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Hike Baker’s Brook Falls and Move
Category: Canadian National Parks
Western Brook Pond
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Geology Lecture
Green Point and was our view in back of our campsite
Green Point with two Adirondack chairs in the distance
At 10:00 we went to Green Point to hear a geology lecture. Chris Rohrback gave the talk, and she was great. She has a way of making a difficult subject simpler and fun. It is the eroded remnants of a mountain range formed 1.2 billion years ago. “The park provides a rare example of the process of continental drift, where deep ocean crust and the rocks of the earth’s mantle lie exposed.” (Centre, UNESCO World Heritage).
Gros Morne became a national park 1973, but it was for the geological studies that it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The complex nature of a tremendous upheaval a billion years ago made for a lifetime study by Robert Stevens and Harold Williams, who established the concept of tectonic plate movement.
This site offers a unique, exposed view of the plates turned vertical so you can readily see all the layers. Chris explained how the world was one supercontinent, before Africa and Europe pulled away, drifting to the east, leaving parts of Africa and Spain along the east coast of Newfoundland. Parts of these Appalachian Mountains went with Europe and can still be seen today.
These mountains were the size of the Himalayas. Thousands of years of erosion have reduced their size, and glaciers gouged out U-shaped valleys, pushing boulders all the way to the ocean and this beach. There are layers of sediment, shale (compacted mud), limestone, soapstone and whatever the other one was. “Here geologists discovered fossils that define the boundary between the Cambrian and Ordovician periods and makes Green Point a world geological benchmark.” (https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/nl/grosmorne/activ/decouverte-tours/gp)
Once a thriving fishing village, there are many restrictions today.
One or two still fish from this great spot
Hiking Gros Morne Mountain
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Moving to Gros Morne National Park
Monday July 22, 2019
It was about a two-hour drive to Gros Morne National Park, the jewel of Newfoundland. We made our way to Green Point Campground and checked in. While Martha checked in, I talked to two ladies riding their bikes with all the camping gear on board. They started at the Ferry and were on a three-week trip. They don’t carry food, so they eat all their meals out, which requires a lot of planning. They were staying in the campground and would take the cruise tomorrow.
Our site was lovely, in a grassy area with woods behind. At the edge of the woods were two Adirondack chairs and a table looking out on the Bay of St. Lawrence and a tiny fishing village with its man-made harbor. There was a very modern, beautiful shower house that made Martha very happy. There was even a WIFI tower, unheard of for a national park. Perfect!!
The Coastal Trail starts in the campground, so after riding in the truck all morning, we were ready to stretch our legs. It’s a 6k return walk out and back, following an old mail route taken with sled dogs. Bushes are swept back by obviously powerful winds. Underneath was very cool and offered some protection from winds and rain. A few geese rested in the grass.
The bikes of the ladies we met earlier, who are biking Newfoundland for three weeks.
We started a fire, fixed a drink and enjoyed a beautiful, cool evening.
Wild Pacific Trail
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Move to Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
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Lighthouse Route and Fundy National Park
45℉ at 6:00 with high of 58℉
Sunday, October 9, 2016
We packed up and drove south on Rt 11 for an hour before turning onto the coastal road, called the Lighthouse Trail. It was a good move as it was beautiful. The road is right on the coast with little houses and farms along the way. There were funny-looking things in the water that I think were for oyster farming. We passed a couple of men up to their butts digging for clams, or maybe oysters. The route goes out on a peninsula where there is a bridge to Prince Edward Island, but we cut across to Moncton. Driving through downtown, Moncton looks like a nice city. There is a beautiful walkway along the Petiticodiac River. We stopped and went over to see if we could catch the tidal bore as the muddy river bed was totally empty. People were out walking and jogging on this Thanksgiving Sunday, a pleasant morning. Soon we could see the water rushing in, although there wasn’t a big wave. This is the area where tides change up to 34 feet.
Crossing the river and turning along the south shore of New Brunswick, we passed a lot of campers returning home. At the eastern edge of Fundy National Park is a cute little coastal village of Alma. Martha drooled at the shops, seafood restaurants and two seafood markets. By the time we got to the Visitor’s Center, it was sprinkling rain. The nice young lady told us all about the park and where to go look for moose. Fishing was closed for the season. The campground was full and not as private as Kouchibouguac, but it is OK. We were lucky to get settled before the rains came harder.
After lunch we went to the Visitor’s Center for WIFI. Finally I could connect to the WIFI and catch up on posting. I spent some time categorizing the posts, a tedious job, but I got a lot done before getting bored. Rt 114 runs right through the park. We drove north, stopping at a beautiful overlook. Nova Scotia loomed in the fog. We drove on to Caribou Trail to look for moose. A beautiful place for moose, we took a couple of pictures, but it was windy and raining, the worst kind of cold, so we drove and explored for a while, finding a great lake to kayak when the weather gets better. No moose were spotted. Maybe on a warmer evening, we could dress better and wait.
During cocktail hour, we read the park brochure, and it’s a good one. It does the normal descriptions of trails and things to do in the park, but also has a map of Alma, listing all the stores and places of interest. Then there is a page in the back describing places to see along the southern coast of the Lighthouse Route.
We ate the last of the lobster Newburg over toast and a sweet potato with lobster sauce. Yum!
