Stranded: Frustration builds as ferry cancellations ground both passengers and goods

Diane Lake expected a delay in getting all of her household goods from Happy Valley-Goose Bay to St. John's, but she never expected to be living in an almost empty condo for almost a month.

"I have, like, two plates, two mugs and a few dishes," said Lake, opening the cupboard to her kitchen. Almost everything in the sparse condo was left behind by the previous owner.

For several weeks the ferry has not been able to cross the Strait of Belle Isle between Labrador and Newfoundland because of thick ice. Since March 5, it's made just one trip, and only in one direction.

Charter flights are moving people and the coast guard is moving essential groceries, but none of that helps move Lake's possessions.

They are sitting in a truck in the Labrador straits. It's not just dishes, photos and clothes her car is there too.

"You're kind of in limbo," she said.

"I was supposed to go to out of town for a week or two and I can't, because I don't know if my stuff will show up any day."

She only packed a week's worth of clothes with her. If she knew the delays would be this long she would have mailed a lot more essential goods.

The movers did give Lake the option of shipping her stuff out through Quebec and the Maritimes and then into Newfoundland on the Port aux Basques ferry. That trip, however, is much longer and much more expensive.

"I don't have an additional $5-6,000 to do it, to pay the guy" she said.

If the delays continue much longer, her stuff may have to be put into storage, because the moving company needs the truck.

French tourists left without information

Her belongings are not the only things waiting in the straits.

Sebastien Massonett and Guilhem Robert are tourists from the south of France.

They picked up a car in Montreal for a five-month tour of Canada, and decided to visit Labrador to see the northern lights.

But for three days they've been waiting in the straits, with no word on when the ferry will run. Every morning they show up at the ferry terminal to find out that day's sailings are cancelled but there's no word on when conditions might improve.

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"We might not be able to visit Newfoundland, which would be a bit sad for us because everyone here in Labrador is telling us it's really beautiful," said Robert.

He's been hanging out in a coffee shop to say warm, and stay connected with Wi-Fi.

They don't know whether to stay put and the ferry might run, or whether to give up and drive back the way they came, all the way through Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Labrador City and back to Quebec.

"It would have been better to get more information on the website during the trip, saying, careful, the probability of crossing during the next 10 or 15 days will be near zero, because then we wouldn't have done that trip," he said.

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