Top L-R: Rapala Skitter Pop, Rapala Husky Jerk, Middle L-R: Tube, Williams Whitefish Spoon, Bouyah Spinner Bait, Bottom middle: Slip Float

Lake of Bays is a clear, cold body of water. It’s deepest part is 230 feet. Fish species that inhabit the lake are lake trout, smallmouth bass, whitefish, lake herring, rainbow smelt as well as many minnow species. Historically there have been some big trout caught – 20 lbs and over. Ice fishing deep with Williams spoons and big tube jigs in winter is a good bet. In spring when the ice is just off the lake, try lively shiners suspended under slip floats in 6-10 feet of water along rocky shorelines and points.

When the water warms up lake trout will start moving to deeper water. Deep water trolling large spoons and minnowbaits like rapala’s in natural colours works best. Be patient. It will take some work.

When bass season opens in June, working topwater plugs is very exciting around rocky shorelines and back bays. They will also take spinners and plastic tubes, grubs and worms. As summer progresses try shoals, points and drop offs. In fall, vertical jig in the 15-30 foot range. Have fun, stay safe and happy fishing.

Map of Lake of Bays, Ontario

If you’re a fisherman and you have a story to tell, please leave a comment for us below. Also see our post at http://roadstories.ca/muskoka-near-algonquin-park-ontario/

The Richmond Olympic Oval will serve as the long track speed skating venue for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games

The sexiest Olympic venue at the 2010 Winter Games!

The Richmond Olympic Oval is a multi-purpose sports facility along the banks of the Fraser River in British Columbia. It is located a few kilometres south of Vancouver on Canada’s west coast, minutes from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) which is across the river on Sea Island.

Although built specifically for the Games, the facility is open to the public for sports activities and spectator events.

One of the most striking architectural aspects of the building is the arching, laminated wooden joists that hold up the roof. The roof itself contains salvaged wood that was damaged by a recent pine-beetle infestation in British Columbia forests. It’s one of the largest timber roofs in the world and covers an open interior space of about 100 by 200 metres (2 hectares, or about 5 acres). It took my breath away. Here are some technical descriptions of the building. Canadians familiar with drafty hockey arenas are going to say “Wow, looks expensive.”

The Oval is also a training and competition centre for many Paralympic sports, including wheelchair basketball. When I was there I got to play some “pickup” ball on one of the courts inside the actual skating oval. No wonder so many able-bodied people play this sport as well, it’s the most fun you are ever going to have sitting in a chair. Check out the Canadian Wheelchair Basketball Association website for information about joining a league.

Grand entrance way to the Richmond Olympic Oval

The Flying Beaver restaurant

If you’re in the area, drop in at The Flying Beaver for a burger. It’s a restaurant on stilts across the Fraser River from the Oval (map). It’s famous for good casual West Coast seafood, live music, great views and a place where floatplane pilots hang out between jobs.

Aberdeen Center drummer

If you like dim sum and want to experience authentic Asian culture, Fisherman’s Terrace restaurant in the brand new Aberdeen Center on Cambie Road in Richmond is a good bet. The shopping mall itself is a state-of-the-art multicultural experience where you can buy a Lamborghini along with your ginseng and cream puffs.

Commercial fishing and tourism exist side-by-side in Steveston Village.

In February, 2009, I visited Steveston, a historic fishing village in the southwest corner of Lulu Island, British Columbia. It’s not far from the Vancouver International Airport and the city of Vancouver. The village looks out on the south arm of the Fraser River delta. Steveston was founded in the 1880s and became a thriving centre for commercial fishing and canning. At its height there were 15 canneries along the shore packaging millions of pounds of salmon, herring and other species. Hard working fishermen were known to frequent the many hotels and saloons, as well as the occasional bawdy house. Apparently there was some gambling activity and opium consumption as well.

I stopped at Pajo’s Fish & Chips, a popular floating restaurant down among the wharves. It’s a casual place where great seafood comes in a paper cone and seating is on wooden picnic tables. Steveston is still a major fishing port and if your timing is right, fresh and frozen fish can be purchased off the boats. Much work has been done to promote tourism here. The Gulf of Georgia Cannery is a National Historic site right near Pajo’s. I took a bus tour from my hotel in Richmond and a local guide showed us the cannery and some sites along the coast.

