alison dyer

south coast. just one image

2010-05-09T23:14:00.005-02:30

paddling south coast of newfoundland. mainly cliffs. big ones. gigantic. gargantuan ones. ah, but you can't imagine (unless you've been in any) but here, in a small harbour just off, a view from man o'war cove (resettled - aren't they all!). no cliffs, surprisely, just a pretty little harbour.

Local food, heritage seeds, preserving biodiversity

2010-04-01T22:28:00.002-02:30

Food security discussions are raising again the importance of preserving agricultural biodiversity and sourcing local foods. I thought it might be a good time to revisit an article I wrote a few years ago. Some info is dated, much is not. "Led down the garden path," was published in 2004 in the Halifax Chronicle Herald, The St. John's Telegram and the Atlantic Co-operator. Hope it provides food for thought!

Led down the garden path
In the face of genetically engineered crops, farmers and others are struggling to preserve biodiversity

by Alison Dyer

It’s definitely deceiving. A trip down the supermarket aisle today would make us believe we have more food variety than ever. But the foods that make up these products actually come from fewer and fewer sources.

“There are millions of plants, of which at least 30,000 are edible. We rely on no more than 30 to feed us. Rice, wheat and maize provide 65 per cent of the world's protein intake. Three crops.” So starts a slide show produced by Primal Seeds, a network dedicated to food security.

In the last few decades, plant breeding has favoured fewer and fewer varieties to accommodate large-scale industrial agribusiness. A tomato variety is bred for uniformity, enabling a monoculture crop to ripen and be harvested at the one time, and be easily sorted and packed by machinery. It’s bred for a skin tough enough to withstand the 1,000 kilometre trip it needs to make. And it is usually bred for more weight, and more profit. But these traits are often at the expense of others. Like taste. Remember that same tomato you buy in the produce section that is as exciting to the palate as coloured water?

Safety at risk

Many farmers, gardeners and food security groups are concerned about the garden path down which modern agriculture is leading us. They talk about the need to preserve and plant heritage seeds. For some, it may be that they want to know what grandmother’s garden looked like.

“It’s our living heritage, our story. Many of these seeds were grown by our great grandparents, they [brought them] from places that they emigrated from…to North America,” says Andrea Berry, the Atlantic regional rep of Seeds of Diversity. Or they were “varieties that were traditional to aboriginal communities that were used here in their agricultural tradition. Continuing to grow these seeds is making that connection to our living past.”

The single most important issue in preserving heritage seeds, however, is that of preserving biodiversity. “So many varieties of fruits and vegetables that we eat, through the commercialization and industrialization of our food system, have been lost because they weren’t appropriate for large-scale production,” says Berry. A United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report estimates that 75 per cent of crop varieties worldwide were made extinct in the 20th century.

“We’re whittling away our genetic diversity, and what that does is put our environment and food supply at risk,” says Berry. Jack Hanlon, would have agreed. The famous botanist and plant breeder noted that genetic diversity “stands between us and catastrophic starvation on a scale we cannot imagine.”

“Traditionally the way genetic diversity was shared between farmers and gardeners, they’d meet at garden fences and say ‘that’s an interesting pumpkin you’ve got there’. That fall they’d save those seeds and share them. That was an informal way that genetic diversity got shared around the community,” explains Berry.

And these local varieties have some very important characteristics. “These are seeds that have been nourished for generations by farmers. Often these seeds have been selected for local conditions. So they tend to be hardier,” says Laura Telford, executive director of the Canadian Organic Growers.

Diversity helps plants evolve and adapt to changing conditions. In contrast modern hybrids, bred for high yields, are reliant on expensive inputs such as chemical fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and irrigated systems. “Such uniformity invites crop failure as pests and diseases spread easier,” continues the Primal Seeds slide show, “once the buffer of diversity is removed.”

“If you think to the Irish potato blight – all these people growing the same variety…along comes this blight that affected that particular variety and wiped out the entire nation’s potato supply which was a staple for them,” reminds Berry.

Corporate values
Over the years, the number of companies offering seeds has also dwindled, bought out by larger companies offering fewer hybrids. “The total commercial market for seeds at present is around $30 billion. According to Rabobank International estimates, this business could triple to around $91 billion,” reports the Hindu Business Line. It’s a lucrative business, particularly when twinned with the makers of pesticides necessary for the maintenance of these seeds. Today, Monsanto, Dupont and Syngenta, three vast agro-chemical corporations, now control one quarter of the world's entire seed supply.

Other trends that threaten the world’s food security are seed patenting and the introduction of genetically engineered crops. “It actually puts local farmers out of work, they can’t afford the seed,” says Telford. “You can’t save the seed the next year which is really an issue for third world farmers, and also for biodiversity – you have to throw away your seed and start over each year.”

In Canada, farmers are looking very closely at GMO (genetically modified organism) crops. In the 1990s, genetically modified canola drifted onto non-GMO crops and contaminated canola seed throughout the region. Monsanto has been pushing hard to get GMO wheat introduced into farmer’s fields.

“It’s the issue that our organic farmers are wound up about these days, and farmers don’t tend to be an activist lot, it takes a lot to get them wound up,” says Telford.

“Wheat is our biggest export crop and there are lots and lots of acres of organic wheat,” says Telford who explains the issue has united both conventional and organic farmers. “The Canadian Wheat Board recently commissioned a study that said if Canada goes GE wheat, all of Canada – and that includes organic and conventional farmers – will lose 80 percent of their international markets.”

Meanwhile, Monsanto has heard the grumblings. The multinational announced earlier this week that it is “deferring all further efforts to introduce Roundup Ready wheat, until such time that other wheat biotechnology traits are introduced.” In other words, they’ve decided to wait it out. Monsanto has not withdrawn its application for the regulatory registration of Roundup Ready wheat. Rather the company is still looking at the “potential commercialization of other biotechnology traits in wheat, estimated to be four to eight years in the future.”

“It’s great news for farmers and for consumers that Monsanto is backing off its plans to introduce Roundup Ready Wheat,” says Telford. “However, we hope that this decision will not take the onus off the government to make the right decision. The only permanent solution for keeping this product off our grocery store shelves is to refuse to license it.”

Breathing life into old ways

In Atlantic Canada, two co-ops are involved in a heritage seed program that may have important implications for wheat growers across the country. “For two years we got funding to do some evaluation work in the field on different possible varieties of wheat that could be grown in the Maritimes under organic conditions,” says agroecologist Jennifer Scott, who spearheaded the project between the Maritime Certified Organic Growers and Speerville Flour Mill. “We thought we’d go back to some of the older varieties because they might work better in an organic system,” says Scott.

“Another motivation was the whole [GMO] wheat (issue)…to maintain our organic integrity, all of the organic growers would have to have their certified organic source of seed and be very sure there wasn’t any [GMO] contamination,” says Scott.

Stu Fleischhaker, a farmer and co-founder of Speerville, took on the growing of one heritage variety, Acadia. “Acadia was one of the last wheats that was bred specifically for Eastern Canada. It was last grown in the early ‘50s. When we went to look for seed there simply wasn’t any.”

Fleischhaker recalls how they got about a dozen seeds from the government gene bank in Saskatoon, but only one germinated. “It was virtually extinct. What saved us was a wheat breeder in Prince Edward Island still had some of the old Acadia and he gave it to us, so we were able to go from there and bring it up to commercial scale,” he says.

While Fleischhaker no longer grows this particular variety – last year was particularly hard for wheat growers in the region in general and resulted in poor yields – he believes there is definite potential for it and other heritage varieties like Selkirk and Red Fife. He says that Speerville is still marketing his Acadia grain in addition to other heritage grains like spelt and kamut. “Some of the modern wheat varieties a lot of people can’t eat any more, they’re allergic to [them]. Some of the older varieties, like spelt, they can tolerate.”

And Fleischhaker’s experience with the seed or gene bank makes a good point. “Best way to conserve seeds is for them to be useful, you can’t just have museums,” says Scott.

Connecting the dots

That’s the idea behind Seeds of Diversity. “It’s a country-wide seed exchange… a national adaptation of that backyard seed sharing,” explains Berry. “Members are invited to grow heritage varieties in their gardens of fruits, vegetables, save the seeds and offer [them] to other members … through the Seed Exchange directory. It’s like a seed catalogue but members … don’t ask for payment for their seed,” says Berry about their membership of 1,600 across the country. “Many of the varieties are endangered and are not offered in seed company catalogues.”

Seeds of Diversity also has a project with the national seed bank. “[Members] sign up and get a variety…to grow out in their own garden. [They provide] a service to the national gene bank by refreshing the variety, that the seeds don’t go stale and become infertile,” says Berry.

And in many localities across the country now, Seedy Saturdays are organized by different groups offering a seed-sharing and information event for gardeners.

For Fleischaker raising heritage breeds, whether crops or livestock – the latter do not require antibiotics like modern varieties – is critical for the preservation of a rural way of life. “The fact that we’re no longer focussed on local economy has changed a lot of how we look at things and it’s affected dramatically our food system,” says Fleischaker. “Most people don’t know how far removed we’ve gotten from maybe where we should be.”

Sidebar: Consumer Power

- Ask for local. “You wouldn’t believe what a difference consumers can make when they go into a store and say they’d prefer local (food),” says Scott. “Co-op Atlantic has been very good about having the Atlantic Tender classic Beef…and Summerside Pork too. Co-op Atlantic should be patted on the back for some of their initiatives.”

- Buy local. “Sourcing your food from a local producer, [not] necessarily heritage varieties, but it supports and strengthens our rural communities, and … our local food systems,” says Berry. “Find out if there’s a Community Shared Agricultural program, a weekly food box system in your area.”

- If you garden, grow a heritage variety. Atlantic companies like Hope Seeds and Perennials specialize in heritage seeds. Or signup for Seed of Diversity’s gene bank project.

- Educate. “Finding out about GMOs [and] what that means to our environment and food supply,” says Berry.

Copyright 2004 Alison Dyer

another roll nearly mastered!

2010-03-26T21:24:00.002-02:30

This has been a good winter season at the pool sessions. My offside is pretty darn good. So decided to learn another roll. Thought it was the storm roll - but a variation of same. That is, with one hand on paddle blade, another positioned just below, extend paddle out and over until it is fully extended and facing completely down in water, change hands, and come up the other side. Cool trick! I've only managed to do it once. Something about getting the right blade angle to enable sufficient grip.. anyway - all fun under the water!

Paddling Conception Harbour

2010-03-14T20:25:00.018-02:30

[for a trip report on Conception Harbour/Avondale, see: http://www.kayakers.nf.ca/sea_kayaking/trip_reports/avondale1.html]

Simply sweet: Forecast of +4C, sunny, light (to neglible) wind. Sunday. Translates quickly into=forego responsibilities and join friends paddling. Twist my arm.

One (or both) arms duely twisted, 7 of us headed out of Conception Harbour in Gaster's Bay (Conception Bay, Newfoundland - about 45 mins drive from St. John's) for a lovely wee spring paddle (~14km), seeing new hills (sprinkled with snow they look large and prominent on the landscape); carving through ice (do not suggest doing this with a wooden greenland paddle - half of paddle is superior according to Derek - maneuverability being everything), with a clear view up the bay to the fine spread of sedimentary rocks of Bell Island.

Paddling out of Conception Harbour, or nearby Avalondale, at the bottom of Conception Harbour is a sure (well, as sure as sure can be when kayaking) bet for night or winter paddling. Lots of takeouts and possibilities for beach cookups.

The first stretch of ice took some hammering to get through... then it got a little easier.....

Pool time

2010-02-23T23:42:00.002-03:30

At the pool again this evening. Managed to get my offside re-entry roll. It's great to be able to practice these maneouvres in warm water. New kid on the block learned to roll on Saturday, and learn his off-side roll and re-entry roll tonight! Some of us take soooo much longer to learn. But it's all great kayaking news.

St. John's Development on my mind

2010-02-09T20:46:00.003-03:30

Close to 400 people jammed into the Foran Room at City Hall on Monday night for a public forum on Smart Growth and, with standing room only, people spilled into the hallway & adjoining council meeting rooms. It was quite a sight to behold. Canadian satirist Mary Walsh, local retailer guru Dave Hopley, local socioeconomic consultant Stratt Canning and others (including songwriter Ron Hynes) had striking points to make from the podium. It may be a turning point in the development of this City/community. Hear CBC.ca/nl on the go for some of the speeches.

ROCK & ROLL ON!!!!!!

2010-01-31T21:05:00.003-03:30

I GOT IT, FINALLY.

Last night at the pool, got my OFFSIDE ROLL!!! Whahoo.

Thanks to Brian Duffett for great coaching. I'm on one big high. And, I still have all my teeth!

DIY Fortis - play the game!

2010-01-25T11:51:00.001-03:30

It's the Taj - Basilica Faceoff!http://www.cbc.ca/nl/blogs/seen/2010/01/diy-fortis.html

Fortress Fortis

2010-01-24T22:17:00.002-03:30

If you haven't been following this, please check out Facebook Group Fortis Redevelopment: St. John's Citizens for Cooperative Development. St. John's is at a critical point. What is decided in the next year or two will decide the future architectural landscape (and from it: aesthetic, cultural, economic, heritage, etc.) of this place. Get involved, please. Become a member of Fortis Redevelopment. Follow the discussions.