Kayaking Black River and Hiking Claire Fontaine Trail
42℉ at 5:00 and 75 at 3:00
Saturday, October 8, 2016
Kayaking the Black River was the goal of the day. Since we just have one kayak, I went first to test the waters while Martha hiked the Claire Fontaine Trail. They haven’t had much rain, so the river was low. The tide was out, adding to the problem, but I enjoyed exploring for a little over an hour. I found a lot of ducks and some shore birds. Then the wind kicked up and I returned to the put-in spot. Shortly Martha returned from her hike, saying how much she enjoyed it. She opted to sit and read her book while I took the hike. Although the river is pretty, the leaves took center stage. We had our lunch at a picnic table in the sun, enjoying the view.
Driving back, we stopped at Callanders Beach, which is on the sound. By now, the tide was in pretty good. It’s a couple of hundred yards to the beach, so I tried walking across. Martha said she would wait. Once up to my knees at about 75 yards, I chickened out. Surely it would be fun in the summer. This is a gorgeous place, rich in fish, clams, lobsters, deer and moose. Like the Shenandoah National Park, they made a lot of people mad when they took their homes and farms, but it saved a beautiful place for generations.
Martha made Lobster Newburg with the extra lobsters. It was wonderful!
Lobster and a Bike Ride
44℉ at 5:00 with a high of 77℉
Friday, October 7, 2016
It’s Thanksgiving weekend in Canada, so everyone is out, and the campground is quickly filling up. The weather forecast is great, except Sunday it is supposed to rain. We needed a few things from the grocery, so we drove to Saint-Louis (not THAT St. Louis!). As we crossed the river into town, a huge Acadian flag greeted us, waving in the light breeze. It is a French flag with a star on it. Martha had read about an outdoor store, so we stopped in. Obviously a busy place, they were well-stocked for fall, winter and hunting season with coats, gloves, boots, ski pants and shirts. Martha found a mid-weight coat she liked.
There is a south end of the park here, so we asked how to get there. Following the road in front of the store, we arrived at a dock with fishing boats, a little sandwich shop and sheds where boats could store their gear. Martha read a park sign and thats all there was. There were no trails, just the docks. Martha said, “Let’s see if we can buy some lobsters”, so I followed her. Several crusty locals were talking on the dock, and she walked right up to them, her purse slung over her shoulder. They were quite happy to tell us how it all worked, and yes, you just wait for a boat to come in and go ask. A huge tractor trailer was pulling a boat of the water for the season. One gentleman was particularly friendly, talking about how warm it had been, and how it had been a good season for lobsters. Martha asked how you cook them, and they gave their directions. A younger man, looking more worldly came out of a building. His English was excellent. He had been an underwater welder, working in the middle east for a while and living in Vancouver for a long time. He had a girlfriend in the Bahamas, but had move back here to look after his sick father, and was working here as a boat mechanic.
They pointed out a boat that had somehow slipped by us while we were talking, so we thanked them and went over to talk to the captain. One fellow pulled out his plastic bag to put lobsters in. I ran up to the truck to find something while Martha asked all about lobsters, how to cook them, whether you want girl or boy lobsters and what size is best. Only a little grey-haired lady could get away with asking all these things, but they were very friendly and answered all the questions and talked about other issues as well. A young man working the boat grew up right here next to the docks. Another gentleman lived nearby. When the government started the park, they gave the young man’s grandmother $1000 for her house. The older man said he had 35 acres on the other side of the river and they gave him $400 for it. There was no negotiating. Then the older guy got onto US politics. Everyone here is fascinated with the election. They watch the debates, and they all think Trump is crazy. I don’t talk politics, so I tried to redirect to Canada’s new president. They seem to like him, saying the previous administration did nothing. We bought four “market” lobsters at $6.75/lb. The others bought “canners”, smaller lobsters they said tasted better. We bought females, as they suggested eating the eggs.
As we drove back to the grocery store for some other things we needed, we debated about when and how to cook the lobsters. We settled on cooking them for lunch, so we started a fire, got out the kettle and other things. While Martha tended the fire, I went to the beach to get sea water, one of the suggestions. We decided to cook two and eat them while the other two cooked. Then we would pick the second ones and later make a lobster Newburg. It was a great feast! It was also a big mess, but we were glad to have newspapers and a picnic table to eat on, with trash cans nearby.
After resting our tummies for a while, we rode the bikes upriver for an hour. There are extensive bike paths, which are fine gravel roads – very smooth with no ruts. Signs marked directions for marathon runners, who will race here Sunday. I couldn’t understand the signs, but since Martha has run a few half marathons, she translated for me. Some signs were for half marathoners, some for 10K, and they directed them into different turns and told them how far they had run. It is a beautiful place for a marathon, especially with the leaves in full color. We passed some kids picking apples off a tree with sticks. We commented about how the bears would come by here tonight. I counted 12 bear poops in the trail along our journey.
Tomorrow we will try kayaking one or two of the rivers. One more kayak would be nice. It was interesting to sit out in camp and watch the campers rolling in – big campers! Kids were having a big time riding their bikes around, while others chased on foot. One trailer across from us had some kind of light show after dark while little kids ran around chasing lights, screaming with joy. Some had set out carved pumpkins and balloons. Thankfully, things quieted down at bedtime. I’m sure they slept well.