On July 17-19, IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol and other representatives from the International Appalachian Trail in North America and Western Europe will attend the 2015 Appalachian Trail Conservancy Biennial Conference in Winchester, Virginia. They will give presentations and distribute a variety of promotional materials at an extra large conference booth equiped with monitor to showcase IAT videos, slideshows and PowerPoint presentations.

On April 24 & 25, IAT chapters from Maine to Newfoundland gathered in Moncton, New Brunswick for the annual IAT North America Council Meeting. The two-day event included presentations on chapter progress, updates on IAT news, discussion of joint projects, and participation in the July, 2015 ATC Biennial in Winchester, Virginia.

On March 29, the day after participating in the official launch of IAT Portugal at Naturtejo Geopark, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol and IAT Spain President Ruth Hernandez crossed the Ebro River into Extremadura to take a three day tour of IAT Spain. From there they traveled a short distance to Alcántara, where the world’s largest Roman bridge at 194m long and 71m high, crosses the Tagus River.

On Saturday, March 28, approximately 1000 people gathered in Naturtejo Geopark, Portugal to officially launch GR38 – Grande Roto Do Muradal-Pangeia as the newest section of the Trilho Internacional dos Apalaches. Joining the crowd were Geopark President Armindo Jacinto, Turismo Centro Portugal President Pedro Machado, IAT Portugal President Carlos Carvalho, Canadian Consul David Marion, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol and IAT Spain President Ruth Hernandez.

As the name suggests, the International Appalachian Trail winds its way across sections of North America’s Appalachian Mountains, before crossing the Atlantic Ocean and following other Pangea related mountains of Western Europe and North Africa. Though the mountains themselves were formed over 250 million years ago when continental plates collided, what is the origin of the name “Appalachian”, the fourth oldest surviving European place name in the United States?

On February 10, the Cabox Global Geopark initiative held its second public meeting at the Grenfell Campus of Memorial University in Corner Brook. Special guest speakers included Alana Hinchey, Senior Geologist with the Newfoundland & Labrador Geological Survey and Mike Jones, President of Beyond Ktaadn and co-author of the recently published Eastern Alpine Guide.

In 1498, just one year after Italian explorer Giovanni Caboto rediscovered North America and six years after fellow Italian Christopher Columbus “discovered” the New World, Portuguese explorers João Fernandes Lavrador and Pêro de Barcelos were the first modern explorers of much of northeastern North America, including the Labrador Peninsula. They were followed (1500-02) by Portuguese explorers Gaspar and Miguel Corte Real. This is the story of Portuguese exploration of North America, the fourth in the IAT Natural and Cultural Heritage Series.

During summer 2014, Appalachian Mountain explorer Lew Coty from Vermont, U.S.A. returned to Newfoundland for another great backcountry adventure, this time circumtrekking Western Brook Pond in Gros Morne National Park. Lew began his 5-day trek in Sally’s Cove on Route 430 (Viking Trail) and followed a clockwise course from the western end of the “pond”.

The newest route of the International Appalachian Trail Newfoundland & Labrador (IATNL) has recently been listed #1 of 4 Amazing Adventure Travel Trips by Explore Magazine. The route extends from Trout River in Gros Morne National Park to James Cook’s Stone Brook in the beautiful Bay of Islands, and is included in the planned Cabox Global Geopark.

Explore Magazine’s Fall 2014 edition recently named the IATNL’s 2015 North Arm Traverse from Trout River in Gros Morne National Park to Back Cove in North Arm, Bay of Islands as one of its Top 16 Amazing Trips for 2015. The 3-day/2-night guided trek will cross some of the most scenic and pristine landscapes in Newfoundland, and will be one of “the most interesting and exciting expeditions in Canada and beyond.” The goal is to find the last leg of a backcountry mountain hiking route connecting Gros Morne National Park to North Arm Ophiolite, with spectacular views and alpine wilderness along every stretch of the way.

