Adventures
Our Menu for the Show
I was asked a few times about what aphrodisiacs Susie and I chose to use for our menu for the show. Instead of answering everyone one at a time I thought it would be a good idea to post the menu and rationale for each.
Aphrodisiac : Honey
We started with a welcome cocktail that was made with honey mead and a Spanish cava that was called “Love Potion #9″ and was served from an Erlenmeyer flask after having a touch of dry ice added. It was sweet, but what do you expect from a mead-based cocktail? As a non-alcoholic alternative, we prepared. A dilution of lavender honey with sparkling water. It actually tasted very similar to the mead beverage and, of course, we threw in a little dry ice.
Aphrodisiac : Oysters
Next, we brought in a professional to show us how to shuck oysters and gave all of the guests a chance to try something that they never had before … Shuck their own oyster!
Aphrodisiac : Asparagus
Up almost immediately after the shucking was a BBQ prepared Asparagus, wrapped Proscuitto di Parme.
Aphrodisiac : Basil
We incorporated basil a few times because, not only is it an aphrodisiac, it’s one of our favourite flavours to cook with in general. The fourth element of our menu was a gazpacho, made a’la Nathan, which means lots of basil and a little heat with a dollop of sour cream. We served this as a cold shooter to keep it interesting and light.
Aphrodisiac : Avocado, Fig, Arugula, Strawberry
The second use of basil came in the ménage a trois salads that we prepared. All three were served together in a triple service platter. First, a simple arugula dressed with white balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Second, a spinach salad, featuring strawberries, figs, avocado, and dragon eggs for colour dressed with balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper. And, finally, we called an audible and prepared a simple caprese salad after our plans for a panzanella were thwarted by our own over-proactivity.
The menu was originally designed to be light enough that guests could be inspired by the aphrodisiac theme, but to ensure that there was enough food for hungry guests, we added a grilled pork tenderloin served with a garlic, shallot, reduced chicken stock cream sauce to be served with roasted potatoes as a side to the salads.
Aphrodisiac : Chocolate, Berries
For dessert we had two courses. First, we made a dessert pizza on the BBQ, featuring nutella, marscapone cheese and various berries. The Susie arranged for chocolate cupcakes from Sweet Things to celebrate my birthday.
My Experience with Reality TV
Somehow Susie and I got roped into applying to be on a new television show that is premiering in September 2010.
It was easy enough … We filled out a form and sent it to one of the producers and we got a call back to arrange a screen test. They asked us to be available for 30 minutes and to be prepared to make something while we were being interviewed … Just to make sure that we could talk and cook at the same time.
We thought long and hard about what to make and, because we couldn’t decide, opted to make two versions of chicken bites.
Susie made one of her favourite recipes: chicken breast meat cubes, tossed in Franks Red Hot, then rolled in crushed up baked BBQ chips and Fibre One cereal. She served the bites with a honey-mustard dipping sauce.
I made a boneless chicken wing, which was inspired by Rousseau House in Ancaster. I didn’t have a recipe, but I knew what flavours I wanted to incorporate. I deboned the wings and stuffed them with sautéed garlic and shallots with a little fresh cilantro. The stuffed wing was placed on a hot BBQ. For a dipping sauce I made an emulsion of lavender honey and red vinegar with chilies and a little more cilantro.
Both dishes turned out great!
We were great on camera and were notified almost immediately that we would be on the show. Our filming week was July 19-23, 2010, which meant that we each had to reschedule the two different weekend getaways that we had planned. Susie was supposed to be heading to Miami and I was heading into Algonquin Park with some buddies.
Susie had a brilliant idea for a theme that would be sexy and fun almost immediately. We would make an entire menu of small dishes, each of which would include an ingredient that is a aphrodisiac. She has a book called “Intercourses“, which is filled with recipes using aphrodisiacs. We ended up using none of the recipes from the book, but we did take inspiration from the ingredients that were perfectly suited for the theme.
For the show we were to attend dinner parties held by two other couples on Monday and Wednesday, then we would host a dinner party on the Friday before being judged as to who threw the best shindig.
The Monday and Wednesday were easy because all we had to do was show up. At some point during each night the invited guests were individually taken away to a “confessional”. This would be the chance for every invited guest to criticize the hosts performance and send a message for the judges to consider.
