Come September, chefs at remote Canadian stay Fogo Island Inn decorate pies filled with bucketfuls of tart partridgeberries — just one of 20 island varieties that make the undergrowth blush a deep scarlet — with molasses-sweetened, cinnamon-spiced pastry lattices, then bake and leave to cool. And, like a thieving cartoon character, we could almost do away with the need for a flight over there, instead floating on tendrils of scent à la Mickey Mouse to this tiny Newfoundland fishing community.
Each of Fogo Island’s seven seasons (or up to 17, depending on who you ask here) enchants: winter’s fire-warmed outdoor cook-outs and caribou spotting as glaciers glitter and roar; the stark chilly beauty of ‘pack ice’ season; ‘trap berth’ season that brings in nets full of Atlantic cod; summer when wildflowers run rampant and the archipelago opens up…
But ‘berry-picking’ season and the ensuing fall (from September to November) feel most abundant: harvest hearty and bear-hug cosy, but fellow berry fans, the resident black bears, should stay at arm’s length. It’s a time when sweet sustenance is on everyone’s mind, and you could use your pickings to infuse teas, fill tarts and add to fresh-churned ice-cream with the inn’s chef; then throw your own crockery at a class in the local pottery studio; and even whittle your own wooden spoon as part of a bushcraft mission.
A GOOD NEIGHBOUR
Beyond fingers sticky from raspberries, blueberries, crowberries, marshberries, whorts, bakeapples, and the handmade jams and jellies which will clink away in your suitcase come check-out, it’s also a fruitful time (pun intended) for the community. A stay at Fogo Island will draw you into its heart — the hotel was founded by seventh-generation islander Zita Cobb, who’s ensured it’s an asset for residents, boosting the fishing economy through respectful, Earth-kind tourism and ploughing all its operating surpluses into charity Shorefast, which helps Newfoundland communities survive and thrive.
Through this, boatbuilding studio Punt Premises has been revived so artisans can continue craft tradition and guests can take in generations of wisdom while getting a little hands-on. Artisans have been enlisted to stitch heirloom quilts, build chairs inspired by boat ribs and add local colour to hotel interiors; and an arts residency programme has spotlit First Nations talent, the effects of climate change (being set in the North Atlantic’s Iceberg Alley, Fogo experiences these first-hand) and island traditions. Sculptures are put to practical use: Liam Gillick’s eye-catching, cherry-red fishing ‘stage’ installation A Variability Quantifier is also a functional weather station. And guests can redeem their travel and stay’s emissions by buying carbon offsets from the Inn’s eco partner Carbonzero.
JOIN IN ISLANDER LIFE
But that all sounds a little impersonal — not Fogo’s style. Friendly conversation will be struck up from the Gander Island ferry crossing onwards and Newfinese ‘Waddaya at?’ greetings will ring out as you hike boreal forest and coastal barrens, especially when residents are also out topping up their punnets. At Fogo Island Inn, this warm hospitality is extended through your own personal Community Host, a well-versed lifer who’ll orient you and answer any burning questions about lore and legend, history, nature and more, while engaging you in meet and greets that culminate in fireside storytelling and folk songs.
It’s a time of warm gatherings: from 19–22 September, a mummer with a lantern and buoy tied to their leg will lead you on a ‘shed crawl’ to celebrate Irish heritage during Feile Tilting, when pubs pop up in peoples’ homes. The following weekend, Shoretime Festival has a cultural melee of artist salons, exhibitions and architecture walks, taking in structures from the inn’s space-invader shell to the geometric studio cabins constellated across the coasts. It’s a chance to appreciate Norwegian architect Todd Saunders’ modern interpretation of the historic ‘salt box’ style — simple wood homes built on stilts, which could be disassembled after fishing season ended. In October, chefs prep winter stores with a pickling and fermenting party in the kitchen, and you’ll enjoy jams of the musical and edible kind in October’s Harvest Festival.
HAND-ME-DOWN DINING
That’s just a small portion of the waste-free culinary invention here. Intimate knowledge of the land and heritage techniques have turned hyper-seasonal hardscrabble fare into meals luxurious in their authenticity. Carrots, squash, parsnips and rutabaga (aka swede) are pulled from the root store for comforting wild-game stews and steamed puddings; foraged porcini and hop blossoms add umami richness to breads and oils; blackened honeycomb and pollen vinaigrettes punch up dishes; and cod is a constant, whether fresh, smoked or salted. Rates cover all meals, including cakes in the tea room, a traditional boil-up (a sort of Newfoundlander barbecue) and meals at some island restaurants — yet another way of sustaining the community.
After dark, the scenery goes galactic, sparking off a spectacle above the backdrop of Barr’d Islands, with streaking comets, watercolour auroras and pin-prick lights to oblivion; which you could watch while melting with joy in the rooftop Nordic sauna or hot tubs. See which National Film Board of Canada documentaries, indie films and blockbusters are being screened in the cinema, read about all things Fogo in the library, or simply light your room’s wood-burning stove and curl up under the bespoke patchwork quilt, a piece of generational art, feeling as sturdily anchored as a punt in harbour. And, knowing that all this cosseting comes at a worthy cost used to stay the mooring line of island life and nurture the environment — well, that’s just the berry on top.
Learn about more eco heroes with our Revival Stories on farming in Fiji or spa healing in South Tyrol