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Friday, August 21st - A sunny day on Sunday Hill
The day started warm in the sub-arctic region! We never imagined that it could be 25 degrees at 8:30 in the morning here. Happy Valley Goose Bay belongs to the Newfoundland & Labrador province and is located at 53 degrees North. The area was covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet, which reached more than 2000 meters of elevation during the last glacial maximum, 21 thousands years ago. The ice flow modified the landscape and when the ice retreated, sedimentary bodies and lakes were formed.
Today, we went to “Sunday Hill” park which was constructed in the late 80's on a moraine, an ice-related sediment accumulation rock. It is called Sunday Hill because it is the place where Innu families spent their Sundays, having picnics and playing together. While we were enjoying the magnificent landscape, Scott Neilson, from the Labrador Institute, told us about the life and culture of Innu and Inuit people. Both cultures are associated to the Aboriginal inhabitants of this region; the Innu living inland and Inuit living along the coastline, depending on their hunting habits. Actually, while constructing the park, a Ramah chert-stone tool dating of about 5,000 years ago was found. We had the opportunity to see more of them at the Labrador Interpretation Center located in North West River. The Aboriginal culture has a sharing and not storing way of live. Our personal view regarding this amazing culture is directly reflected in a phrase that was shown on the Museum's wall: “Whoever got the first salmon in spring shared it with everybody. You always shared it” (Freeman Russell, William's Harbour).
Happy Valley-Goose Bay has so much to offer. Merline Fonkwe, from the Labrador Institute, took us to Welbourne Bay where we had the privilege to witness an iron-sand beach. She brought rocks from the Cape Caribou property, where shiny blue rocks called Labradorite are found. Merline explained that she had been working on mineral deposits in Labrador and that they were still trying to find the source of mineralization. Wherever that place is, it seems that the iron is beneficial to raspberry plants, which are found everywhere along the dune of Welbourne Bay beach. Yes, that was a joke, we have no proof that the iron has anything to do with it, but they were really tasty. Overall, it was an exciting day. It is now time for us to go to bed and get ready for the best of adventures: the Torngat Mountains!
Yarisbel Garcia Quintana
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Today, we went to “Sunday Hill” park which was constructed in the late 80's on a moraine, an ice-related sediment accumulation rock. It is called Sunday Hill because it is the place where Innu families spent their Sundays, having picnics and playing together. While we were enjoying the magnificent landscape, Scott Neilson, from the Labrador Institute, told us about the life and culture of Innu and Inuit people. Both cultures are associated to the Aboriginal inhabitants of this region; the Innu living inland and Inuit living along the coastline, depending on their hunting habits. Actually, while constructing the park, a Ramah chert-stone tool dating of about 5,000 years ago was found. We had the opportunity to see more of them at the Labrador Interpretation Center located in North West River. The Aboriginal culture has a sharing and not storing way of live. Our personal view regarding this amazing culture is directly reflected in a phrase that was shown on the Museum's wall: “Whoever got the first salmon in spring shared it with everybody. You always shared it” (Freeman Russell, William's Harbour).
Happy Valley-Goose Bay has so much to offer. Merline Fonkwe, from the Labrador Institute, took us to Welbourne Bay where we had the privilege to witness an iron-sand beach. She brought rocks from the Cape Caribou property, where shiny blue rocks called Labradorite are found. Merline explained that she had been working on mineral deposits in Labrador and that they were still trying to find the source of mineralization. Wherever that place is, it seems that the iron is beneficial to raspberry plants, which are found everywhere along the dune of Welbourne Bay beach. Yes, that was a joke, we have no proof that the iron has anything to do with it, but they were really tasty. Overall, it was an exciting day. It is now time for us to go to bed and get ready for the best of adventures: the Torngat Mountains!
Yarisbel Garcia Quintana
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A view from Sunday Hill.
Welbourne Bay Beach