Riddle Fence #4

2009-12-17T14:11:00.003-03:30

How wonderful to be asked to read for the launch of Newfoundland's literary journal Riddle Fence. So, you missed it? At the Ship Inn (um, Pub) past monday. Readings by such exuberant writer/readers as: George Murray, Craig Francis Power, Catherine Safer. A grand evening.

Fortis - the Grinch that wants to steal St. John's

2009-12-09T00:02:00.006-03:30

Fortis - the grinch of St. John's - part 1

One day, children, Santa will not come to St. John's.

No - NO - Why?

Well see, he'll not see any chimneys, he'll not see the houses shouldering each other on steep hills, eyebrows cocked toward the harbour. Sure, he won't see the harbour, boys and girls, and neither will yee.

Sure, that's not possible. Everyone knows that St. John's is special - we're not like every other city, no. People want to come here because we're special, no?

Aye, but some people, some groups of people want to, well, get rich and shag our harbour and public views.

NO.. but who'd be such a grinch?

These days it'd be Fortis.

Fart ass?

No, Fortis, child.

What's a Fortis?

Fortis, child is a corporation is looking to abuse the city regulations.

What City regulations are they?

Regulations that were fought hard and true years ago to save a few heritage buildings for you and yours to come.

And what does this Fortis want to do?

They want to tear down a block of historic buildings - in a designated heritage zone - and build a 15-storey office block.

Nay, they can't do that, can they?

Supposedly not. But then, well, money talks.

But isn't there somewhere else they can build an office tower?

Aye, good question child. Yup, course there is. Plenty of space west of the downtown. And even out by the airport. There's space a plenty.

And if they did that, then wouldn't they get want they wanted - and wouldn't all the people that live downtown and all the people that come to work downtown and all the people that come to shop downtown and all the people that come to visit downtown and all the little stores downtown wouldn't they all be happy?

Aye, child, I think they would all be happy and prosperous.

And live happily ever after?

Aye child, they just might.

tease me, please me

2009-12-05T22:37:00.004-03:30

[photos: © Alison Dyer 2009]

a tease of photos from a south coast trip this summer
I’ll get there, I’ll write about it, maybe, yes, definitely,
sometime, soon, any time now. you know. I want too.
some amazing trip.

Tasting Grace; a caribou yearling in Placentia Bay

2009-12-03T15:44:00.006-03:30

[Caribou Yearling, Placentia Bay, 2009 Alison Dyer]

Take time to taste, acknowledge Grace. Whether you are in the woods, on the water, or simply walking a piece of urban wildness. Many of us are fortunate enough to taste Grace. Beyond that we should think, just for a few moments, of how to incorporate it into our everyday and how to open it up for others. Savour Grace, then share it.

storm

2009-12-03T11:47:00.004-03:30

storm

thunder rakes in like a Hells Angels convoy
under a battery of black leather clouds
fear scattering adults
trees screeching kids
sunset pastels erased, replaced
by sprays of leaden rain
grey naked outcrops reaching up as shields
until there is no room left for a mere mortal.
© Alison Dyer

Biotech Beets, no thanks maan!

2009-11-22T17:24:00.013-03:30

Biotech beets? No thanks, maan!

Pickled beets. Harvested from the back garden in fall when the sun takes a shorter path behind the outcrops; cut up and pickled in a toasty warm kitchen with the stove blasting enough heat to melt all of Antarctica. Pickled beets are nice with just about any meal served, from traditional Newfoundland Sunday dinner [a ‘tastyful’- as my kids would say - mix of cooked whole potatoes, carrots, cabbage, onion, salt beef] to a sushi sidekick. And then there’s sugar beets. What’d we do without them?

Here are two articles: one recent on new problems facing biotech beets, another from 10 yrs ago on the whole dang GMO thing. Enjoy! (with or without pickled beets).

Thursday, November 19, 2009
Bitter fight developing over sugar beets
Virtually the entire sugar beet crop in the United States is genetically engineered to protect it from herbicides. Now, a lawsuit claiming the biotech beets pose a risk to other varieties could threaten sugar production. [to read rest of article: http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/11/19/pm-beets/

ABC’s of the New Food:
A doubter’s guide to genetically-altered grub

Brave new world or biological catastrophe? Either way, genetic engineering (GE) is a technology that promises to jet stream us into an unchartered world. But GE food. Who’s eating the stuff? You, me and the baby next door. Our supermarket shelves are stocked with food containing GE ingredients.

Who is creating GE food? Why? Now that’s interesting. How about some of the makers of such late 20th century toxic nightmares as Agent Orange and PCBs. And if we believe some of their public relations departments, they are on a philanthropic mission to help feed the world.
But already the GE menu is serving up a dollop of controversy: from sick lab rats fed on GE potatoes, to unhealthy cattle injected with growth hormones, to a GE substance linked to several human deaths.

Developing alongside this revolutionary technology is a cryptic vocabulary, sugar-coated by its proponents, given bite by its critics, making for some indigestible fare. Here then is a short guide for the gastronomically-perplexed.

A Antibiotic Resistance marker genes, added to most GE food to indicate that it has been successfully engineered, is raising a concern - that they make animals and humans more susceptible to antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

B Bacillus thurigiensis (Bt). Bt, in its natural form, has been used as a biopesticide for a half century by organic farmers. Now biotech companies are creating crops with a built-in pesticide. But research suggests that the buildup of Bt toxins in the soil, from GE Bt crops, are harming beneficial insects and will hasten the evolution of Bt-resistant insects.

C Cartagena, Columbia, where the passage of an International Biosafety Protocol Treaty was prevented earlier this year by six grain-exporting countries including Canada. Over 135 nations supported the Protocol which would have tightened regulations on the international transfer and trade of GE seeds, grains and food (see Labelling).

D Dairy Cows in the U.S. can be injected by farmers with a GE bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to increase milk production. Citing animal health problems, Canada’s Health Department recently rejected approval of rBGH for use in Canada.

E Are We the Experiment? Leading GE company Monsanto’s director of corporate communications told the New York Times last October that the company should not have to vouchsafe the safety of its biotech food. "Our interest is in selling as much of it as possible. Assuring its safety is the FDA’s [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] job."

F Frankenfood is what many Europeans call GE food, still reeling from mad cow disease that shook their faith in food regulators. Many are now calling for an EU moratorium on these foods, following the vindication of British scientist Dr. Arpad Pusztai, whose explosive research showed that GE potatoes fed to rats damaged their internal organs and immune systems.

G Genetically Modified Organisms (aka transgenic) can be plant, animal or any life form that has had its genes artificially altered by gene-splicing - or recombinant - techniques.

H Horizontal gene transfer. Transferring genes horizontally between species that do not interbreed is central to creating transgenic organisms. To do this, genetic engineers use vectors, like viruses and other infectious agents. Critics say these methods may create new viral and bacterial pathogens (see Antibiotic, and Virus).

I Introgression of genes - the flow of genes between plant species mainly through cross-pollination. Some scientists say that the same characteristics that enable GE crops to grow in marginal environments could be passed onto their wild relatives. This could upset ecosystems and result in costly weed control.

J "Just Say No to GEOs" is the message from Hain, a self-proclaimed leading U.S. natural foods company. Responding to consumer pressure, its products now have a ‘Pure Food’ label indicating they are free of GE organisms (see Labelling).

K "Keep the organic label off GE food" says the Council for Responsible Genetics, a U.S. group of scientists and public health advocates. Should the U.S. Department of Agriculture adopt a proposed regulation allowing GE foods to be sold under the organic label, consumers will be unable to choose non-GE foods.

L Labelling of GE foods is not required by current laws in North America, but consumers in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan are now demanding it of their governments. Labelling advocates say consumers need the freedom to choose what they feed their families, and stress that the early detection of harmful food will be difficult or impossible without labelling (see Unexpected).

M Monsanto. Once a major chemical conglomerate who brought the world Agent Orange and PCBs, Monsanto reengineered itself in 1985 into a ‘life sciences’ company. With an estimated worth of $35 billion U.S., it is the world’s dominant biotech corporation, and uses GE in its drug, food ingredient and agricultural divisions. Monsanto will likely appeal Canada’s decision to refuse approval of the use of its bovine growth hormone on Canadian dairy cows.

N ‘Novel’ foods, the industry term for genetically modified foods.

O Organic farmers in the U.K. are concerned that their crops could be cross-pollinated and contaminated by GE crops growing nearby. Loss of their organic status and business could thus result (see Keep and Bt).

P Patents are a cornerstone of the GE industry, providing ‘intellectual property rights’ over living things. Critics claim that patents threaten biodiversity, saying that a few corporate-owned GE crops will replace natural crops. And others stress that the world’s food supply will become controlled by a few powerful GE companies or ‘gene giants’.

Q Quotable quote: "Genetic engineering is often justified as a humane technology, one that feeds more people with better food. Nothing could be further from the truth. With very few exceptions, the whole point of genetic engineering is to increase the sales of chemicals and bio-engineered products to dependent farmers." - David Ehrenfield, Professor of Biology at

Rutgers University, in Resurgence magazine.
R Roundup-Ready. First Monsanto produced the herbicide Roundup. Then it created GE soybeans and canola seed tolerant of the herbicide. Farmers can spray these Roundup-Ready crops without killing them. Critics say the herbicide resistant genes could transfer to neighbouring weeds.

S Suicide Seed. When is a seed not a seed? When it’s a Kamikaze-style suicide seed (see Terminator).

T Terminator or Traitor Technology, a technique of genetically programming a plant to prevent its seeds from regerminating in a second growing season, has received wide opposition. Critics say that the technology, dominated by a handful of agro-industrial companies, may undermine the wellbeing of poor Third World farmers who depend on farm-saved seed.

U Other Unexpected effects. The death of 37 people and disabling of hundreds of others has been linked to the GE-produced food supplement Trytophan. The company was allowed to sell it in the U.S. without safety testing as they had been selling Trytophan produced with non-GE methods for years. Because the GE product was not labelled as such, the cause of the poisoning took months to discover .

V The Virus Hazard. Most GE crops contain virus genes to give the crop resistance to invading viruses. (A virus resistant squash, for use as baby food, is up for approval.) Some scientists are concerned that inserted virus genes could combine with a wild virus to produce a super, deadly virus.

W The late Dr. George Wald, Nobel Prize Laureate in Medicine, and one of the first scientists to speak out about the dangers of GE. In 1976 he wrote "Up to now, living organisms have evolved very slowly, and new forms have had plenty of time to settle in. Now whole new proteins will be transposed overnight into wholly new associations, with consequences no one can foretell...Potentially it could breed new animal and plant diseases, new sources of cancer, novel epidemics."

X A nutty Xperiment - when a gene from the brazil nut was spliced into a soy bean, strong allergic reactions in people allergic to nuts but not soy beans resulted when they ate the GE soy product.

Y - You are what you eat. Some GE foods already on our supermarket shelves are: soybeans (used in breads, baby foods and formulas - soya occurs in about 60 per cent of processed food); canola oil; corn (in corn syrup, corn starch, sweeteners, corn chips); insect resistant potatoes; transgenic tomatoes; yeast (used in bread, spreads, food supplements, pizza base, beer and other processed foods).

Z - Zeneca. Across the pond, U.K.-based Zeneca recently merged with Astra of Sweden to create another gene giant. According to the Rural Advancement Foundation International, the biotech multinational is racing to patent ‘Verminator’ which, they say, will produce "junkie plants that are physically dependent on a patented chemical cocktail."

(First published in The Telegram, Saturday May 1/99)
© Alison Dyer

Low down on low flush - for World Toilet Day

2009-11-19T16:38:00.005-03:30

just in time for World Toilet Day...
The Low-down on Low flush

Some of them have a dirty reputation. And while they’re the law in the U.S., stories about homeowners trickling over the border to Canada to buy elicit older and bigger brothers abound. The low-flow toilet, since its introduction in the early 1990s, has produced quite a flush of debate.

Believe it or not, there are regularly updated reports and studies on toilets that ‘exceed customer performance expectations.’ I don’t expect much from my toilet. In fact, it might well be the poster child for neglected appliances. But when some recent household plumbing highlighted the possibility of new bathroom fixtures I got eyes and face, so to speak, into the lowdown on toilets.

For example, did you know that testing the efficacy of the low flow is now done with a soybean mixture encased in latex (condom) in 50 gram specimens? Similar in density and moisture content to human waste, this may kill the soybean industry as a palatable alternative protein. But I digress.

So, what does a green need to know about going low? Well, let’s take a brief look at the histoire of the pissoir: In the home, the toilet uses the most water, accounting for about 30 per cent of indoor water use. Older model (pre-1980) toilets flush with 20 litres of water (that’s about what the average person living in Africa uses per day). Considering that over the course of a lifetime, one flushes the toilet nearly 140,000 times, using one of these hummers is akin to wasting a waterfall.

In the ‘90s, the 13 litre toilet came on the market. Then in 1996 the Ontario provincial building code required 6 litre toilets (often called ultra-low-flush) for all new homes. This all time low legislation has not been met in any other province or territory although some municipalities, like Vancouver, have decided to see how low they can go including offering rebates on low-flow toilets a program which, St. John’s does not have. (But with the increasing costs associated with the new sewage treatment system, such a program would benefit everyone by helping to reduce the amount of water being processed).