The Friday was a whole new ball game. Cameras were rolling from about 10:00am and didn’t stop until after 10:00pm. Each of the other couples had already had that experience by the time we came around but, of course, nobody warned us about how intrusive the crew doing setup would be to our schedule.
We had everything planned for the day. In fact, we made up a game day schedule so that nothing could go wrong and we would always know what we needed to do and where each of us needed to be throughout the day. For the evening we actually planned down to every 15 minutes to make sure that our guests had plenty happening while still having a relaxed atmosphere. To be clear, only Susie and I knew about the schedule so the guests would have had to assume that we were going with the flow.
We made sure that we had plenty of time and were working with easy to manage ingredients with lots of padding added in so, at first, when the crew were calibrating lighting and camera angles, we were happy to relax and let them do their thing.
Then, we were told that we would be doing an afternoon interview with the judges that we had not planned for in advance. It took an hour or so to do the interview and re-record all of the pickups. (A pickup is when they like something that someone said, but they want to either hear it again more clearly or with a different intonation)
We were left scrambling a little, but there was still extra time in the schedule. Then Susie dressed the salads hours before the party and killed the spinach! I had to do a last minute grocery store run.
It came down to the prep for the final course … Dessert Pizza and I had to roll out the dough and toss it, but the kitchen was full of crew. I ended up having to prep it on a serving tray and toss it in a corner, but all was done on time before the guests arrived.
Susie was in charge of decor so she picked up some beautiful floral arrangements from Burst to finish off our room and she managed all of the transitions with our counter / table. Since we have only one surface big enough for guests to eat and for us to do prep with, this was a huge job to manage.
All in all, I am glad that we participated in the show. It was a great experience to share with Susie and something interesting to tell kids about in the future.
The one thing that surprised me the most was how the producers shape the show while filming. They don’t go out of their way to tell you what to say in as many words, but they definitely lead you to act a certain way and have specific responses.
First, we were told not to be “Canadian” with our responses, rather that to act more extreme would make for better TV. They said “If you like white wine and you’re asked; “Do you like white wine?” The preferred responses would be: “Yeah, I love it!, or “No way, I can’t stand the stuff!”
They also shaped our responses to fit the story. They would ask questions and then you would need to incorporate the question into your answer so that the audience could figure out the reason for the answer
For example, at one of the dinner parties I was asked about how the food tasted and I actually liked it, so I said so. Then they said that others had said that if one dish was slimy and over cooked and ask if I agreed with that assessment. This went on for a few minutes, until I said: “The food was okay, except the eggplant, which was slimy from being over-cooked and wasn’t spicy enough”
You aren’t exactly given lines, but the producers are pros at coming up with ways to create drama from the ordinary. I can’t wait to see they how they cut me together. I’m sure that I will come across as an over-confident, arrogant jerk, based on my memory of some of the things they were getting me to say. I guess that’s pretty close to my personality anyway.
We were sworn to secrecy when it comes to announcing the winners for the week so I cant share that quite yet. Susie wrote a very accurate account of our experience which I will be posting after the episode airs on the Food Network.
The show has been getting a lot of press in recent weeks, some of which you can read through below. They also used out place for some behind the scenes footage and pictures, which you can pick out in some of the articles if you’ve ever been in my living room.
Eat Drink Slay – The Globe and Mail
Dinner Party Wars: Reality TV judges the best soiree – The Toronto Star
Behind the Scenes of Dinner Party Wars – Food Network
Dinner Party Wars – Food Network
The show airs Wednesdays starting Sept 1, 2010 at 9:00pm EST on The Food Network.
N
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Saturday July 10, 2010
Woke to Todd standing over me with hot coffee. It was both nice and a little disturbing. (I am not sure how long Todd had been standing there.)
After a short conversation, I got up and dressed, then we headed down stairs for our “hotel continental breakfast”. Todd had eaten. Todd had also properly tied down the canoes, and changed the oil and rotated the tires on the Van. I think Todd was a little anxious to go. The hotel had little packets of gruel, but I decided on fresh fruit salad and a toasted bagel. Todd surfed porn on the hotel computer while I ate. (Actually, Todd wrote to family.)
Now 08:30 and Todd was REALLY chomping at the bit, so we went to wake Dave and Carl. I knocked and waited, then knocked again and waited, then I pounded on their door. My hard work produced a sleepy, staggering, bed headed Dave – not pretty. We checked out after Dave and Carl ate – NOT gruel.
