Explorer reaches Alberta's world-record beaver dam
By Claire Theobald, Edmonton Sun
First posted: Thursday, September 18, 2014 09:44 AM EDT | Updated: Thursday, September 18, 2014 11:41 AM EDT
An American explorer is the first person to reach the world’s largest beaver dam, found in a remote area in Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Alberta.
“Just to be able to be the first to walk somewhere where no one else did, it felt impressive. I was pretty impressed with myself,” said Rob Mark, a professional explorer called by the allure of the world’s most remote places.
The beaver dam, first discovered by a researcher studying satellite images, is around 850 metres — or half a mile — long and just over a metre high, located in prime wetlands between the Birch Mountain Highlands and the Peace Athabasca Delta.
“It’s huge, it’s really amazing that they built it,” said Mark, describing it as an engineering marvel.
The location of this dam has been described as incredibly remote, located in a virtually untouched wilderness area of a park that is larger than the size of Switzerland.
Navigating the terrain proved a challenge even for Mark — who had previously mapped a route over the Andes through the Amazon rain forest — with brush so thick he easily became disoriented and the most aggressive mosquitoes Mark had ever seen.
“They were horrific,” Mark said, adding he had to wear his rain jacket for the 16 kilometre trek on foot as it was the only piece of clothing the mosquitoes couldn’t bite through.
Recording GPS coordinates and mapping his route from the edge of Lake Claire through the days long hike through the forest to the dam site — a journey that took years of planning, finally finding the site on June 20 — Mark hopes his expedition will pave the way for researchers to study the beaver dam.
General view of lake created by massive beaver damn in northern Alberta. (ROB MARK/SUPPLIED)
Explorer reaches Alberta's world-record beaver dam | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
By Claire Theobald, Edmonton Sun
First posted: Thursday, September 18, 2014 09:44 AM EDT | Updated: Thursday, September 18, 2014 11:41 AM EDT
An American explorer is the first person to reach the world’s largest beaver dam, found in a remote area in Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Alberta.
“Just to be able to be the first to walk somewhere where no one else did, it felt impressive. I was pretty impressed with myself,” said Rob Mark, a professional explorer called by the allure of the world’s most remote places.
The beaver dam, first discovered by a researcher studying satellite images, is around 850 metres — or half a mile — long and just over a metre high, located in prime wetlands between the Birch Mountain Highlands and the Peace Athabasca Delta.
“It’s huge, it’s really amazing that they built it,” said Mark, describing it as an engineering marvel.
The location of this dam has been described as incredibly remote, located in a virtually untouched wilderness area of a park that is larger than the size of Switzerland.
Navigating the terrain proved a challenge even for Mark — who had previously mapped a route over the Andes through the Amazon rain forest — with brush so thick he easily became disoriented and the most aggressive mosquitoes Mark had ever seen.
“They were horrific,” Mark said, adding he had to wear his rain jacket for the 16 kilometre trek on foot as it was the only piece of clothing the mosquitoes couldn’t bite through.
Recording GPS coordinates and mapping his route from the edge of Lake Claire through the days long hike through the forest to the dam site — a journey that took years of planning, finally finding the site on June 20 — Mark hopes his expedition will pave the way for researchers to study the beaver dam.
General view of lake created by massive beaver damn in northern Alberta. (ROB MARK/SUPPLIED)
Explorer reaches Alberta's world-record beaver dam | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
