A piece of paradise locals kept to themselves, until now
'There are 18 UNESCO sites in Canada and almost a quarter of them are here in Newfoundland,' she says. 'There are 22 species of whales and dolphins that come into the bay here alone. There's so much here people know nothing about.'
I follow a winding road through forest to a new luxury eco-lodge built high above the valley floor. Gros Morne Inn has a Gold Sustainable Tourism Certification and runs almost entirely on solar and hydroelectricity while its managers – both born-and-bred Newfies – committed years towards protecting the island's marine environment. Co-manager Rebecca Brushett has a degree in marine biology and environmental policy and founded an organisation that promotes ways to grow sustainable communities in Newfoundland while protecting the ocean.
I eat dinner in the inn's restaurant, Taste. Its produce is sourced direct from local farmers and from Ocean Wise-certified seafood partners. 'We get the same amount of visitors in Gros Morne National Park in a year that Banff gets in a weekend,' co-manager Ian Stone tells me. 'So younger people from Newfoundland used to all go away for work, but they're starting to come home, for tourism, some of them to farm organically. Newfoundland could be one of Canada's best sustainable tourism destinations. Like Norway really, without the cruise boats.'
The road's a lonely place to be as I drive north next morning, weaving along the coast, past deserted beaches and into rich green meadows, fringed by the continuous Long Range Mountains. I stop at a national historic site in the fishing village of Port au Choix, where I hike along trails used up to 6000 years ago by ancient Palaeo-Eskimo people, to limestone barrens where depressions left by long-ago houses are part of one of North America's most significant archaeological finds (117 skeletons were found here).
I walk for hours among just a few people, locals mostly. In these tiny seaside villages, you can't stop a Newfie talking. If only I knew what they were saying; most sound like pirates, and they speak in riddles, with constant quips about their weather. As I drive further north, the ocean's as calm as a lake, with barely a puff of breeze.
I reach L'Anse aux Meadows World Heritage site near the northern tip of Newfoundland, bathed in the gentlest afternoon sunshine. The first and only site established by Vikings in North America – there are buildings here from 1000AD, the earliest evidence of Europeans in the New World, predating Christopher Columbus by almost half a millennium. This is the only undisputed site of pre-Columbian trans-oceanic discovery within the Americas, yet I wander past 1000-year-old village relics beside a stunning rocky coastline with no one around (fewer than 30,000 people visit each year). I stay nearby, and am told to listen for humpback whales breathing during the night. I don't hear any, but next morning the sea's full of them. 'This isn't the end of the world,' a local tells me when our paths cross on a dawn walk. 'But you can see it from here.'
Travelling across north-west Newfoundland is a mix of new-age, eco-tourism and old-fashioned quaintness. Some of my rooms share the same carpet scheme as RSL clubs. Fish and chips (and cod tongue) often comes served with vast helpings of batter, but for every over-oiled chip there's a farm-to-table meal option.
At Upper Humble Settlement (near Deer Lake), I take a foraging tour to learn how to live off the land as the indigenous peoples did for thousands of years, before I settle for a four-course meal served within a sustainable farm. At the region's top tourism attraction – Western Brook Pond, a fjord within Gros Morne National Park surrounded by billion-year-old, 600-metre-high sheer rock walls – I travel aboard the first tourist boats in North America to receive the industry's highest environmental rating.
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I also walk with indigenous guides through parts of this north-western region as they share the history of their local Mi'kmaq people. 'The tourism we're seeing now is reconciliation in action,' Qalipu First Nations Chief Jenny Brake tells me. 'Nothing else allows us to tell our story.' I'm in the midst of a transition; overseas travellers would come here on coach tours, now the international tourists who come prefer to slip off into the wilderness, barely leaving a footstep.
'You can tell your people this,' a local advises me. 'Should we all make it to heaven, Newfoundlanders are the only folk who prefer it at home.'
THE DETAILS
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Air Canada offers daily flights to Deer Lake via Vancouver from Australia's east coast from $3100 return. See aircanada.com. All major car rental companies operate out of Deer Lake Airport.
