wilderness

The Oystercatchers of Gwaii Haanas
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The Oystercatchers of Gwaii Haanas

Hail Brave Hearts

The great wild is calling,  An adventures awaits.  Dutifully we don our apparel for yet another great holiday in Canada.  It’s summertime, and the sun shines gloriously on long days of warmth and outdoor activity. Canoes and kayaks entice us into the waters of lakes and rivers.  The iconic Canadian transportation system, lures us into the paths of our history.  Build your canoes, build your kayaks, follow in the steps of legendary people who navigated the waters this way.

The great wild calls us to develop the skills of history makers who charted the seas, mapped the coastlines and stamped the approval of the ownership of this land.  This is ours.

The great lands of the Haida, tucked away in the northern islands, north of Vancouver Island.  Isolated and rare, a gem of discovery.  This land is our land, protected by a great nation of peoples, the Haida people of Haida Gwaii and the Gwaii Haanas National Park.  It belongs to them and their stories fill the islands.

We arrive by plane, for the trip of a lifetime, into the land of the Haidas.  Remote and alive, the area fills with eagles.  The ocean is calm and the days are warm.  We’ve packed for a week long kayak adventure into Gwaii Haanas.  This area is a paradise of wilderness ocean adventure.

Seagulls meet us, reminding us that God is here.  In the call of the birds, we clearly hear Gods name.  Seals bask on the rocks and a river otter swims past.  An Oyster Catcher stops us.  His antics catch our attention as he jumps around on the rock in a aa unusual dance.  His five chicks huddle close together in the nest and his mate slumber close by.  He is a father and proudly shows off the nest.  A thirteen year old bird, whose making a noise that sounds like Barack.  We name him Barack then, pleased that he’s shown us his fine family

Black Oystercatcher Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Our luck with the weather holds for this trip.  There are seven of us on this  July excursion, with a guided kayaking and camping company.  The Pacific is mainly calm and peaceful towards us as humpback whales surface and feed in our sights.  One comes close to us.  It’s a pleasure.  The wildlife sightings are superb, with black bear, dolphins, orcas and sea lion to add to our list.  The bird life is unusual to us as well.  Ancient Murrelet,  seagulls, falcons, puffins, rhinoceros beaked birds and red footed pigeon guillemot to add to  our list.  It’s a list of some rare bird and animals  in an area filled with ocean life.

Then, there’s, the people.  We visit the Haida of the ancient totem poles.  to see for ourselves the carvings of great masters and to hear their stories.  A far flung people, out in islands in a remote Pacific location.  An area of impressive beauty molding a nation of seafaring people, who live from the sea.  The builders of ocean going canoes paddling the great seas.  A people of unique culture, surviving in an area of wildlife wealth.  The ocean provides.

This was a dream holiday in our great land.  So much to be proud of, so much to enjoy.  The land and the people, the ocean and the wildlife.  A place of unusual prosperity.

parks.canada.ca › pn-np › bcGwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine …

The sun shines brightly on Haida Gwaii and the warm summer breeze encourages outdoor adventure.  This was a wonderful, unique  holiday in Canada’s superb wilderness backyard.  We congratulate ourselves for this choice of adventure.    We’ll be back

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

August 27, 2023

Gun Control
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Gun Control

Good Day Brave Heart

It’s seldom a bad day with so much to do.

Exit the warm contentment of the cozy, familiar structure to the bright snow-covered future that awaits you in the outdoors.  It’s a fantasy world of snow laden trees, martins leaping along the way and birds chattering to each other.  What do they say?  Only your own spirits will determine their message.  The sundog shines in a glorious ring around the sun, indicating a weather pattern on its way.  The brightness of this glory world is the psychedelic wonder of yesteryear.  It’s no wonder that they thought that LDS was safe.

Minds bend in the staggering difficulty of the task.    The unfathomable human experiment of the day.

