• Canada Guide

  • Introduction to Canada
  • Weather
  • Things not to miss
  • Getting around
  • Entry requirements
  • Money
  • Public holidays

• Explore Canada

  • Ontario
  • Southwest Québec
  • Québec City
  • Northern Québec
  • The Maritime Provinces
  • Newfoundland and Labrador
  • Manitoba and Saskatchewan
  • Alberta and the Rockies
  • Vancouver Island
  • Southern British Columbia
  • The North

• Cities

  • Calgary
    
  • Edmonton
    
  • Fredericton
    
  • Halifax
    
  • Kelowna
    
  • Kingston
    
  • Montréal
    
  • Nanaimo
    
  • Ottawa
    
  • Québec City
    
  • Regina
    
  • Rimouski
    
  • Saint John
    
  • Saskatoon
    
  • Sault Ste Marie
    
  • St John's
    
  • Thunder Bay
    
  • Toronto
    
  • Vancouver
    
  • Victoria
    
  • Winnipeg
    

Canada Guide

Newfoundland and Labrador

Labrador

Labrador, a huge swathe of sub-arctic wilderness on the northeastern edge of the Canadian Shield, is a place so desolate that it provoked Jacques Cartier to remark, "I am rather inclined to believe that this is the land God gave to Cain". Cartier's assessment was perhaps rather cruel, but Labrador is certainly a land full of rocky expanses and precious little vegetation, all set against soaring mountains and cool, clean rivers that seem to run forever. Much of it is an unspoiled, barely accessible wilderness where caribou roam, well outnumbering the people of Labrador – by thirty to one - with the largest herd being around 800,000 head.

Labrador divides into two zones. Half the population of 29,000 live along the coast – the traditional preserve of fisherman and whalers since the sixteenth century. Most are scattered along the more accessible south coast, while the (largely native Canadian) communities dotted along the northern coast are small and remote. The other half live in the towns of the interior - Happy Valley-Goose Bay; Churchill Falls; and Labrador City-Wabush. These settlements have emerged since the 1960s (the products respectively of military bases, dam projects and mining operations) and are populated chiefly by white southerners with a very different outlook on the use of natural resources from that of the indigenous population.

The harsh climate and remoteness make Labrador one of Canada's most forbidding areas for travellers. January temperatures in Happy Valley-Goose Bay average -16°C (3°F) and the annual snowfall is around five metres – with much of it covering the ground for half the year. Further inland and up north the climate is even colder. Most major roads are unpaved and can close for days in snowy or rainy conditions. Tourist facilities are generally scarce and costly, though most major towns have formal accommodation of some sort. In many smaller towns you'll have to ask around to find a room for rent in someone's home and the same goes for local boat trips. Any trip needs a fair amount of organization – especially if you are heading for the hinterland.