Two Lanes, Top Down, Green Dots: Day 20: Halfway! Gros Morne National Park.

Day 20. Halfway.

Miles 63 (6033)
Two Lanes 51 (4882) 81%
Top Down 51 (5436) 90%

Today we spent the day in Gros Morne National Park on the west coast of Newfoundland. Gros Morne is a United Nations UNESCO World Heritage Site. What is a World Heritage Site?

To quote from the website:

“Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration. Places as unique and diverse as the wilds of East Africa’s Serengeti, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Baroque cathedrals of Latin America make up our world’s heritage.

What makes the concept of World Heritage exceptional is its universal application. World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. This is embodied in an international treaty called the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.”

The 20 sites in the US include Yellowstone, Glacier, Yosemite, The Statue of Liberty and Independence Hall.

So why Gros Morne?

Again to quote:

“Gros Morne National Park illustrates some of the world’s best examples of the process of plate tectonics. Within a relatively small area are classic, textbook examples of monumental earth-building and modifying forces that are unique in terms of their clarity, expression, and ease of access. The property presents the complete portrayal of the geological events that took place when the ancient continental margin of North America was modified by plate movement by emplacement of a large, relocated portion of oceanic crust and ocean floor sediments. The park also presents an outstanding demonstration of glaciation in an island setting. The fjords, waterfalls and geological structures of the park combine to produce a landscape of high scenic value.”

In fact, there is a joke in Newfoundland that the members of the Flat Earth Society (yes, it does exist) believe that Newfoundland is one of the four corners of the world.

We took two 6-mile hikes. One through a bog studded with wildflowers to a beautiful waterfall.

The other trail was through the limestone tilted on its side by the collision of two continents 460 million years, then past the fault line at the end of one of the continents, and onto a fresh water fjord. This fjord, Western Brook Pond is 7 miles long, 500 feet deep, and has water that is almost the clearest and cleanest in the world. It is surrounded by granite and has little sediment flow into it. And there is little human contact with it. No sediments, no nutrients. Nothing grows.

Then off to the local fish market at the wharf where the haul today included turbot. One pound…. Four dollars. We cooked it in our cabin and the rain began to fall.

Enough words. Enjoy the photo essay of Gros Morne.

Mrs. Moose just off our trail. Moose are not natural here. Two pair were brought in in 1904 and their population has swelled to over 100,000. The government is re-evaluating their protective policies since the moose eat native vegetation and destroy habitats, and were responsible for 660 vehicle collisions in Newfoundland last year. So sometimes you have to eat them. See Part 2.