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Ben Whitmarsh takes a 'hike' which explores the culinary traditions and lively atmosphere of Ellison in Newfoundland - and gets to eat more than his fair share of dishes crafted by some of Canada's top chefs

 An integral part of the whole Mummering tradition is the making and wearing of a hobby horse. The hobby horse is an odd creation, with a horse-like head, beady eyes, crooked hobnail teeth and a giant hunch back. It has a reputation for being menacing and terrifying— often clearing a room of small children upon entry. 

The St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival is celebrating its 23-year anniversary by focusing on long-form feature length films.

I woke up early, determined to get a fresh start on the day and take in as much of the beautiful coastline as possible. It was a gorgeous morning, and I was quite content to sit on a cozy rock and watch the sun scatter its rays across the water. And that’s just what I did – until it was time for the main event: the food hike; the reason people flock from all over the world to the Roots, Rants and Roars festival.

Over the past few years, a culinary revolution has swept over Newfoundland and Labrador and The Roots, Rants and Roars festival in Elliston is a perfect example. It’s a regional celebration of the natural gifts of the province: food, culture, land and sea. The Friday night event, “King of Cod”, kicked off the weekend of culinary delights, featuring cod as the hero, or as Todd Perrin – one of the chief organizers of the event – would say, Newfoundland’s “national dish”.

Tonight I spent a magical evening amongst the subtle glow of lanterns at the annual St. John’s Lantern Festival. The festival is a fundraiser for Victoria Park in St. John’s historic west end and runs for one day on the last full weekend of July every year.

There’s one place I’ve always wanted to visit on St. Patrick’s Day. Not because I expect to find a jolly little leprechaun with a bountiful pot of gold, but because it's the closest you can get to Ireland right here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Newfoundland and Labradorians are known for their heaping food servings and boy did we eat this past weekend...

Cold. Exhilarating. Totally absurd. Perhaps that’s the best way to describe the polar dip I took in Appleton as part of the town’s annual Winterfest.

It’s a balmy -7 degrees here in Grand Falls-Windsor at the moment. And the thought of the bitter cold seeping through my veins is not something I’m embracing today.

Last weekend, hundreds upon hundreds of people in St. John’s paraded through the streets. Men were dressed as women, women were dressed as men. Underwear was worn as outerwear and even small children were merrily sporting bras stuffed with socks over the tops of their various layers. There were lots of ingeniously creative hobbyhorses prancing around and it was almost impossible to count the number of ugly sticks and accordions.

It’s all just another Christmas in Newfoundland and Labrador.

We’ve all said things like “that meal just changed my life.” And if you haven’t, well… you might want to take a serious look at what you’re eating. I’ve eaten lots of meals that have changed my life. I probably overuse that phrase, but that’s how much I love food. There’ve been a few recipes (especially over the course of this past year) that I’ve made again and again for friends and family that I love and yeah, I think they’ve changed my life. They wake me up a little, they make me better. So… yeah. But the closest I’ve come to food tears was a couple of months ago at the Roots, Rants and Roars Festival in Elliston.

St. John’s is a city that has been on the go for over 400 years. That’s a whole lot of life, death, love, murder, passion, intrigue, treachery and… did I mention death? That’s a whole lot of history, spilling out into the twists and turns of the narrow streets. No wonder it’s a hotbed of hauntings.

It’s one of my absolute favourite events of the year. The St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival kicked off its five-day run last Tuesday night by slamming it down and packing a few punches.

I spent last week getting culturally back in touch with my English Lit student days. First, I went to see Hamlet on a hill, then Henry IV, Part 1 out in one of North America’s oldest and most historic towns, Cupids...

Last week I went to catch the final performance of Hamlet – one of the 2011 Shakespeare By The Sea productions. I realize writing about this festival when it’s already happened and you can’t now go and see the shows (if you unfortunately missed them) is a bit of a tease, but I’m hoping this post will encourage anyone out there who’s already thinking about a 2012 trip to Newfoundland and Labrador, to plan on seeing a performance or two next year.

Four days with Writers at Woody Point, and I’m more inspired than I’ve been my whole life. As Canadian travel journalist Lucy Izon said one evening while taking the water taxi to Woody Point, there’s a sense of community here. Like Banff, I’m so awed by the overwhelming hospitality from everyone...

Well, it can’t be denied. The Folk Festival this year was a damp one. But it also can’t be denied that the performances were as amazing, and surprising as ever – and the vibe of the audience was gun ho and game for anything.

St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, is in its annual prime. The city is on creative wheels. There are so many events, festivals and theatrics going on it’s quite a panic trying to figure out what things you can possibly bear to miss in order to see the things you absolutely can’t.

The island of Newfoundland's west coast is bursting with culture of all kinds – created by both humans and nature alike. A great way to soak it all up is to visit one of the many festivals in the region, which celebrate everything from music and performance to hiking and icebergs…