In October, the IATNL sponsored Cabox Aspiring Geopark joined the European Union’s Interreg VB Northern Periphery and Arctic Programme’s Drifting Apart project. Its goal is to increase the understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of the fascinating and interconnected geological heritage of the Northern Periphery and Arctic region and its many links to natural, built and cultural heritage. It will also support the development of new and aspiring Global Geoparks and promote innovative products and services for economic prosperity across the Northern Periphery Region.

On October 22, the IATNL’s Arne Helgeland, Kevin Noseworthy and Paul Wylezol set off in boat from Cox’s Cove in Middle Arm, Bay of Islands for Back Cove in North Arm. With them were new windows, assorted lumber and miscellaneous building supplies needed to start restoration of the 50+ year old fishing house now hiking camp at the base of the North Arm Hills, a location central to the planned Cabox Global Geopark spanning the Bay of Islands Ophiolites from Lewis Hills to Tablelands.

After the IAT Annual General Meeting in Plymouth, England, IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol traveled to Paris, France to meet with Madame Claude Hue, President of La Federation Francaise de la Randonnee Pedestre and Monsieur Armand Ducornet, Vice-President of la Federation Europeanne de la Randonnae Pedestre. The October 13 meeting was to discuss the IAT route across France, which will connect with IAT England (via the English Channel) to the north and IAT Spain to the south. The planned route will follow existing FFRP trails along the west coast of France and pass through the city of St. Malo, home port of early French Explorer Jacques Cartier.

From October 6-9, the International Appalachian Trail held its Annual General Meeting in and around the historic city of Plymouth, England, in conjunction with a National Trails Annual Meeting. The event was hosted by the South West Coast Path National Trail, and included tours of Dartmoor National Park, English Riviera Geopark and South Devon AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty).

On September 19-22, IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol attended the 6th International UNESCO Conference on Global Geoparks hosted by Stonehammer Geopark in Saint John, NB. He was there learning about the Global Geopark network, promoting the proposed Cabox Global Geopark in Western Newfoundland, and meeting representatives from Geoparks along the IAT route.

After recently graduating from MUN’s Grenfell Campus with education degrees, IATNL members Katie Broadhurst and Caroline Swan took advantage of some rare free time to make a girls only trek across the Blow Me Down Mountains. Follow them as they spend a few days “trekking, exploring the ancient mountains, re-discovering favourite swimming holes, hanging out by pristine waterfalls, and sleeping under a blanket of stars.”

From August 20-22, IAT Chairperson Paul Wylezol attended the 4th Conjugate Margins Conference in St. John’s and presented a trio of posters on the IAT, IAT Geoparks and the planned Cabox Geopark in Western Newfoundland. The Conference started in 2008 to bring industry and academia together to discuss the similarities of basis evolution in conjugate margins.

IATNL members Katie Broadhurst and Alexandra Fortin have recently completed their new west coast hiking guide, Hikes of Western Newfoundland. Printed by Boulder Publications, it is a full-colour guide to over 60 spectacular trails and trail networks, from easy seaside walks and picnic spots to spectacular multi-day treks. It contains vivid detailed hike descriptions, including difficulty ratings, distances, trailhead GPS references, points of interest, photographs, and maps.

On June 10, the Cabox Global Geopark initiative spanning the Bay of Islands Ophiolites from Lewis Hills to Tablelands held its first public meeting at the Grenfell Campus of Memorial University in Corner Brook. IAT and Geopark Chairperson Paul Wylezol gave presentations on the IAT and proposed Geopark, while Special Guest Speaker Hugh Barron, Marketing Sector Manager with the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, Scotland, gave a presentation on Global Geoparks.

On June 23, IAT/IATNL Chairperson Paul Wylezol and IATNL executive member Delano Pittman took advantage of a beautiful early summer day to head into North Arm of the Bay of Islands to look for an overland route to the IAT hiking camp at Stowbridges, within the boundary of the proposed Cabox Global Geopark spanning the four Bay of Islands Ophiolites.