Ingonish
{{Short description|Rural community in Victoria County, Nova Scotia, Canada}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Location map | Nova Scotia
|lon_dir=W
|lat_dir=N
|relief = yes
| label = Ingonish
|lat_deg = 46
|lat_min = 38
|lat_sec = 21
|lon_deg = 60
|lon_min = 24
|lon_sec = 29
|caption = Location in Nova Scotia
}}
File:NS Ingonish1 tango7174.jpg
Ingonish is a popular tourist destination in Victoria County, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. The regional economy is tied to fishing and tourism. Tourist facilities include Cape Breton Highlands National Park, the Keltic Lodge, a year-round gravity sports facility, Ski Cape Smokey, and a public golf course, the Highlands Links.
History
The name may be from the Portuguese or Mi'kmaq languages.{{cite web|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ingonish|title=The Canadian Encyclopedia: Ingonish|access-date=19 January 2020}} French explorer Nicolas Denys visited the area in the 1600s, and he made note of the area's potential as a base of operations for French fishing fleets having good fishing though a harsh coastline and no safe harbour.{{cite book |last=Patterson |first=G.G. |title=History of Victoria County |year=1885 |publisher=College of Cape Breton Press |isbn=0-920336-02-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/pattersonshistor0000patt }}
In 1854, local farmers plowing a field found an Acadian chapel bell, upon which was inscribed:
{{Blockquote|Pour la paroisse d’Inganiche jai ete nommee par Jean Decarette et par Francois Uril, parrain et marrain Le Josse Huet de St. Malo m’a faite. L’an 1729.}}
An 1885 English translation reads:
{{Blockquote|For the parish of Ingonish I have been named by John Decarette and Francis Urail, Godfather and Godmother. The founder Huet made me in the year 1729.}}
The bell was described as being "nearly as large around as an ordinary flour barrel" and weighed 586 pounds. It was ultimately lost after being sold to a foundry owner in Halifax. In another part of Ingonish, the remains of a second church were found. A small cannon of French origin, similar to those found at Neil's Harbour was also found.
According to an official report sent to the Board of Trade in 1749 by Captain Smith, commander of the guard ship at Canso, there were 48 schooners and 393 shallops fishing the grounds off Ingonish. The community's population at that time was estimated to be approximately 300.
Mica was mined prior to the late 1800s.
Climate
{{wide image|NS Ingonish2 tango7174.jpg|1000px|alt=Ingonish Beach|Ingonish Beach}}
Ingonish has a humid continental climate (Dfb) with extremely high precipitation for this climate (annual average precipitation being 69 inches, or ~1358 millimeters, the highest anywhere in Canada outside coastal British Columbia). Furthermore, Ingonish experiences its wettest months from November to January, with over 7.3 inches of precipitation each month, much of it falling as snow, while June and July are the driest months, but still averaging over 3.5 inches of precipitation each. The area is now prone to large rainstorms, and sometimes major flooding two to three times per year, usually in the months of February, August, and November. The highest 24-hour rainfall total recorded in Ingonish was on 23 November 2021 when the area received varying rainfall amounts of between 260 and 292 millimeters of rain in just 19 hours. Winters are long, cold, snowy and exceptionally stormy. In December and January, snow can fall nearly every day due to sea-effect snow showers which blow in from the unfrozen Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Primarily from October to April, Ingonish is also prone to intense nor'easters – mid-latitude cyclones that approach from the U.S. Northeastern and New England states, bringing high winds and heavy precipitation, especially snowfall. As winter progresses, the surrounding waters become covered in ice which delays the onset of spring. Summer arrives quickly though, usually in mid to late June. The cold spring gives way to a beautiful summer, with lots of warm, sunny days. In summer, the weather pattern shifts to a warm southwest flow, and lasts into the fall. These warm southwest winds blow down-slope from the Cape Breton Highlands, drying out and warming as it descends. Although the surrounding water freezes during winter, it warms very quickly through the summer, with sea surface temperatures peaking around 21 °C (70 °F) in August. The highest temperature ever recorded was {{convert|37.7|C|1}} on 10 August 2001.{{cite web
| publisher = Environment Canada
| url = http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/daily_data_e.html?hlyRange=2000-01-22%7C2016-07-02&dlyRange=2000-07-24%7C2016-07-01&mlyRange=2004-01-01%7C2007-07-01&StationID=30326&Prov=NS&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1840&EndYear=2016&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&Month=8&Day=1&txtStationName=ingonish+beach+rcs&timeframe=2&Year=2001
| title = Daily Data Report for August 2001
| work = Canadian Climate Data
| access-date = 8 April 2016}} The lowest temperature was {{convert|-28.0|C|1}} on 18 January 1982. Weather data has been recorded at Parks Canada in Ingonish Beach since 1950. In 2000, Environment Canada upgraded the climate station to an automated weather station.