In the U.S., federal law states that toilets may not exceed 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf)—that’s about 6 litres-- and many of their High-Efficiency Toilets (HETs) go beyond that standard and use less than 1.3 gpf. This is a nice twist to prevalent thinking that everything is larger in the U.S. Seems they can still flush it with less. And in case you’re wondering, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has adopted 350 grams as a minimum performance threshold (the average male dump is 250 grams) for High-Efficiency Toilets (HETs).

Meanwhile, down under, Caroma, the dominant supplier of sanitary fixtures to the Australian and New Zealand market, tested for plumbing problems using its dual-flush (half flush for liquid waste; full flush for solid) toilet system. The manufacturer concluded that to achieve water conservation objectives the entire plumbing system should be of the highest standard. In other words, and as others have found out, low flow toilets may experience problems when installed in locations with degraded or damaged drain line systems (e.g., root intrusion, sagging or broken lines, buildup of solids, etc.).

Still, let’s say your plumbing is dandy. The thing to remember is that not all toilets are made equal. Many first generation low flow models didn’t flush properly. But over the years, flushing systems have been redesigned and improvements in glazes, for example, help ensure that the bowl is as aerodynamic as possible. A good place to look at information on low flush toilet ratings is www.terrylove.com/crtoilet.htm. This TV/plumber personality has produced a consumer report on toilets taking into account such concerns as gram ratings, ease and cost of repairs, sound when flushing, and how well the bowl is rinsed.

One more cautionary note. Toilets can be gravity flushed (the most common) or pressure-assisted. While the latter requires still less water it can be noisy and may be problematic in homes with older plumbing.

Fine. I’m ready to go shopping (as long as I don’t have to bounce on the bedspring, so to speak). And choices in St. John’s have improved over the past couple of years though I still can’t find my favourite—the ‘Toto’ listed on Love’s website—in St. John’s. Still, retailers like Kent and Home Hardware carry a selection of 6 litre models providing both single and dual-flush options, the former starting at $90.

Meanwhile, if you’re not quite ready to buy a new toilet, you might consider retrofitting your old one to make it less of a water hog. Several types of devices can be installed in an existing toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used in flushing that work by: water displacement (plastic bag or bottle); water retention (toilet dams); or alternative flushing (early closure or dual-flush). Local plumbing supply or hardware stores can help find out which type will work best for your toilet. But don't put rocks or bricks in your toilet tank: Over time they’ll break down and can cause damage.

And if you’re really cheap but determined to save that pure drinking water that’s flushing your bowl, consider adopting this adage: "

If it's yellow, let it mellow, if it's brown, flush it down."

The Case of the Contract Killer

2009-09-30T22:36:00.003-02:30

The Case of the Contract Killer

Violetta di Chioggia, Rosa Bianca Solanam melongena, Tom Thumb Latuca Sativa.

Recognize any of these names? Seen any of their faces around recently? No? This may come as a shock, but these are just a few of thousands who’ve gone missing. In fact, they’re on a hit list.

Oh, and did I mention they’re vegetables. Does that make a difference? It shouldn’t.

You see, we humans are accomplices in what could very well be our own demise. We’ve (if not knowingly) allowed a few corporations to whittle down our variety of food crops from thousands to a handful. I can see the mugshot of that herbicide-burping superbug now, chomping down and wiping another crop from our increasing paltry list. No, really, come back to the table and listen – you eat? Then this affects you.

We humans have eaten some 80,000 plant species over time. Now, three-quarters of all our produce comes from just eight species and, as biologist, author and locavore Barbara Kingsolver tells it, the field is “quickly narrowing down to genetically modified corn, soy, and canola.” Our food crops, Kingsolver says, could well make an endangered species list. We are, quite simply, undermining the security of our very own food system.

With genetically modified foods, we’re further undermining the security of that system with crop species being held against their will by a handful of powerful corporations intent on fooling around with their genes. Splicing together traits that aren’t even nodding acquaintances in nature can produce a vigorous plant for one generation, but the next generation is likely unpredictable and has no staying power.

But let’s back up and see how and why these disappearances started. Well, it has to do with the craving for tomatoes (or raspberries) at a time when even songbirds are sucking on dried up dogberries. And it also has to do with advances in long distance trucking. You see, up until the middle of last century, most North Americans were still eating fruits and vegetables that came from nearby farms, which also meant eating in season. Then marketers realized a market for out-of-season produce, like those tomatoes (or raspberries) titillating the taste buds of a society that was getting used to instant gratification. And then those tomatoes (or raspberries) needed larger and refrigerated trucks, and a super highway system to get these aliens to market.

Enter agribusiness into the contract. New breeds of produce were bred so that those tomatoes (or look at any produce at your local grocery retailer) could stand up to mechanized picking, packing, shipping and displaying on supermarket shelves. This uber tomato proved it could go the distance, but a few things got lost in the meantime: like flavour, often pest resistance and, no surprise, genetic diversity. There can, after all, only be one uber tomato, so uniformity and blandness became the trade-off signatures. Long distance travel, says Kingsolver, lies at the heart of the plot to murder flavourful fruits and veggies. Then the agribusiness breeding of indestructible produce ensured a market for tennis ball-like tomatoes. Farmers had little choice but grow what people (thought they) wanted, and seed catalogue offerings dropped more and more old-time trusted varieties. Today, not only plant varieties but whole species have been lost while six companies—Monsanto, Syngenta, DuPont, Mitsui, Aventis, and Dow—now control 98 percent of the world’s seed sales.

There’s a few organizations that are on the look out for Violetta and friends. Slow Food International promotes agricultural biodiversity and has a twist on the save-the-endangered species line. Eat it. To save those rare species, the seed must be grown, plant harvested and eaten. Ditto that heirloom pig.

Closer to home, groups such as FEASt (Food Education Action – St. John’s), Farmers’ Markets and community gardens are springing up across the province, putting local food back on the menu and in the minds of residents.

Bottom line? Come clean. Don’t continue to be an accomplice to contract killing. Eat local. Reject uniformity. Check out grandma’s garden. Dissent. And have a flavourful day.
© Alison Dyer 2009

paddling with spirits and titans

2009-08-24T01:56:00.001-02:30

Coming sometime in September.... photographs of my latest trip this summer in Bay Despair (bay d'espoir, or as originally called, bay of spirits). A visual, auditory and emotional feast. I will post some photographs of this enthralling coast. Until then, paddle well. Alison

Summer arrived in May

2009-06-24T23:13:00.002-02:30

Yeh, summer arrived in May this year. Every single tree is out strutting its foliage. We are in the midst of a glut of green. It is gorgeous. And I've been out paddling, and kayak camping, even swimming in the North Atlantic... in June!

Will post some photos of trips soon. If I'm not out on the water. Alison

Music in all its forms

2009-03-22T20:38:00.002-02:30

Concert
When: Today
Where: Outside
What: New Philip Glass composition performed by a northwest breeze and a million ice-encrusted branches
Audience: A skeleton flock of herring gulls chipped off a grey sky
Blue-sky performance piece encore: A pack of silver foxes storms the hills; the City retreats.

Snowstorm and sedentary kayaks

2009-03-21T22:50:00.004-02:30

Second day of spring. A snowstorm swirling, a sky full of whirling dervishes, an ecstasy of snow. My white kayak would probably join in but for the tie-downs keeping it horizontal on my roofrack. Beginning to forget the feel of pulling through saltwater. These days, kayaking is roll practise in chlorine.

The Abstraction of Nature

2009-03-09T10:19:00.006-02:30

"In some sense, the physical world is no longer as real to us as the economic world - we cosset and succor the economy; our politicians gear every decision to speeding its further growth. So if someone says, 'Ending our reliance on fossil fuels will harm the economy,' that settles the issue. By contrast, if someone says, 'Relying on fossil fuels is wrecking the planet,' it seems an almost irrelevant objection - the Earth has become abstract, and the economy concrete, to us."

Bill McKibben, The End of Nature

I came across these words jotted down in an old journal of mine. And with them my thoughts: It's as though we treat Earth as our mother. And like a mother, we expect unconditional love, and unconditional forgiveness. Everything will be rectified, if we screw up, by mother earth.

Coming to a backyard near you...HENZILLA

2009-03-08T21:39:00.003-02:30

Vancouver city council votes to allow residents to keep chickens in backyards (Chicken-Bylaw)The Canadian Press Mar 05 23:58 EST

VANCOUVER _ The B.C. SPCA is crying ``fowl'' after Vancouver city council voted in favour of a bylaw that makes it legal to keep chickens in backyards.

SPCA spokesman Shawn Eccles says he's concerned that people who never would have considered having a chicken of their own will now give it a try because of the attention the bylaw has received.

Eccles says those individuals might not have the knowledge or experience to deal with chickens, meaning it's the animals who will suffer in the end.

He says there's much more to taking care of chickens than most people realize, including the fact that the birds can attract rodents.

Vancouver will not be the first Lower Mainland municipality that allows residents to raise chickens outdoors, as Burnaby and New Westminster already do.

Residents in New York, Seattle and Portland are also permitted to keep the birds. (CKNW, CBC, The Canadian Press)

I love it. Chickens can attract rodents. So can cats, dogs and particularly people who barbque & leave stuff out in their yards. But getting closer to our food source? Ooh, scary.

Seed bombing and Canning swaps

2009-02-18T20:14:00.002-03:30

Came across two neat ideas that have definitely found their time.

The newest weapon of the guerilla gardener: making a seed bomb for hard to reach places:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/video/2008/apr/25/seedbombing

Want to keep it local but add some diversity? This is one type of party you'll want to go to: the canning swap party.
http://www.foodroutes.org/ffarticle.jsp?id=13

Tasting Grace in Wild Spaces

2009-02-03T14:25:00.002-03:30

[Photo: Chance Cove, Trinity Bay. Copyright: Lewis Greenland]

"People need wild places... We need to be able to taste grace and know once again that we desire it. We need to experience a landscape that is timeless, whose agenda moves at the pace of speciation and glaciers. To be surrounded by a singing, mating, howling commotion of other species, all of which love their lives as much as we do ours, and none of which could possibly care less about our economic status or our running day calendar. Wildness puts us in our place. It reminds us that our plans are small and somewhat absurd. It reminds us why, in those cases in which our plans might influence many future generations, we ought to choose carefully."

Barbara Kingsolver

Wind: a love - hate relationship

2009-01-23T16:52:00.005-03:30

Wind (by Ted Hughes)

This house has been far out at sea all night,

The woods crashing through darkness, the booming hills,

Winds stampeding the fields under the window

Floundering black astride and blinding wet.

Till day rose; then under an orange sky

The hills had new places, and wind wielded

Blade-light, luminous black and emerald,

Flexing like the lens of a mad eye.

At noon I scaled along the house-side as far as

The coal-house door. Once I looked up -

Through the brunt wind that dented the balls of my eyes

The tent of the hills drummed and strained its guyrope,

The fields quivering, the skyline a grimace,

At any second to bang and vanish with a flap;

The wind flung a magpie away and a black-

Back gull bent like an iron bar slowly. The house

Rang like some fine green goblet in the note

That any second would shatter it. Now deep

In chairs, in front of the great fire, we grip

Our hearts and cannot entertain book, thought,

Or each other. We watch the fire blazing,

And feel the roots of the house move, but sit on,

Seeing the window tremble to come in,

Hearing the stones cry out under the horizons.

* * * *

In January, February, March my heart pounds more, because

I'm sure

the westerlies, northerlies and otherlies bang on my door.

no. in fact they like to raise my bed,

in my balloon-frame house they shake every darn piece

of furniture. Not just shake but rattle and unhinge.

And that goes for my nerves too.

Only heavy wool blankets stay on my bed in these months.

Even the foster cat finds the rocking chair preferable,

a pleasant counter-action, like a hammock on a ship, to the

plundering wind.

When we lived in Port au Port

(and the axe blew over one blustery winter day)

I joked that my kids were growing on an angle.

Like tuckamore. Resilient.

Storm-bound

2009-01-13T19:22:00.003-03:30

Storm-bound days on kayaking trips can drive you batty. I like to think they offer opportunities for creativity. Take one day last August. Our group of 3 were 'stuck' on an island, thickly wooded (think knitted wood) on either side of our football-sized meadow. Steep but navigable cliffs to beaches on either side. I wandered down to the south-facing beach and started on one of my ongoing little projects: documenting the garbage that had made its way to and back from the ocean. But this time I saw new potential. Grabbing J (an artist), I explained our afternoon activity: arranging as many different colours and hues of garbage into a Rainbow. At one point I thought I might be on to a new grant possibility for environmental art! Imagine creating Garbage Rainbows at remote beaches to draw attention to the problem of using our oceans as dumping grounds. May still do it.

