north american native orchid journal - at The Culture Sheet

Brown: TWO WEEKS AND 39 ORCHIDS IN WESTERN
NEWFOUNDLAND
TWO WEEKS AND 39 ORCHIDS IN WESTERN
NEWFOUNDLAND
Paul Martin Brown
One of the truly rewarding trips to be taken in North
America is that of two weeks along the western and northwestern
coast of Newfoundland, the island portion of the Province of
Newfoundland and Labrador, in eastern Canada. Newfoundland
is a large island that is the easternmost outpost of Canada and is
often known as "The Rock" because of the minimal soils over the
bedrock that comprises the island. Coastal northwestern
Newfoundland is essentially limestone and often has large
exposed barrens whereas many of the southwestern areas are large
open bogs and marshes. The Appalachian Mountains of North
America have their northern terminus in Newfoundland and the
spectacular Gros Morne National Park is one of the gems of the
national park system.
Roads are few, but for the most part in excellent repair and
practically all of the prime orchid sites are roadside areas or quite
nearby. Getting there requires either flying into St. John's and
renting a vehicle and then driving across the entire island, which
can take more than a day, or starting at North Sydney, Nova
Scotia and taking the ferry across to Channel-Port aux Basques on
the southwestern tip of the island. I find this preferable, as it is the
starting point for the trip and it takes less driving time than
crossing back and forth to St. John's. Regularly scheduled air
transportation is available to Sydney, as well as car rentals, and it is
only a short drive to North Sydney to the ferry terminal.
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