Steveston marina in February – home to Canada's largest commercial fishing fleet, comprised of seiners, gillnetters, trawlers and other vessels.

The City of Richmond occupies the north part of Lulu Island closer to Vancouver. Here’s a map. Richmond is accessible from Vancouver on the new SkyTrain, so is the airport (YVR), and the Olympic Oval, but not Steveston.

North arm of the Fraser River from Lulu Island (Richmond) looking towards Vancouver

Check the Steveston Village Community website for more on local attractions and the latest news. Steveston is worth visiting if you are in this part of Canada. Here are some more directions on how to get here.

Le Massif overlooking the St. Lawrence River - photo: Benjamin Gagnon

Late January update: Le Massif has a 330cm base, powder and groomed ski conditions is the latest report. If you are headed to Quebec for Bonhomme Carnivale, this is a great side trip!

What do Le Massif (french for “The Massive”) and the Cirque du Soleil have in common? Le Massif, a ski hill east of Quebec City is owned by Cirque du Soleil co-founder, Daniel Gauthier. Through my volunteer work with a large Canadian travel media association, I had the pleasure of meeting Dany Gauthier in Quebec City earlier this year. He’s good looking and fit as a fiddle and I couldn’t resist asking him if he had once been an acrobat (thinking Cirque du Soleil). He chuckled and told me that no, his role with Cirque had been more as a bean counter.

Helicopter ride over the St. Lawrence River

Later, my colleagues and I flew in Dany’s private helicopter. Flying just above the icy St. Lawrence, the pilot hugged the mountainous shoreline all the way to Le Massif. It’s popular with Quebec City area skiers, but few outside of Quebec have ever heard of the place. That’s about to change. Le Massif and nearby Baie St. Paul, a picturesque town on the St. Lawrence, are about to become Canada’s next big ski destination. But not just any ski destination. With Gauthier at the helm, this one is expected to have a creative flair not seen in the ski world before. Baie St. Paul is, after all, the birthplace of the Cirque du Soleil. Gauthier and his busker buddies hatched the Cirque idea in a youth hostel here while performing at a local buskerfest. If Dany Gauthier has his way, Le Massif and Baie St. Paul will not only deliver great skiing but will be a feast for all the senses.

Town of Baie St. Paul, Quebec

93 kilometers (58 miles) from Quebec City may seem like a crazy distance to get to in the height of winter (this region gets a ton of snow) but Gauthier has negotiated a deal with a railway. A new tour train will run along a stretch of existing track that hugs that same shoreline we flew over from Quebec City to Baie St. Paul. The scenery is drop dead gorgeous and I’m willing to bet the train will become an instant hit. Other forms of transportation planned for the project include dogsleds and electric cars. The Farm, a unique resort complex being built in Baie St. Paul is lean in terms of size and that’s for a reason. Gauthier is committed to sustainable development so, the resort is slated to be low density and energy efficient with spectacular views of the St. Lawrence River and the Farm’s working fields. There will also be a spa, a Farmer’s Market selling locals’ fare year round and of course, a new, spectacular train station. The Farm opens in summer 2011 and the entire operation is expected to be fully operational by 2013.

But the Cirque du Soleil and Dany Gauthier’s connection to Baie St Paul are not the town’s only claims to fame. This was a favourite destination of Canada’s famous Group of Seven painters too. Le Massif and Baie St. Paul sit on the doorstep of Charlevoix, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The 6000 square kilometre region is Canadian Shield, the oldest rock formation on earth. 350 million years ago a 15 billion ton meteor slammed into the earth here creating a crater 56 kilometres wide. Besides its beauty, Charlevoix’s reputation as  a foodie destination was around long before everyone in the tourism business starting pitching destinations as such. The Quebecois are like their cousins across the Atlantic. Their ability to prepare great food comes naturally.

Flying dirty on approach to YVR

Ask most Canadians what they know of YVR, Vancouver’s international airport, and they’ll likely talk about an ugly incident involving four Mounties, four tasers, and a confused and angry Polish traveler. The Polish traveler died. YVR was thrust into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, and the Mounties are still trying to repair their tarnished reputation.