Meanwhile, some stats:

Did you know?
Time taken for objects to dissolve at sea
Paper bus ticket 2-4 weeks
Cotton cloth 1-5 months
Rope 3-14 months
Woolen cloth 1 year
Painted wood 13 years
Tin can 100 years
Aluminum can 200-500 years
Plastic bottle 450 years
(Source: Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association

Boxing Up a River

2009-01-04T02:23:00.004-03:30

[Photo: Manuel's River, Alison Dyer]

Boxing Day usually means a hike somewhere. This year, that is, last year, it was a hike up Manuel's River. (I always want to say a 'short walk' a la Eric Newby. A hike sounds too grand.) And it's mainly an excuse to take some Christmas leftovers for a picnic. At least, that's what I always tell the kids. Darn cold but some lovely tinkling sounds of frozen grasses at the river bed. Manuel's River is known internationally for its fossilized trilobites. We've been coming for years to this river-park. And this year, that is, last year, son #1 actually found part of a trilobite in one of the rocks.

Roy's Garden

2008-12-15T23:24:00.003-03:30

[Photo: Roy's Garden, Alison Dyer 2007]

On guard for thee

Toe positioned in westward stance
Heel toward the eastern trench
A lone rubber boot, upturned on staff, presides
in centre field. A quiet commandant
rallying the troops.

All flanks armoured with bits of fencing,
metal, plastic and noisemaking:
a cadre of rusty cans, an infantry of laundry bottles,
an ambush-ready bedspring
in its deep grass position.

Scraps of onion bags, shredded tarps, a regal blue overall
arms and legs stuffed and tied with a pink silk scarf,
a cracked orange bucket and, past kitchen duty but with three good legs left for battle,
a wooden kitchen chair.
All enrolled for nocturnal combat.

In Roy’s garden Major Boot,
with a commanding view up the valley,
enlists this band of the crooked, the lost, the rejected
in the twilight war of
vegetables versus ungulates.

(Alison Dyer, 2008)

Roy sets a wonderful vegetable garden near me in Caplin Cove. Only he is hounded by moose. Or just one who loves to tease and eat tender beet greens. We are toying with the idea getting a moose license (um, thoughts of tasty roasts). If only that moose knew that I gave up being a vegetarian of 16 years for moose stew!

a poem for december

2008-12-06T14:00:00.004-03:30

Mid-december and pewter-coloured water, burning to the touch, kills most thoughts of paddling. But it's a time to remember, plan and read poems about this crazy magnificent coastline.

cliffs

and a thin green

cover. like

dinosaurs crouching under a rug. then

through the rowdy narrows

a sunlit bay: spits, shoals and islands, white

birds lifting out of the blue. no

centre. no shadows here. no lines

leading anywhere. waves

capes scrub-tufts shift, shuffle

under the open sky

(John Steffler in "The Grey Islands, Brick Books. 2000. John Steffler was the former Canadian poet laureate).

Bay Bulls - out past Long Harry and Spoon Island

2008-11-19T19:02:00.007-03:30

Bay Bulls, on Newfoundland's Southern Shore, and just 35 minutes from St. John's, is home to two expanding whale watching tours. Apart from an aborted night paddle several years ago, I admit I've taken the bay for granted and tend to paddle much farther away. But on a recent November trip, with shortening days grabbing our paddle leashes, we headed out to explore its southern side. The wind was blowing: 30km with gusts of 50km from the sw. That provided a good tailwind for the trip out. We found and explored several caves and, near the headland, a rather lovely section of sea stacks: from Maggoty Cove, past Spoon Island, and beyond Cheese Point. [the map above is lifted from a real estate website... as you can see, land is quickly being bought & sold here.]

The name Bay Bulls is somewhat of a mystery. The name first appears on a 1592 map. Perhaps it was Bay Boulle named by Jersey fishermen. Or perhaps it derives from the common Dovekie Bull-Bird found in the area.

Still looking for a beach (gravel or boulders would do), we kept going outside until only a faint glimpse of Ireland could be seen. Okay, Ireland was beyond the horizon, but one of the islands of the seabird sanctuary was nearby. But no beach.

Never mind. A brisk headwind paddle back to near the put-in and we found a spot for lunch. Sardines and tea tastes delightful outside.

a gift in november

2008-11-07T01:23:00.004-03:30

For some it was a time to haul up the boats. Not for us. A perfect November day, warm (17C), sunny - never mind its midweek, or winds were blowing - this gift of a day was celebrated on the water.

Bay Bulls East Coast Trail

2008-11-02T22:00:00.005-03:30

[Photos: East Coast Trail, Bay Bulls, NL 2008 A.Dyer]

Today the woods beckoned. A hike with family and friends on the East Coast Trail - Mickeleens Path - from Bay Bulls on Newfoundland's southern shore. A boardwalk questioned and we answered with pitter-patters, thuds and mud-caked soles. Whispers from every type of green. And nearby, below, a shoreline sucked and smacked by salty lips.

See: http://www.eastcoasttrail.com/trail/view.php?id=6 for a splendid view from this trail.

More Colinet Island

2008-10-27T16:43:00.002-02:30

[Photo: Peter A explores Regina(ville), Great Colinet Island, Oct. 2008, Alison Dyer]
[Photo: Paddling west side of Great Colinet Island, Oct.2008, Lev Tarasov]

Having a devil of a time posting to & editing the blog - some html ghost keeps popping up and making away with text and photos.

For archival photos of former community of Regina(ville), see: http://www.mun.ca/mha/resettlement/colinet_1.php

Circumnavigating Great Colinet Island

2008-10-25T22:16:00.007-02:30

[photos: alison dyer, oct.2008]

It so reminded me of Monty Python's Holy Grail. You know, where buddy is running up to the castle and each time the guards look at him, he's back in the distance, starting all over again. Well, that was the headland at the end of Colinet Island: an elusive target, an illusory landscape. So it was better to just pummel the bit of wind of waves, enjoy the late autumn rays, and forget about an actual destination.

We started from Admiral's Beach, an end-of-the-road community in St. Mary's Bay, and paddled the short (<2km)across to Great Colinet Island. A cursory exploration of Regina and lunch on beach at NW tip. Smoke train clouds across a blue sky. Forecast 20km wind gusts to 40km. So, with heads down we punched into straight wind and waves for 2 hours. Rewarded with a following sea as we cruised through some nice chop at the southern headland. By this time, our initial group had splintered into 3 distinct parties.

Our group of 3 continued on to explore the resettled community of Mosquito which, in late afternoon provided a particularly pleasant backdrop, with a nearby family of seals playing dolphin. A very satisfying 20km circumnavigation.

Photos above:

1. Lev in part of community formerly known as Regina and, prior to the 1900s known as Mother IXX's (also Mother Rex). Population, peaking in 1945 to 104, was of course dependent on the cod fishery and first settled by Irish-born fisherman named Dalton. "The broad cove at Regina offered a good beach for drying fish and was likely used by migratory fishing crews prior to settlement.."[Encyclopedia of NF, vo.4]. Resettlement occurred in 1960-62: ~ 70 families moved to Admiral's Beach.

2. Looking north from beach at Regina, Great Colinet Island.

3. Pete N enjoys a beverage and cigar at lunch - only indulging in such on special paddles.

4. Lots of great rock formations on both sides of island

5. Trio of erstwhile spruce, still clinging.

6. The sedimentary rocks on the east side of the island had a particularly 'temple of doom' type appearance: as though pressing on one might set in motion all kinds of locks, levers and uncover secret vaults.

7. & 8. On the east side of island is the resettled community of Mosquito. Each community (M&R) had a church but shared a school halfway between communities. We didn't have time to explore the carttrack between the communities, but Peter A believes he found the foundation of Mosquito's church.

"Occasionally there was a shipwreck from which the Colinet Island inhabitants salvaged hardware, furniture and sometimes livestock." [The settlement pattern of the McEvoy Family on Colinet Island, by Ted Tremblett]. Mosquito was first recorded separately in census in 1845 with 24 people - probably taking advantage, says Newfoundland Encyclopedia, of rich fishing grounds, dense forests and fertile soil. Population peaked at 62 in 1901.

"By 1881 a school was operating in Mosquito. In the early 1900s, however, children walked 4 km to a schoolhouse in Regina...A two-room building was opened halfway between the communities around 1917...The oldest headstone standing in the cemetery in 1990 was that of John Doody, who died in 1845." We didn't find the cemetary which means another trip.

Woody Island in fall colours

2008-10-21T14:45:00.006-02:30

[photos by Alison Dyer, 2008]

Paddling buddy Peter A has to have an annual pilgrimage to Woody Island and Rattling Brook Falls (and pool) in Placentia Bay. Which sits perfectly well with me. Last weekend, with larch and maple showing off particularly nice shades of ochre and amber, and winds all but ceasing on the Avalon, 5 of us launched from Garden Cove for the 22km or less return paddle.

We headed around the eastern side of Sound Island, once home to a community of a few hundred people, now dotted with a few cabins in coves. No sightings of otters but out in the Bay a dory, with two fisherman jigging on the last day this year's recreational cod fishery, was backdropped by a gargantuan oil tanker parked and smoking near Merasheen Island.

We grabbed lunch on a tiny sun-split beach - Peter and Liz snoozed on shale while Janaki and Lev scrounged for smokey ripe partridgeberries on the spongy ground above.

A quick paddle to Woody Island to nod to Loyola's 'Woody Island Resort', then on and over to Rattling Brook. At this time of year a mere trickle. Still, the deep pool above enticed the dry-suited members of the party (note: heads and hands are above the frigid waters).

No caribou sightings either this time, just a few eagles. Still, the perfect paddling conditions and fall colours made the day simply memorable.

Go Jack Go

2008-10-15T15:35:00.003-02:30

In a landslide election, Jack Harris (former provincial NDP leader and one-time MP) has been elected by 3/4 of voters in St. John's East as their MP in Ottawa. Go Jack Go!

Fortune Bay

2008-08-25T00:52:00.002-02:30

(Paddling near Rencontre East, Fortune Bay: photo by Alison Dyer, Aug.2008)

Last week spent nearly six days paddling and exploring Fortune Bay. Rare finds, magnificent vistas, glorious and terrifying geology. Details and photos forthcoming.

Greg Rocks

2008-08-03T22:42:00.003-02:30

"Following are my trip statistics. I’ll also put a gear list together, along with a list of what gear worked and what gear didn’t make the grade.
Total distance paddled: 2102K (1306 miles)
Daily average: 60.05K (37.3 miles)
Longest day: 93K (57.8 miles)
Shortest day (aborted crossing of Trinity Bay): 27K (16.7 miles)
Total days: 44Paddling days: 35Weather/Rest days: 9
Many hundreds of whales, dolphins and blowspouts! Two sharks and two sunfish. And of course, and most important, too many life-changing memories to list…"

Posted by Greg Stamer, world-record-holder for paddling around island of Newfoundland, completed this past week. Way to go Greg.

check out his site for simply gorgeous photos etc.
http://www.gregstamer.com/

Caplin Roll in Caplin Cove

2008-07-28T23:15:00.004-02:30

Carpet of iridescent green, writhing. A thin fog half-heartedly obscuring cliffs, solemn, battle ship grey with their longitudinal lines. Impressive, but the veil of mystery soon lifting, peeling back to show true blue.

This past wednesday, the caplin rolled onto the beach. Almost to the day they did last year (a month behind from years ago). Son Ezra first out at 6am to net a few. The ritual cooking up of a few on the Regal woodstove. Then such a fine day, I launched and paddled over to Hant's Harbour to let some friends know 'the caplin are in'.

Run River Run

2008-07-07T00:56:00.008-02:30

(photos of Exploits River/Grand Falls Canyon River, A. Dyer July 2008)

Sometimes you just have a try something new. I believe. And so two weekends ago, although the forecast temperatures were below seasonable, and drizzle drizzled, a few of us headed out to central Newfoundland and the grand Exploits River for KNL's Badger Run. Posted especially for sea kayakers with little WW experience, it was a fun weekend. We camped at Paul & Joy Roses' place (who run the wonderful Rafting Newfoundland trips).

Exceptional hospitality on their part added to the weekend. Me, being the only novice (a single 2-day course on the Ottawa River in 2005 my only previous WW), I impressed myself that I never swam on this trip. Following sat. night's steaks, beer, and campfire, we scouted the Canyon section on Sunday. Class 3. I waved the flag and said "next year," (hold me to it).

My compadres and more experienced river rats Brian, Pete, and Dick ran it no problem - although it wasn't without excitement. The amazing Paul Rose (with a hole in his boat taped with duct tape) and youngsters Andrew and Breen strutted their stuff for some time on the Virgin Wave. While the waves look almost grandmotherly here, I can attest to their testy and toothsome nature. Know your stuff or be eaten!

Meanwhile, back at the camp--where Paul & Joy are building 4 1/2 star chalets with jacuzzis and hot tub--the huskies are simply adorable. An all around great weekend.

Discover your passions, respect the Earth

2008-06-20T12:29:00.004-02:30

[Photo: Ezra near the top of the world 2007]

"Live your dreams, discover your passions, adventure safely with care, consideration and respect for planet Earth. Create a connection with the natural environment to encourage yourself and others to protect our world and all living things, discovering the true and natural essence of humanity."

This is the philosophy of Hayley Shepard. From New Zealand, Hayley is visiting and kayaking part of Newfoundland. Welcome. Enjoy.

