AWE (wonder, amazement, astonishment) STRUCK (smacked, socked, walloped, clobbered) at GROS MORNE

August 5, 2019:

 Gros Morne means “Great Somber” and is named for the big mountain standing alone in the midst of all this grandeur. There is literally no other place like it in the world. Because of its unique status it is not only a Canadian National Park but also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the place where ancient continents  collided and left evidence to prove the theory of plate tectonics and the geological differences in the various “arms”, fjords, seashores, terrain, and mountains is astounding.

Heading west from Grand Falls-Windsor we started with a beautiful cloudless sky but the closer we got to the Western Shore, the darker it got. By the time we turned north at Deer Lake it had become cold and drizzly with high winds. I had not made reservations thinking in some vague way that we would stay in Shoal Brook as we did in 2008.

Water’s Edge, in Shoal Brook, did have a vacancy but things had gone downhill there in 11 years.  They could only offer 15amp electric and non-potable water. We pushed on and found ourselves crossing the Tablelands region of Gros Morne in a high wind. What a relief when we reached Elephant Head Campground in Trout River. They had plenty of spaces, a nearly new park, and 3-way hookups. We stayed there a week!

Trout River is a lively little municipality surrounded by Gros Morne National Park. There is a lovely NP campground there also but it is deeply wooded and has no facilities.  We strongly suspected that the bugs would be bad and later met some campers who confirmed our fears. In NFL it is always best to camp out in the bald open spaces no matter how attractive those shady spots look.

Next day we were off to the Discovery Center for the Tablelands at Gros Morne. This is the best national park interpretive center ever, in either the US or Canada. In 2008 we spent hours here and did so again this time. I bought a new book, Rocks Adrift: the Geology of Gros Morne National Park, to add to our collection and we set out to look at rocks.  We began by exploring the area around Trout River, Woody Point, and the Tablelands by jeep and with short walks.  I walked the Serpentine Trail and saw tons of serpentine (duh), as well as fields of flowers including pitcher plants, bog orchids and oodles of others that I did not recognize. This is always the case in NFL, the quantity and variety of wild flowers is staggering.

Other sites on our list were Lobster Cove Head, Green Point, Green Gardens, and Trout River/Pond. Over the next few days we were able to spend lots of quality time at each of them and saw marvelous things! In every case the wildflowers vied for attention with the geological formations.

Lobster Cove: Where the "impossible" combinations of rocks and fossils confirmed plate techtonics 

The meadow about Green Point.

Green Point where you can "read" the history of the earth over millions of years

Turn these vertical cliffs on their side and the layers tell a story. Just like tree rings.

These cliffs were flat plates of sea bed.

Since we are limited in the distance we can hike, we were so fortunate to find two local fishermen who were willing to take us out in their boats. We went all the way to the end of Trout River/Pond with George and his neighbor, Alan, in George’s Bayliner. Then, Alan took us out on the ocean in his fishing boat to see Green Gardens and the cliffs and caves along the coast. They were both very knowledgeable and made the trips up close and personal. Alan also gave us a mess of fresh cod fillets that were out of this world.

Trout River/Pond is actually a fjord

The backside of the Tablelands from Trout River/Pond

Green Gardens from the Atlantic side

Our last day in Trout River we attended the Bang Belly Pudding Festival. BBP is a kind of bread pudding made from an assortment of ingredients. After the official “judging”, we sampled the entries. It was actually pretty good! We loved the music and the opportunity to visit with local folks.

We left Trout River yesterday morning in pouring rain and high wind but the weather improved considerably when we reached Kippens. We were even able to let Bonnie run on the beach last night.