{{Weather box
|location = Ingonish Beach, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1950–present
|metric first = yes
|single line = yes
|Jan record high C = 17.5
|Feb record high C = 19.0
|Mar record high C = 21.3
|Apr record high C = 24.0
|May record high C = 32.2
|Jun record high C = 34.5
|Jul record high C = 36.0
|Aug record high C = 37.7
|Sep record high C = 34.9
|Oct record high C = 28.5
|Nov record high C = 25.5
|Dec record high C = 18.0
|year record high C = 37.7
|Jan high C = -0.3
|Feb high C = -0.5
|Mar high C = 2.7
|Apr high C = 7.1
|May high C = 13.1
|Jun high C = 18.6
|Jul high C = 24.1
|Aug high C = 24.5
|Sep high C = 20.2
|Oct high C = 13.6
|Nov high C = 8.2
|Dec high C = 3.0
|year high C = 11.2
|Jan mean C = -4.3
|Feb mean C = -5.0
|Mar mean C = -1.7
|Apr mean C = 2.9
|May mean C = 8.1
|Jun mean C = 13.5
|Jul mean C = 18.7
|Aug mean C = 19.0
|Sep mean C = 15.1
|Oct mean C = 9.3
|Nov mean C = 4.6
|Dec mean C = -0.3
|year mean C = 6.7
|Jan low C = -8.2
|Feb low C = -9.4
|Mar low C = -6.2
|Apr low C = -1.4
|May low C = 3.1
|Jun low C = 8.3
|Jul low C = 13.4
|Aug low C = 13.8
|Sep low C = 10.0
|Oct low C = 4.9
|Nov low C = 0.9
|Dec low C = -3.6
|year low C = 2.1
|Jan record low C = -28.0
|Feb record low C = -27.5
|Mar record low C = -24.9
|Apr record low C = -15.0
|May record low C = -7.0
|Jun record low C = -1.7
|Jul record low C = 3.9
|Aug record low C = 1.0
|Sep record low C = -6.7
|Oct record low C = -6.5
|Nov record low C = -12.5
|Dec record low C = -20.0
|year record low C = -28.0
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 158.8
|Feb precipitation mm = 135.7
|Mar precipitation mm = 144.2
|Apr precipitation mm = 130.1
|May precipitation mm = 95.8
|Jun precipitation mm = 97.3
|Jul precipitation mm = 86.4
|Aug precipitation mm = 104.6
|Sep precipitation mm = 132.8
|Oct precipitation mm = 174.7
|Nov precipitation mm = 156.2
|Dec precipitation mm = 194.8
|year precipitation mm = 1611.5
|Jan snow cm = 105.6
|Feb snow cm = 77.8
|Mar snow cm = 71.8
|Apr snow cm = 36.1
|May snow cm = 3.8
|Jun snow cm = 0.0
|Jul snow cm = 0.0
|Aug snow cm = 0.0
|Sep snow cm = 0.0
|Oct snow cm = 0.2
|Nov snow cm = 21.8
|Dec snow cm = 76.0
|year snow cm = 393.1
|unit precipitation days = 0.2 mm
|Jan precipitation days = 21.6
|Feb precipitation days = 17.0
|Mar precipitation days = 17.5
|Apr precipitation days = 16.5
|May precipitation days = 15.3
|Jun precipitation days = 14.1
|Jul precipitation days = 13.5
|Aug precipitation days = 14.5
|Sep precipitation days = 15.2
|Oct precipitation days = 18.0
|Nov precipitation days = 20.3
|Dec precipitation days = 20.7
|year precipitation days = 204.3
|unit snow days = 0.2 cm
|Jan snow days = 18.2
|Feb snow days = 13.0
|Mar snow days = 10.8
|Apr snow days = 5.0
|May snow days = 0.5
|Jun snow days = 0.0
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.0