8th Annual KNL Retreat

2008-05-26T22:06:00.004-02:30

It was great. Terrific guests Bryan Smith and Fergus (forgive me but it's on the KNL website). However, I reneged again on any river stuff but did 3 new paddles: around Swale Island (finding a fantastic cave behind a waterfall - five kayaks inside and still more room); up Bloody Reach (didn't look for Beothuk artifacts, but lots of Osprey); out from Wild Cove around Cow Head (impressive headland with a nice sea running) near Salvage. Lunched on Sailor's Island - another resettled community and gorgeous spot for camping. Bloody big bits of ice (think small mountain) out in the bay--we figured about 1 1/2hrs one way paddle so gave it a miss. Eagles, seals, yada yada. Oh yes, and we partied hard at night too.

No camera, no photos. But check out Stan's website for some. (And Neil's on yesterday's trip in Placentia Bay.)

First pond practice tonight. Bob G smiling into hand rolls and I'm grimacing at the thought of 6 degree water--though that's appreciably more than the 1 or 2 degrees paddled in Bonavista Bay. Finally grin and bear it and roll. Not so bad. Thank you Kokatat!

Kayak Retreat - from bears

2008-05-06T17:56:00.004-02:30

[Photo: Jamie Lewis spies a black bear, Terra Nova, 2008 by Alex McGruer]

I collect bear scat. Photos that is. One of several photo projects: this one is about developing a field guide to scat of NL animals. Well, someone has to do it.

Meanwhile, on a scouting trip this past weekend, paddling friends Alex McGruer and Jamie Lewis saw the real McCoy. They drove out to Terra Nova National Park to paddle a beginner's day route for the upcoming annual Kayakers Retreat. And they were rewarded with a black bear close by on shore. Seems Terra Nova has an increasing population of these bears. They just about always scamper off when people show up. (Unless tourists feed them... please don't!) Still, this has reinforced my conviction about staying in a cabin again instead of tenting this year. Cold and damp is one thing... but having some great clawed, hairy and hungry animal looking at a few mms of cloth is, well, a definite deterrent.

Linda Bartlett - Newfoundland's Woman of the Paddle

2008-04-19T00:41:00.006-02:30

Below is a version of an article of mine on paddling friend Linda Bartlett in a recent issue of Adventure Kayak Magazine (on Wild Women). Above Linda wears a particularly fetching rain hat (although I don't think MEC carries them) on our 4-night trip to Exploits Island in '05.

Name: Linda Bartlett
Occupation/Role: Outdoor Enthusiast/Outgoing Chair of MEC
Hometown/Province: St. John’s, Newfoundland

“There’s an old Chinese saying ‘you’ve never lived ‘til you’ve run a raging rapid and ridden a wild horse’,” says Linda Bartlett. “Well, I’ve had horses that have been difficult to handle and I’ve run the canyon of [Newfoundland’s] Main River.” A woman of lean build, extraordinary stamina and sheer love of the outdoors, Bartlett’s roster of adventures (like sitting behind the blowhole of a humpback whale during a rescue mission, or speed skate skiing smack into the face of a bull moose) could well rank her as the female Indiana Jones.

Bartlett probably has more paddling experience under her PFD than any other female in the province. She started canoeing about 20 years ago, completing most of the major rivers of the island – some with her then 165lb Newfoundland dog Bear - and twice running the Churchill River of Labrador lure which she paddled in a solo canoe in 2006. She switched strokes about 10 years ago. “I found a lot of skills used in canoeing I could use in kayaking and I love the sea.”

Driven by physical challenge (the former Captain of the McGill Woodswomen team took gold in a snowshoe race, practicing hard “for fear I’d come in last”), Bartlett spent the Millennium whitewater kayaking in Nepal, “…sitting on a bag of rice paddling with a head of cabbage between my knees.”

What others are saying:
Paddle Canada President and a Level 2 instructor trainer, Richard Alexander is quick to recognize Bartlett as a role model. “Her high level of competency is complimented by her enthusiasm to share her knowledge and passion with others. She is, in every sense, a leader in the paddling community.”

From the bay to the boardroom:
For the past four years, Bartlett has brought her enthusiasm for the outdoors and knowledge about gear to the boardroom as chair of Canada’s leading retailer of outdoor gear. “I was drawn to the values of Mountain Equipment Co-op, and it’s become a vehicle for change,” says Bartlett, adding “I’m motivated to make a difference.”

Fast forward:
Her day job in Tourism with the provincial government, and involvement with MEC have carved into her time on the water. Next year she intends to change that by paddling more in her home province. “I’m not a fair weather paddler who explores the coast in calm conditions. I enjoy wind and waves. I’m looking forward to challenging myself in the elements.”

Witless Bay Line Barrens

2008-04-08T16:51:00.010-02:30

[Photos: top & bottom by Alison Dyer; group shot by Graham Openshaw; 2 skiers by Peter Armitage, April 2008]

"What time of day do you call this," says Graham, as daughter Ella and I, stunned by a glazing sun, scramble with our x-country skiis. We'd left St. John's and arrived about 40 mins later - now noon - out on the Witless Bay Line - a road known for its winter white-outs, over the barrens between the Trans Canada Highway and the coastal Southern Shore Highway.

I mumble something about being at the kayak pool sessions the night before with both kids. And now we are here - where my buddy Peter Armitage has his winter camp (a canvas Innu tent). He, his partner Barb Neis, mutual friends Graham and Janaki (an Aussi) and a few others are out for the day - or weekend - camping and skiing. Ella and I decide to join them for the afternoon across a vast white terrain scattered with erratics and irregular life - like something belonging to the White Witch: a landscape bewitched by a dazzling sun, and magnificent chards of sparkling glass beneath shorn larch and grizzled spruce (a thaw following a freezing rain).

Early on - and far behind - attempting a snow plow, my left ski hits a bare patch of caribou moss, grabs onto it like a drowned man to a tossed lifejacket, and sends me caterpaulting into the albeit fresh and tasty air. I land unceremoniously like a sack of garbage. So be it... I paddle therefore I am... I ski because winter doth cover this land for 8 months (i.e. I suck at skiing but try to make the most of it).

The landscape is marvellous - we're tired, and after two plus hours head back to camp, finding it by its trail of wood smoke. Tea, Innu donuts and a ritual bowl of instant noodles are enjoyed laying on a bed of fragrant fir boughs. Sore muscles, red cheeks, and warm food usher us into a trance-like nap.

Innu Crafts Available

2008-04-04T15:37:00.005-02:30

"I spent three weeks in Unaman-shipu (La Romaine) on the Quebec Lower North Shore in February and March 2008. My Innu Mom, Alice Bellefleur, asked me to flog a number of her craft items in St. John's upon my return. These were sold almost instantly."

So writes my long-time friend and paddling buddy, anthropologist Peter Armitage. He goes on to say that Alice Bellefleur:

"takes commissions, mostly moccasins, mittens and knitted wool socks. ..if you're interested in placing an order, send me the outline of your foot drawn on a piece of paper (in the case of moccasins and socks). Same thing for an order of mittens - send me the outline of your hand drawn on a piece of paper. Mom is 75 years old and never stops making crafts."

If you're the shopping type, I can't imagine a better gift - or reason to buy - than a pair of these exquisite hand-made items. And you'd be supporting an important local, sustainable and aboriginal economy.

See Peter's site for full details and more photos of crafts.

Winter Winning Winterset

2008-03-28T18:34:00.004-02:30

Sitting and eating and drinking at the annual CAPE (Cultural Assistance Plan for Emergencies) fundraising dinner last night at the Ship Pub with friends and writers Janet McNaughton, (a prolific award-winning author of young adult novels), Libby Creelman (who has a terrific debut novel just out), poet Shoshanna Wingate, and recent award winner Kathleen Winter.

from CBC website:

Kathleen has won Newfoundland and Labrador's richest literary prize, for the second win in her family's history.Winter won the 2007 Winterset Award for boYs, a collection of short stories that are thematically linked by the lives and thoughts of boys and men. The announcement was made late Thursday afternoon at a ceremony at Government House in St. John's.

Winter, a veteran writer who lives in Holyrood and also writes a weekly column in the St. John's Telegram, wins $5,000 for the prize.

Winter is the sister of novelist Michael Winter, the first winner of the award. He won in 2000 for his autobiographical novel This All Happened.

Shortlisted nominees were Paul Rowe, for his novel The Silent Time, and George Rose, a well-known fisheries scientist who wrote Cod: An Ecological History of the North Atlantic Fisheries. Each won $1,000...

The Winterset Award was established in 2000 by newspaper columnist Richard Gwyn to honour the best writing in Newfoundland and Labrador. It commemorates his late wife, Sandra Fraser Gwyn, a St. John's-raised journalist and author who chronicled the arts community of her home province, and who died in 2000.

For full article, go to CBC.

course, I wanted to know where Kathleen got her hair done--some nice.

Spuds, say Cheese!

2008-03-25T00:07:00.002-02:30

[photograph from: www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2008/1000799/index.html]

This is one photography contest that I have to enter. It's the World potato photography contest, launched March 12th in Rome. (Rome? Rome! I know what you're thinking. Ireland, Newfoundland, but Rome?)

According to the press release of that date, the contest was launched--to highlight the role of the potato as a source of food, employment and income in developing countries--by FAO and the United Nations. The contest is being held in conjunction with the UN’s International Year of the Potato (IYP) in 2008.

And how's this factoid: the potato is the world’s number four food crop, after rice, wheat and maize, and grown in more than one hundred countries.

I've been thinking about spuds because I want to grow some at the Cove this summer... maybe some whites, blues, definitely some reds and maybe some fingerlings...

Now the contest details: Winners in the professional and amateur categories will be awarded cash prizes totalling some US$11 000 as well as Nikon cameras. The deadline for entries is 1 September 2008.

For info: IYP-Photo@fao.org

Remembering our friends

2008-03-17T11:08:00.002-02:30

Our four hens--Scruffles, Percky, Herbert & Nerbert were surprisingly interesting pets, gave us a lot of joy and a real bonus - delicious fresh free-range eggs. This past weekend they and several other birds were brutally attacked and killed by a mink.

I have nothing good to say about minks. Their need to kill is pointless. This was the third time a mink visited my friend's barn which housed our hens this winter. We all thought we'd mink-proofed the pens after the first visit. We were wrong. I feel terrible for my friend who had to find the 13 ravaged hens and ducks.

I'd been looking forward to writing a column on the joy of raising hens. And there is a lot to say. But that'll have to keep for another day. I think we will try again.

international icecream day - load 'er up!

2008-03-10T01:13:00.004-02:30

(Photo credit: Brian Newhook, Keels, Bonavista Bay, NL)

Past saturday, if you didn't know, was international icecream day. Well why not. Those brave or something or other were able to score a free icecream if they showed up in their pyjamas at Moo Moos. My son and his willing dad were the first there, bed hair and all, at 9am for some double dutch choc and the Moo Moos special Turtle cheese Cake. At least that's what I heard. Personally, I preferred a few more snooze minutes - having been at the pool the night before for a good clinic on bracing with Jim Price. You can never get enough practise with braces.

But back to icecream. temporarily. I was reminded of a recent photo submission by Brian Newhook, local paddler and, it appears, iceberg wrangler (though latter description brings on a lot of understandable hand wringing by our club). Nevertheless, as the above photo shows, there is more beauty in nature than can be imagined at times. A perfect melting softserve.

Lick, twirl and keep a good distance.

rubber boots

2008-02-20T14:38:00.002-03:30

A poem for this time of year on our wind-battered, warm-frozen, earth broken, ice-spliced island:

Rubber Boots, A Love Story

They sing of fish guts, cow paddies,
and mud puddles; the places you've been.
They embrace the back of your knees, calves
held in the whoosh and slap, a lullaby
in this season of leaving.
An antidote to empty coat hangers,
they wait for you like dogs
at the back door.

by Bren Simmers [from Arc Poetry Magazine]

Let me Fish - and Paddle - off Cape St. Mary's

2008-02-17T23:12:00.003-03:30

Written by Otto Kelland, Let Me Fish off Cape St. Mary's is a beautiful song.

But hey, others are paddling around that same Cape. Yup. We're a lucky crew who paddle here. (And hopefully Justine C doesn't mind my using a photo from her site - from her visit to same Cape). Now, some of us are even more fortunate. For those within earshot (and with good studs on your tires - yes - it's still only February) come check out this:

February 21, 2008: Slideshow - Paddling around Cape St. Mary's
7:30 PM Guv'nor Pub on Elizabeth Ave
We've all been there but few have paddled around Cape St. Mary's. Last September, three KNL members left St. Bride's on this unique trip. The sea was calm, the cliffs were high, the birds were raucous, the caves were deep, and the surfing was a treat. Come and see the pictures of this dream paddle with Neil Burgess

Appeal from across the pond.... thousands of years ago

2008-02-12T19:08:00.000-03:30

The Lismullin archaeological site in Co. Meath - possibly used as a defence during the Viking invasion - has been handed over to the contractor building the M3 motorway... hard to believe a site 2,000 years old, with artifacts dating back to the 10th century, is to be demolished. for a highway. More info on Claire's blog.. and there's a petition on the go.....

winter paddling

2008-02-12T13:16:00.000-03:30

Stan MacKenzie shows it possible to paddle in the winter here. Brrr. Actually he has gone out on the ocean too - check out his new blog listed in links.

