Tourists flock to Europe to marvel at the giant churches of the Middle Ages and to the banks of the Nile to wonder at the colossal monuments to the ancient Egyptian pharaohs. The creation of many of these structures was motivated by our desire to ask universal and timeless questions about the nature of our existence and the origins of life. But in a year where our adventures take us a little closer to home, it may be surprising to learn that the answers to some of these profound questions can be found in the most unexpected places.
On an early overcast morning a few weeks ago, I sat at my kitchen table with my morning coffee and began my Sunday routine. While checking the latest headlines, one in particular caught my attention; “Research team confirms Newfoundland and Labrador fossils are world’s oldest evidence of animal life.” Apparently, fossils at Mistaken Point, a small cove near Portugal Cove South on the Southern Shore, are the earliest evidence of animal life on the planet and date back 574 million years.
My Sunday was open so I hit the Mistaken Point internet link on the news page and then the blue highlighted number in the contact information at the bottom of the website. A few seconds later the call was answered, “Hello, Edge of Avalon Interpretation Centre, how can I help you?”
“Hello,” I replied, “I was wondering if you have any scheduled tours to see the fossils today?”
“Well,” he said, “The morning group has left already but it looks like we have one slot open for the afternoon. Can you make it here by noon?”
If you lean down close and brush your fingers over the raised impressions in the rock, you are reconnecting to a physical link in a 574-million-year-old unbroken chain of evolution that you are a direct part of.
Two hours later I pulled into the interpretation centre with five minutes to spare. With cash in hand, I made my way to the front desk. However, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, the only way to pay for the tour was by e-transfer, and because I still live in the Dark Ages, I had some trouble paying with my phone. Lucas, the attendant, assured me it wasn’t a problem. “Don’t worry, my son,” he said, “we knows where to find you.”
We set off in a tiny convoy through Portugal Cove South, with our tour guide Anne leading the way in her grey Ford Explorer. We travelled down a steep hill, past a little house nestled by a small gully with a rather impressive display of miniature sailboats, and then over a sturdy wooden bridge. After another 20 minutes down a dusty dirt road, we pulled into the parking area. We mustered at the trail sign and Anne gave us some last-minute instructions before setting off. Pointing to the nearby outhouses she explained, “This is your last chance for a potty break. From here on in, we’re fertilizing shrubs.”
After what seemed to be just a few minutes we arrived at the main site. Turning to the left down a short embankment near the edge of the water, you follow a set of makeshift rock stairs. After removing your shoes to protect the fossils, you can move on to two flat slabs about the size of a tennis court. As you step onto the dark rock and look down, you immediately notice a collage of light-coloured impressions peppering the surface. Some look like common ferns, others resemble clusters of soap bubbles and more are shaped like deformed clamshells. The space contains more than 4,000 specimens, representing the most densely populated and oldest known examples of multicellular life that exist anywhere on the planet. If you lean down close and brush your fingers over the raised impressions in the rock, you are reconnecting to a physical link in a 574-million-year-old unbroken chain of evolution that you are a direct part of. You are the prodigal son or daughter returning home, back through the millennia to where it all began.
The fossils at Mistaken Point may not be the Pyramids of Giza or the cathedrals of Rome, but they do more to answer the timeless questions of the true nature of our existence than any man-made monument ever could.
I recommend booking the tour well in advance — you will not be disappointed.
Trevor Sooley
Paradise
