Beach volleyball hoodies, kayak mittens allow west coast activities to go on in the cold

Earmuffs, winter jackets and gloves should not be standard outerwear in July — but the summer of 2015 has made multiple layers of clothing a staple to stay warm if you're outdoors. 

The unusual snap of cold weather across the province has darkened people's moods, but it hasn't stopped athletes and recreation buffs on Newfoundland's west coast from their favourite activities.

Wearing hoodies, members of the Corner Brook Under-14 Female Beach Volleyball League enjoyed a couple of games Tuesday when CBC Radio's Corner Brook Morning Show stopped by for a visit.

Alex Williams, 14, said she loves the game — and was looking forward to it — cool temperatures or not.

"So, I just came and had a good time," she said.

"It was pretty cold at first, but then we started playing and got warmed up. This is my first year and I'm really liking it."

Katelyn Cleary, 14, has been playing the sport for three years, and said most of her team members are used to cooler weather. 

"This one though is definitely the coldest and the cloudiest," said Cleary.

"I decided to bundle up and come out to the courts. It's really cold out, but once you start moving around, you get warmed up."

Be prepared

Sue Rendell, co-owner of Gros Morne Adventures in Norris Point, told CBC while her hiking and kayaking business could be busier, the cold weather hasn't affected the bottom line.

"Surprisingly, we're having a very good season, despite the cooler temperatures," said Rendell.

"We're just reviewing our numbers the last couple of days, and we're certainly on par … if not, doing a little better than previous years we've had."

Rendell said the majority of tourists who come to the province come prepared.

"I certainly would say we'd probably have more kayakers out if we had our lovely temperatures in the mid-20s and sunshine, but there seems to be a lot of people vacationing here this summer," she said.

"They're certainly not expecting sunshine every day. We make absolutely sure that they have quite a variety of gear for cool temperatures to warm temperatures. I guess the fact is that they're here and they're going to get out and just enjoy it. We've kind of been working with what we have."

Rendell has a little advice for those who want to enjoy a day of hiking or kayaking, and that includes the donning of pogies, which are fleece-lined mitts that are also water resistant. 

"Put on that long-sleeve shirt and put your rain jacket on, [it will] give you a little more insulation," said Rendell.

"But by the time you have your PFD on, you're pretty comfortable in the kayak. I guess the trick is being prepared."

Marine Atlantic seeing spike in reservations

With the poor weather causing flight troubles in St. John's, and turning off many locals from vacationing on the island, Marine Atlantic says it's actually seeing an increase in bookings over the last few weeks.

"We have seen an increase in passenger traffic this year," said Marine Atlantic's Darrell Mercer.

"From July to September we are seeing bookings up 13 per cent."

He said reservations from American customers is up seven per cent during that period, which he thinks is thanks to the low Canadian dollar and cheap gas compared to in the U.S.

As well, they have seen a six per cent increase in Newfoundlanders booking sailings off of the island over the last three weeks, which Mercer suspects are people making last-minute vacation plans to escape the cold and cloudy conditions.

With regard to the actual crossings of the Marine Atlantic ferries, Mercer said the weather has not been a real hindrance so far this season.

"We haven't seen any major impacts from a sailing perspective," he said.

"In comparison to where we were this spring with the significant ice that we experienced, we certainly have sympathies for others who are experiencing some weather-related challenges this year."