Newfoundland never ceases to disappoint, and having finally made the trip out to Gros Morne National Park; UNESCO world heritage site, I continue to be humbled by the beauty of yet another beautiful place in this incredible province.
The second largest Park in eastern Canada, spanning at 1,805 km2 of western Newfoundland , Gros Morne is a part of the towering Long Range Mountains.
Making Trout River Campground, in the southern part of the park, our base, Sean, Alexander and I explored its diverse landscapes over a few days, juggling hikes and scenic drives, through various weather conditions.
Tablelands Trail: This 4-km, trail show cases a time when the continents of Africa and North America collided, pushing rocks originally beneath the ocean to their present position on land. Ending at a waterfall you can turn back or keep hiking up the earth’s mantle, to the top of the tablelands for an expansive vista. Adding on another two hours we took the challenge and scrambled up rocks, reaching almost to the last remaining patches of snow.
On the short drive back the campsite, we watched as the setting sun lit up the tablelands giving them a golden glow.
The constantly changing weather provided amazing clouds that enveloped the mountains, hills and lakes, and just as quickly released them from its hold.
The lazy day hike was a 3km stroll on a boardwalk over marshes, ending at a dock on Western Brook Pond. There we took a boat between stunning glacier-carved rock walls, on a ten-mile long lake also called a freshwater fjord.
14km Trout River Pond Hike; one of the least traversed hikes in the park, took us through 4km of low-lying forest and along the lake, eventually coming out onto open, rocky plains and ending at the trail head with a quick lunch before heading back to Trout River Campground.
The Lookout Trail was a steady uphill climb, in parts along a boardwalk, emerging on a plateau with breathtaking view of Gros Morne Mountain from Partridgeberry Hill.
The North side of the park had a completely different landscape, with a rugged coastline. The 6km return Coastal Trail once connected two small fishing communities: Bakers Brook and Green Point and leads you by cobble beaches, through dense coastal stunted forests known locally as “tuckamore.”
At low tide the limestone conglomerate at Cow Head is exposed to reveal layers, worn by waves into rugged shelves and cliffs marking the collapse of an ancient tropical reef.