Perhaps that’s why YVR offered a tour to members of the Travel Media Association of Canada (TMAC). The association held its annual conference in Richmond last February. Richmond is a suburb of Vancouver and YVR was one of several Richmond sites we were invited to visit.

I learned a lot about Canada’s second busiest airport on that tour. Like how it conserves energy – sidewalks and escalators, for example, slow down when they’re not in use. Colours and textures calm crowds and minimize noise. Aquariums are strategically placed to calm as well as entertain. Circular seating areas with flat screen TVs are designed in such a way that when you sit inside the circles you can hear the TVs, outside, you can’t. Each YVR gate has a specially designed counter and foot hold where laptop owners gather to work while waiting for their flights.

Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe by Bill Reid Photo by: Reinhard Kraasch

A painting of BC forest, mountains and sea by Canadian Group of Seven artist, Lawren Harris, was selected as the colour palette for YVR’s interior. Huge glass curtain walls give travelers spectacular views of the ocean and the mountains. Wood, a British Columbia resource, is widely used throughout. What really impressed me about YVR though, is its outstanding collection of Northwest Coast native art. According to the airport’s art foundation, it’s what drove the vision for the new YVR terminal. Anchoring the collection is Bill Reid’s The Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe. Canadians know it from the back of the Canadian $20 bill. I also loved walking through Pacific Passage, an entry point for US travelers. My passage view was dominated by a giant Thunderbird sculpted by Connie Watts.  But it really doesn’t matter what vantage point you enter YVR from, beautiful native art greets you at all points.

In times of troubled international flight, I think YVR is a facility that attempts to lift our spirits to a higher plane. That makes it a welcoming gateway for those headed to the 2010 Winter Games.

In our recent Newfoundland post I talked about how our travels across Canada always have a bit of synchronicity. We meet people who know other people we know or they are connected to the Canadian tourism industry like us. Canada is a huge country, the second largest in the world, but its population is small, so when we travel, we really notice the six degrees of separation. My recent trip to New Brunswick had more than its usual share of synchronicity.

When my dad’s youngest sister, Jean, died of old age last month, a milestone passed. She was the last direct descendant of a family that has been in New Brunswick since the 1700s. Jean was the “glue” who kept in touch with family members in Canada and the United States. By chance, a work-related trip took me to New Brunswick in early December. It was a chance for me to honour Jean and my family’s roots and to see what’s new for travelers in this great Maritime province.

Fredericton, New Brunswick was our destination. It’s on a strategic point of the St. John River central to Quebec City, Moncton, New Brunswick, and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The US border is just 98 miles or 158 km away. I found this Loyalist city surprisingly vibrant given its population is only 50,000. The University of New Brunswick and the New Brunswick College of Craft & Design are here and so is the Beaverbrook Gallery. People from around the world travel to the Beaverbrook to see its famous Salvador Dali painting, the Santiago el Grande (1957).

There are several private galleries and artists’ studios in Fredericton too, and a whole lot more. edVentures are new arts and craft learning vacations taught by qualified instructors. They run for six weeks every summer in the city. 2010 dates are July 5 to August 20th. We got a taste of how the workshops work during our visit. I glazed two clay pots at New Brunswick’s College of Craft & Design and I made earrings at a dynamite little Fredericton studio. All courses are hands-on. You can take a five-day course, a two-day class or even a one-day intensive workshop. They’re part of a city-wide cultural bonanza that really heats up in the summer. Under the Stars Classic Movies attract hundreds  to the Historic Garrison District on Sunday nights. There are New Brunswick story tellers on Wednesday afternoons in the same park. Outdoor music concerts run almost everyday of the week and a Fredericton Baroque Music Festival is held every spring. Canadian Heritage recently named Fredericton one of Canada’s cultural capitals.

Another one of my trip highlights was a traditional Christmas dinner held at Kings Landing, a recreated historic village on the St. John River. Hundreds pack its village inn every year for the holiday dinners. The settlement is a half hour north of Fredericton on the T’Can. As we made our way to the inn by horse-drawn wagon, we passed the Joslin farmhouse. According to my mother, the family genealogist, the New Brunswick side of my family is connected to the Joslin family. My Aunt Jean liked genealogy too.  So does a New Brunswick cousin of mine with a big apple orchard near Kings Landing. The tourism gang in Fredericton were familiar with him, and with his orchard. He and my mother keep in touch with Christmas cards every year and on one of our family trips to New Brunswick, he took us to an old family cemetery near Kings Landing where relatives of ours, including Joslins, are buried.

