Northern Bay Sands Park Opening May 14, 2010

The Northern Bay Sands Park is located in the Baccalieu Trail Region - an area where approximately 40,000 people live in a large number of small towns.

If you have the will power to leave the beach to explore - there are many places to visit. There are numerous walking and hiking trails, there is Pitcher's Pond Golf Course in Whiteway (about 60km from Northern Bay), there are numerous museums, and two larger towns - Carbonear (35km) and Bay Roberts (55km) - which offer shopping, restaurants, services and entertainment.

Historical Significance - 2010.

The town of Cupids (65km) is the oldest British Colony in Canada, and this year it is celebrating its 400th Anniversary. (1610-2010) Special events are being held in many towns, including Bay de Verde, Winterton, Old Perlican, Carbonear, Bay Roberts, and of course, Cupids.

For further information, see www.cupidscovechatter.com > >

The Baccalieu Trail region has a rich history of aboriginal occupation extending back over 4000 years. Through the work of the Baccalieu Trail heritage corporation, information about aboriginal settlement by Maritime Archaic Indians, Dorset Eskimo, Recent Indians, and Beothuk in Trinity Bay has been uncovered.

Ecological Significance.

About 35km from Northern Bay Sands off shore from Bay de Verde is the Baccalieu Island Ecological Reserve which is the largest protected seabird island in Newfoundland and Labrador. It hosts more types of breeding seabirds than any other seabird colony in the province, and its 3,360,000-plus pairs of Leach's storm petrels make it the largest Leach's storm petrel colony in the world.

In addition, the region has many different types of wildlife and vegetation including:

• Mammals such as moose, caribou, rabbits, foxes, and marine mammals such as whales.
• Aquatic vertebrates such as Atlantic salmon, brook trout, brown trout, capelin, flounder, cod, and many other species.
• Waterfowl such as: various species of ducks and the Canada goose
• Seabirds such as: various species of gulls and terns
• Song birds such as blue jays, starlings, robins, juncos, chickadees, evening grosbeaks, and finches.
• Other birds such as loons, the ruffled grouse, starlings, crows, hawks, and bald eagles.
• Vegetation includes numerous wild flowers and wild berries such as blueberries.

Geological Significance.

Many parts of the scenic coastline of Conception Bay North were gouged out by glaciers which left in their paths the huge boulders that frequent the region.

One of the most spectacular scenes is the Droke in Job's Cove (7km), near Northern Bay Sands. The Droke is a very steep ravine from the road to the beach.

Pitcher's Pond Golf Course Whiteway (60km)

The Droke in Job's Cove Photo: DFO (7km)