On the road, heading south and home. Less than a kilometre out of town, a trucker heading north put nine of his eighteen wheels in our lane forcing me to swerve to avoid being killed. Other than that one trucker, it was a pretty uneventful ride home. Passed the same Americans four or five times on the Hwy. A little construction here and there. Managed not to kill anymore wild life.
We stopped at New Liskeard for lunch. Todd was having pizza withdrawal. Carl was NOT hungry, he was only going to have a drink. I am not sure when it happened …it may have been the sight of the food …or the smell …or maybe when he found out I was buying …but Carl got his appetite back …with a vengeance !! For a while, it was quite dangerous to get between Carl and the food. We even put the leftovers next to Carl in the Van – just in case.
“Pizza Hut, a fine restaurant. Yes, it is.”
Managed to get Dave and Carl home to Garson safely. Manly handshakes all around, then off to New Sudbury. Dropped Todd off and all his smelly gear. Wife Tammy was delighted. (I suggested that she burn most of it.) Another manly handshake, then home. Vanna and I were happy to be here.
For the past several years, I have vacationed alone. After going on vacation with three others, I need to express my thankfulness:
To Todd - who did 99.9% of the pre-trip prep work. There would not have been a canoe trip without your hard work. Also your hard work during the trip (for example 27 cooked meals – some of them not gruel) and your patience – mostly for my snoring.
CORRECTION: Todd – Also your hard work during the trip (for example “40″ cooked meals – some of them not gruel)
To Dave - for carrying more than your share and looking good while doing it. And for your patience while spending half our time waist deep in the River.
To Carl - for making me look good.
To our corporate sponsor (some un-named mining company) – for making our lives a little easier, a little more comfortable, and a little cheaper.
To Global Climate change - for the lack of snow and rain exposing every rock in the River, which allowed us to greet and enjoy each and everyone of them.
To Ontario Hydro - for NOT building any fucking hydro dams on the Missinaibi River.
Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Friday July 9, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 15 km/ 25 km TOTALS: 243 km/ 322 km
Woke to partial sun. Whewhoo – PARTIAL !! I also woke to coffee and pancakes. Todd had taken mercy on our souls and made pancakes instead of gruel. Bless you Todd.
Yes, I know oatmeal is good for you. Lowers your cholesterol. Is full of fibre and calories. Makes you better looking (just ask Dave). Improves your sex drive, but for the love of god there are only so many times a man can eat PORRIDGE in two weeks !!
On the water around 9ish. Yes, yet another attempt at an early morning. The Sun was out full and was blinding on the near calm water.
The Moose was dry too. A lot of work …guess work went into selecting passable channels. A few dry swifts …a couple of drag overs, and a huge, gigantic sand bar in the middle of the River running parallel to the Banks. For a River this big – 100 metres across, to have a sand bar this big ? Maybe a kilometre long. It was big enough for Disney to build a theme park on.
First, we saw the hydro tower. Be calm. Then finally around one bend …the Bridge !! It was four kilometres away and I thought we were never going to get there. A week ago, when we were at Thunderhouse Falls and the couple from Atikokan suggested the Moose River Crossing as an early out – I would not hear it. I would not admit defeat. I was determined that we paddle all the way to Moosonee …but this day …I was ready. For the past couple of days, I was finding it hard to motivate myself to paddle past late afternoon. A little trouble getting up in the morning. (Though I did manage to get out of bed before Carl.) I was done, and ready to go home.
Now the next hurdle was to get our gear up to the top of the tracks before the Train went by. We paddled under the Bridge, just north of it, then into a quiet pool and dragged the canoes up onto the rocks. There was no nice way to walk the gear up to the top, so we started hauling up the steep, loose gravel, half ass trail to the top stepping over the woman’s panties. (They must have some wild parties there in Moose River Crossing.)
We had gotten most of the gear up to a semi-large, flat area next to the Bridge. An engineer from the construction crew, working on the Bridge, came by and told us that the Train would not stop on the Bridge, so we would have to move down the tracks to the “Station”. (Actually, just a step that had been painted white once.) The Station seemed far away at this point. He also suggested that we paddle into the Bay just below the Station – entrance down stream. We looked – no Bay. We looked down stream and all we saw was dry rock – no entrance. This guy was crazy.
