| Rising from a spring high on the Labrador plateau, the Churchill
River plunges 75m into the McLean Canyon as the Churchill Falls , about
300km west of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, as part of a 335-metre descent
within a 26-kilometre stretch. In order to exploit the massive power of
this tumult, an area three and a half times the size of Lake Ontario was
dammed for the incredible Churchill Falls hydroelectric development, a
project conceived by the premier, Joey Smallwood, in 1952 as part of a
drive to save Newfoundland's economy, whose only industrial plant at
that time was a small copper mine on the northeast coast.
Wrangling with
possible US backers and then with the Québec government delayed its
commencement until 1967, when a workforce of thirty thousand finally
began the largest civil engineering project in North America. The town
of CHURCHILL FALLS is simply an outgrowth of the power plant; if you
want to stay here for a long look at the falls - which are half as high
again as Niagara - accommodation and food are available at the Churchill
Falls Inn (tel 925-3211 or 1-800/229-3269; $80-100). Tours of the plant
are offered daily (9am, 1pm & 7pm; 2hr-2hr 30min; free; for further
information, call the Churchill Falls Inn ). |
