Amazing Facts About Canadian Geography - a Blog Post by sexyldy1000

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8/3/2020 12:21 pm

Amazing Facts About Canadian Geography

From "magical" lakes record-breaking rocks, these eye-opening Canadian geography facts will have you seeing our country's landscapes in a new light.

Nunavut has the tallest vertical drop on Earth

Named after the Norse god of thunder, Nunavut’s Mount Thor features the world’s tallest vertical drop at a whopping '1.25' kilometres (4,100 feet). (Technically, the granite mountain’s '105-degree' overhang means its slope is even steeper than vertical.) Located in Auyuittuq National Park on Baffin Island, Mount Thor has become a popular climbing and paragliding spot over the years, although the latter activity is banned.

A range of hills in the Northwest Territories is always on fire

On the east coast of Cape Bathurst in the Northwest Territories, the aptly-named Smoking Hills have been smouldering for hundreds of years. The underground oil shales beneath the formations are rich in sulfur and brown coal, causing the rocks to burst into flames when the combustible gases are exposed to oxygen. The first recorded sighting of the phenomenon was made by Irish explorer Robert McClure in the early '1800s.'

The world’s smallest desert can be found in the Yukon

The unincorporated community of Carcross in the Yukon uses the moniker in good fun, as the Carcross Desert isn’t a desert at all! In reality, this beautiful '2.5' square kilometre patch of land is a series of sand dunes left over from a glacial lake thousands of years ago—the tiny area is kept dry year-round thanks 'to' the surrounding mountains.

British Columbia has the country’s most unique lake

For most of the year, Spotted Lake in British Columbia’s Similkameen Valley looks like any other lake. During the summer, however, this seemingly unremarkable body of water transforms into something magical. In the scorching sun, the water of Spotted Lake evaporates and crystallizes a variety of minerals, forming dozens of white-rimmed circles. These shallow pools—the result of Spotted Lake’s large amounts of magnesium sulf calcium and silver—suddenly appear in stunning shades of yellow and green.

Canada has its own version of the Dead Sea

Known as the “Dead Sea of Canada,” the waters of Little Manitou Lake near Saskatoon are roughly five times saltier than the ocean—and approximately half as salty as the Dead Sea in Israel and Jordan. Fed by underground springs, the lake is so high in sodium, magnesium and potassium salts that it’s almost impossible for swimmers to sink. Locals and visitors alike swear by Little Manitou Lake’s ability 'to' cure skin conditions, arthritis and joint pain.

The world’s oldest rocks can be found in Quebec

In '2008', a team of Canadian and American researchers discovered rocks along the Northern Quebec coast of Hudson’s Bay that were found 'to' be '4.28' billion years-old. The oldest previously-known rocks were found in a formation called the Acasta Gneiss, located southeast of Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories.