Getting to the bottom of the highest top
It’s not often one photo triggers two columns, but that’s what happened when I posted a photo of the Cabox.
The information that accompanied the photo was incorrect, proclaiming it to be the highest mountain in Newfoundland.
Mr. Lorne Logan corrected that little slip up with this valuable information that became the subject of a column in November:
“The Cabox is the highest mountain on the island of Newfoundland, located on the western part of the island near Stephenville. It measures 812 m (2,664 ft) and is the central peak of the Lewis Hills; it is part of the Long Range Mountains in the Appalachians.
“Mt. Caubvick is the highest mountain in the Torngat Mountains,
located on the northern tip of Labrador and eastern Quebec called the Ungava peninsula. The Torngats boast some of the highest mountains in Eastern Canada, including seven peaks over 1,500 meters. Caubvick is the undisputed highest point in both Labrador and Quebec, reaching a height of 1,652m or 5,420 feet.”
It’s important to get it right. So, to that end, it is only fair that I share a portion of a detailed letter from Mr. Alan Ruffman, the president of Geomarine Associates Ltd.
“...well, I can tell you that you and Mr. Logan have both forgotten the vast offshore area of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
“… it is worth noting that on April 6, 2020, the Geographical Names Board of Canada’s Advisory Committee on Undersea Feature Names (ACUFN) confirmed its decision to approve the new name Orphan
Seamount.
“… Orphan Seamount protrudes from the abyssal depths of the ocean seafloor just to the east of the southern tip of Orphan Knoll some 550 km far out to sea to the northeast of the Avalon Peninsula. The newly named seamount stands proud on the ocean floor with 2,040 m of relief – outstripping Mount Caubvick’s relief by about 388 metres.
“…the name for the seamount is drawn from the nearby Orphan Knoll and was first proposed by Shawn Meredyk and Alan Ruffman as a longtime student of Orphan Knoll.”
That is so fascinating! We work and play on it, yet we know so little about what lies beneath the surface of the ocean.
Thank you for shedding some light on the magical world of unseen seamounts.