At the tip of Cape Breton Island
the world seems infinite. You can almost taste the salt of the
Atlantic Ocean and all sounds are dwarfed by the noise of the crashing
surf.
Lief Ericcson is rumored to have sailed by this island in 1001, and
John Cabot landed just north of the park on June 24, 1497, grandly
claiming all of North America for Britain. But his words meant
little to the hundreds of French and Portugese fishermen who began
fishing off the
island's coast.
By the 1750s and 1760s, the English and French were battling for
territory. And new immigrants, including Scottish farmers, began
to arrive. What remained unchanged was the special beauty of Cape
Breton.
Today more than half a million visitors annually visit Cape Breton
Highlands National Park. The
boundaries of the park include interior
rivers and forests. In the Grand Anse Valley, old-growth stands
of sugar maple provide shade for maidenhair ferns, sweet cicely,
toothwort and bellwort.
Wildlife
includes colonies of
black guillemots, arctic terns, double-crested cormorants and other
seabirds. Off-shore are pilot, Finback and minke whales and
harbor porpoises.
Green-winged teal, red- breasted
and common mergansers,
goldeneyes and other
ducks take refuge in highland ponds and lakes, and moose and black bear
inhabit the forests.
WHAT TO DO IN THE PARK
Auto Drive:
The 185 mile Cabot Trail winds across the eastern, western and northern
boundaries of the park. Take a side trip to Middle Head for
beautiful views of South Ingenish Bay. Halfway through the drive
another side road takes you to the fishing community of Meat Cove on
St. Lawrence Bay. Another choice is a trip to Beulach Ban
Falls
Hiking:
Choose between 28 hiking trails in the park. Skyline Trail is 4.4
miles and leads to the top of a cliff on Jumping Brook Mountain.
The 7 mile Coastal Trail begins at Black Brook and ends at a tiny cove
called Squeaker's Hole.
Other activities:
Salmon fishing, bicycling, whale-watching (boat tours from mid-May
until mid-September), swimming at Ingonish Beach, golfing and
cross-country skiing.
WHERE TO STAY
The park has six campgrounds and two, Cheticamp and Ingonish, are open
year round. The Keltic Lodge is a resort on Middle Head offering
rooms and two and four bed cottages. Cape Breton Highland
Bungalows are next to Freshwater Lake in Ingonish Beach.
