Looking North The Aspy Fault Line, Cape Breton
Survival Hut, on top of North Mountain
Mark, North Mountain, Cape Breton Highlands
The Cutting, On top of North MountainA visit to the Cape Breton Highlands National Park is an inspiring thing to do at any time of year. While most people see the park in the summer it can also offer some great experiences over the winter and into early Spring.
I ventured up to the Highlands plateau this past weekend to check out the snow depth and to get a feel for what it might be like in a howling blizzard during the middle of winter. At its peak the top of North Mountain is at 1,460ft, not much by ‘traditional’ mountain standards but it does make for some very different weather. It is mostly exposed on all sides and close to the Northumberland Strait where snow storms and squalls blow ashore.
On March 6th 2010 the snow depth at the top was around 21ft deep, on our visit on March 20th it was about 16-18ft deep. As the photos show there’s no way a plough is getting through there to clear the road so the park uses giant snow blowers to clear a path. This leaves a real appreciation of just how wild and unforgiving North Mountain can be. Just along the road from where we stopped is the small survival hut, which has a woodstove and fuel inside for motorists who might get stuck ‘up there’.
I would think the last of this snow will likely be gone by June, I will keep you posted as my first camping/painting trip will be well before then!
I ventured up to the Highlands plateau this past weekend to check out the snow depth and to get a feel for what it might be like in a howling blizzard during the middle of winter. At its peak the top of North Mountain is at 1,460ft, not much by ‘traditional’ mountain standards but it does make for some very different weather. It is mostly exposed on all sides and close to the Northumberland Strait where snow storms and squalls blow ashore.
On March 6th 2010 the snow depth at the top was around 21ft deep, on our visit on March 20th it was about 16-18ft deep. As the photos show there’s no way a plough is getting through there to clear the road so the park uses giant snow blowers to clear a path. This leaves a real appreciation of just how wild and unforgiving North Mountain can be. Just along the road from where we stopped is the small survival hut, which has a woodstove and fuel inside for motorists who might get stuck ‘up there’.
I would think the last of this snow will likely be gone by June, I will keep you posted as my first camping/painting trip will be well before then!
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