Hunting and trapping, the need to survive, the human is a new predator in this place.  Now the competition for the food supply has increased and new hunters are on the land.  Hunters with families and small mouths to feed.  Tiny tots with growing pains, hunger pangs and shill cries.  Feed us! cloth us! save us! The howls stop when the hut vanishes in the snow and the hunt for animal tracks begin.

This new human brings a new kind of weapon to the wild world of big game hunting.  Gone is the bow and arrow, now it’s the rifle.  Guns.  Guns to protect us, guns to hunt with, guns to be dependent upon.  Guns for survival, guns for livelihood, guns for trade and barter.  Guns.   Only the need for ammunition is a drawback in the use of guns.  Stock the larder with as much provision for the winter as you can, and don’t forget the main one, your gun.

Unlicensed weapons have as many as you want to.  No one is watching.

The stealthy aboriginal makes his way to your shelter.  Maybe you don’t have to hunt today.  Maybe all that you have to do is to trade him a good gun and a round of ammunition for a side of moose, a rack of elk and a hind quarter of deer.  Maybe he will give his own much needed furs, from that rabbit, for a gun.  The indigenous people need the fur more than the fur trader do, but wildlife is plentiful, and trade brings wealth to this family.  Wealth to one, survival to another, a deal is struck.  It seems like a win, win situation.  The stealthy aboriginal so experienced in the ways of this land, looking to improve his own lot in life.  A gun for his hunt, a gun for his prosperity and a gun to protect him from the devil.

The homesteader is saved.  No more psychedelic sunshine.  No more mind-bending winter exposure.  No more lethargic, seemingly drug filled indecisive wanderings.   He is saved.  Saved by the aboriginal bell of necessity.  The gun is more powerful than the bow and arrow.

A shot rings out on the still land.  The skilled new hunter has already conquered.  More will come looking for this kind of trade.  More will seek the European for guns.

Guns for survival, guns to protect us.  Guns.  A new way of life.

The Wild Canadian Year: Canada’s toughest season, with only the hardiest prevailing – Winter – YouTube

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

 

 

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Build a Shack in Paradise

Hail Brave Hearts

The stormy waters filled with rapids, guide you further into the unknown.  Down the perilous pathway of water to a landing where unknown inhabitants greet you with curiosity.  Immigrants are unknown here. Migrants from other lands are unusual and suspect.  Strangers.  Strangers all are we.  Unusual groups of people meeting each other on land and territories already occupied by aboriginals.

A chance to land on untamed wilderness, but no, push on, push on.  Push on to the treasure, that pot of gold.  Follow your rainbow, find your dream.  The world was just as perilous then as it is now.  Tame the forest, fight for this freedom, if it’s worth fighting for.  Now that your path is dedicated to this life, this life you must live, or perish trying.  Live your great adventurers, this is the dream that calls you.  Live!  No point in complaining, in blaming and accusing.  No point in sorrow or despair.  This is the life that you’ve accepted.  Push on, oh brave hearts, that X on the map lies out in these regions somewhere.

The poverty of Europe, the wars, the disease, now left behind on this quest for freedom.  Fighters, maybe, escapees perhaps, adventurers always.  Come to Canada.  Your life lies here, if you can find your way.

The rivers of highways will guide you inland, inland to a place for  you to stay.  A place to build your home and to carve your future from the great wild.

The native peoples are somewhat quiet,  and somewhat peaceful.  If they will help you there will be a chance.  The land is fertile, but clearing is difficult, negotiations are made to occupy this place.  A place of wild wilderness, where the wildlife come into view.  A dangerous animal, a pretty deer, calling birds, but get on with it.  There’s no time to waste on wildlife viewing, no time to spare in planting the harvest, no time to wait in building a house.  Beware of the evils of the wild.  Too much muscle strain, too much isolation, a life too difficult for many.   However this is the chosen path, the way to divine freedom.  Flee from oppression, from the certainty of war, from starvation by poverty.  This must be better.  This X on the map.  This place, this freedom was worth fighting for.

