Fox In My Front Yard

Our Future Neighbours

Goodbye to the North

Soon we will be saying goodbye to the great white North, and packing our bags once again.  Destination this time: Montreal, Quebec.  Janier is transferring to Concordia University in Montreal to continue pre-medicine.

Our time in Northern Canada was definitely a learning experience.  We expected to see wild animals, brave the elements, see Northern Lights.  And we did.  We expected to uncover some realities of the North; to understand aboriginal issues, for instance, or rural living.  And we did. 

Red neck culture: we've been there!  In some ways, it was a culture shock for both of us.  I mean aside from the big trucks, machismo, underlying racism and homophobia.  We were prepared for that.  While we found a little of that, it turns out there's much more. 

What we found was traditional ways of doing things. Old families. Independence and self-reliance, bred from oil patch discoveries, extraction, and a pioneering spirit. Little regard or appreciation for the environment.  Not service-focused.  Up here, you hear things like:

"We’ve always done things this way, it works, don’t question it."

"Don’t expect any empathy."

"You’re on your own."

"Creativity is not encouraged."

"We like living this way."

As you can imagine, coming from the South, especially from Vancouver/Vancouver Island, this was a culture shock for both of us.  We found a certain pride from folks here who self-identify as "red neck".

Make no mistake: our experiences in the North were by no means all negative or unpleasant.  I'd say it has helped us to clarify for ourselves what kind of community both of us are searching for.  Some place where people are open-minded, personable, and passionate.  Where there is a strong value placed on culture and the arts.  Welcoming, inclusive, and friendly.  Alive!

As this chapter comes to a close, new adventures are waiting for us in Montreal.  Stay tuned.     

Chopping Wood in Charlie Lake

A Year in the North

It occurred to me the other day that we have now spent just over a year in Northern Canada - 13 months to be exact.  It's been a year of challenges, amazing memories, and lots of personal growth.

Looking back, I don't think either of us could have predicted the experiences we would have. 

I remember...

Walking together at 1:00am by frozen Frame Lake and the government buildings in Yellowknife, while watching curtains of green and blue auroral lights dancing and pulsing across the sky.

Winterizing our sports car (including chains at one point), and the many laughs we received from locals.

Being referred to as a "Southerner".

Cooking Colombian food in our thermal underwear, while it's -45C outside.  Using a hairdryer to melt the 2-inch thick layer of ice that formed on the inside of our windows.

Traveling 6 degrees above the arctic circle and finding an igloo church.

Braving the ice bridges of the north and visiting First Nations communities.  We now know that it's safer to drive the ice bridges without wearing seat belts, just in case you have to bail.

Learning how to knit (scarves, socks, and most recently a sweater).

Discovering that Northern Canada is a true wilderness.  Seeing moose, bison, bear or beavers firsthand is now not such an unusual thing.

Snow in June.

Soaking in the hidden hot springs of Northern BC.

Prepping myself to appear in local newspapers, radio stations, and even TV.

Welcoming a new puppy, and later a new kitten into our family.

And finally, I remember feeling so proud of Janier when he was accepted into the pre-med program in Fort St John, starting this fall.  One more step on the way to becoming a doctor.

One year has passed of memories, laughter, and growth.  I couldn't have asked for anything greater.

Beaver Wars, The Saga

This is what a beaver lodge looks like.

Some people have to deal with termites, others with mice, ants or cockroaches.  We have beavers.

When we first moved to rural Charlie Lake, BC and noticed signs of beavers in the creek in our backyard, we thought it was sort of quaint and cute.  A nice touch to country living.

We rarely saw them at first, and it seemed like they only really became active in the evenings, when you'd hear the smack of their tail on the water if you startled them.  Downstream from us, our neighbour had a large beaver dam on her property.  We assumed that's where the beavers lived, although we had no idea how many beavers there could be.

Early one morning, around 2:00am or so, we heard a SPLASH! from our bedroom.  The next morning, we took our puppy out to investigate.  This is what we found: 

Attack!

They had chopped down an entire tree from our backyard, overnight!  "Busy as a beaver", it turns out, is pretty accurate. 

Counter-attack! Notice the dog's wet feet, from beaver hunting.

 After the first tree was chopped down, they stripped all of the bark, leaves, and twigs in under a day.  These guys are serious.

What to do about those beavers?

When my parents came to visit, my dad put on his fishing waders, and took apart what looked like another dam/lodge in the creek near our house.  The beavers did not like this one bit.  We burned the wood from their lodge to send them a clear message. 

The elusive yet destructive North American Beaver, or Castor Canadensis

The beavers retaliated by targeting other trees in our backyard, including some trees which are located uncomfortably close to the house.  Chicken wire and duct tape were our answer to stop any more carnage.

