Can You Really Walk on Earth's Upper Mantle in Canada?

Yes, you can walk directly on Earth’s upper mantle at the Tablelands in Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, Canada — a barren orange plateau made of ancient mantle rock that was shoved onto the continent’s surface roughly 485 million years ago.

What Are the Tablelands?

The Tablelands is a striking, rust-colored plateau that sits in jarring contrast to the green forested valleys surrounding it. While most of the world’s mantle rock lies six miles or more beneath the surface, this slab — known geologically as an ophiolite — was thrust upward during a massive tectonic collision in the Ordovician period. When two ancient continental landmasses collided, the oceanic crust didn’t simply subduct and disappear as it normally would. Instead, it was bulldozed upward and over the edge of the continent, carrying a thick slab of upper mantle rock with it. That slab has been sitting exposed on the surface of Newfoundland ever since.

Why Does the Plateau Look So Lifeless?

The rock underlying the Tablelands is peridotite, a dense, iron- and magnesium-rich rock that forms the upper mantle. While it is geologically extraordinary, it is biologically catastrophic. Peridotite contains almost no calcium, nitrogen, or phosphorus — the core nutrients that plants need to survive. The soil derived from it is also naturally high in heavy metals that are toxic to most organisms. The result is an eerie, nearly barren landscape that looks less like coastal Canada and more like the surface of Mars.

How Did Any Life Survive Here?

A few remarkable species cracked the code. Carnivorous sundew plants grow directly on the peridotite, bypassing the poisoned soil altogether. Unable to draw nutrients from the ground, they evolved to capture and digest insects instead, pulling everything they need from living prey. It is one of the most striking examples of evolutionary adaptation to a hostile chemical environment found anywhere on Earth.

The Chemistry That Connects This Rock to the Origin of Life

When rainwater and groundwater seep into peridotite, a chemical reaction called serpentinization occurs. The rock reacts with water to produce hydrogen gas and, in some cases, methane. Researchers believe this same reaction — occurring on the early Earth’s seafloor — may have provided the chemical energy that sparked the very first living organisms. The Tablelands is not just preserving ancient geology; it is actively running a chemistry experiment that mirrors conditions from four billion years ago.

This is why NASA studies the Tablelands as an analog environment for Mars. The Martian surface contains similar peridotite-rich rock formations, and serpentinization may be occurring beneath the Martian crust today. Understanding what life can and cannot do here helps scientists think about what might — or might not — exist on Mars.

UNESCO Recognition and Why It Matters

In 1987, UNESCO designated Gros Morne National Park a World Heritage Site, specifically citing its extraordinary geological record. The park offers one of the clearest and most accessible windows into the theory of plate tectonics anywhere on the planet. Geologists can read hundreds of millions of years of Earth history directly from the exposed rock faces. For visitors, that means hiking through a landscape that most people never get to see — not because it is remote, but because it simply does not exist anywhere else.

How to Visit the Tablelands

The Tablelands Trail is a well-maintained, relatively flat hiking path that begins near Trout River Pond in the park. The hike is approximately 4 kilometers round trip and is considered accessible for most visitors. The park is located on the western coast of Newfoundland and is open to visitors during the summer season. Parks Canada offers guided interpretive hikes that explain the geology and ecology in detail — an experience that genuinely changes how you think about the ground beneath your feet.