Western Brook Pond view via Snug Harbour in Gros Morne National Park

Norris Point, NL, Canada
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Roundtrip: 23.0km
Elevation gain: 600m
High point: 600m
Time needed: 8.5 hours
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peak bushwhacking muddy exposed
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SUMMARY: Start from the Western Brook Pond trail to the boat launch. Follow the signs to Snug Harbor.You will need to ford Western Brook Pond. When I did it (October) the water level was above-thigh high and the current was pretty swift. Parks Canada provides a cable across to hold on to while fording. After that this the trail is easy to follow to pretty snug harbor. Note that the trail can be very very muddy (sometimes a wrong step can make you sink up to your knee). Gaters would be very helpful. In Snug Harbor campground there is a pole with hooks to hang food and a two picnic tables. You will need to buy a permit to camp from the parks visitor center located near Rocky Harbor ($9.80 in October 2010).
From Snug Harbor a very rough trail leads to the cliffs above Western Brook Pond which on a good day offer top-of-the-world views. The path is hardly marked at all and can be extremely muddy. A GPS or a compass and a topographic map would be very helpful. The way to the cliffs is fairly obvious - you go north for a while and then turn east until you get to the flat top, so you may make your own way to the top if you miss the trail. However, if you follow the trail you will need to do very little bush-wacking. The top of the cliffs is covered with very dense knee-high bushes which can be very dense; following the trail will make progress a lot faster. If you follow the trail it takes about 2 hours in a quick pace to get to the top of the cliffs from snug harbor. Try to get there before noon, otherwise the sun will be in your eyes making the view very silhouetted.
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Western Brook Pond View Via Snug Harbour In Gros Morne National Park
Oct 20, 2010
The trail was *VERY* muddy. I didn't think muddy trails can spoil my joy of hiking, but this was like walking in a swamp. I camped in Snug Harbor and climbed to the cliffs twice. The first day the sun was in my eyes, so I decided to come back the next day. There was about 5 cm of snow on the top of the cliffs. On my way back on the first day, my Garmin GPS stopped working. I ended up making my own way down to the camp and made it just when it got dark. I saw many moose and a caribou. It was a lot of effort but the views are fantastic. Not many fjords like this in BC.
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POSTS FROM NEARBY TRAILS
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Gros Morne Trail (James Callaghan)
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Gros Morne Trail (james Callaghan)
Oct 17, 2010
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Gros Morne Trail (james Callaghan)
Sep 18, 1984
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