We learned from our vet that beavers actually eat wood.  We thought they just used it to build their homes.  This explains why they are in a mad rush to chop down a bunch of trees soon, as winter is fast approaching, and this is their main food supply over the winter months.  Dams created by beavers also create a habitat for water reeds and shrubs which beavers like to eat.

 

4 very confused beavers out of water

The latest episode in our battle came by chance yesterday.  Coming back from vacation, our neighbour downstream from us dislodged the massive dam by her house.  The effect?  The water level in our creek dropped about 6 feet.  No water, no beavers!  At least we hope... 

Winter's coming! Beaver fur jackets, anyone?

Sikh Wedding

This weekend we attended our first traditional Sikh wedding.  I know the bride through work, and Janier and I have hung out with them a couple times.  Actually their puppy is a litter-mate of Hermoso's.  Also, the groom lent us some traditional clothes to wear for the ceremony.

Apparently this was also the first traditional Sikh wedding in Fort St. John in over twenty years.  Kind of a big deal!

 Before going into the temple, everyone had to have their heads covered.

Bride's mom and sister

Waiting to enter

Part of the ceremony

The horse that the groom rode in on

Hotsprings in Northern BC

Butterfly!

During the long weekend last week, Janier and I decided to take a road trip.  We'd heard a lot about Liard River Hotsprings, so that's where we went.  We packed our little car, including the puppy, found a cat-sitter for the kitten, made some last-minute trips to Canadian Tire, and off we went.  

From Fort St. John, the Liard River Hotsprings are roughly 700km Northwest along the Alaska Highway.  This means 8 hours of driving one-way (definitely worth it).  The springs are not too far from the Yukon border.  And not to be confused with Fort Liard, which is a hamlet in the Northwest Territories.

How many wild animals did we see on the drive up?  It was better than going to the zoo.

Moose!

Black Bear! (which I turned brown)

Unidentified Hoofed Animal! (Reindeer?)

Colombian!

Mountain Goats!

Monkey! (Hermoso ripped the arm off his chew toy, and now the cat plays with the dismembered arm)

Hyperactive Puppy!

Not pictured: Bison

We stopped along Muncho Lake on the drive up, and camped there on the way back.  Beautiful blue/green waters, and Janier assured me it's "just like Colombia!".  The waters were freezing cold, but that didn't stop Hermoso and Janier from swimming in it.  Not much stops Hermoso from getting wet.

Entrance to the Hot Springs

The hot springs are located in Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park (makes sense), and they are the second largest hot springs in Canada.  I wonder which ones are the largest?  The water was very hot in some parts, and comfortabley warm in others.  The smell of sulphur was strong.

Unfortunately there was a no-dog rule for the springs, so we couldn't bring Hermoso in.  He probably would have annoyed the tourists anyways.

Local TV Star: Photo Scavenger Hunt in Fort St. John

Local TV Star: Be A Tourist In Your Own Town Week!

My Dog & Cat Playing Together

Hermoso and Cielo!

Moving Back to Nature

Our new house

This past week has been full of changes.  We moved from an apartment in Fort St John to a house in Charlie Lake, about a 10-minute drive from FSJ.  Our new place is definitely rural.  We have seen beavers, woodpeckers, blue-jays, horses, and bats so far. 

One strange thing is our new mailing address.  Our house is located on a frontage road, off the Alaska Highway.  We contacted Canada post, and they said that we'll have to pick our mail up at one of the rural drop boxes a few streets down from where we are.  Our new address includes things like "Site 7 SS #97, Compartment", etc.  Hopefully our mail reaches us! 

We are not hooked up to city pipes, either.  So we have to order our water every month or so, when a huge water truck comes to fill us up.  We are supposed to be monitoring the depth of our well, but it's not like there's a gauge or anything.  The property management company suggested we use a stick.

Our new house also has a name: Mukluk House.  This was another thing the property management company told us. 

Creek that runs along the side and back of our house

Woodpile for fire pit and wood burning stove indoors.

There are beavers in those waters!

Backyard with fire pit and creek.

The infamous beaver dam. There is a beaver family that lives there, we see them almost every day.

The 2nd living room.  We wallpapered the side to look like brick.

Reading area.

Wood stove.

Our new kitty, Cielo! We're training him to be a mouse-killer.

Too close.

Hermoso checking out Cielo. They are good at entertaining each other.

Hermoso peering through the cat door.

This bird flew into our window yesterday. I don't know what kind it is.

Hermoso wanted to play with it, before it flew away.

There's a farm with horses right across the creek from us.

Sunset on Charlie Lake, BC