While maintaining one of my caches nearby, I noticed a small bit of room for a hide in this very popular area so Stealth is a MUST here.
Welcome to Cape Spear lighthouse
This barren headland jutting out into the North
Atlantic Ocean has been profoundly shaped by the harsh climate of the North Atlantic. Cape Spear is an important way point for ships navigating these waters and lighthouses were built here to guide mariners safely into St. John's or further along the coast . During the Second World War a Canadian coastal defence battery offered protection from the menace of U Boats.
The waters here at the most Easterly tip of the North American continent are frequented by whales heading north to summer feeding grounds, icebergs carried south by the Labrador Current and seabirds who nest and raise their young among the nearby cliffs and islands.
Come explore Cape Spear and discover the many reasons why this is one of Canada's special places.
In 1940, the American and Canadian Permanent Joint Board on Defence decided to guard the approaches to St. John's Harbour by installing heavy artillery at Cape Spear. The installation, known as Fort Cape Spear, was a counter bombardment battery capable of firing at surface targets within 13 km. It was part of a larger defensive system comprising several military installations protecting the approaches to St. John's.
St. John's and the Battle of the Atlantic
While its guns were never fired in anger, Fort Cape Spear was very much on the frontlines of the Battle of the Atlantic. In March of 1942, the German submarine U-587 attacked St. John's Harbour, firing torpedoes that detonated against the cliffs on either side of the Narrows. Two U-boat attacks near Bell Island in September and November of the same year were more successful, resulting in the loss of four ships and the lives of 69 men. Such attacks were a real threat until the closing weeks of the War.
Modern warfare is perhaps humanity's most costly endeavour, consuming lives and resources at a terrifying rate. During the Second World War (1939-1945), the Allied war effort relied on merchant ships to carry essential supplies from North America to Europe. To cut the Allies off, the Axis forces sought to sink these ships and the supplies they carried. Germany, supported by its Italian allies, marshalled submarines, surface vessels and aircraft to attack Allied merchant ships, launching what became known as the Battle of the Atlantic.
To protect their merchant ships, the Allies relied on the convoy system. Merchant ships would gather into large formations along the Atlantic seaboard before heading east for Europe under the protection of naval escorts.
St. John's was strategically important as it was the last port of call for these convoys. This made it a vital naval base that needed to be defended.
This cache is a small container (BYOP).
The terrain for this one is wheelchair accessible up until the last little bit when you have to leave the boardwalk. Still a very easy terrain!
Happy hunting!!