking and exploring an area we may have otherwise not have cruised.