Lodge Bay

Lodge Bay(52°13′00″N 55°37′59″W / 52.21667°N 55.63306°W / 52.21667; -55.63306 AST) is a permanent community located along the southeast coast of Labrador, part of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Encompassing a population of less than one hundred residents, the community has uniquely evolved from both early European colonization of Labrador, and the inimitable patterns of land and resource use by the migratory Inuit population. The name Lodge Bay originated from the title Ranger Lodge, which was the name given to the area by trader and explorer, Captain George Cartwright in the late 18th century. "Ranger" was the name of the wooden-mercantile ship Cartwright used to trade, map and explore the Labrador coast, while "Lodge" was the name given to English hunting camps in Great Britain at that time.

Geography

The community lies within a densely forested region located at the head of the St. Charles River. Nourishing a boreal ecosystem, extensive forests of black spruce, white spruce and balsam fir cover much of the landscape. This ecosystem provides a healthy habitat for the populations of moose, wolves, bear, ptarmigan, rabbit and lynx that inhabit the area. The St. Charles River strategically opens into the mouth of Cape St. Charles and the Great Caribou Islands. Large populations of Atlantic salmon annually migrate the St. Charles River to reach native breeding grounds. The surrounding bay is also home to a variety of fish species including trout, freshwater smelts and shellfish.