Dave had spotted a bay before we got to the Bridge, so we decided to go for it. We ran down the hill to the canoes because we had little time before the Train arrived. Carl was still asleep in the front of his canoe. Back on the water and heading up stream. If you ever thought it was hard paddling down stream in a dry swift – try paddling upstream in a dry swift …not going to happen. Dragging the canoes, Todd and I left Dave and Carl behind and found the Bay, but no trail. In the mean time, Dave and Carl had taken the ATV trail to the top of the tracks half way to the Station. So, we followed Dave’s and Carl’s lead. Up to the top with the canoe, then went back to the River for a few leftovers. On our way back to the Tracks, Dave was yelling the Train was coming. Now panic. We race to the top, get to the other side of the tracks, and the Train stopped 10 meters from where we are standing. The Train stopped at the Station. Just enough time to change into a few dry clothes, then the Train stopped for us. Load the gear and we are heading to Moosonee.
An hour later, we are in Moosonee. Pay for the Canoes and our tickets from Moose River Crossing to Moosonee, but we will need to pay for the trip back to Cochrane on the Train. Lunch. The Bar was not serving food because of a broken exhaust fan …next. They had food, but no water. I asked for ice water – no ice water just bottled water. Asked for bottled water – they were out. They had two kinds of beer, so I had beer. It took several seconds to drink the first beer. Ahhhcold drinks !! How I had missed you. No leaches either.
Back on the Train heading for Cochrane, we had to pay for our tickets in cash in the Entertainment car. When Carl went to pay, River water streamed off his bills. It was not the first time the cashier had seen wet cash. We spent the next six hours of a 4.5 hour trip in the Entertainment car. I had assumed someone had moved Cochrane that was why it took so long to get there.
Finally in Cochrane, Terry, Johnny Bait, met the Train. Handed me my Van key and got a brief account of our adventures. Terry was also meeting two other canoeist. After a few stories, Terry ran off to his hot date. Vanna was happy to see me. We loaded the Canoes and gear half ass, because right at midnight the Parking Lot lights went out. We tried to tie down the canoes by flashlight – not good.
We drove across the street to the hotel. Got a couple of rooms, but NO food. There is NO food in Cochrane after midnight. So, beer and chips for supper. A shower – no horseflies, and bed.
Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Thursday July 8, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 32 km/ 25 Km TOTALS: 228 km/ 297 km
Light rain. Yes, there is nothing like a little light rain to start the day !! Add calm and grey, and its the perfect way to start a canoeing day !! God bless us everyone !! (The Sun came out in full by 11:30 spoiling everything.)
We had our daily constants: rocks, dry swifts, a little zig …a little zag though not as extreme as previous days, fish jumping but none to eat, and the trees were getting shorter. Now most of the trees were under 30 feet tall. But still the most important constant – the beauty. Todd’s pictures are great, but you actually have to see this place with your own eyes to appreciate just now beautiful this River is …every moment.
We had lunch next to Johnson Rock #35. Actually, an abandoned Johnson outboard engine now half buried on the right bank. And a small spring fed stream – ice cold. Nice. Good for cooling our now boiled drinking water. Both Water Pump filters were plugged the day before, so we were forced to start boiling our drinking water – what a PAIN !!
The Water filters were not the only thing we needed to conserve – paper products on Day 2 or 3 (due to extreme wetness) and Fire Starter sticks Day 7. The only thing we still had a great deal of was oatmeal/ porridge. I found it harder and harder to eat my quota of oatmeal. And the leftovers were impossible to burn no matter how hot the fire. LOOK OUT asbestos industry – I think we have found a biodegradable alternative to asbestos !!
A black thunderstorm cell chased us down river just glancing us. A few drops of rain, about fifteen minutes of high gale force winds, then gone. Sunshine. Followed by rainbows. Damn prophecies !!
Portage Island - no island should be called “Portage Island” !! Portage Island marked the end of the Missinaibi and Mattagami Rivers and the beginning of the Moose River. Missinaibi + Mattagami = Moose. Also, the deciduous trees were back and forty feet tall – this place was magical !!
