This park celebrates over 250 years in Nova Scotia, located in a pretty little spot along the river which is known for ship building and aboriginal settlement. The geocache is located behind the Ambassador of Bear River monument; please return exactly where you found it. Thank you.
Native Mi’kmaq people inhabited this scenic glacial valley many thousands of years before the arrival of the Europeans and continue to do so today. The tidal river that they called “L’sitkuk Elsetuk”, provided easy travel to the coast where they harvested various fish and clams. Inland they hunted abundant wild game, including caribou.
During a severe winter storm (around 1605-9) one of Champlain’s supply ships in command of Simon Imbert took refuge here and thereafter the river bore his name. Following the French Expulsion of 1755 the English settled the land and then call the river Bear – a corruption of Imbert.
Among the first European settlers (1783) were German mercenaries known as Waldecians and Hessians. Other settlers that followed included the names Chute, Rice, Miller, Clarke, Troop, and Harris. The land lots purchased by many of those families are still in evidence in the community. Due to the shortage of suitable level land, the downtown area was largely built on piers and stilts or on artificially created land supported by retaining walls. The high river tides (7m) combined with an abundance of easily accessible mature oak and various softwood trees made shipbuilding and lumbering two important and profitable industries. Markets were readily found in the West Indies, England, and North America.
In its heyday (1890’s) Bear River had six shipyards and six lumber mills even though its population was only 1200. With the affluence so generated, many shops, supply stores, and service centres were established. Many large, elaborate homes were constructed along the steep hillsides on both sides of the river. Later, visitors would refer to the area as “The Switzerland of Nova Scotia”: a name by which it is often described to this day.
Remember to pick up one of the historical postcards from each of all the 2017 geocaches and then to deliver them to County of Annapolis Recreation Office at 271 Granville Street Bridgetown, Nova Scotia. The recreation office is only open from 9 am to 1 pm Monday to Friday. Once completed, fill in the quick survey/passport for your limited edition trackable geocoin. Have fun!