St. John’s Webcam – See Signal Hill and the Narrows

The St. John’s Webcam looks east from high on the hill above downtown St. John’s, across row houses and the Anglican Cathedral to the harbor and the Narrows, the only entrance to the port from the Atlantic. Signal Hill fills the left of the frame with Cabot Tower on its crest, steep hills on the south side of the harbor close in from the right, and a wedge of open ocean sits between them. Red-hulled service ships tie up along the waterfront at left, and fishing boats line the wharves under the far shore. CBC News in Newfoundland and Labrador runs the camera. It films through a window, so faint reflections sometimes streak the right side of the picture. CBC notes a short maintenance break each Friday morning, when the camera is unavailable.

About St. John’s

St. John’s is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, on the eastern edge of the Avalon Peninsula. The 2021 census counted 110,525 people in the city and 212,579 in the wider metropolitan area. It is one of the oldest cities in North America. The name appears as Sao Joao on a Portuguese map from 1519, and English fishing crews set up seasonal camps here through the 1500s, although a permanent town only took hold after the 1630s.

Signal Hill, at the top left of the frame, guards the Narrows. Its highest point, Ladies’ Lookout, rises 167 meters (548 feet). Cabot Tower, the small tower on the summit, was started in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee and the 400th anniversary of John Cabot’s landfall in 1497, and opened in 1900. On December 12, 1901, Guglielmo Marconi received the first transatlantic wireless transmission on the hill. Much earlier, in 1762, the Battle of Signal Hill was the final battle of the Seven Years’ War in North America, when the French surrendered St. John’s to a British force.

The large Gothic church in the right foreground is the Anglican Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. George Gilbert Scott designed it in 1847, and the nave went up between 1847 and 1850. During the Great Fire of July 8, 1892, the roof timbers caught and the roof collapsed, and the restored cathedral was reconsecrated in 1905. It is 61 meters (200 feet) long and has been a National Historic Site of Canada since 1979. Between the cathedral and the water stand an office block carrying TD signs and a tall white tower.

Weather and Climate in St. John’s

St. John’s is among the foggiest and windiest cities in Canada, and the camera shows it. Canada’s 1991 to 2020 climate normals put the average January high at -0.7 C (31 F) and the low at -7.8 C (18 F). Winters bring an average of 242.8 centimeters (95.6 inches) of snow a season, so the hills around the Narrows can turn white for weeks at a time. Spring arrives late: April averages a high of 5.6 C (42 F) and a low of -1.9 C (29 F).

July is the warmest month, with an average high of 20.9 C (70 F) and a low of 11.2 C (52 F), when the slopes of Signal Hill and the trees below the camera are fully green. October cools to a high of 11.2 C (52 F) and a low of 4.3 C (40 F). The city records about 1,539 millimeters (60.6 inches) of precipitation a year. Among Canada’s major cities it has the most fog, about 124 days a year, and the highest average wind speed, 24.3 km/h (15.1 mph). Fog can fill the Narrows and hide Signal Hill entirely, then clear later in the day to bring the whole view back.

Things to Do Near St. John’s

Signal Hill National Historic Site is the obvious first stop, since it is the hill in the corner of the frame. Walk up to Cabot Tower for the reverse of this view, look round the Queen’s Battery barracks, restored to how they stood in 1862, and follow the North Head Trail, which runs along the edge of the harbor and the sea. The Johnson Geo Centre sits next to the historic site. Back downtown, the Anglican Cathedral is a short walk uphill from the waterfront, and The Rooms houses the provincial museum, art gallery and archives.

Cape Spear lies about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from downtown and still inside the city limits. It is the easternmost point of Canada, and of North America outside Greenland. Its lighthouse dates from 1836 and is the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more harbors in Atlantic Canada, these cameras are worth a look next.

• Port aux Basques Webcam
• St. Philip’s Harbour Webcam
• Halifax Waterfront Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is St. John’s located?

St. John’s is on the eastern edge of the Avalon Peninsula, on the island of Newfoundland, and is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Cape Spear, the easternmost point of North America outside Greenland, is about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from downtown.

What can you see on the St. John’s Webcam?

The camera looks east over downtown to the harbor and the Narrows. Signal Hill and Cabot Tower are on the left, the hills of the south shore on the right and open Atlantic between them, with the Anglican Cathedral, row houses and a few office towers in the foreground.

Does the camera show the harbor and the Narrows?

Yes. The harbor crosses the middle of the frame, with service ships at the waterfront on the left and fishing boats along the south shore, and the Narrows open straight ahead between Signal Hill and the hills opposite. Every ship entering or leaving the port passes through that gap.

Can you see Cabot Tower from this camera?

Yes, when the weather allows. It is the small tower on the summit of Signal Hill at the top left of the picture. In fog or low cloud it can disappear completely, along with the rest of the hill.

Does this webcam show downtown streets?

Not at street level. The camera sits well above downtown, so it looks over rooftops, row houses and treetops rather than down into the streets.

Is this webcam in St. John’s, Newfoundland or Saint John, New Brunswick?

St. John’s, Newfoundland. Saint John in New Brunswick is a separate city on the Bay of Fundy, and St. John’s in Antigua is the capital of that Caribbean island. Neither appears on this camera.

What is the weather like in St. John’s?

Cool and changeable. January averages a high of -0.7 C (31 F) and July a high of 20.9 C (70 F). It is the foggiest and windiest of Canada’s major cities, so fog can fill the view at any time of year.

Why is the St. John’s Webcam not working right now?

CBC takes the camera offline for a short maintenance period each Friday morning, so a blank player then is expected, and the stream returns on its own. Thick fog can also make the picture look empty even while the camera is live.

Source: CBC News NL