We paddled around the right side of the Island so we could see the Mattagami River. It was sad, very sad. The Mattagami River had the same size foot print as the Missinaibi River, but the Mattagami had been reduced to a dry trickle. There are three hydro dams on the Mattagami and they are …NO …they have killed the River. It was hard to see.
Now on the Moose and still looking for water. We dragged the canoes through a dry swift which converted to a raging rapid. The waves in the rapid were as tall as I and the water was coming in from all sides – heart pounding. Then rain pounding. Another black thunderstorm cell had found us and dumped on us. Thunder and lightning. The rain drops bouncing off the River’s surface trying to jump up back into the sky. Wet. Yes, we were wet.
Now wet, and the Sun was setting into the trees. Still in the Park, but no hope for a Official site, so we picked a grassy …a wet grassy section on the left bank. The right River bank was still enjoying full sunlight, but we chose the left bank in full shade. Dave discovered a sandy strip right on the River’s edge, so we moved down. Dave built a foundation for his new sand pad before setting up his tent – I am not sure how many days Dave was planning on staying ? Todd and I were not fussy, we just put the Tent up so it fit between rocks.
The mosquitoes were tolerable, so a later night than usual. I DID NOT ask for Carl’s help with the fire in anyway.
To bed and dreaming of my morning quota of gruel …I mean oatmeal, Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Wednesday July 7, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 33 km/ 24 km TOTALS: 196 km/ 272 km
Sun …sunlight …sunshine …sunny and warm and a breeze from the south. This does not feel right. I am sure something will fall from the sky and strike us down.
Despite my pessimism, it was a beautiful, warm, breezy morning and sunny all day. We even got an early start …well early for us – 09:30. We actually planned an early start and this was the best we could do.
We also changed canoeing partners. Dave and Carl. Todd and I.
Spent a lot of the day zigzagging again. Probably another 40 km day. Boulder fields, shoals, dry swifts, and more than a few drag overs. Another day of only our feet and the bottom half of our legs getting wet. Something odd was happening regarding this staying dry thing – I was beginning to heal. After all the cuts, scrapes, dents, bruises, and new body holes I had accumulated during the first week, this staying “in” the canoe was causing me to heal. It did not seem natural.
Despite the lack of water, we did manage to find a short rapid near the end of the day. After dragging ourselves through the initial swift, there was a sharp 90 degree turn at a rock face and down a quick rapid. The waves were high enough to come into the front of the canoe. That got the heart racing.
The trees were changing. Most of the deciduous trees were gone. Now 99% evergreens and they were changing too. Gone were the “christmas tree” shapes. The evergreens were narrow, more pencil like in shape, and beginning to get shorter. The forty foot trees were well behind us.
I saw a shark jump out of the water in front of me. It was black with a pure white belly and about 2 1/2 feet long. A shark – reference material: “A Shark’s Tale” by Dream Works. Hey, I get all my science facts from cartoons. I saw a three foot pike too.
No official Campsite again. We found a grassy area on a rock bed.
Carl did the dishes ?? Not well, but he did them. Todd and I had to either take Carl’s dishes away from him or talked him into washing his dishes on at least three occasions. He went two or three days without washing his dishes at a time !! Carl was already the weakness link, we did not need him to have food poisoning too.
After getting over the initial shock of Carl doing dishes, I asked Carl to bring up water for putting out the campfire. He agreed. Carl brought up an inch of water in the pot. An inch of water ? It took three buckets of water to put out the fire properly …what the hell were we going to do with an inch ?
I tried bathing again. I waited until the horseflies seemed to be done for the day - they were not. A cloud of horseflies followed me into the water. I tried to take Dave’s advice and keep my head dry until the end, but I failed. After swatting my face for the second time with a wet hand, the swarm attacked. A blanket of horseflies formed on my face, so under the water I went, then as quickly into the smoke of the campfire as I could manage. I was covered in bites. Todd and Dave were quite entertained and amused by my flopping around in the water …nice.
Another mosquito tonight. Another campfire doused with three buckets of water !! And an inch.
Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Tuesday July 6, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 31 km/ 24 km TOTALS: 163 km/ 248 km
It was a cloudy, calm start to the day. The rain did not actually start until we were getting into the canoes. It was a nice, steady, light rain, often wet, that lasted most of the day, though spoiled by bright sunshine by 04:00.
