On June 15, 2015, IAT long distance hiker Diane Arnold from Connecticut, USA joined IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol and IATNL Finance Director Kevin Noseworthy on an exploratory hike to the top of the Elephant at the southwest corner of Trout River Inner Pond, above the narrows. The goal was to find a new trail route on/off the mountains as part of the third stage of the IAT UltramaTrex across the Bay of Islands Ophiolites, from Lewis Hills to Tablelands.

The day began with a 3km walk along a new ATV trail following the Gros Morne National Park boundary until it turns south near Narrows Brook and heads towards Gregory River flowing into Chimney Cove.  From there, the trio scouted out moose and woodcutter trails until they reached Narrows Brook, which flows into Trout River Pond east of the Narrows.  They then forded across the shallow meandering brook several times up river until they were near the bottom of a scree field spilling down from a lower summit, which they climbed to avoid the hill’s waist-high scrub and dense trees.  The top of the lower summit provided a rear view of the Elephant’s head and the last bush-weaving ascent to the top.

For more on the story, go to the IATNL Website