The Tablelands

The Tablelands are a broad stretch of rust-orange peridotite in Gros Morne, where rocks brought up from deep in Earth’s mantle lie open at the surface. The standard Tablelands Trail gives you a close look without a hard climb: Parks Canada rates it easy, and the route is 4 km return from Route 431 along an old roadbed to Winter House Brook Canyon. If you have time for one short walk on this side of the park, this is the unusual one to choose.

The contrast is the first thing you notice. Instead of the surrounding green hills, the Tablelands are sparse and rusty orange. Iron in the exposed rock oxidizes as it weathers, while its unusual mineral content and nutrient-poor soil leave room for a distinctive set of plants. Look low along the trail as well as out toward the bare slopes; a few hardy plants have adapted to conditions that keep most vegetation away.

The easy route skirts the mountain’s base, with broad views across the barren. Near the end, the path reaches a boardwalk and viewing platform at the mouth of Winter House Brook Canyon. The canyon was carved by glaciers, and the payoff is looking upward into its steep walls. This is an out-and-back to the canyon, not a walk to the Tablelands’ summit; plan on doing the full route if you want that final view.

A shorter branch, the Serpentine Loop, is a way to spend less time on the main trail and see characteristic Tablelands plants close to the path. Parks Canada also offers a two-hour guided walk that explains the geology, glacial valleys and plant life. If you go on your own, download the park’s mobile tour before setting out; it is designed to work without cell service.

Peridotite normally forms deep in the mantle. About half a billion years ago, when ancient continents collided and the Appalachians began to form, mantle rock was pushed up onto the crust. More than 400 million years of erosion exposed the landscape we see now. The Tablelands helped geologists build the case for plate tectonics in the 1960s, so this is a geological landmark as well as a strange-looking mountain.

For a close photo, wait until the canyon platform and point the phone upward into the walls, leaving a little of the boardwalk in frame to show scale. The classic view takes the full 4 km return walk; it is not visible from the trailhead.