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It also helps to protect the UNESCO world heritage-listed landscapes of the Daintree, which is the world's oldest tropical rainforest. The centre's general manager Rachael Hodges, a Goreng Goreng, Girramay, Gunggandji and Kuareg woman, said 500,000 people visited Mossman Gorge each year, creating an opportunity for local self-determination. Giving young people, who face higher unemployment rates in the region, the chance to get qualified and find employment on Country helps create a path for self-determination for the community. "The whole vision about this business and the opportunities that it could provide for our local Yalanji people - and people from right throughout the region - is that they are closer to home," Ms Hodges told AAP. More than 60 per cent of the centre's staff are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Yalangda, or Uncle Skip as he's widely known, is one of the centre's tour guides, all of whom are Kuku Yalanji people. "It does give us a bit of a unique thing to give people the history of the area and we talk to a lot of people about it," he said. "It promotes our Indigenous youth as well and promotes the culture and spreads it out, because if we don't spread that culture, we may lose it." As Uncle Skip guides visitors through the rainforest, he points out plants used for medicine and bush foods, as well as some to avoid. He explains the spiritual and cultural significance of the rainforest, shares stories, ancient knowledge and survival skills, and sprinkles in a few jokes as he leads the Ngadiku Dreamtime Walk. Uncle Skip said he's been involved in the tourism industry for almost 30 years and led some of the first Dreamtime walks when they were started by Roy Gibson in the late 80s. The thing that he loves most - and the reason he's still in the job - is the opportunity to share his culture with visitors. "I believe a lot of people when they come up north here, especially up to the Mossman Gorge, they really want to know about our people," Uncle Skip said. "Sometimes they walk in with an idea but then when they walk out of here they walk out with a new idea ... they show a bit more appreciation to having an understanding." The centre is operated by Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, whose chief executive Matt Cameron-Smith said operating the facility responsibly kept culture strong and protected the environment. "There's nothing more 'made in Australia' than First Nations culture," he said. "It's building an economy. It's not about the social side, it's about the economic side, and actually providing a sustainable contribution to the community." While it was also an award-winning ecotourism facility, the cultural centre was a grassroots business with its heart in community, Ms Hodges said. The deep connection to culture and Country also underpins the centre's sustainability efforts, with the recent addition of two electric buses to shuttle visitors from the centre to the walking trails among its latest initiatives. The shuttle buses, named Kurranji (cassowary) and Kurriyala (carpet snake), reflect the community's desire to protect the environment, Ms Hodges said. "Indigenous people for 65,000 years have been maintaining a sustainable environment and we're continuing to do that through the introduction of the two new electric buses," she said. "This is something that the community wanted in regards to making sure this world heritage-listed Daintree National Park was kept safe for future generations." AAP travelled with the assistance of Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia. Kuku Yalanji people have safeguarded the Daintree Rainforest for thousands of years. And as hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to experience the natural beauty of the far-north Queensland region, they are continuing that legacy while also creating opportunities for Indigenous communities. Started by Roy Gibson, a local man with a dream to share culture and help Kuku Yalanji youth, the Mossman Gorge Cultural Centre allows for Indigenous heritage and knowledge to be at the forefront of the tourist experience. It also helps to protect the UNESCO world heritage-listed landscapes of the Daintree, which is the world's oldest tropical rainforest. The centre's general manager Rachael Hodges, a Goreng Goreng, Girramay, Gunggandji and Kuareg woman, said 500,000 people visited Mossman Gorge each year, creating an opportunity for local self-determination. Giving young people, who face higher unemployment rates in the region, the chance to get qualified and find employment on Country helps create a path for self-determination for the community. "The whole vision about this business and the opportunities that it could provide for our local Yalanji people - and people from right throughout the region - is that they are closer to home," Ms Hodges told AAP. More than 60 per cent of the centre's staff are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Yalangda, or Uncle Skip as he's widely known, is one of the centre's tour guides, all of whom are Kuku Yalanji people. "It does give us a bit of a unique thing to give people the history of the area and we talk to a lot of people about it," he said. "It promotes our Indigenous youth as well and promotes the culture and spreads it out, because if we don't spread that culture, we may lose it." As Uncle Skip guides visitors through the rainforest, he points out plants used for medicine and bush foods, as well as some to avoid. He explains the spiritual and cultural significance of the rainforest, shares stories, ancient knowledge and survival skills, and sprinkles in a few jokes as he leads the Ngadiku Dreamtime Walk. Uncle Skip said he's been involved in the tourism industry for almost 30 years and led some of the first Dreamtime walks when they were started by Roy Gibson in the late 80s. The thing that he loves most - and the reason he's still in the job - is the opportunity to share his culture with visitors. "I believe a lot of people when they come up north here, especially up to the Mossman Gorge, they really want to know about our people," Uncle Skip said. "Sometimes they walk in with an idea but then when they walk out of here they walk out with a new idea ... they show a bit more appreciation to having an understanding." The centre is operated by Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, whose chief executive Matt Cameron-Smith said operating the facility responsibly kept culture strong and protected the environment. "There's nothing more 'made in Australia' than First Nations culture," he said. "It's building an economy. It's not about the social side, it's about the economic side, and actually providing a sustainable contribution to the community." While it was also an award-winning ecotourism facility, the cultural centre was a grassroots business with its heart in community, Ms Hodges said. The deep connection to culture and Country also underpins the centre's sustainability efforts, with the recent addition of two electric buses to shuttle visitors from the centre to the walking trails among its latest initiatives. The shuttle buses, named Kurranji (cassowary) and Kurriyala (carpet snake), reflect the community's desire to protect the environment, Ms Hodges said. "Indigenous people for 65,000 years have been maintaining a sustainable environment and we're continuing to do that through the introduction of the two new electric buses," she said. "This is something that the community wanted in regards to making sure this world heritage-listed Daintree National Park was kept safe for future generations." AAP travelled with the assistance of Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia. Kuku Yalanji people have safeguarded the Daintree Rainforest for thousands of years. And as hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to experience the natural beauty of the far-north Queensland region, they are continuing that legacy while also creating opportunities for Indigenous communities. Started by Roy Gibson, a local man with a dream to share culture and help Kuku Yalanji youth, the Mossman Gorge Cultural Centre allows for Indigenous heritage and knowledge to be at the forefront of the tourist experience. It also helps to protect the UNESCO world heritage-listed landscapes of the Daintree, which is the world's oldest tropical rainforest. The centre's general manager Rachael Hodges, a Goreng Goreng, Girramay, Gunggandji and Kuareg woman, said 500,000 people visited Mossman Gorge each year, creating an opportunity for local self-determination. Giving young people, who face higher unemployment rates in the region, the chance to get qualified and find employment on Country helps create a path for self-determination for the community. "The whole vision about this business and the opportunities that it could provide for our local Yalanji people - and people from right throughout the region - is that they are closer to home," Ms Hodges told AAP. More than 60 per cent of the centre's staff are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Yalangda, or Uncle Skip as he's widely known, is one of the centre's tour guides, all of whom are Kuku Yalanji people. "It does give us a bit of a unique thing to give people the history of the area and we talk to a lot of people about it," he said. "It promotes our Indigenous youth as well and promotes the culture and spreads it out, because if we don't spread that culture, we may lose it." As Uncle Skip guides visitors through the rainforest, he points out plants used for medicine and bush foods, as well as some to avoid. He explains the spiritual and cultural significance of the rainforest, shares stories, ancient knowledge and survival skills, and sprinkles in a few jokes as he leads the Ngadiku Dreamtime Walk. Uncle Skip said he's been involved in the tourism industry for almost 30 years and led some of the first Dreamtime walks when they were started by Roy Gibson in the late 80s. The thing that he loves most - and the reason he's still in the job - is the opportunity to share his culture with visitors. "I believe a lot of people when they come up north here, especially up to the Mossman Gorge, they really want to know about our people," Uncle Skip said. "Sometimes they walk in with an idea but then when they walk out of here they walk out with a new idea ... they show a bit more appreciation to having an understanding." The centre is operated by Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, whose chief executive Matt Cameron-Smith said operating the facility responsibly kept culture strong and protected the environment. "There's nothing more 'made in Australia' than First Nations culture," he said. "It's building an economy. It's not about the social side, it's about the economic side, and actually providing a sustainable contribution to the community." While it was also an award-winning ecotourism facility, the cultural centre was a grassroots business with its heart in community, Ms Hodges said. The deep connection to culture and Country also underpins the centre's sustainability efforts, with the recent addition of two electric buses to shuttle visitors from the centre to the walking trails among its latest initiatives. The shuttle buses, named Kurranji (cassowary) and Kurriyala (carpet snake), reflect the community's desire to protect the environment, Ms Hodges said. "Indigenous people for 65,000 years have been maintaining a sustainable environment and we're continuing to do that through the introduction of the two new electric buses," she said. "This is something that the community wanted in regards to making sure this world heritage-listed Daintree National Park was kept safe for future generations." AAP travelled with the assistance of Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia.
