newfoundland question

We're working on a rough itinerary for our trip to Newfoundland in June. We very much want to go up to L'Anse Aux Meadows, the archaeological site of the Viking settlement which is the earliest known European contact in the new world. The site is way at the top of the Northern Peninsula; there's only one road, and it's a fair distance, so we have to map out a plan to make sure we have enough time. And of course, there are all the other things we want to do - whale-watching, iceberg watching, Gros Morne National Park, among other things.

From what I read and hear, it seems like a lot of visitors to Newfoundland go to St. John's and the Avalon Peninsula, and that's it. It sounds like the Avalon is a microcosm for the whole province - a stand-in, so to speak, where if you were only going to be in Newfoundland for a few days or a week, you could tool around the Avalon and see a little bit of all the different Newfoundland attractions. Given that, it also sounds like the Avalon is much more heavily touristed.

Our timing works out better if we spend a day or two in St. John's, then head west towards the Bonavista Peninsula. But do I have the courage to skip the Avalon entirely? People rave about Witless Bay Ecological Preserve and the Irish Loop. But something tells me that's because that's all they've seen of Newfoundland. If we're going to Bonavista and Twillingate and the Northern Peninsula and Gros Morne, is there something in Witless Bay that we won't see anywhere else?

Keep in mind that we can't see everything, you never can on any trip. Also keep in mind if we go to the Avalon, it would be for a day or two at most. So given all that, do you think we can skip the Avalon and not miss something completely unique and must-see?