What is it about rocks?

Because of the rich pickings from marine life in Port au Choix, this was another ancient spot where once early Inuit groups, then the Dorset Paleo-Eskimo, and finally the Beothuk had lived over the last 3 000 years before Europeans arrived to chase the Beothuk inland where they couldn’t survive. On the way I spotted a moose in the distance crossing the road. The huge animal stopped briefly as it munched its way through the forest.

Subarctic juniper, Port au Choix with the rocks in the background

I was here to see some unusual rock formations (featured image) but the woman at the visitors’ centre couldn’t help. Instead, I hiked the Port au Choix Trail until I caught sight of the cliffs I was looking for. It was windy but the earlier overcast sky had cleared. The top of the cliffs was tessellated and I hopped from one square to the next. Across the Gulf of St Lawrence was Quebec’s coastline that lay hidden in the distance. 

Thrombolites, Flowers Cove

I had the best mussels I’d eaten in Newfoundland before I drove to Flowers Cove further north from Port au Choix where on a clear day it was possible to see Labrador’s coastline. But I’d come to see the thrombolites—living rocks that had dots over them. These dots or clots contains cells—unique in the rock world. Along the well-maintained trail, the thrombolites didn’t look that impressive but were rare being found only in a few places in the world—mostly in Australia. The sign stated that they were ancient forms of the first living creatures.