TRAIL TRIVIA
In Canada, Island Hopping Could Go On Forever!
Nobody knows how many islands are in Canada. They have never been all counted - and maybe never will be. To give an idea of the task, there are about 30,000 islands in Ontario's Georgian Bay alone. If islands are land surrounded by water, than Baffin Island in Canada's North is our largest, making up an area of 507,451 square kilometres. The North can also claim the second and third largest with Victoria Island taking up an area of 217,290 square kilometres, followed by Ellesmere Island at 196,236 square kilometres. Closer to home for most Canadians, Newfoundland takes up an area of 108,860 square kilometres. Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island at 10,311 square kilometres and Vancouver Island at 31,284 square kilometres. But the island with the largest population is Ile De Montreal with well over 1.5 million people.
There's More to a Berg than Meets the Eye!
Outside the earth's polar regions, Newfoundland can claim to be the biggest iceberg show in the world. During May to August, most of these "Titantic-sinkers" drift by, weighing an average of half a million tons, though some have been estimated to tip the scales at around ten million tons. Most of Newfoundland's icebergs have floated down from Greenland, taking about two to three years to make their sea journey. Only about one-seventh of an iceberg is above water, so there's a dangerous amount floating unseen below the surface. Scientists have calculated that the world's icebergs contain about 75 percent of the world's fresh water.
Oh Ursalia, Our Home and Native Land
Canada is a nice name for a country, but before we officially became one in 1867, the press, politicians and citizens of the day tossed around a number of potential names. Some of the other names tripping lightly off the tongue included Laurentia, Brittania, Acadia and even New Britain. Other wackier ones were Columbia, Cabotia, Canadian and Ursalia. When Canada was finally chosen as the new nation's name, Upper and Lower Canada changed their names to Quebec and Ontario.
Come and learn about our native roots and how it is connected to the Trans Canada Trail by choosing the next button.
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