The area around Blomidon Provincial Park is one of many
locations in the Atlantic Provinces said to have been a campsite of
the Mi’kmaq legendary character Glooscap. Its rugged
coastline and steep slopes were said to be a desirable site for
Glooscap’s camp because of its great view and its
unattainable walls, he could survey the area for miles.
Many legends tell of Glooscap’s adventures in
Mi’kma’ki, land of the Mi’kmaq. One of these
stories talks about the day Glooscap left the Mi’kmaw people.
Glooscap gathered all the peoples of the land on the high cliffs of
Blomidon, and told them he must go on to new areas and teach new
people. As a gift from the Mi’kmaq people, they presented
Glooscap with a stone pipe. Glooscap thanked the people of Blomidon
and accepted the pipe gift. Glooscap then called on the whale for
transportation. The first whale to answer his call was a Finback
whale, he was far too small to carry Glooscap on his back so
Glooscap asked for this whale’s bigger brother. The Finback
whale swam off and got his biggest brother, the Blue Whale. The
Blue Whale came into the cliffs of Blomidon and asked Glooscap if
he needed a ride.
Glooscap travelled off on the back of the Blue Whale and headed
West down the Bay of Fundy and then off into the sea. The Whale
swam for days and was very tired so Glooscap told the Whale that
his part of this trip was done. Glooscap thanked the Whale and
wanted to present him with a gift in thanks for all of the help
that the whale had given. Glooscap looked in his travel wrap and
took out the pipe that he had been given; Glooscap said that he
wanted the whale to have it. Glooscap said to the whale, when you
get back to Mi’kma’ki tell the people that even though
I have gone on a journey that I will return to
Mi’kma’ki in their greatest time of need. ... The Whale
swam off, back home, smoking his new pipe.
That is why today we are reminded of Glooscap’s promise of
returning, every time we see the blow of a whale’s spout.
That’s just the smoke of the pipe that the Mi’kmaq gave
Glooscap.
This geocache is part of the 2011 NS Provincial Parks Geocaching
challenge. For more information about the geocaching challenge,
click the following LINK
for more information. To participate in the challenge, you
will need to download the associated PASSPORT. At each geocache,
there is a punch that you can mark the corresponding box on your
passport. Collect all 5 and you can send in your passport to
receive a free trackable geocoin.
The Series
The geocaches that are part of the passport program are:
The Passport
You can donwload the passport from ACGA
or NS
Parks.