Seen here is all that remains to parts of Gaff Point's cliffside trails after Hurricane Dorian walloped the East Coast. PHOTO: Kingsburg Coastal Conservancy
Gaff Point is closed to the public after Hurricane Dorian washed away parts of its walking path over the weekend.
The Nature Conservancy of Canada closed the park after they discovered parts of the cliffside trail had completely disappeared after being walloped by hurricane force winds and high waves.
Doug van Hemessen, Nova Scotia Stewardship Coordinator for NCC, says many trees have been downed along the trail. He also says parts of the trail near the coast are completely destroyed.
“For people who know the trail, there are parts that go along the coast,” he said, “Some of that was actually washed away by the winds and the waves, so parts of the trail have actually disappeared. It’s going to take some time to make it all walkable again.”
The NCC decided to close the trail after finding the damage, as it created dangerous and life-threatening conditions for anyone walking along it.
Van Hemessen says says this is the first time they’ve had to close Gaff Point after a storm, as the trees surrounding the trail usually protect it from damage, but many of them were damaged or completely taken down.
Sections of Gaff Point’s Trails ran along the cliffside leading to the water. After Hurricane Dorian, much of those sections have disappeared
“Even with Juan from years ago, the impacts from that storm were a lot more localized and not as widespread as Dorian,” he said.
“So this is the first time Gaff Point has had this kind of damage done to it and the first time we’ve had to close because of that damage.”
Van Hemessen says signs are placed near the entrance to the trail, and cautions everyone to stay out as many trees are ready to fall over.
He says currently they don’t have an estimate on when the park will reopen, but hopes it will be by sometime in October.
