mpeebles wrote on Feb 5^th, 2020 at 2:29pm:


Well, we DO know he likes his chain saw.  One of the things he "explained a lot" about in his rant video was the fact he has cut 100 (?) kilometers of portage paths in WCPP.

"Rant" may be a bit of an exaggeration.  I actually find Harlan's rants to be pretty slick, well-thought-out position statements... albeit "unbalanced" ones.  That's NOT to say HE is unbalanced.  Rather, he appears to be a man of strong convictions.  He does a good job of pointing out facts that work for him.  Unfortunately, he remains rather silent about those which do not.  Frankly, I fancy he's a rather good "debater."  He is certainly skilled in homespun, "aw-shucks", back woods (small pun intended) marketing .  Reminds me a little of the Andy Griffith character in the classic movie, "A Face in the Crowd."

He was a go-getter, that's for sure.  I suspect he breaks quite a few eggs to make his omelets.  I'm not sure all the eggs were his to break, however.

Oh, well... I'll miss him.  He was a real character!

Jimbo   

Thinking not.  They lead to Olive Lake.

I with Marten on this one. I believe the issues up there are far more complicated than we realize and it's up to them as to how they sort things out.   Being a guest in a foreign country, I respect their rights to manage as they see fit and am grateful that I can visit such a wonderful place. 

"That's all I gots to say about that" 

Nice story dd.  I had the good fortune of talking at length to a First Nations couple while fishing on Red Lake.  We were doing shore lunch in an area we had done so in the past but there was a trailer parked there that hadn't been there in past years.  During our lunch a four wheeler pulled up and we introduced ourselves to each other.  I had some canned pears along and asked if they would like some. The did and loved them.  I gave them the rest of the pears and then they went into their trailer and brought out three packages of goose sausage which they had made.  We chatted a lot about families, what we all did for a living, etc.  It's amazing at how much we have in common as human beings.  I remember their names to this day......Jerry and Helen.

Jimbo wrote on Feb 6^th, 2020 at 12:52am:

Jim -

No, I did remember that Doug was the park super at the time.  I just was uncertain about our First Nation driver's name on our 2009 trip.  I was sitting in the back seat of the pickup that returned us to Red Lake, along with MP.  I was thinking you were sitting in the front seat.

dd

Gotcha.  Yeah, I probably wrote it down.  If it turns out to be an itch you must scratch, I'll go back & check for you.  [I'm hoping you say "yes" because, now, it's becoming an itch that I can't scratch!]

Anyway, THAT was the guy who told us about the large party of disadvantaged Toronto youths (15-20 teens chaperoned by only 2 slightly older counselors), remember?  He talked about how they came by to visit him & the other elders and to be trained in "living off the land as in the bygone days."  Our 1st Nation driver recounted how they showed them how to use snares, rock traps, & use seines for fishing.  They showed them how to navigate using only the sun, moon, & stars, etc.  The next day he & the elders drove them up to their put-in for a long trip down the Bloodvein River.

Interestingly enough, the teenagers INSISTED on going on their 10 days trip without maps or food (just a few chocolate bars) and only a couple fishing poles.  Rather, they intended to make snares to catch food and build fish-traps the way 1st Nation folks did centuries ago.  I recall expressing my incredulity to our driver and receiving only an unremarkable acknowledgment of a brief nod of that poker face of his.

Then, I said, "Holy S___t!  Aren't you worried?  What do you think is going to happen to them?"

Again, with that deadpan expression and his eyes never leaving that bumpy, dusty access road, our driver replied nonchalantly, "Oh... they gonna die.  Even WE don't do that stuff in "the old way.  They're nuts."

I remember convulsing with laughter over that statement but I guess I took him seriously.  When I got home from Red Lake, I remember checking the Toronto newspapers on-line for stories about "Youth Tragedy in WCPP."  I didn't find anything but I DID ask Doug Gilmore about it at the following year's CanoeCopia.  He just chuckled and said, "Oh, THOSE guys!"  He kept chuckling and finally said, "Well let's just say they made it out of the park OK.  Yep, that was a strange bunch."

Our driver was truly entertaining.

Later,

Jimbo