The lack of sunlight and the rain masked the rocks just below the surface, so we left traces of green plastic canoes all along our route. “Rocks” was the word of the day. We spent the day zigzagging through the boulder fields and around the shoals searching for passable water. It was common for us to travel from one bank to the other, then back again … three …four …maybe five times through the boulder fields. We may have advanced 31 km this day, but we estimated that we actually paddled closer to 40 km.
Between the boulder fields …more boulder fields. In places, it was like a never ending chain of boulder fields, then a large pool of water. You never really knew what was around the next bend. We passed through the longest, largest pool of water on the River this day. It looked like a narrow lake. It was beautiful despite the lack of hidden rocks. We found garbage left by fly-in fishermen. Lots of garbage.
Also, the forest regenerating after a forest fire on the left bank. It must have been 20 km long. Most of the trees were around ten feet tall. How many years to make a ten foot tall tree up there ? Twenty ? Thirty ? It takes a long time to grow a tree that far north.
Official campsites were hard to find, so we settled for a grassy patch in the middle of a rocky bank. I asked Carl to help with the gathering of firewood. Carl protested – he figured that he did not take advantage of the campfires. His loss. Plus, we burn all of the Group’s garbage twice a day. Carl did help – he brought back a stick. Yes, a single fucking stick 15 inches long and maybe a half inch in diameter …how many seconds was that going to last ?
Carl or a bad rash ? Which is more irritating ?
Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Monday July 5, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 32 km/ 25 km TOTALS: 132 km/ 224 km
Sunshine ? This was novel. Sunshine and a breeze from the south …wow !! The prophecies were beginning to come true. A day for miles.
Also, a day to duct tape my Pirate hat. The southern breeze was causing my bandana to flip forward exposing my shiny metal head. So, the logical solution to all problems – duct tape. Or we could have just duct taped my head.
We were loaded up and just about ready to go when Carl showed up dressed like Katherine Hepburn in the movie “African Queen”. I swear. I tried not to stare.
A quiet uneventful day. We all managed to stay in the canoes, so “dryness” was the word of the day. Dave caught a couple of fish for our lunch, but none for our supper. In fact, that was the end of our fish meals – a sad, sad day in our trip. Fish were still jumping around us, but they were not jumping into our canoes …shame. I saw what I though was a log caught in a shallow, but when we approached it – it took off in a flash !! A muskie. My god that was a BIG FISH !!
Todd had managed not to turn on the GPS all day. Todd wanted to be surprised by our excellent mileage …30 km. Todd was disappointed. He was hoping for 35 or more. The rest of us were happy and ready to stop.
Apparently, we had passed a Park campsite about an hour back, but Todd and Katherine wanted to make miles, so they did not tell Dave and I. Now the search was on for a site, especially since the Sun was approaching the trees. We found a gravel bar with several mini sand dunes – it was Dave approved. We levelled out two dunes big enough for each tent with the paddles and setup for the night.
Dave and I went for firewood across the River, over filling the canoe. It was going to be a great night for a campfire. I also attempted to bathe, but the cloud of huge vicious horseflies had grown over the past couple of days and they went into a feeding frenzy at the sight of wet skin. That eliminated any incentive to bathe. Exit the horseflies …enter the mosquitoes. I was about to give up on the campfire when a squadron of dragonflies came to Dave’s and my rescue. The dragonflies thinned out the mosquitoes very effectively. Several of the dragonflies bumped into me while pursuing the mosquitoes, I had a hard time resisting the urge to swat the dragonflies. Mosquitoes gone …the dragonflies left. The dragonflies gone …the mosquitoes returned. DAMN !!
Another early night, Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Sunday July 4, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 25 km/ 24 km TOTALS: 100 km/ 199 km
Dave was up first, trying to catch us some breakfast – no luck unfortunately. I believe this was the only morning, Todd was not up first. Though Carl managed to maintain his ”always up LAST” record.
A wet, grey morning, though the rain did hold off until we were in the canoes, then light rain on and off for most of the day. Despite the rain, it was a very comfortable warm, calm day. So calm in fact, it was like canoeing on a mirror. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Dave and I went long periods of time without speaking – we were awe struck. Besides, we ran out of words to describe how beautiful it was.
Without the sunlight, the rocks lay hidden in the black water. We hit every rock we could find. Yet, we managed to stay in the canoes. I am beginning to like this “new” dry canoeing thing.
