Guide
When the boat doesn't sail
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Drive back down the peninsula; it is further than the wharf feels. All three ferry wharves have almost nothing at them: no settlement at Farewell, a small community at Pilley’s Island, a road that ends at Burnside.
Check whether the boat is going, not just the schedule: the province publishes that separately.
A Farewell cancellation is an unplanned afternoon in Twillingate, Lewisporte or the airport itself. The fallbacks below are measured.
Where to go, and how to get there
Farewell — for Fogo Island and Change Islands
The busiest of the three and the one with the least at it: no settlement, nothing tagged at the terminal. If the crossing is cancelled, Twillingate is the nearest place with beds and food at 67.8 km; Lewisporte is 73.9 km; the airport is 86.3 km. The first two feel further because you drive back down the peninsula first.
On the drive YQX → Fogo Island — 86 km to the end of that drive, then a ferry
This spot itself:Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · WazePilley's Island — for Long Island
The most exposed of the three. Springdale is the nearest town of any size at 65.3 km, and after that the options get long: Deer Lake airport is 171 km, and Grand Falls-Windsor is further east. A cancelled evening sailing here means a night somewhere unplanned.
On the drive YDF → Long Island — 171 km to the end of that drive, then a ferry
This spot itself:Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · WazeBurnside — for St. Brendan's
The best placed of the three for a fallback: Gander airport is 94.3 km, the drive you came out on. Lewisporte and Twillingate are both further, past Gander, so go back the way you came.
On the drive YQX → St. Brendan's — 94 km to the end of that drive, then a ferry
This spot itself:Directions →Other map apps
Apple · Google · Organic Maps · OsmAnd (both work offline, no tracking) · Waze
Before you go
These change, so we link to the people who keep them up to date.
Is the boat running today?Check before you drive, not when you arrive
The province publishes live ferry status separately from the schedule. It lets you find out at home, not at a wharf. Check it before you set off, and again before you commit to the last sailing of the day.
Check it now →Road conditionsYear round, matters most November–April
Weather that cancels a sailing is often weather that makes the drive back worse. Check both.
Check it now →MooseYear round, worst between dusk and dawn
A cancelled evening sailing means an unplanned drive in the dark, on the roads where the province says injury risk doubles.
Check it now →
Questions people actually ask
How often does this actually happen?＋
We do not know, and we won't guess. Wind, sea ice and mechanical trouble all cancel these runs, which is why the province publishes status. This page measures what it costs when it happens.
Can I just wait for the next sailing?＋
Sometimes; it depends on the service. The Fogo run has several sailings a day; Long Island and St. Brendan's have fewer. A weather cancellation may hold for the day, so ask whether there is another boat today. The live status page answers that, not the timetable.
What if I am booked on the island tonight?＋
Ring them from the wharf, not from the queue. All three islands have limited accommodation, and so do the fallbacks: Twillingate and Lewisporte fill in July. Call early.
Does this change which crossing I should pick?＋
It should change when you cross, not whether. Sail out in the morning and back with time in hand. The trap is the last sailing of the day in either direction, where a cancellation leaves no slack.
What about flying home the next day?＋
Do not be on the island the night before a flight. It is the most expensive mistake you can make on this coast.
Every figure on this page was checked against its source on August 31, 2026.