Check out: www.getridofandywells.blogspot.com

2008-02-05T13:44:00.001-03:30

www.getridofandywells.blogspot.com

The Highest Tide

2008-01-28T21:48:00.001-03:30

"I was a pink-skinned, four-foot-eight, seventy-eight-pount soprano. I came off as an innocent nine-year-old even though I was an increasingly horny, speed-reading thirteen-year-old insomniac. Blame Rachel Carson for the insomnia. She was long dead by the time I arrived but I couldn't resist reading her books over and over... "There is no drop of water in the ocean, not even in the deepest parts of the abyss, that does not know and respond to the mysterious forces that create the tide." How do you read that sentence, yawn and turn out the lights?"

So begins (almost) an enchanting debut novel by Jim Lynch, a coming-of-age story of 13-yr-old Miles O'Malley living near Puget Sound. It's also a book that'll delight you with its depth, wonder and hilarious insights into the natural world. Sea kayakers in particular, I figure, will enjoy its tide-fresh imagery, metaphors and turn-the-page turn-of-phrases.

"I showed them life on top of life, barnacles and limpets stuck to oyster shells, clinging to each other, piggybacking on larger shells and barnacles on top of everything, as if there'd been a Superglue party the night before."...

"This is the roughest part of Tidal Town," I said... Phelps was obviously fading so I asked him how he figured they reproduce.

"By getting girl barnacles drunk?"...

"Nope. Their penises are rolled up like fire hoses inside their shells. When the time is right, they unfurl them and feel around their shells for willing mates to shoot their sperm inside."

Phelps laughed. "Come on. Fire hoses?"

"That's right. A barnacle's penis can be four times as long as the diameter of its base. So, yeah, those four-inch-wide giant barnacles you see along the coast are packing sixteen-inch penises."

..."These guys are the studs of the beach?"

Which makes one wonder, what kind of research did this guy do. On his website, Lynch answers:

I read marine biology books, sex guides and interviewed a psychic. I explored tidal flats during the day and at night with a headlamp. I interviewed experts on flotsam and tidal currents and spent a lot of time with a state biologist who has given tidal tours to teens for the past 20 years.

Pool Time

2008-01-20T23:36:00.000-03:30

[Photo: pool session Jan.2007, Sue Duffett]

Back in the saddle. Actually a very comfortable backband that a friend installed in my Perception Shadow. And now the stormy snowy freezing rain icy weather is upon us, it's time for our kayaks to bathe in warm chlorinated water as we continue to hone our skills, practise rescues & strokes.

Cool Competition for lots of audiobooks

2008-01-01T17:11:00.000-03:30

Based on its REDEFiNE iT: Dictionary of Newfoundland English facebook group (honestly, this is actually interesting), the 'small but fine' audiobook publisher Rattling Books has issued a super New Year's Competition. Here are the details:

You now have until:January 14

"In one sentence state a New Year's Resolution using all of the Words of the Week issued thus far by the facebook group REDEFiNE iT : Dictionary of Newfoundland English. Your statement must include your resolution but may also include an explanation of its motivation or any contingencies you anticipate in the application of your resolution.

You may ply the words in the sense indicated by the Dictionary of Newfoundland English definitions of the words or one of the "redefinitions" of the words posted to this group. It's up to us to guess the meaning of your Resolution. A Jury will be struck and two weeks from now a winner and two runners up will be announced. Criteria for judging the winning three entries will be articulated by the Jury on announcing their final decisions! The winner will recieve one full set of Rattling Books audio titles (18 in total). The two runners-up will each recieve a copy of Merrybegot by Mary Dalton, the book that inspired this Facebook Group and a copy of The Big Why by Michael Winter in which the term "blue drop" appears so beautifully. Here is the List of Words to include in your New Year's Resolution

shive

waddock

bawn

lewardly

blue drop

bawk

gud

drung

boo

pishogue

angishore

yaffle

marl

droke

merrybegot

nuzzle tripe

Post your Resolution on Rattling Books blog or on the REDEFiNE iT Facebook group page under the relevant Discussion Board Topic.

18 books. Pretty good win. Pretty good odds.

2008: The Year of Food Sense

2007-12-30T23:41:00.000-03:30

(Photo: root cellar Ladle Cove, NL, Alison Dyer 2007)

"The average food item on a U.S. grocery shelf has travelled farther than most families on their annual vacation..." Barbara Kingsolver in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, 2007

"If every U.S. citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce, we would reduce our country's oil consumption by over 1.1 million barrels of oil every week." Steven L. Hopp in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, 2007.

What's your new year's resolution?

Keep it simple. Local. Make it count.

JOY... Paddle Forth

2007-12-24T01:01:00.000-03:30

For 2008: Paddle forth.
Have Joy (possibly one of the best words in the English language)
A few shots of paddling partners in Newfoundland's bays (Bay d'espoir, Notre Dame, St. Mary's, Placentia, Hermitage).

men's club rules. again

2007-12-22T02:36:00.000-03:30

after hoping there might just be a gender flick (for a f****ing change... sorry, but it does get tiring) for the lieutenant governor's position in Newfoundland & Labrador (after all, even CBC Radio got call-ins on this) the word is final. Mr. John ('pass the tequila-Sheila' and 'quieten down baby') Crosbie has been appointed. Well that should tell us something.

An Intergenerational Crime

2007-12-11T12:46:00.000-03:30

He says that our failure to act is an "intergenerational crime."

David Suzuki, among many, many others, is rightly upset by Canada's pathetic behaviour and position (let's just call it environmental bashing of unforgivable proportion) at the Bali UN Summit on Climate Change.

"we are leaving a mess for our children and grandchildren who had nothing to do with making it, and we are creating a precarious world for the poorest and most vulnerable peoples who were not the cause of the current crisis."

For Suzuki's full commentary, go to:

David Suzuki (the Nature of Things) calls the government's spin on climate change "humiliating" and "ludicrous"http://www.thestar.com/News/article/283829

Oh yes, and Avaaz.org has given Canada its Fossil of the Day Award for its ludicrous position at the talks.

Trinity Bay

2007-12-10T23:45:00.000-03:30

(photos by Michael Bradley, 2007)

As temperatures fall far below zero, and clunky Sorels replace booties, I'm remembering some paddles from this past summer. One was with fellow kayak blogger Michael Bradley who took these photos of our day trip in Trinity Bay. This is an exciting bay to paddle. At the head are places like Chance Cove, Chapel Arm and Spread Eagle - sheltered, for the most part, but their stacks and caves testify to an often active sea.

A little further out are resettled communities - only accessible by boat - such Deer Harbour and Ireland's Eye (site of biggest drug bust in eastern Canada of the 70s, or something like that) and Pope's Harbour where this year a church was built - four decades after the community was abandoned.

Further out still, past a great poker hand (as in Hearts Delight, Hearts Desire, and Hearts Content) is the exposed coast chez moi with its sheer cliffs, shoals and great vistas. Many miles on the other side of the bay are places like Trinity, a historic community with many restored homes and the filming location for the 2001 film The Shipping News and the 2002 television miniseries Random Passage.

Operatic paddle for November

2007-11-27T14:20:00.000-03:30

[Photo credits: Neil Burgess]

Overture:

The sky gathered blue behind us, like a bride trailing her veil.

Act One:

We begin at Little Harbour East, at the head of Placentia Bay, after a car shuttle to Fairhaven where we'd end the paddle, about 22km to the south. Readying the boats for launch, we chat with a few older locals. One fellow talks about his grandfather, Robert Hann who, around 1900, ran a lobster cannery in Little Pinchgut Cove.

By the crack of noon we slice into the water, paddling out the harbour to face the march of cliffs along Long Island and Merasheen. Far out in the bay courses a fishing boat, haloed with seagulls like fleas around an old dog.

Some miles out, near Long Island and Merasheen, an oil tanker sails fast.

Intermission

[Scudded with over 300 islands,160km long by 130km wide, where fog plays a leading role two days out of three, Placentia Bay is renown for its fishing grounds and bird sanctuaries. It's also one of the busiest oil handling ports in Canada. Tanker traffic is fairly intense. And it's about to get a lot more tense. The Bay may now host a second oil refinery as well as a LNG terminal. Traffic congestion and lack of emergency preparedness could well spell disaster for this naturally and culturally distinct area.]

Act Two

A pair of loons rehearse an aria. A pair of moose on a ridge stand guard. We paddle around Pumbly Cove and Great Pinchgut and enter Little Pinchgut for lunch. A view as wide as imagination. And, sadly, a beach choking on plastic.

Intermission

[Salt meat buckets, oil containers, fishing nets, shoes, pop bottles. A commonly held perception is that our beaches and coastal environment is 'pristine' and 'untouched'. Sadly, that's a myth. Many beaches, particularly on the south coast of Newfoundland, are eyesores and some are hazardous to marine wildlife. Where on earth does all this garbage come from? Certainly a number of sources but the short answer is - us. ]

Act Three

Paddling into an operatic light. Crepuscular rays from a silver sun spotlight the salt water and yellow-dressed larches, cast promise across the knobbly hills. A sea in repose. And cradling rocks, a many tendrilled kelp rises and sinks beneath the ocean's breath, a benign monster.

Act Four

Rounding the last headland, we're off the water by 5pm as dusk starts eating around us.

2007-11-27T14:16:00.000-03:30

test.
i've updated some windows - having difficulty posting.

Ban the Bomb not Books

2007-11-23T00:05:00.000-03:30

Pullman is a superb writer and his "Dark Materials" trilogy is an intelligent read for young adults who've thumbed through Potter and want something more. Unfortunately, a Catholic school board in Ontario has pulled The Golden Compass fantasy book (soon to be a Hollywood blockbuster starring Nicole Kidman) off school library shelves. Guess they didn't like a statement in one of Pullman's interviews in which he said he was an atheist. Yup. That was the reason folks. Almost sounds like this is Amurica. Anyway, get out and read a copy (it's not just for kids). Before the flick comes to a screen near you.

and the short list is...

2007-11-15T23:14:00.000-03:30

The short-list from Biblioasis - of course we're giggly in this household because one of us (the one with curly greying hair who gets a kick out of making coffins with the kids on hallowe-en) is on it:

"It took a little longer this year to winnow through the manuscripts, but we're ready to announce the shortlist to the 3rd Annual Metcalf-Rooke Award. After sorting through more than 50 manuscripts, John and Leon selected the following four:

Grant Buday. Dragonflies. (Novel)

Bruce Johnson. Firmament. (Novel)

Rebecca Rosenblum. Once. (Short fiction)

J. J. Steinfield. Contemplating Madness (Short fiction)

We'll be announcing the winner on Friday, November 23rd. The winner will receive a $1500.00 advance, a publishing contract with Biblioasis (with their book set for Fall 2008 publication), a book tour (which will include an appearance at the Ottawa International Writer's Festival), a leather bound copy of their book, a special pre-publication profile in the New Quarterly, and other as-yet-to-be-determined perks.Congratulations to the shortlisted authors. "

waytago bruce.

coming soon - operatic return to Fairhaven, Placentia Bay

2007-11-14T18:51:00.000-03:30

Overture:
The sky gathered blue behind us, like a bride gathering her veil...

Chance Cove - all days are sundays

2007-11-07T16:40:00.000-03:30

(Photos of Chance Cove, TB courtesy of Graham Openshaw)

In a 2003 trip report about paddling Chance Cove to Rantem Harbour - a short but enlightening trip - I wrote that the paddle, like all fine things in life (tasting good chocolate, listening to bullfrogs, reading Barbara Kingsolver), should be enjoyed slowly, reverentially. And so when a late October chance to paddle the Chance arose, I grabbed it - and my 12-year-old enthusiastic daughter - along with several other members of our ever-expanding kayaking club.

October around the Chance offers a different view. Fewer eagles and the noisy terns and flashy guillimots were noticeably absent. Instead, the bright yellow and muted orange of larch, birch and dogberry softened the edges of Rantem Harbour. And anyway, rocks, caves, stacks, passageways have a tendency to stay put. Just one day past a full moon meant we were treated to a greater tidal range.

Daughter Ella was intrigued by the intertidal flora and fauna exposed by a low low tide and kept steering our borrowed double in close. Encouragement by another paddler had us both squeezing through passageways and rock hopping in places that I would not have thought a double could possibly manage. And while a double is far from my preferred mode of paddling, I was surprised at the agility we attained. Smiles from offspring #1 were well worth it.

Ode to a Bog

2007-10-25T21:22:00.001-02:30

(photo: Pinchgut Tickle, St. Mary's Bay, NL)

Haven't written it yet. Waiting for that autumnal light to return. The one that prickles every part of your skin. That makes you see, really see the colours, shape and texture of the smallest hair on the tip of a rosehip. The one that has you breathing deeply on hikes in the woods, not because you're out of breath, but because the blasty boughs and sodden leaves are playing sweet duets. That makes the smokey flavour of a partridgeberry, curled on the back of the tongue, quite possibly the best wine you've tasted. The one that has you ready to read the next chapter.

Cliff Beach

2007-10-09T17:15:00.000-02:30

Ah. Summer. "Our beach." Swimming, rolling, paddling in near frigid temps. Looks tropical. Sudden intakes of breath common. Need to pee. Thoughts of prayers by agnostics. Abundant marine life, humans rank low on population scale. Newfoundland.

