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Explore remote Canadian island that’s one corner of the world, according to ‘flat-earthers’

Looking for an off-grid experience? Try Fogo Island in Newfoundland, believed by flat-earthers to be one of the earth’s four corners

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The Fogo Island Inn in Canada.

It’s getting harder than ever to find far-flung, unspoiled travel destinations. “Palawan is the new Maldives,” declares my Instagram feed, while TV shows have turned previously charming countries like Croatia and Iceland into geeked-out fan conventions.

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So, when an opportunity arose to visit Newfoundland and Labrador, my interest was piqued. I knew relatively nothing about the place, other than that the province is a remote part of Canada, northeast  of Boston, where I live. I knew that two popular breeds of large dogs originated there. And I knew that none of my friends had posted a recent selfie from the easternmost province.

Jutting out into the North Atlantic on a map, the province is broken into two parts – Labrador to the north is separated from Newfoundland by the Gulf of Saint Lawrence – that look a bit like a seagull attacking a fried clam.

My plane ticket confirmed that it was an astronomical pain to get there; I was booked through Toronto, then St. John in Newfoundland, and into Gander, which is situated further north on the island.

Fogo Island is part of Newfoundland.
Fogo Island is part of Newfoundland.
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I did not linger long in Gander. There did not seem to be much to it, other than strip malls, and some exceptionally nice people, including one man who sold me a bottle of vodka at the liquor store where I stopped, fearing it might be the last one I saw for some time. Instead, I headed north, to the ominously named Farewell, to catch the hour and fifteen minute ferry to Fogo Island.

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