We got to see two moose wander down to the River from a gravel bar about a kilometre away. We watched them through a mon-nocular. (Both binoculars had been filled with water. Only one side of one binocular was functioning.) The moose were the only large wildlife we got to see. The lack of large wildlife was disappointing. We saw tracks and droppings everyday, but no animals. We saw endless amounts of water fowl. Lots of bald eagles – more eagles in a single day than I had ever seen in the rest of my life. A few beavers, a non-shy rabbit, chipmunks and squirrels, but no large animals …shame.
Dave caught us fish for both lunch and dinner. Dave was our hero. In fact, Dave caught his afternoon limit in three minutes. The fish were leaping out of the water. Actually clearing the surface of the water by a foot like little dolphins. One fish tried to take Dave’s line while it was above the water by a couple of feet as Dave was looking for bait. Wow !!
Found a Site. Setup the clothes line …why ? I was about to drink from my water bottle, when I noticed a small black stick on the bottle. I tried to wipe it off, but the stick was on the inside of my bottle. I drank down about an inch of water hoping to have access to the stick, but when the water level dropped the stick began to crawl looking for water. The stick was a leach. I reached inside with a finger, got a hold on the leach, then flicked it into the bush. I drank the rest of the bottle right then. Warm, beige, river/leach water is the best.
Carl was in bed first …as always. Carl left all his things out on the open ground in a large circle. Dave, the enabler, went around gathering all of Carl’s things, then putting them nicely under the Tarp. Dave, Dave, Dave. Though I am no better. Once it began to rain, I put Carl’s raincoat under the Tarp too.
The rain ended the evening. In fact, it rained so hard, it put out the campfire – not easy.
Yet another early night, Dad
Read MoreMoosonee or Bust ~ Saturday July 3, 2010
TRAVELLED/ ESTIMATE: 6 km/ 24 km TOTALS: 75 km/ 175 km
Woke up to rain and a thunderstorm chaser. I am beginning to sense a pattern. NOT going to make miles AGAIN today. Between the heavy rain and the canoes being at the beginning of the portage, it was looking like we would be lucky to get the canoes moved this day.
It did stop raining by late morning. Before we could go get the canoes, Todd had promised he would check in on the satellite phone. The problem was we got the discount phone and the very discount service. After several attempts and several dropped calls, Todd finally got through to the service and retrieved the messages. Todd walked over to me, and said you had a message from Micah but the call got dropped and you will have to wait until the next Satellite. I was instantly ill with worry. I had told everyone not to call, because there was absolutely nothing I could do about it good or bad – so DO NOT call. But what was so awful that Micah would feel compelled to call ? God, I was ill. Dave and Todd tried to talk me down …or up …but it did not help. LONGEST TWENTY MINUTES OF MY LIFE. Finally Todd got through, worked the phone voodoo to retrieve the messages, then held the phone up to my ear. I do not know why Todd held the phone to my ear ? I listened, then gave the phone back to Todd. I said “I do not know a Kim and I do not have an infant son …does anyone here ?” No one. We assumed the message was for the previous renters. WHAT A RELIEF !!
Off for the canoes. The Sun was now out, and it was hot, and humid, and breathless between these two walls of green. The portage was now wetter and muddier than the day before (not that I am complaining), though I had not thought it was possible. 2.8 km through the water, mud, fallen trees, and two wash-outs down steep embankments – fun. We did a three man carry up the first hill with both canoes, then they left me alone with my canoe. I got about 100 meters dragging my canoe through the mud, rocks, and roots before they sent Todd back to deal with the crazy person – me.
It was mid afternoon before we got the canoes in the water, had lunch, and packed up. We knew we were not going far, but we did want to make a few miles. We were saying good bye to our last portage, also to the Canadian Shield. The terrain changed. Almost no more bed rock. From now on, it was boulders, rocks, gravel, and sand. The River changed too. Now there were pools of water, some of them a kilometre or more long …and fish.
Todd and Carl dumped their canoe – that’s two. Though Dave and I still held the record at five. The “granny method” was keeping Dave and I relatively dry, though we did jump in to help Todd and Carl.
Found a Site. Hung our wet belongings …again. Dave caught two fish – very nice. Great supper, then a night of light rain, cooking socks, and mosquitoes.
Feels like home, Dad
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