Tree Planting Project in Cape Breton Highlands National Park (2024)

This past Fall (2024), Replant.ca Environmental was able to do more work on a long-term tree planting project in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  This work was part of a ongoing project on North Mountain that we're committed to for the next several years.

Cape Breton Highlands National Park (CBHNP) is located within the northern half of Cape Breton, which is the northeast end of the province of Nova Scotia.  If you're trying to drive there, it's about an four hour drive from Halifax.  North Mountain is located between Cheticamp and Cape North.

This multi-year project was designed and implemented under the direction of Nova Scotia's Clean Foundation, with financial assistance from the Province of Nova Scotia.

 

Here's a graphic (courtesy of Google Earth) showing the approximate location of our planting sites:

CBHNP is characterized predominantly by balsam fir and white spruce trees, with pockets of mountain ash (dogberry), tamarack (eastern larch), red maple, white birch, eastern white pine, and some other deciduous species.

Most of CBHNP consists of rolling hills covered with forests.  However, the Park also has a number of previously forested areas which were devastated by the spruce budworm a few decades ago, and which have failed to re-establish due to the large moose population. At the moment, the moose population is down quite a bit from historical averages, which presents an opportunity to re-establish more forest cover.

Here are a few photos of this year's team in action:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The work was quite challenging.  There was a lot of brush and vegetation to work through, and we had to climb over a lot of fallen tree trunks which were hidden in the vegetation.  Also, access is quite remote, requiring helicopters to get the crew and the trees into the planting sites each day.  This is quite tricky, because the weather is very unpredictable on North Mountain, and helicopters can't fly in fog or low clouds.

We were very pleased to act as a supply partner to the Clean Foundation on this project, doing the boots-on-the-ground tree planting work while they managed the project concept and provided financial backing and logistical support.

All in all, despite the challenges, this project was a very rewarding experience!

You can see more photos of our tree planting work at this site by visiting our Planting Photos folder on Dropbox, then going into the "2024 Planting Photos" folder, then into the "Cape Breton Highlands National Park" sub-folder.  Start here:

    www.replant-environmental.ca/photos

 

We'd especially like to thank everyone for their hospitality and logistical support while we were on site.  Special shout-outs to Anne-Claude and Peter from Parks Canada, Cayla and Hannah from the Department of Natural Resources, Sean & Don from Strathlorne, and Beth and the other staff at Clean Foundation.

Jonathan "Scooter" Clark

www.replant-environmental.ca

Replant.ca Environmental is a Canadian company that plants trees for carbon capture and builds community forests.  We also plant trees in national, provincial, and municipal public parks to mitigate damage from wildfires, storms, insects, and forest diseases.  We operate thanks to numerous small contributions from the general public, in addition to larger project sponsorships from NGO's, businesses, and corporations around the world.  If you'd like to learn how to show your support, visit our donations page.  Even if you aren't able to make a contribution, we very much appreciate when people are able to share our posts or our website link on social media, to help spread the word about the work that we're doing!

To learn more about the various species that we plant, visit the conifers page or the deciduous (hardwoods) page on our website.  Thanks so much for your interest!

 

Tree Planting Project, Skyline Trail (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia)

This past Fall (2024), one of the Replant.ca Environmental teams finished up a small environmental reforestation project in Cape Breton, near Cheticamp.

This project took place on the north side of Cape Breton Island.  The goal for this project was to add some new native tree species to the area just east of the fenced area that surrounds the observation platform.  This area is subject to strong winds, and trees tend to grow very slowly here.  Adding seedlings of native species will help to kick-start the regeneration of the former forest.  Our role in this project was to be a service provider.  Parks Canada was the organization that planned and sponsored the project.

 

Here's a graphic (courtesy of Google Earth) showing the location of the Skyline Trail, which is a very well-known tourist attraction within Cape Breton Highlands National Park:

 

We also did a separate larger project within the Park this year (on North Mountain), and another small project on near Ingonish (the Mary Ann Falls bike trail).

Here are a few photos of the team in action at Skyline:

 

 

 

 

We planted a variety of native species in this patch of future forest:  Sugar maple, eastern white pine, eastern larch, white birch, green alder, and balsam fir.

 

You can see more photos of our tree planting work at this site by visiting our Planting Photos folder on Dropbox, then going into the "2024 Planting Photos" folder, then into the "Skyline Trail" sub-folder.  Start here:

    www.replant-environmental.ca/photos

 

We'd like to thank Anne-Claude and her staff for their hospitality and support while we were on site, and to Parks Canada for putting together this proactive project.  It's a really enjoyable area to hike!

Jonathan "Scooter" Clark

www.replant-environmental.ca

Replant.ca Environmental is a Canadian company that plants trees for carbon capture and builds community forests.  We also plant trees in national, provincial, and municipal public parks to mitigate damage from wildfires, storms, insects, and forest diseases.  We operate thanks to numerous small contributions from the general public, in addition to larger project sponsorships from businesses, corporations, and NGO's around the world.  If you'd like to learn how to show your support, visit our donations page.  Even if you aren't able to make a contribution, we very much appreciate when people are able to share our posts or our website link on social media, to help spread the word about the work that we're doing!

To learn more about the various species that we plant, visit the conifers page or the deciduous (hardwoods) page on our website.  Thanks so much for your interest! 

 

Tree Planting Project, Mary Ann Fall Road (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia)

This past month (November 2024), Replant.ca Environmental finished up a small environmental restoration project in Cape Breton, near Ingonish.

This project took place on the east side of Cape Breton Island, just around the corner to the north of the Broad Cove Campground.  There used to be a rough gravel truck road that led up to the bridge by the Falls, but the Park has been using contractors to turn the area into a recreational trail for bikers and hikers.  The goal was to restore the old road to a more natural state, for the purpose of environmental restoration, and at the same time to provide additional public opportunities for outdoor recreation.  Our role in this project was to be a service provider, planting trees off to either side of the special compacted bike trail going up to the Fall.  Parks Canada was the organization that planned and sponsored this project.

 

Here's a graphic (courtesy of Google Earth) showing the location of the new bike trail, which is almost seven kilometers in length:

 

This trail falls within the confines of Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  We also did a separate larger project within the Park this year (on North Mountain), and another small project on the Skyline Trail.

Here are a few photos of the seedlings and of the team in action at Mary Ann Falls Road:

 

 

 

 

 

We planted a variety of species in the reclaimed sections beside the new bike trail:  Sugar maple, eastern white pine, eastern larch, white birch, black spruce, green alder, and balsam fir.

 

You can see more photos of our tree planting work at this site by visiting our Planting Photos folder on Dropbox, then going into the "2024 Planting Photos" folder, then into the "Mary Ann Falls" sub-folder.  Start here:

    www.replant-environmental.ca/photos

 

We'd like to thank Anne-Claude and her staff for their hospitality and support while we were on site, and to Parks Canada for putting together this proactive project.  It's a really enjoyable area to hike or bike!

Jonathan "Scooter" Clark

www.replant-environmental.ca

Replant.ca Environmental is a Canadian company that plants trees for carbon capture and builds community forests.  We also plant trees in national, provincial, and municipal public parks to mitigate damage from wildfires, storms, insects, and forest diseases.  We operate thanks to numerous small contributions from the general public, in addition to larger project sponsorships from businesses, corporations, and NGO's around the world.  If you'd like to learn how to show your support, visit our donations page.  Even if you aren't able to make a contribution, we very much appreciate when people are able to share our posts or our website link on social media, to help spread the word about the work that we're doing!

To learn more about the various species that we plant, visit the conifers page or the deciduous (hardwoods) page on our website.  Thanks so much for your interest!