Finally to arrive at your own place in paradise.  Rivers, forests, wilderness, wildlife, aboriginals, pestilence, strife and land.  The journey to this special place, the fulfillment of this dream, a destiny for all of us.  Now is the time to prove your education, skills, qualifications, abilities, aptitudes and determination.  Now is the time to build your house, your shack in paradise.  All of the time spent clearing the land, removing the brush, using the training that was taught to you.  Now you will know if you were a good student, listening well to an instructor so far away.  Now you will know if you are at the end of your journey, or if your new life has just begun.

Dream, oh great adventurer, of a life in a far off land.  Secure that piece of paradise.  Build your shack in the wilds.  Your homesteading life has begun.

 

Do-it-yourself house on the mountain. What did I find from that – YouTube

A house on a mountain with your own hands. Part 2 – YouTube

 

Written by Dr Louise Hayes

June 7, 2022

A Day for Planet Earth
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A Day for Planet Earth

Hail Brave hearts

It’s still out there.  The adventure awaits.

April brings us warm, sunny weather.  A perfect day for a perfect outing.  Into the great wild we go.  The conditions are perfect for us today,  snow pack, snow bridges, flat trail.  The river crossings are easy and the destination is close by.  A mere 5 kilometers of snow covered terrain.

This is an easy destination for the adventurer, in a time when exploration of the area was crucial.  The need to know the area, so that the land is familiar and accessible.  The need to know every inch of the surroundings, so that we can travel safely, intelligently and explore the land.

We’re on a seldom used and little known trail.  Awesome!  Lucky for us, that we are the explorers of this day.  We travel easily. The terrain is flat and accessible, opening up to a world of stark beauty.  A flock of pretty robins flutter in the forest and run along the snow.  It’s a surprise to see them, especially in this location.  Then we spy it, our destination, the glacier.  The source of our water supply, the beginnings of the rivers.  Since it is a warm day, we watch avalanches slide off the glacier into the moraine below.  We are silent.  Only us, in this great wilderness place, all to ourselves, on this fine day.  Perhaps the crowds of tourists have come before us, but we know they haven’t.  There’s still some wilderness left in the great wild.

A few days later, we hang up our snowshoes and go crocus hunting.  It’s an unusually cold spring.  Global warming?  Climate change is a better phrase.  Sometimes we see these early spring flowers at the end of March.  This year, they’re still struggling to appear and it takes until mid April for these showy purple heads to blossom.  Once they start, they’ll carpet the fields and hillsides in glorious purple.  More wonders and beauty to behold, and so easy to find.

The protected wilderness areas are a significant contribution to our health and lifestyles.  A daily walk in the park to spectacular views,  precious wildlife, blooming wildflowers.  The joy of the living planet, giving us air, supporting our lives, giving us recreation and wonder.  It gives us peace and clears our minds to wander in the great wild.  Always a fantastic scene to behold, sometimes by accident, sometimes by creation.

This great day is Earth Day.  One day, for our awesome, awe inspiring planet?  Only one day to take a look at the marvelous creation of this great planet Earth.  This day is every day.  A day for the joy of your senses.  A day to breathe the fresh air and cleanse your soul in the beauty of the earth.  This adventure is not just for today, but for all of your time here.  Time to explore, time to live, time to enjoy the life on this Earth.

Lucky mortals, to be alive on this great planet.  Intelligent mortals, to save God’s great, good earth.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

Earth Day, 2021

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The Great Planet

Hail You Mighty Ones

Praises!

Awaken to the abundance of the joy of the planet.  The spellbinding intricacies of creative wonder.  The minutest detail of life and survival.  The tiniest speck of miraculous life forms.  Here in the midst of the chaos of the galaxy is the genius of the planet Earth.

Wondrous great planet of divine creation, your placement in this galaxy is no accident.

In hunger we till the soil and in gratitude we harvest the crop.  In relaxation we bask in the warmth of the sun and in recreation we explore the fabulous landscape that we love so dearly..  Each race, chosen for the place  where  they reside.

