On November 28, 2016, the 4th general meeting of Cabox Aspiring Geopark was held at the Atrium of Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland in Corner Brook. In addition to updates on the past year’s developments and a preview of next year’s Canada 150/Cook 250 commemoration, Grenfell History Professor Olaf Janzen gave a presentation on James Cook in Newfoundland.
The meeting began with a presentation on the geology of Eastern Canada and Western Newfoundland by Alana Hinchey, Senior Geologist with the Newfoundland and Labrador Geological Survey, partner in the EU Interreg funded Drifting Apart project.
Alana’s presentation was followed by a slideshow by IAT chairperson Paul Wylezol, who gave an update on developments since the last Cabox meeting in March 2016, including restoration work of the IATNL fishing outpost / basecamp at Stone Brook, North Arm, IAT UltramaTrex hiking trail connecting all four of the Bay of Islands Ophiolites, and Thor’s Landing hiking hut on the Humber Valley Trail. Paul also briefed the audience on his recent tour of the UK and Ireland to give James Cook 250 presentations at England’s Captain Cook Museums, and attend the IAT AGM in Ireland and 7th International Conference of UNESCO Global Geoparks at Torquay, English Riviera.
Professor Janzen’s presentation on Cook was a prelude to next year’s 250th anniversary celebration of Cook charting the Bay of Islands and Bonne Bay during his fifth and final year of surveying the coasts of Newfoundland, leading directly to his selection by the British Admiralty and Royal Society to lead a voyage to the Pacific Ocean in 1768 to witness the transit of Venus and search for the fabled southern continent.
For more on the story, go to the
International Appalachian Trail Newfoundland & Labrador website.