Return to Bell Island

2007-09-23T22:14:00.000-02:30

(Photos: Alison catching a wave; Paddling near Little Bell; catching another wave; Portugal Cove morning - photos by Stan MacKenzie; Bell Island stratigraphy - photo by Alison Dyer)

It had been four years since I paddled around Bell Island, Conception Bay, (approximately 26km) with a group of paddling friends. Another trip was organized this past saturday by Joe Carroll who miraculously got the weather perfect. Sunny, warm (in mid 20s) and slight breeze (forecast 20km southerly). We left Portugal Cove (above) on the 8:20am ferry and were on the water less than an hour later. It was a far less rambuctious ride around the northern head than last time (steep northerly swells). But enough swell that we didn't risk going through a cave and sufficient for some fun surfing on the western side.

As the last photo (take in 2003) shows, Bell Island is distinct from the mainland, consisting of horizontal beds of Ordovician sandstone and shale. Iron ore mining was huge on the island in the early to mid part of the 20th century, in fact, the Wabana mines was one of the largest producers of iron ore in northeastern North America. The mines - now closed but open during the tourism season for tours - extend far beneath the seabed of Conception Bay, apparently creating one of the most extensive submarine iron mines in the world.

Many thanks to Stan MacKenzie for taking these photos on the water (and without a waterproof camera!).

For some superb photos of the Bell Island trip, check out kayak the rock, and check out Stan's blog.

Bergy Bits

2007-09-16T23:03:00.000-02:30

Sept. 17.2007

Bergy bits. Unusual term but common sight in Newfoundland. Refers to chunks of icebergs that can be as small as a car or a large house - this one which we paddled by in New Melbourne, Trinity Bay this past June, was more akin to a suite of low-rise condos. Also known as growlers. Great place to find icebergs at any time around the province is icebergfinder.com

Coasting Trade a great listen

2007-09-15T23:17:00.000-02:30

(Photo: Overlooking St. John's Harbour)

September 15, 2007

Listened to a recent audio book by Rattling Books in the car the other week. Coasting Trade is wonderful feast of stories and soundscapes - of angels leaving signs for rum-runners; neon panties screaming from an old woman's laundry line; a woman knitting a stove; the wild abundance of an immigrant's garden.... all woven with the sounds of the sea and ports and diary entries from a 19th century schooner sailing around Newfoundland. MP3 download from Rattling Books is only $10. Highly recommend it. Below is a review by Rave AudioFile Magazine.

COASTING TRADE Robin McGrath Read by Anita Best, Robert Joy, Rick Boland.

In a performance of less than an hour, producer Chris Brookes and poet Robin McGrath transport the listener to a Yankee schooner circling Newfoundland in the late nineteenth century. The production, a Canadian tapestry for the ears, is beautifully embellished with sound effects that capture the waves, ship sounds, and local fauna. Robert Joy, Rick Boland, and Anita Best bring a lyrical beauty to this "Performance for Three Voices." McGrath provides fleeting glimpses into the lives of an immigrant, a biologist, a smuggler, and Newfoundland locals scratching a life out of the rugged terrain. The short performance is superb, with the rich voices of Joy, Boland, and Best meshing into a melody against the harmony of background sounds. H.L.S. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine

Chicken & Egg

2007-09-15T00:13:00.000-02:30

Sept. 14, 2007

What came first, the chicken or the egg. Fortunately, in this case, the answer is straightforward. We have been awaiting an "Egg" for sometime. It came, with a stream of September morning sunlight & a wide 9-year-old-grin last Thursday. Bad news, one of the teacup twins (above) had pecked at it. Note to self: get oyster shells at the Country Store. Later that day, we gave all four hens an outing to celebrate (okay, two had flown the coop or rather the run; we later spent an hour chasing down the last hen).

Never imagined raising hens could be so, well, interesting. Mind you, it does cut into other pursuits, like paddling. Ah well. Balance in life.

Dungeons & Cellars, Bonavista Peninsula

2007-09-06T22:26:00.000-02:30

September 7. 2007

A road trip this summer took me first to the Bonavista Peninsula. I was interested in revisiting Elliston to check out its root cellars for part of a project I'm working on. No sooner had I driven down the alder-shouldered road off the highway than I saw a house with a cellar. Walking up for a photograph, a man popped his head out of the window of his house and encouraged me to enter the cellar, take photographs and generally have a look around. I had a great chat and interview with Bert Crewe the following day as well as meeting Rex and Edith Chaulk of the neighbouring community of Maberly.

Connecting the two communities is Sandy Cove, a beautiful stretch of fine sand and behind a small, clean and quiet municipal campsite. With my work finished on the second day around 5pm I launched for a paddle, along the coast past Elliston then back across and out to the puffin colony causing a gigantic flock of them to take flight. They nest on a rock mere feet from the headland, one of the most accessible places to view these adorable flyers.

Close by is a provincial park I also had to check out: Dungeon Provincial Park is a slice or so of cliff, a collapsed sea cave, sandwiched between community pastures leading to Cape Bonavista. In the photograph above is Spillars Cove, an attractive looking stretch of coastline for adventuresome kayakers. Which means I have to return with a few paddling buddies.

bloggers meet and paddle

2007-08-31T18:12:00.000-02:30

september 5, 2007

Michael Bradley turned up in Newfoundland this summer. He located me in Trinity Bay feeding hens and hiding from civilization in general. Stayed for supper (unfortunately I hadn't got out jigging until later so cod wasn't on the menu), pitched the tent and we planned a day paddle for the following one which turned out pretty decent in terms of weather. I was able to show him some of the headlands and arches around my neck of the woods. Michael - I'm glad you got some paddling in around the Rock this summer even though trips did not all go as planned.

bloggers meet and paddle

2007-08-27T23:00:00.001-02:30

An immense little paddle

2007-08-26T23:00:00.000-02:30

aug. 2007

managed late afternoon paddle in Trinity Bay from our cove. Calm waters encouraged me to solo paddle an otherwise forbidding coastline with no takeouts for several miles. Past Hants Head and headed south (well, actually west). Not a boat on the bay - that felt eery, given it'd take me a good 5 hours to paddle to the other side. Lots of long-tendrilled jellyfish. Stark cliffs, brutal headlands (given the right - or wrong - conditions) and then I found Green Cove - local name. It's barely a cove - not a boulder to take out in, but it has the most impressive arch, a solid mass scratched with quartz. Even then - in a quiet sea, the swell slapped up a good foot & a half on the cliff. I managed to edge around the arch to see whether I could pass through - but not unless my kayak came in around 5 feet - there was a tight right angle to pass through. Still, a magnificent sight. Still further, another section of the cliff I'd not explored before (I'd been paddling further out to avoid clapotis), sheer rock for a few hundred feet - heard the unmistakeable sound of water - fresh water - falling. A crevice, barely one foot wide and the entire length of the cliff face smudged in oozing lime green and tinkling loudly. Then paddled to yet another head... there are a few along this stretch - gulls, terns and guillomots crying desparately - of course it sounds that way when their voices echo off cliffs.

Just an hour or so - my underwater camera on the blink so no photos this time.

new blog added

2007-08-23T01:21:00.000-02:30

sometime in august, somewhere in eastern Newfoundland...

just added blog by Neil Burgess, paddling buddy, to links. I'll add new photos once I get my dozen or more rolls processed (have to go digital, I know!). meanwhile, i'm lost somewhere in Trinity Bay.

2007-08-14T21:00:00.000-02:30

sometime mid august. trinity bay...

my kids are enjoying themselves immensely, swimming in the brook daily, at their special beach (some cold), learning 120s by lamplight, domesticating our adorable hens...

i got out cod jigging with a neighbour in our cove today with son - place was maggoty with minke whales - and we soon got our five cod. nice to have a freezer full.

in the field, catching the wave

2007-07-06T00:15:00.000-02:30

I'll be posting irregularly over next several weeks. Will be based in Trinity Bay, looking after my kids & chickens, paddling whenever & wherever I can. Little internet opportunity.

Mother & Daughter paddle on father's day - of course!

2007-06-27T23:12:00.000-02:30

june 27, 2007

If I don't post them now, they'll never get on. (Apologies--I can't figure out how to turn the two middle images right side up.) Life is very busy. Yes. So Ella and I borrowed a friend's double (thanks Peter & Barb) and joined the KNL club beginner's 14km paddle two sundays ago in Cape Broyle, a popular long bay with lots of take outs, some waterfalls, super caves, arches and stacks. I hadn't paddled there for ages and forgot just how spectacular it is. We saw a couple of eagles, a seal near our nice wide beach at lunchtime and a minki out far but Ella missed it. I think she enjoyed herself. After a post-paddle milkshake, she quickly fell off to sleep in the car on the way home.

coming soon... Cape Broyle - Ella's 1st trip

2007-06-20T00:01:00.001-02:30

Father's day... meant taking my 12-yr-old on her first sea kayak trip - a part of the KNL club paddle in Cape Broyle... waterfalls, caves, more caves, eagles, a seal, a minke whale... usual stuff. pretty nice.

Iceberg bliss

2007-06-12T08:52:00.000-02:30

(photos by Neil Burgess)
June 12, 2007

It was the most idealic weekend out in Caplin Cove, Trinity Bay. Arrived friday evening, spires of icebergs just offshore backlit in pink. My kids headed straight for the brook and, testing the water and finding it deliciously warm, decided on an evening swim. Hot and sunny all weekend, the meadows rippled in their new super-green covering. Mad with bird song. So it wasn't too awful that somehow I missed two paddles in my neck of the woods on the weekend to further complete Kayak Newfoundland & Labrador's Challenge the Avalon.

Mayor delivers message to residents. Guidelines were made to be broken.

2007-05-29T15:26:00.000-02:30

May 29. CBC Radio Morning Show:
Council and The Battery. Some residents living in The Battery - a historic part of St. John's - are upset over a new house that's being built. They went to city council on Monday looking for support... but they didn't get it. We talk to St. John's Mayor Andy Wells to find out why. Listen to this audio feature (Runs 6:25)

No spark to Battery development complaint: mayor
Last Updated: Tuesday, May 29, 2007 12:50 PM NT
CBC News
St. John's Mayor Andy Wells has little sympathy for a group of residents in the Battery neighbourhood who want city hall to halt construction of a house that could block views of the harbour.

"I don't think there's a single thing wrong with this application," Wells told CBC News on Tuesday, after opponents of the project unsuccessfully appealed to city council at its regular meeting on Monday evening.

"It meets all our requirements. The owner of this property is entitled to develop the property pursuant to the rules."

While the proposal on Signal Hill may meet city requirements, residents say it flies in the face of non-binding guidelines drafted three years ago for development of the historic neighbourhood.
A former fishing village along the lower reaches of Signal Hill, the Battery has over the years become a magnet for property-hunters eager to obtain one of the best views in the city.

Resident Alison Dyer said the house planned for the backyard of 24 Battery Road is set farther back from the street than it should be.

"One of the main reasons, again, to have Battery guidelines [is] so that it would keep the integrity and look of the Battery," Dyer said.

Lisa Porter, who fears that property values will drop for the surrounding homes, said residents didn't know about the plans until a few days ago, when an excavator started work on the foundation.

"It was a big shock to us when this started on Saturday," she said.

Wayne Howell, who owns the land where the controversal house is being constructed, declined an interview but said he is within his rights and has obtained appropriate permits.

Dyer said the group of residents does not yet know whether it will appeal the city's approval for the development.

Wells said an appeal would be a waste of time and money, as no rules have been broken.

In 2006, amid strong resident opposition, city council shelved a proposal that would have seen a new hotel and condominium complex built at the site of the current Battery Hotel.

Battery residents deliver message to Council

2007-05-29T11:02:00.000-02:30

VOCM News: Battery Residents Deliver Message to Council May 29, 2007
Our view is gone, our privacy is gone, our hearts are broken. Some Battery area residents delivered that message to St.John's council at yesterday's meeting, trying to defer or stop construction of a new dwelling on Battery Road. Residents say it is in blatant contravention of the Battery development guidelines. Councillor Frank Galgay says the permit has been issued and council cannot take it back. Galgay says if residents wish they can make an appeal, but Mayor Andy Wells says unless there's a violation of a regulation they do not have any grounds. Battery area resident Lisa Porter says they expected a little more form their councillors. Porter says the group will meet to discuss an appeal.

CBC Radio Morning Show May 28, 2007: Battery development concerns Some people in The Battery are getting shaken-up over a new house that's about to be built. We speak with one resident to find out what her concerns are. Listen to this audio feature (Runs 6:02)

Our view is gone… our privacy is gone… our hearts are broken

2007-05-29T00:20:00.000-02:30

may 28, 2007
Is your view in the Battery next????

On Thursday, May 24, 2007 the City of St. John’s Building Department issued a permit to the owners of #24 Battery Road to construct a new house on their recently subdivided lot, #26 Battery Road. This development is in blatant contravention of the Battery Development Guidelines to which the City claims to adhere.

The Battery Development Guidelines were done to curtail haphazard and inappropriate development, and to “protect existing private views and privacy” We are concerned that a new house in a back garden - where none existed previously, with a huge retaining wall, a 35-foot driveway will have a severe negative impact on the neighbouring views, privacy and property values. How can this been seen to follow the spirit and intent of those guidelines?

Who is being hurt by this new development?