The races are specialists, living in natural adaptation to the world they live in.  Natural coloration, natural aptitude, natural curiosity and connection to their land.  The races of people are part of the natural world and belong to the ecology of the planet.   The human is as connected to bio-diversity as the plants and animals in their ecosystem are.  All in balance, protect it all.  Protect the natural world, the natural balance of life and living.  Everything in the ecosystem is precious.  Everything is a gift from the Earth.  Life on the planet is the life of the planet.  The planet lives through it’s creation of living life forms.  The trees and plant life breathe  for us and through photosynthesis create oxygen.  Their survival in all species is imperative.

The great good Earth creates it’s lifeforms with interconnectivity in its ecosystems, all interrelated and created for its own purpose.  The races of humans dwell in their land for their own special contributions to that place.  Their civilizations are unique and brilliant, their adaptation to the land is remarkable.  The animal life that dwells in these places  all over the world, are specially adapted to these environments as well.  Unique people in unique lands sharing with the plant and animal species of these places.  All are specialists in this environmental ecosystem.   Lands set aside for human habitation, lands set aside for wildlife preservation.   Balance.

The world is for all of us.  Fabulous mankind, with their ingenuity and intelligence.  Fabulous wilderness with its magical array of landscape, wildlife and majestic beauty.  The sound of the wild, the call to travel those untamed paths.  The good fortune of a photograph of the wild inhabitants of special, protected places.  The good fortune of the health of the people, who choose to live a life of earthly splendor, marvelling at the fabulous creativity of the planet.

The healing Earth, with it’s wide array of lifeforms, tantalizing us with curious creatures and landscapes.   Knowledge and education seep into our minds as we gather information about our area.  The teaching planet, reminding us to be mindful of the soft and delicate, the large and aggressive, the cold and the heat.  Nurture and care, oh great human.  This paradise in our galaxy is changing.  This paradise needs protection.   This fabulous great Earth is becoming paradise lost.  Fragments are vanishing.  Entire ecosystems are dying.   One day for this planet?  How many days to ignore it.  Earth Day is every day.

Still the planet spins it’s mysterious web of life with creativity and abundance.   It spreads it’s awesome wonder for all of us to dwell in and marvel at.  It creates it’s species and environments with specialization and adaptation.  It creates it’s species in all environments from mountaintops to prairie, dessert to ocean.   Plants and animals, some bountiful, some rare, spreading all over the planet in ecological harmony.

The joy of discovery, the thrill of a lifetime.  To capture this rare moment in time.  A bird is calling to it’s mate, a turtle has laid her eggs on the shore, the coyote pups emerge from their den.  The animals smile and sing.  This is for all of us.   This is the creativity of the planet, sharing it’s special treasures with us.  The message is clear.  We are a part of this magical, life giving force.  We are the caretakers.  Nurture and care.

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

April 22, 2020

A Great Escape
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A Great Escape

Good Day Bravehearts

The splendid great wild, with its remote and awesome places. Here, in a world class national park, a UNESCO world heritage site, we live and play and hike to our hearts content. The world of opportunity knocks and we respond with enthusiasm, for the endless adventure in hiking the great wild.
This week, we travel into a remote and little known mountain pass, high up in the alpine. where the curiosity of remote, wild adventure takes us. Ever cautious, we prepare for all weather, rain suites, first aid kits, water ,sunscreen, food, insect repellent, hat, gloves, binoculars and cameras, maps and gps.   It can be cold in the alpine, with changeable weather and here it can be blistering hot, or freezing rain, sometimes turning to hail or snow. We all pack bear spray.
It’s been a good year for bears. Many sightings of females with two and three cubs and the powerful grizzly bear has made her presence well known, with frequent sightings and photo chances of her and her healthy offspring. The alpine is a favorite place of the grizzly and we don’t want to startle one, so our group is large and loud. It’s better to be safe, with large numbers, so the resident predator hears us coming.

