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Changes with Red Lake Outfitters (Read 51778 times)

DentonDoc Voyageur Inukshuk Offline Posts: 3468 Location: Central Texas Joined: Dec 27^th, 2003	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #30 - Feb 6^th, 2020 at 5:27pm	Quote Print Post
	Jimbo wrote on Feb 6^th, 2020 at 2:39pm: 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 Yeah. That's the way I remember it also. I seem to remember him saying that they would have anyone flying over the area they were supposed to be in would keep an eye out for them. I also checked for a few days after our return to see if there were any sad stories being posted about events in WCPP. So I guess there were no SOS's issued, after all! dd


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solotripper Inukshuk Offline Posts: 8104 Location: clarkston MI Joined: Mar 14^th, 2005	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #31 - Feb 6^th, 2020 at 6:55pm	Quote Print Post
	Quote: 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." Back in my backpacking days 4 of us had just come back from hiking Isle Royale. We were staying at a State Park campground. We met some local 1st Nation people who were camped there too for some event. It started raining steadily and when evening came we struggled to get a good fire going. My buddy, who was 3 sheets into the wind decided he was going to go down and ask how THEY had gotten a roaring fire going? The next thing we see is two old Ojibway guys and him coming back to our campsite. Our buddy says " There going to show us the Ojibway method of fire building" One of the old guys had a beer can in his hand. He steps forward POURS the beer on the fire and quickly steps back The fire bursts into a roaring flame that ignited all the damp wood! We said WHAT the hell was that? He laughed and said, " it was COLEMAN fuel, that's what the Ojibway WE know use now". We had a good laugh about that. Every time I see someone struggling with a campfire that comes to mind.


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HighnDry Inukshuk Offline Posts: 1056 Location: Minneapolis Joined: Apr 29^th, 2013	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #32 - Feb 9^th, 2020 at 3:48pm	Quote Print Post
	Marten- thanks for your insights. I hadn't read your post until now but it explained a lot of the backstory. I was just curious what happened up there and I'm mourning the loss of a good outfitter. I'll miss seeing him up there whenever I get to WCPP next. Well, that's life. Change happens and we go on! See you all at Copia.


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mpeebles Inukshuk Offline Posts: 598 Location: Fond du Lac, WI Joined: Feb 26^th, 2018	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #33 - Feb 10^th, 2020 at 11:19am	Quote Print Post
	Well said Marten. I wholeheartedly agree. Later......


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Jimbo Voyageur Inukshuk Offline Posts: 4598 Location: Florida Joined: Oct 6^th, 2002	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #34 - Feb 10^th, 2020 at 2:41pm	Quote Print Post
	Marten, I failed to notice the post that you "slipped in" during the 3 minute interval when I was responding to DD in this thread. Geez, I kinda sensed SOMETHING was going on to precipitate Harlan's sudden departure. I hate that it was THAT sort of thing. As I listened to his "rant" and to other statements he has made, the strong feeling I got was, "we're not hearing everything." Back when he was airing his gripes against the park service in his earlier videos, I remember SO MANY of his followers (including some satisfied customers) voicing their ardent support for whatever he was saying and making harsh remarks about Claire & others. He was putting himself out there like some kind of martyr... and his followers were buying it big time (especially since there was so much silence from the other side). Me? I didn't know what to think. Harlan has always seemed such a personable guy and a positive advocate for the park. As I've said before, he's a very good marketer. Clearly there have been some issues that did not gain public attention. Whether the cause was intentional malfeasance or simple slipshod business practices doesn't seem to matter, anymore. The responsibility was his to clear it up. Instead, he seems to have put more energy into distracting rants - legitimate or not - that painted only a partial picture of what was going on. Like others have said, I appreciate your insights and filling in of gaps. I'm guessing the picture in Red Lake is even more complex than our remote ruminations can conjure. Later, Jimbo


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solotripper Inukshuk Offline Posts: 8104 Location: clarkston MI Joined: Mar 14^th, 2005	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #35 - Feb 10^th, 2020 at 3:53pm	Quote Print Post
	I've never met the guy but I watched some of those videos you mentioned Jimbo and thought the same thing you did There are ALWAYS 2 sides to every story and the REAL truth IMHO lies somewhere in between. What is really telling is him leaving town and NOT notifying his PAID clients. That speaks volumes right there. You don't bring innocent people into your squabbles.


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TomT Inukshuk Offline Posts: 1052 Location: Chicago Burbs Joined: Aug 26^th, 2007	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #36 - Feb 10^th, 2020 at 7:06pm	Quote Print Post
	Well, it's in the rear view mirror now and I only hope a reputable outfitter fills the gap that he's left. Maybe a local.


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Marten Inukshuk Offline Posts: 545 Location: IL Joined: Feb 7^th, 2010	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #37 - Feb 10^th, 2020 at 7:15pm	Quote Print Post
	TomT wrote on Feb 10^th, 2020 at 7:06pm: Well, it's in the rear view mirror now and I only hope a reputable outfitter fills the gap that he's left. Maybe a local. I know Richard at Chukuni who stepped up to help some left stranded by Harlan is going to do some outfitting and Albert at Goldseekers has been ramping back up for over a year. I noted Goldseekers on Facebook was promoting a 30% off sale for booking flights early and his rates looked very good at list price. A big difference I saw too was that he was up front about lowering cost even more if he could match up your early booking with someone else using the back-haul on your flight. Nothing in this for me but wanted those planning a WCPP trip to know that full outfitting and flights are easily booked for WCPP and the surrounding areas.


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TomT Inukshuk Offline Posts: 1052 Location: Chicago Burbs Joined: Aug 26^th, 2007	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #38 - Feb 11^th, 2020 at 1:47pm	Quote Print Post
	HighnDry wrote on Feb 2^nd, 2020 at 9:20pm: I just came across this one from his youtube channel that provides a lot more details. (You need to *Login* or *Register* to view media files and links) After watching the majority of this (it gets a bit repetitive so I bailed on the end) I would love to hear from the guy who he is targeting as the perpetrator. To me it does sound like locals who did not like a city whipsmart coming in and turning their world upside down. It does sound like plain jealousy when the BS is removed. But so far it's a one sided story so if the locals want to tell their side I hope they do. Also, there's no good reason for the vandalism and running off the road. It should have never gotten to that point. He obviously rubbed some people very wrong. So maybe HE could have been better at dealing with the situation.


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Marten Inukshuk Offline Posts: 545 Location: IL Joined: Feb 7^th, 2010	Re: Changes with Red Lake Outfitters Reply #39 - Feb 11^th, 2020 at 2:36pm	Quote Print Post
	Joe Robinet (a very popular man on you tube) is going to be back at Canoecopia doing program on WCPP. Harlan outfitted him last summer and from comments on his trip video he heard a lot from Harlan. Ontario parks no longer promote their parks at canoe shows so it is going to be hard to find out much.


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