My dad and Jean were both avid fishermen. I remember him telling me that Jean used to even tie her own flies. The St. John River is one they both used to fish. It flows 400 kilometres/ 700 miles through the centre of New Brunswick. Roads on both sides follow it pretty much from beginning to end. A new St. John River tourism heritage group is working hard to point travelers to interesting sites along the two river routes.

I had the pleasure of meeting another avid fisherman while I was here. His name is Brad Woodside and he’s Fredericton’s mayor.  His Honour told me that they fish Muskie in the St. John along with several other species of fish. That really surprised me. I didn’t realize Muskie were found this far east in Canada. They’re a favourite with many sport-fishing enthusiasts.

Final destination: Sudbury, Ontario and the Big Nickel (the world's largest)

Everyone arrives, unaware of what’s to come as we start loading the bus with everything we need, all the moms asking if we have our toothbrush and hockey equipment. Everyone answers with the same loud sigh and “yes, mum,” answer. Once everything was packed and we all got seated, the doors closed and the coolers opened and we were off.

Loading the bus

At first it felt like the longest bus ride ever, but as the parents got louder and louder, the trip felt shorter and shorter with the movie also helping. With just one stop in Nobel on the way, we were there, at last!

We thought the wait was over, expecting to start our never-finished, N.H.L., 10-video game tournament right away, all forgetting about the dreaded wait that feels longer than the bus ride to get to our rooms. I hop off the bus, heading for my bags before I realize I packed my bag on the bus first, meaning I will get my bag off the bus last, making for even more of a wait.

Into our rooms we all went, excited about the rest of the weekend but all thinking about the low rating of the motel without a pool or anything, but right to ideas, we went outside for a game of tag and football. The team all ate out at Buzzy Brown’s and had a curfew so we were off to bed. The Super 8 motel was quickly growing on us, as we all liked the location, being next to a grocery store, Dollarama, Subway, Timmies and anything else Canadian you can think of…  specifically the arenas, and since we were here for a tournament, those were most important.

The next day was the beginning of the hockey part of the tournament, playing against the home team, the Sudbury Bulldogs. You could tell they were the home team as the refs were clearly biased on their side but we still won 5-1 with an easy win for the gang. With a while before our next game, we hung out around the motel starting our fun off with some lunch and a trip to the field where we played tag for another half hour. The days felt long so it was great. Then, there was the next game, against West Ferris Blades, a team from North Bay. Once again, easy, as we won 5-0 with not much of a challenge.

Time for another dinner. This time, most of the team ate at a sushi restaurant near the motel. The sushi was great with some of the team trying raw seafood for the first time. Everyone enjoyed it and talked about it for the rest of the night. We still had some time so a few of us from the team took a short walk to see what was around. After a few snowball fights and a stop at Tim Horton’s, we had gone in a circle and headed to our rooms to sleep before the morning game.

The next day, we had a game at 8:50 in the morning. We ate breakfast in the motel’s lobby with cereal, muffins, tea, juice and coffee for a quick “to-go” breakfast. Meeting at the bus at 6:45, we were not yet awake and it affected us, as we only won with a 3-2 score. It still put us in an easy win of first place in our division and a bye into the semifinals to play the Humber Valley Sharks. 9:30 that night, we played them and had yet another big win, but this one not quite as easy though still ending with a 5-0 score, and off to the finals. We were set.

The game was the next day so we had some time to hang around at the motel. Most of us ate at Buzzy Brown’s again since we loved it the first time. Others decided to eat at the motel or other places nearby.

Set to play the #1 ranked team in all of Ontario as ranked on myhockeyrankings.com. Despite their great record and #1 ranking, we were not worried and knew we could compete as we had tied them earlier 1-1 in another tournament. The day of the Finals against the Kenata Blazers, we were all pumped up to play the game of our lives with the chance to win it all and go to the international tournaments in Port Huron, Michigan in early January.

