Diana and I recently went for a day paddle around Wylie Lake in the Petawawa Research Forest. This was the first time we had visited in almost three years, access having been disrupted variously by closures due to forest fire concerns, the washouts of 2019, and Covid.
Wylie Lake is a very picturesque lake, a green headwater lake. It is also popular with fishermen since it is regularly stocked with splake. However, there were no fishermen or motor boats there when we visited, just a single other canoe. Wylie Lake probably doesn't get too many casual visitors due to the very rough access road off Cartier Lake Road.
It was a nice sunny day although there was obviously some weather moving in -- lots of interesting clouds. We didn't see any wildlife other than some small fish and two large snapping turtles, no loons although we have encountered nesting loons here in the past. We were a week or two early to catch the the cotton grass in bloom.
Our friendly neighbourhood bear has returned -- third time we are aware of, probably more often. Diana first became aware of this visit when it was on our deck, standing on its hind legs with its front paws against the living room window and licking the glass. I spooked it when I went for my camera.
I went outside and got some pics whereas Diana got some pics through the dining room window.
At this point, I crouched down to get a shot avoiding the oak branch. The bear immediately turned and ran. Diana figures that as long as I was standing the bear thought I was just looking but when I crouched down it thought I was going to charge. (That's what it would do.)
Christine Friday performs Maggie & Me, her signature solo dance piece, on the Deep River Campus.
Maggie & Me honours and continues the legacy of women as healers in our communities; traditional practice revealed in a contemporary world. This piece begins with the offering to be a jingle dress dancer evolving into the creation of a contemporary healing dance allowing gifts and ancestral experiences to guide the choreographer in the creation and manifestation. The journey travels through dimensional realms of existence - spirit, dream, and present - the healing and revitalization of the Anishinaabe culture. With a movement style that is at once free, lyrical, explosive, an expression of indigenous contemporary dance, she walks into her own power. (see Maggie & Me)
This performance was presented by THEOP (Deep River Theater Operating Company) and was sponsored by The Department of Canadian Heritage.
Photos are from the two separate performances of the afternoon. The weather was closing in during the second performance and the Thunderbird made an appearance at the end.
Recently we had an unannounced visitor break the Covid rules and drop by for lunch. Just a young fellow. For this shot I was standing on the deck above him. Total distance about ten feet. I'm getting a little too blasé, I think.
I went for a solo paddle down McKay Creek, which flows out of Mallard Lake on the eastern boundary of Algonquin Park. I paddled down to the beaver dam that controls the level of both the creek and Mallard Lake. While the beaver dam is just a few hundred meters from Johnny Lake, I chose not to fight the low water conditions below the dam this time. I'll save that for a future trip when I have more time and perhaps I'm with a partner.
