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Paul Kirtley

Wilderness Bushcraft. Survival Skills. Outdoor Life.

Justin Barbour and his dog, Saku, with canoe in river
PK Podcast 038: Justin Barbour On Exploring The Wilderness Of Newfoundland And Labrador

PK Podcast 038: Justin Barbour On Exploring The Wilderness Of Newfoundland And Labrador

Paul Kirtley Comments 8 comments

My guest on Episode 38 of the Paul Kirtley Podcast is Justin Barbour, also known as the Newfoundland Explorer. In the Spring of 2017 Justin and his dog Saku set off on a a traverse of Newfoundland. Starting on snowshoes and hauling a sled, Justin switched to backpacking and pakrafting once the conditions allowed. 68 days and 700km later, Justin and Saku had crossed the island of Newfoundland from West to East, beginning on the Gulf of St Lawrence and ending up in Cape Broyle on the Atlantic Ocean. The population density of Newfoundland is considerably less than Canada as a whole, which is not densely populated anyway, and the interior of Newfoundland is largely remote wilderness.

In the conversation, we get into how Justin’s wilderness adventures escalated from a night or two out in the bush to a much grander scale. Justin described his 2017 journey as “a big challenge and an unforgettable blessing”. In 2018 Justin took on an even bigger challenge, this time in Labrador, the mainland part of the province of Newfloundland and Labrador, Canada, during which he covered 1,700km. We discuss these wilderness journeys, the skills he needed, the lessons he learned and much more. Plus we touch on what’s next for Justin and for his faithful companion Saku.

Our conversation forms Episode 38 of the Paul Kirtley Podcast…, which you can listen to below…

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Man carrying canoe in wilderness
A bit of a portage… Photo: Justin Barbour.
Black dog stands in front of wilderness camp
Saku guards camp. Photo: Justin Barbour.
Things get chilly… Photo: Justin Barbour.

Connect with Justin

Justin Barbour on YouTube
Justin Barbour on Facebook
Justin Barbour on Instagram
Justin Barbour on Twitter
https://newfoundlandexplorer.com/

Links Mentioned In This Podcast

TA Leoffler
Happy People: A Year in the Taiga
The Lure of the Labrador Wild

Thanks For Listening!

Thanks for joining me on this podcast. If you have any comments about this episode, please leave them in the comments section below.

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons at the top of this page. Thanks!

And Finally…

Finally don’t forget to leave an honest review & rating on iTunes or on Stitcher.

Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of this podcast and I read each and every one of them.

Related Material On Paul Kirtley’s Blog

PK Podcast 037: Dan Hume On His Quest For Traditional Fire Skills

PK Podcast 028: Joe Robinet On His Love Of Camping, Bushcraft & Making A Living On YouTube

PK Podcast 017: Al Humphreys On Adventures Great And Small

 


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8 thoughts on “PK Podcast 038: Justin Barbour On Exploring The Wilderness Of Newfoundland And Labrador”

  1. Dan says:
    at 05:43

    This podcast is my new most favourite that you have made. Justin is going to be a leader on You Tube once he gets more content on his channel. His adventures done solo and with basic gear are unique

    Reply
    1. Paul Kirtley says:
      at 19:07

      Hi Dan,

      Thanks for your comment. I’m glad you enjoyed this podcast so much. I’m also looking forward to seeing more from Justin on his YouTube channel, both the remaining episodes of the Newfoundland trip, as well as accounts of other trips too.

      Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy future podcasts too.

      Warm regards,

      Paul

      Reply
  2. Davide says:
    at 12:15

    Hello Paul and thanks again for your podcasts and askpaulkirtley. I have a silly request here. I know you publish your podcast already on many platforms but if you would consider putting it on spotify as well that would be very appreciated. Here’s a link on how to do it 🙂

    https://artists.spotify.com/faq/popular#how-do-i-get-a-podcast-on-spotify

    Keep going with the good work and hopefully we’ll see each other on another of your courses.

    Reply
    1. Paul Kirtley says:
      at 18:47

      Hi Davide, thanks for your comments and positive words about my podcasts.

      You are not the first to have suggested or requested that I make my podcasts available via Spotify and I’m glad you are in agreement this would be a good idea.

      I have already submitted my podcast to Spotify but as yet have not heard back with a confirmation it has been accepted onto the platform.

      I’m hoping I will have some positive news soon. And I will of course make an announcement when it has been.

      Thanks again and warm regards,

      Paul

      Reply
  3. Tony Goundry says:
    at 09:25

    Great listen again Paul
    Listening whilst travelling to the woods for 3 nights to gain practice data ha ha

    Reply
    1. Paul Kirtley says:
      at 16:41

      Glad you enjoyed it Tony. Hope you enjoyed the woods, despite the high winds…

      Cheers,

      Paul

      Reply
  4. Justin Lake says:
    at 15:11

    Hi Paul,

    Glad to see you have taken an interest in Justin’s adventures. NL is beautiful place, and you should visit us sometime.

    You should also look out for the books A Woman’s Way Through Unknown Labrador, The Long Labrador Trail and Great Heart. There’s a whole saga surrounding this era of Labrador exploration that I find fascinating and I think you will too. You can find the books online through Project Gutenburg and/or the Open Library if they are not available from Amazon.

    Reply
    1. Paul Kirtley says:
      at 16:34

      Hi Justin,

      Yes, NL is definitely on my radar. Thanks for the additional book recommendations. I shall add them to my reading list (which always gets longer, not shorter haha).

      Warm regards,

      Paul

      Reply

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