We all get checked out of our rooms and met in the lobby at around 12:00 for our 1:30 game. Once everyone was loaded up on the bus, we were all thinking, barely any talking had gone on. When we started heading off the bus at the arena, the parents all started clapping and cheering. We were pumped, ready to go on the ice right away, only to find out our game was two and a half hours behind. We lost our grittiness watching a few of the other finals but after warmup and dressing for 30 minutes, we got the talk. Coach Lewis, talking about his 25 years as head coach, and a great one he is, and yet he only has had the chance to go to the international tournament once, this being his second time in the finals. Talking about how you will throw away most of your trophies when you get older, but this one, we would keep. That was what got us pumped added with sprinting on the ice, we were all screaming, ready to knock the Blazers off their #1 throne. It was a great game played by everyone on the team. We got a 1-0 lead then later in the second period, we scored to make it 2-0. We went into the room between the 2nd and 3rd and once all rested, we ran on the ice to fight to victory to win it all! This one sending us to the international tournament in Port Huron, Michigan, with lots up for grabs.

We celebrated loudly with Kenata packing up and heading home. A feeling that once you get it, you can remember it clearly. Lots of pictures, hugs and high fives later, we were changed and ready for the trip back, knowing it would be great since we had won and not lost. We stopped at the same place in Nobel, the Wendy’s and Tim Horton’s. We were all loud on the ride back and every so often one player, most of the time me, would yell something to do with our big win. We are all ready for the next tournament on January 7th and we can’t wait to get there. See you in Michigan! For an update on the team’s Michigan record, check out the latest comments below.

The Scarborough Young Bruins, Sudbury Regional Silver Stick Champions

View from the top of Signal Hill

Two weeks ago, I was in the City of St. John’s, on the east coast of Newfoundland, Canada. This place is soooo photogenic. I snapped over 600 pictures and while I’m not a painter, I wanted to be the whole time I was there.  Brightly coloured wooden row houses, the most impressive natural harbour I’ve seen yet, long golden grasses highlighted by bright red bushes and rock everywhere. There’s so much of the latter that Newfoundland is known as ‘The Rock’. This great blogpost by Damian Penny clearly demonstrates how Newfoundland got its nickname.

View of St. John's harbour, Newfoundland, from the restaurant at The Rooms

We spent a Saturday touring St. John’s and area with a local guide from McCarthy’s Party, an inbound tour operator. Reps from Destination St. John’s, the City of St. John’s and Newfoundland and Labrador all rave about McCarthy’s guides and this fellow did not disappoint. One of the first places he took us to was Signal Hill, a national historic site. Strategically located high above St. John’s at The Narrows, the entry point to St. John’s harbour, Signal Hill was first fortified during the Napoleonic Wars. It’s also where the Cabot Tower, an important Newfoundland landmark, was built in 1897 to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee and where Marconi’s first transatlantic cable was received in 1901. The winds were howling on Signal Hill the day we were there. It’s just one of the things I discovered about St. John’s. It doesn’t get really cold in winter but it gets BIG winds.

Woman photographing Quidi Vidi

I fell in love with our next stop, Quidi Vidi, and apparently I’m not alone. This tiny fishing village just outside of St. John’s had its first resident in the early 16th century and is one of the most photographed in all of Newfoundland. I can see why. The cove which locals call “the gut” has colourful fish shacks that look like they’re barely hanging on to the rocky shoreline. I hope the village residents keep a watchful eye on local developers though. I couldn’t help but notice how houses have been recently built on the cove side with the magnificent view. If you happen to be in St. John’s over New Year’s Eve, a huge outdoor party at Quidi Vidi Lake is planned with fireworks at 12 midnight. We made a brief stop at The Rooms in St. John’s but I could have easily spent half a day here. This terrific museum tells the story of Newfoundland and its unique culture. Between the museum, its restaurant with a view, and the museum gift shop, the walk up a steep hill is worth it.