|Oct snow days = 0.2
|Nov snow days = 6.1
|Dec snow days = 14.2
|year snow days = 67.7
| time day = 15:00 LST
| Jan humidity = 71.8
| Feb humidity = 68.2
| Mar humidity = 63.2
| Apr humidity = 64.5
| May humidity = 65.2
| Jun humidity = 67.1
| Jul humidity = 65.5
| Aug humidity = 63.0
| Sep humidity = 63.1
| Oct humidity = 68.3
| Nov humidity = 73.5
| Dec humidity = 75.6
| year humidity = 67.4
|Jan sun = 77.5
|Feb sun = 108.1
|Mar sun = 128.5
|Apr sun = 144.8
|May sun = 199.6
|Jun sun = 227.1
|Jul sun = 237.6
|Aug sun = 215.7
|Sep sun = 157.9
|Oct sun = 117.6
|Nov sun = 69.0
|Dec sun = 43.3
|year sun = 1726.6
|Jan percentsun = 27.7
|Feb percentsun = 37.1
|Mar percentsun = 34.9
|Apr percentsun = 35.6
|May percentsun = 42.9
|Jun percentsun = 48.0
|Jul percentsun = 49.7
|Aug percentsun = 49.1
|Sep percentsun = 41.8
|Oct percentsun = 34.7
|Nov percentsun = 24.4
|Dec percentsun = 16.2
|year percentsun = 36.8
|source 1 = Environment Canada (snow, sun 1981–2010){{cite web
| publisher = Environment Canada
| url = http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1981_2010_e.html?stnID=6368&lang=e&province=NS&provSubmit=go&dCode=0
| title = Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia
| work = Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010
| access-date = 9 May 2015}}{{cite web
| publisher = Environment Canada
| url = http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1981_2010_e.html?stnID=6368&lang=e&province=NS&provSubmit=go&dCode=0
| title = Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia
| work = Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010
| access-date = 9 May 2015}}{{cite web
| publisher = Environment Canada
| url = https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_1991_2020_e.html?searchType=stnProv&lstProvince=&txtCentralLatMin=0&txtCentralLatSec=0&txtCentralLongMin=0&txtCentralLongSec=0&stnID=38000000&dispBack=0
| title = Ingonish Beach
| work = Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020
| access-date = 7 June 2024}}{{cite web
| publisher = Environment Canada
| url = http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/hourly_data_e.html?hlyRange=2000-01-22%7C2016-07-02&dlyRange=2000-07-24%7C2016-07-01&mlyRange=2004-01-01%7C2007-07-01&StationID=30326&Prov=NS&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1840&EndYear=2016&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&Month=9&Day=10&txtStationName=ingonish+beach+rcs&timeframe=1&Year=2001
| title = Hourly Data Report for September 10, 2001
| work = Canadian Climate Data
| access-date = 8 April 2016}}
|date=February 2011
}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://ingonish.com/ Ingonish tourist information]
{{Coord|display=title|46|38|21|N|60|24|29|W|region:CA-NS_type:city(1250)}}
{{Subdivisions of Nova Scotia}}
{{Authority control}}