The climb is steep and the footing is uneven.  We spent three hours hiking to this remote place, high up into the alpine for a view of the glaciers on another mountain range.  The intermittent showers cooled us and the climb was not as difficult as it sometimes is.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/jasper/index.aspx  Jasper National Park

Our fathers fought for this great land.  A magnificent mountain range in a far off place.  They fought for  freedom, for prosperity, for a better world and here, in a remote and little known mountain pass, we enjoy and praise the brilliance of that choice.  To protect the land, to save it for future generations, relatively untouched, preserved and intact.  A home for the wild and an escape for us.

We are early in this years adventure.  The spring was late and the wild flowers are not yet as showy as they will be.  But also, we have left the great bear behind us, to forage in the valleys until the alpine will give them a meal.  They will be here soon.

Today, the pass is for us, with only the calls of the birds and the rushing water, the insects and the wind.

The far off glacier is the head waters of our rivers and the source of our daily water supply.   Protected high up in a mountain top, the glacier lies in its own protected domain.  Remote enough, that it is rarely visited and high enough that is remains intact.  The grand great wild, providing fresh drinking water for us and the planet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AF05-slHnNk  Fukushima

These rare, protected places, great mountain ranges like the Rocky Mountain National Parks are home to the awesome wild, the glaciers and the beautiful flowers. The power of the earth lies in these special protected places, where only the fortunate few can roam.  Our drinking water, our air supply, our dark sky,  our much needed connection to the natural world.

Here is where we live and play and praise the foresight of brilliant people who saved this land for us to enjoy.

written by Dr. Louise Hayes

 

The Yukon
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The Yukon

Good day you awesome human

As the glaciers receded and the snow melted, the animal life moved southward into the continent. With the travel of the wildlife, the human followed. A new world was being carved from the snow caps. New life to discover, new trails to follow, a new path to a new world.
Come almighty human, into the heart of the continent.
The dutiful call to adventure thrust early man deep into the heart of the far north.
Those who loved the fabulous north live there still. In the remote Arctic Circle with its earthly gifts and awesome star struck wonder. Those who ventured forward encountered more snowfall in this chilly climate. But the usual scene of forest, lakes, rivers, wildlife and vegetation kept them alive.
An adventure!
An adventure for early man and an adventure still you awesome human. Into the land of the midnight sun, of perpetual darkness, of northern lights. A land of remote distance and close fellowship, of hardship and earthly delights, of sporting enthusiasts and cultural integrity. Of domiciles of snow and the endless land to stretch and play in.
Here in the vast forests, the lakes, rivers and snow, live and play the early settlers of this nation and their welcomed guests.
Bold bravehearts, the world calls to you. Come almighty human to the heart of the country. Come to the beginning!

http://travelyukon.com/

To climb the highest mountains, to view the colourful meadows, the rich blues of lakes and the dazzling 24 hours of sunlight. Here is the home of thousands of years of human history, of the birth of culture that is Canadian. The evolution of man brings with it dance, song, artwork, cuisine and joy. A human of energy and skill. The talents needed for survival.
We assume the climate is harsh, perhaps unjustifiably. Life is as life is made. Joy to you, mighty brave hearts. To push the limits of life worth living to the darkest corner of our nation.
The Yukon territory has set aside a vast amount of land to National and Provincial parkland, wildlife reserve, heritage rivers and First Nations land settlements. It boasts thousands of kilometers of pristine wilderness for the sports and nature enthusiast to enjoy.

http://www.env.gov.yk.ca/camping-parks/federal-protected-areas.php

With such a small population and so much country to enjoy, the remote far north is a breathtaking wilderness of forest and mountain.
As their counterparts travelled the unknown trail to track the wild animals and spread themselves across the continent, the aboriginals of the Yukon stayed.
Stay for the awesome splendor of the great land, the wild life to be viewed, the sports to be enjoyed. Still to be seen from the eyes of the adventurer as mainly untouched, undeveloped and unspoilt. The great land, the far north.
written by Dr. Louise Hayes
November 14,2013