Middle Cove is on the outskirts of St. John’s. Its pebbled beach is where capelin come in every year. These sardine-like fish are a local delicacy and I was told that when they arrive, word spreads like wildfire through St. John’s. In no time at all, hundreds take to the beach with nets hoping to catch enough for a family feast. Speaking of fish, our guide took us to Ches’s, one of several fish ‘n chips in town. Here’s another discovery I made. The fish in St. John’s fish ‘n chips is always cod and in the case of  Ches’s, my cod had a delicate batter and was very good. We also tried Ches’s onion rings which were the largest I’ve ever seen and we washed it all down with sweet-tasting beer known as Iceberg from Quidi Vidi Brewery. The name ties into a popular spring pastime in Newfoundland; iceberg-watching.

Historic Ryan Mansion has a connection to the Titanic

Downtown St. John’s has several hotels but book early if you plan to go. They fill up quickly, particularly in the summer months. The Delta St. John’s was our home away from home. It anchors one end of town while the Sheraton Hotel Newfoundland anchors the other. Smaller hotels are in between including the Quality Hotel Harbourview, the Courtyard Marriott St. John’s and the Murray Premises, a boutique hotel in a refurbished harbour warehouse. All have harbour views, and in some cases windows that open, so you can breathe in the ocean air. Several inns and B&Bs are also found downtown. One that stands out from the rest is the Ryan Mansion, Prince Charles and Camilla stayed here recently and gave it a 10. After touring it, I was ready to give it a 10 too. Built between 1909 and 1911 for James Ryan, a wealthy Newfoundlander, the Ryan Mansion has a connection to the Titanic. In fact, there are several connections to the Titanic in St. John’s and Newfoundland. An interesting Toronto Star story by Canadian travel writer, Nancy Wigston, talks about all of them.

Colourful row houses in St. John's, Newfoundland

Artists like to rent saltboxes in Newfoundland. These two-storey wooden cottages are found in little fishing villages scattered along Newfoundland’s coastline. Some are only accessible by boat. I dream of renting one and spending an entire September on the coast. Cathy Driedzic, a local artist told me she often spends time in a saltbox in a small Newfoundland fishing village outside of St. John’s painting as much as she can. I found Cathy in an art walk brochure when I was here in 2004. It was the dead of winter so, she was surprised to find me knocking at her door asking if I could see her watercolours. I ended up purchasing three of them, including a winter scene of Tors Cove, a tiny tidal village up the coast. When I got back home, I showed my new paintings to my friend, Stephen, a Newfoundlander. He laughed and said “I know Tors Cove. I have cousins there and that saltbox in your painting could be their home.”

Watercolour of Tors Cove by Cathy Driedzic

Now, that may not seem like a typical statement in a country as big as Canada but it is. And it happens almost every time I travel this country. I invariably run into someone who’s connected to where I’ve just been or who’s related to someone I’ve just met or I’m related to someone they know and so on.

Next week another six degrees of separation discovery in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

In the Canadian Badlands between Cypress Hills and Etzikom, Alberta

This weekend the Montreal Alouettes travel to Calgary, Alberta, to meet the Saskatchewan Rough Riders in the Grey Cup, Canada’s version of the “Superbowl”. It seems a strange fact that this is the first time these two teams have met since the Great Depression. In an odd way, it reminds me of how little we Canadians travel our own country. Ask a Canadian how many places he’s been in the country and he’ll likely tell you not many. Canada is so big that seeing a lot of it on a two week holiday isn’t possible. But taking two weeks to explore a particular region, especially its backroads, is a good alternative.

Hoodoos and beehive hills near Drumheller, Alberta

Last summer, we did just that in the Canadian Badlands, a 90,000 sq. km corner of southern Alberta. We’ve done some work with this region over the last couple of years and have become smitten with the place. Just a one hour drive east of Calgary, it’s made up of prairie intersected by ancient river valleys with hills that look like giant beehives. The valleys are part of a massive prehistoric sea that once occupied a good portion of North America. Wind and water have stripped away the sandstone and they’ve revealed something else. Dinosaur fossils. Millions of them. Two spectacular places to learn about the biggest finds are Dinosaur Provincial Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Royal Tyrrell Museum, the world’s largest devoted to palaeontology.

One thing I’ve noticed on our travels across Canada is how our needs seem to change by region. Downtown Toronto and southeastern Alberta, for example. My office overlooks a busy downtown Toronto thoroughfare. Streetcars lumber past my view every few minutes or so. There’s a gas station close by. It’s BUSY!!! Lots of traffic. In summer, we get smog alert days. There are bright lights everywhere 24-7, noise, litter, all are issues that I deal with daily.