Long-time residents of Walsh’s Square as well as those on Signal Hill and Battery Road:
In particular: Mr. Kelly has been on Walsh’s Sq. for 72 years (#3);Mrs. Dawe for 41 yrs (#9); Ms. Dyer & Mr. Bruce Johnson for 17 years (#7); Ms. Porter & Mr. Pope for 15 years (#5); Chris Fitzgerald for 5 years (#2)

Where are the guidelines being broken?

There was no professional view plane analysis[1] conducted. Our own analysis shows that most of the harbour view, and privacy, of 4 properties will be gone!

Loss of view and privacy will negatively affect our property values.

The BDGS indicated only horizontal expansion but no infill opportunity for #24 Battery Road.

The BDGS recommends that in this zone (Heritage 3, R3), that the Front Set Back “be in line with at least one neighbour”. The City Heritage officer made a written recommendation in January 2007, that the building be in line with existing house #24 Battery Rd.

Structural integrity of the hillside. There has been no engineering study or 3-dimensional site plan to show how the hill at the back of this property will be properly contained. Erosion of this steep slope could cause serious problems for properties on Walsh’s Square.

Concerned? contact: Ward Councillor Frank Galgay 579-8801
Development Committee Chairperson: Art Cheeseman; Council liaisons: Wally Collins 576-8584 Shannie Duff 753-5260 Tom Hann 576-8219

I will have to find & scan a picture, that you might understand our plight.

footnote:
[1] BDGS, p.13 “In order to protect views…the main principle is that a building can be added to if the addition does not significantly interfere with another property’s view…We suggest that it is significant interference if it is: too close or too big, and interferes with more than 5% of a view cone)

Way to a Woman's Heart

2007-05-24T23:52:00.000-02:30

(Photo: Alison at the Dildo Kwik Mart, Trinity Bay, by Bruce Johnson)

"All my men have cooked for me says Della.

She looks down at her breasts, sweeps a crumb off her tight blouse with her right pinkie, smoothes the nylon apron. There’s a mix of aromas from the full serving trays, thick but not unpleasant. Overhead, a buzzing from the florescent lights. Outside, a bus swishes and farts, carves the puddles and stops. The door to the café implodes - stamping feet, a curl of diesel fumes. There’s a run on the gum stand, the muffin tray, the soft drinks but Della stands behind her counter of pink meats and unlikely salads fixed on an audience of one.

George, now George liked sausages, she says, fidgeting with an oval tray containing something gel green. Spicy Italian were his favourite. A smile pulls at the ends of her mouth. Course he didn’t really do much with them, just cooked them with a mound of mash potatoes or noodles, he liked those tight squiggly ones. Her eyes blink like silent castanets. Mostly he’d sit there and watch me eat. Sometimes he’d offer to cut them up, my sausages, but that made me feel a bit uncomfortable like.

Della looks out at the big window, between her deli counter and the bus stop. It’s steamed up and showing traces of an old x’s and o’s game.

And he was up out of it as soon as he’d eaten. I mean he was up and at the dishes like, straight away. I never knew if I should hurry up and finish and help him out or what. She gives the clean stainless steel counter top a quick wipe, tossing the cloth behind her into the sink..." [excerpt from: Way to a Woman's Heart, A. Dyer, 2006]

Mystery Photo #4 - what are they doing?

2007-05-16T21:40:00.000-02:30

(Photo: Nfld Kayak Company CRCA Level 2 course, Burgeo)
May 17, 2007

After a day of refining strokes, towing, and performing mock rescues it's time to get down and play...? Can anyone remember the name of this hilarious game? And yes, that is solo expedition kayaker Serge Savard trying to keep up with the crowd.

The KNL (Kayak Newfoundland Labrador) annual retreat is this weekend in Terra Nova. Frey Hoffmeister & Greg Stamer will be there for greenland paddle and roll clinics. Can hardly wait. Got a new backband installed in my perception shadow (many thanks MD) - a nice low profile one used in tempest kayaks. Probably won't get to try it out until the saturday day trip. That and a new, tada, kokatat goretex drysuit. So high end, honestly, you won't recognize me :)

I can taste it

2007-05-16T15:30:00.000-02:30

(Photos: Cape Broyle north side trail)

May 16, 2007

I can taste it. Summer. Right around the bend, may have got temporarily stuck in that bit of driftwood but should be here on a wing soon. Mother's Day. Took it off, bit chilly but bright sunshine made up for it. Took family to Bauline East on a short hike to LaManche - couldn't find any scanned photos of that splendid walk, especially as one gets closer to the abandoned community; the hidden rock walls, house foundations and, since 2000, a magnificent suspension bridge across the gorge. Photos above are from a walk another year in Cape Broyle, a little further south. All wonderful scenery, smellery and walks.

waiting for spring and a wide-thinking sea

2007-05-08T22:14:00.000-02:30

(photos: Little Passage, Gaultois, south coast Newfoundland)

May 8, 2007

Bright yellow drysuits are reminding me of open-faced dandelions. White adirondacks of sun-soaking summer afternoons. I'm desparate for spring. And hankering for an extended trip. Perhaps the south coast of Newfoundland again? Hermitage Bay and Bay d'espoir on the south coast are hard to top. Cliffs, waterfalls, the odd cove crowded with houses and treacherous slips (makes for some interesting put-ins), many with just the sound of running water, the small cry of a bald eagle or that fog-toned call of a gull. The musty smell of blackberry heath when the breeze trips off over the land, or mouth-watering kelp when the sea is thinking wide.

An ode to spring, of sorts.

2007-05-06T21:52:00.000-02:30

May 6, 2007

A Seedy Kama Sutra

The randy dandelion
Shocking purple to a bee
Male, female parts entwining
Sire veiled virgins on the wing.

Its receptacle is naked
Abrupt, slender to the apex
Around its bloom stand scales erect
While copious white bristles it does eject.

Its thickened taproot stretches deep
hairy, thirsty in dirt it creeps,
and will itself reproduce, should
its piss-a-bed be executed.

Oh globular white feather head
a summer zephyr will blow you
and bitter juice you dribble, when
fingers chain your pedicles.

© Alison Dyer 2003

Away at the Cove this weekend. Weather is preposterous. Little word of spring. Perhaps around a corner - if you see it send it this way. Via a shortcut.

My Ancestors Were Rogues and Murderers

2007-04-18T20:56:00.000-02:30

(Photo from NFB film: My Ancestors Were Rogues & Murderers)

April 18, 2007

Meat on hooks instead of - oh, right, meat on hooks.

It's that time of year again when swilers are out making a living from the sea. Helping to sustain their families and communities. Rather them than me on those ice pans. Bloody hard work. And then I receive on ENN (I subscribe to its daily news listings) an ad by IFAW against the barbaric seal hunt. I'm embarrassed to see such condemnation of a lifestyle when MacDonalds, KFC and just everyday miles upon miles of meat - pork, beef, chicken, you name it - is commonplace in our lives without thought of how it came to be, the industries and corporations that churn it out without thought of life but profits.

Tonight I finally saw Anne Troake's film My Ancestors Were Rogues and Murderers. A few years ago I met her cousin, fisherman & sealer Jack Troake who had recently lost his son Gary to the sea (in part because of foolish federal fishing regulations). I'm so glad to have finally met Gary through this film. If you haven't seen it, then try to. Here's a link to a teaser.http://www.nfb.ca/webextension/ancestors/

To order copy of this NFB film, go to: http://www.nfb.ca/trouverunfilm/fichefilm.php?id=51455&v=h&lg=en

pipers hole festival

2007-04-04T17:49:00.000-02:30

April 4, 2007

A quick note about a WW festival that is back on the Rock. See new link.

Burgeo - coming soon to a blog near you

2007-03-29T09:56:00.000-02:30

2007-03-28T21:13:00.000-02:30

March 29, 2007

Attended the Winterset readings this afternoon in that most delightful of venues, the Masonic Temple (that requires another post). Many previous winners and finalists in the audience including Lisa Moore, Bernice Morgan (who has a new book coming out this fall - yeh!), Joel Hynes (now I'm screwing myself by only mentioning a few - you'll find me hanging from the trees in the Anglican Cathedral cemetary across the road).

This year's finalists comprised three accomplished writers of very different styles and genres. I was transfixed by Russell Wangersky's reading of a short story - part of his debut collection. Go figure, this is a newspaper guy - he's the editor of the province's main daily newspaper. Who'd thunk he could write such mesmerizing prose. Actually anyone who reads his long and deliciously drifting editorials would not be surprised. Expect lots of positive reviews of this book.

can't wait til summer

2007-03-27T01:10:00.000-02:30

March 26,07

Sorry. Can't wait til summer. When us crowd descends upon the Cove, to swim, climb trees, plant veggies, pick berries, even kayak if the wind gods are with us. Jesus it's some far away! But we're some lucky!

Magical Merasheen

2007-03-10T20:19:00.000-03:30

(Photos top to bottom by Alison Dyer: Paul & Andy on crossing; At play in the fields..; Tack's Beach; Swings at Tacks Beach; View north from Tack's Beach; Paul spies Eagle nest; Paul & mussels; View of Merasheen above Baker's Cove).

March 16, 2007

Until a couple of days ago the snow was piled high, barely saw the top of my 6-foot fence in the back garden. The kids have been using the neighbour's garden- and that adjoining below - as a toboggan run, their own private hill. Am thinking more and more of places I want to visit and explore this summer by kayak. So many bays, so little time.

Few years back 3 paddling buddies and I decided on a long weekend September paddle in around the islands off of Merasheen, that fabled long emerald jewel - once home to a people who had a strong song and story-telling tradition - in the middle of Placentia Bay. (Kayak Newfoundland Labrador has several trip reports on the area, e.g. by us in 2002, by Tim Hollett about his 9-day trip; and most recently one by kayaker-mountaineerer TA Loeffler - who leaves tomorrow, March 17, to attempt Everest!).

It's about 14km from Arnold's Cove in the bottom of the bay, across the tanker lane, to the tip of Merasheen. At any time of year the weather, wind and waves can make it less than ideal to paddle. So we arranged a trip with a small fishing boat, the owner also had two small basic cabins in an otherwise deserted cove that we could stay in. Perfect. So, the crossing was exciting, the bell kept ringing, a few others boats were headed fast for shore. Two or more hours later, I can't remember, we entered the channel between Merasheen and the Ragged Island chain.

We had a couple of days to dart around the many islands (a purported 365 in Placentia Bay) - if the wind came up one side, we had several options. That's the great part about paddling this part of Placentia Bay. Of course we had to take a trip up to Tack's Beach. Once a thriving community, it was resettled as part of the government resettling scheme of the 1960s. But neat cabins dot the idyllic landscape. By people of legendary hospitality. Our own little cove, Baker's Cove, over-looked Merasheen. Had a nice toast of screech while gazing up at the stars and over to the dark silouette of that island on the last night. Not a sound.

alison dyer

south coast. just one image

Local food, heritage seeds, preserving biodiversity

another roll nearly mastered!

Paddling Conception Harbour

Pool time

St. John's Development on my mind

ROCK & ROLL ON!!!!!!

DIY Fortis - play the game!

Fortress Fortis

Riddle Fence #4

Fortis - the Grinch that wants to steal St. John's

tease me, please me

Tasting Grace; a caribou yearling in Placentia Bay

storm

Biotech Beets, no thanks maan!

Low down on low flush - for World Toilet Day

The Case of the Contract Killer

paddling with spirits and titans

Summer arrived in May

Music in all its forms

Snowstorm and sedentary kayaks

The Abstraction of Nature

Coming to a backyard near you...HENZILLA

Seed bombing and Canning swaps

Tasting Grace in Wild Spaces

Wind: a love - hate relationship

Storm-bound

Boxing Up a River

Roy's Garden

a poem for december

Bay Bulls - out past Long Harry and Spoon Island

a gift in november

Bay Bulls East Coast Trail

More Colinet Island

Circumnavigating Great Colinet Island

Woody Island in fall colours

Go Jack Go

Fortune Bay

Greg Rocks

Caplin Roll in Caplin Cove

Run River Run

Discover your passions, respect the Earth

8th Annual KNL Retreat

Kayak Retreat - from bears

Linda Bartlett - Newfoundland's Woman of the Paddle

Witless Bay Line Barrens

Innu Crafts Available

Winter Winning Winterset

Spuds, say Cheese!

Remembering our friends

international icecream day - load 'er up!

rubber boots

Let me Fish - and Paddle - off Cape St. Mary's

Appeal from across the pond.... thousands of years ago

winter paddling

Check out: www.getridofandywells.blogspot.com

The Highest Tide

Pool Time

Cool Competition for lots of audiobooks

2008: The Year of Food Sense

J*O*Y... Paddle Forth

men's club rules. again

An Intergenerational Crime

Trinity Bay

Operatic paddle for November

Ban the Bomb not Books

and the short list is...

coming soon - operatic return to Fairhaven, Placentia Bay

Chance Cove - all days are sundays

Ode to a Bog

Cliff Beach

Return to Bell Island

Bergy Bits

Coasting Trade a great listen

Chicken & Egg

Dungeons & Cellars, Bonavista Peninsula

bloggers meet and paddle

bloggers meet and paddle

An immense little paddle

JOY... Paddle Forth