Streetcar in downtown Toronto, Ontario

On the Trans-Canada Highway west of Brooks, Alberta

Now fly me four hours west to Calgary, Alberta, give me a car rental and and an hour later, I’m in a landscape so foreign it’s hard to believe I’m in the same country. There’s no traffic, no noise, no litter and no light pollution. Gas stations are scarce though. So are convenience stores and other things we take for granted in the city. Topping off the gas tank and having lots of drinking water in the car quickly become necessities. It’s a different life. No wonder our politicians in Ottawa have such a hard time coming to a consensus.

About that Grey Cup game this weekend, I was in the Toronto Airport this am and saw a green Rough Rider shirt coming the other way. It made me chuckle. Saskatchewan Rough Riders fans are the most loyal in the land and they seem to be everywhere. I’ve got my money on those Montreal Alouettes though. Once a Montréalais, always a Montréalais.

Interior of the Canadian War Museum

Remembrance Day has never been the same for me ever since I met a BBC host on a press tour. She and I got on the topic of books and who our favourite British vs Canadian authors were. We decided at the end of the tour to exchange books. I gave her a copy of Margaret Lawrence’s The Diviners and she gave me a copy of Sebastian Faulks‘ Birdsong. Faulks’ book had an incredible impact on me. Although fiction, it describes in horrifying detail the trench warfare of World War 1. I finished reading the book on a train to Toronto on the 10th day of November. Tears were flowing. The following day, I attended Remembrance Day ceremonies in a Toronto city park and for the first time, the names of battles on the park memorial – Ypres, Amiens, Vimy, Paschaendale – held meaning.

Canadian War Museum disappearing into the Ottawa winter landscape

My knowledge of the First World War however is really very little. I do know my grandmother’s only brother, Fred, died at Vimy Ridge along with 11,284 other Canadian soldiers. I don’t think anyone in our family has ever visited Fred’s grave but I would very much like to. A visit to the Canadian War Museum this past winter, a chance meeting with a woman from Flanders this week, and my purchase of a Remembrance poppy has reinforced that desire more than ever.

Entering Regeneration Hall

The Canadian War Museum is a place that I think every Canadian should try to visit. And if you are worried the place is going to glorify war, don’t be. It speaks more to the horrors of the worst human kind. I was deeply moved by the stories, personal momentos and the art. Seeing the model of the National War Memorial was one of the many surprises. The museum opened in 2005 and is architecturally striking. Designed by Raymond Moriyama, some say it resembles a bunker. The place has a raw, unfinished feel to it. Its forms are angular and the exhibit spaces have an almost fragmented feel. Regeneration Hall, for example, is the highest point in the museum. This dramatic narrow space has huge angled walls that frame a tall narrow window with a view of the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill. The hall is meant to represent hope for a better future.

Original Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Memorial Hall holds the original tombstone of one of 6,486 unidentified Canadian soldiers left on the fields of France and Belgium. The unknown soldier was removed from his grave in Cabaret Rouge Cemetery, near Vimy, and re-buried in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Canada’s National War Memorial in 2000. In Memorial Hall, there is a window placed at a point that, if the weather is clear at 11am on November 11th, a beam of sunlight will fall on the tombstone.

I was curious to find out the origins of the Remembrance poppy. With a little research, I learned that they were the first wildflowers to grow on the scarred and churned Flanders soil where so many war dead were hastily laid to rest. In 1915, the poppies inspired hope in John McCrae, a Canadian Lieutenant Colonel, and he wrote his famous poem, In Flanders Fields. The Lieutenant Colonel grew up in Guelph, Ontario, and today his former home, McCrae House, is a museum which interprets his life as a doctor, soldier and author of In Flanders Fields. Every spring, McCrae House hosts the “Poppy Push Plant Sale”, an annual fundraiser. Several varieties of poppies are sold from the museum’s historic gardens including the “Flanders” corn poppy. As I wear my poppy this week, I will think of Fred and of all the other young Canadian men and women who have lost their lives to the horrors of war.