ALGONQUIN DEFINING MOMENTS

Episode 70: Our Algonquin Park Experiences Part III In this episode I share my experiences at Algonquin Park Children's Camps (Camp Tamakwa on South Tea Lake and Camp Wapomeo on Canoe Lake) and Rory shares his experiences working as a summer naturalist and his later work helping establish the Archives and undertaking various archeological projects in and around the Park.  We both then share some o...

Episode 69: Our Algonquin Experiences - Part II This is the second of 3 episodes capturing the experiences of Gaye Clemson and Rory MacKay who were blessed to be able to spend the summers of their youth on Canoe Lake and Lake of Two Rivers respectively. It is dedicated to Brock Easterling, who suggested that this would a fun topic for our listeners. In this episode we focus on Canoe Lake’s 1960s s...

Episode 68: Our Algonquin Experiences Part 1 This is the first of three episodes capturing the experiences of Gaye Clemson and Rory MacKay who were blessed to be able to spend the summers of their youth and most of their adult lives as leaseholders on Canoe Lake and Lake of Two Rivers respectively. Key References include: Reminiscences of Gaye Clemson and Rory MacKay as well as the following publi...

Episode 67: Childrens' Camp Founders  In this episode I share profiles of many of the founders of the key childrens’ camps in Algonquin Park including Fanny Case from Camp Northway and Wendigo on Cache Lake, Franklin Gray, William Bennett and Herman Norton from Camp Pathfinder on Source Lake, Taylor and Ethel Statten from Camp Ahmek and Camp Wapomeo on Canoe Lake, Mary Jean Hamilton from Camp Tana...

Episode 66: Part II - How Logging in Algonquin Park has Evolved over a Century (1922-Present) This follow-on episode shares how logging dramatically changed in 1974 when the Algonquin Park Master Plan came into being and created the Algonquin Forest Authority. They were now responsible for all tree marking, harvesting, delivery to sawmill operators in the area, and later all of the silviculture ef...

Episode 65: Modern Day Lumbering 1919-Present For those of us who have been long-time summer residents of Algonquin Park, the issue of logging in the park has been a difficult one. Difficult because, though most people don’t realize it, logging has always been an integral part of the Algonquin Park governing mandate. Though known today as a recreational paradise and wildlife refuge, those of us wh...

Episode 64: J. R. Booth Part II: Industrialist and Great Canadian This the second of two episodes on the life and times of John Rudolphous Booth. Most of the content comes, with many thanks from Roderick MacKay’s second edition of a Booth biography called J. R. Booth Lumberman, Railway Builder, Industrialist, Great Canadian and Influence on Algonquin Provincial Park.   The musical interlude is cal...

Episode 63: J. R. Booth - An Ottawa Valley Lumber King (PT1) This is the first of two episodes on the life and times of John Rudolphous Booth one of the great Ottawa Valley Lumber Kings in the second half of the 19th C. Much of the content comes, with great thanks and appreciation from Roderick MacKay’s, newly published second edition of a Booth biography called J. R. Booth Lumberman, Railway Buil...

Episode 62: Ontario Lumber Kings - John Egan Up until recently, I’d always thought that anyone who cared about Algonquin Park human history was already familiar with J. R. Booth and so never put any energy into building an episode around his life experiences. However, last summer I stumbled upon a 2018 biography by Michael McBane on John Egan.. In so doing, I discovered a whole new aspect of lumbe...

Episode 61: The Earth Caretaker Way - Being of Service This episode is the last of a six-episode series on the Earth Caretaker Way Tim Corcoran, Julie Boettler from Headwaters School in Mt. Shasta California and focus on one of the most important aspects of The Earth Caretaker Way, which is to contemplate how to be of service in ways both big and small. The musical interlude in this episode is cal...

Episode 60: Earth Caretaker Way Philosophy & Spirituality:  In this episode, Tim, Julie, and I focus on various aspects of Earth Caretaker Way earth philosophy and spirituality including: Acknowledging the mystery of nature, and greeting with gratitude sacred moments and peak experiences Recognizing the important role of power animals as helpers and spiritual guides   Awareness of the power of...

Episode 59: Building Confidence by Mastering Wilderness Living Skills This episode is the fourth of what is now seven episodes on the Earth Caretaker Way a newly released book by Tim Corcoran and Julie Boettler from Headwaters School in Mt. Shasta California. In this episode In this episode Julie Tim and I delve deeply into Part 2 of The Earthcaretaker Way that focuses on value in building knowled...

Episode 58 Earth Caretaker Way Part 3: Nature Awareness - Building Connections and Relationships This episode is the third of what are now seven episodes on the Earth Caretaker Way a newly released book by Tim Corcoran and Julie Boettler from Headwaters School in Mt. Shasta California. In this episode, I continue my discussion and storytelling with Julie and Tim on the importance of nature awarene...

This episode is the second of what is now seven episodes on the Earth Caretaker Way a newly released book by friends Tim Corcoran and Julie Boettler from Headwaters School in Mt. Shasta California. In this episode I’m going to introduce you to Julie, one of the key land Earth Caretakers at Headwaters. Over the next six episodes, she and I with Tim’s help are going to delve deeper into the four key...

Episode 56: The Earth Caretaker Way Origin Story with Tim Corcoran In this episode and the four-part follow on, I’m going to take my podcast in what I hope you will experience as an innovative new direction. Nearly 20 years ago I had the pleasure of meeting Tim Corcoran, leader, and owner of the Headwaters Outdoor School near Mount Shasta in California, who has just released a new book called The...

This is the third of three episodes on archeological activities that have taken place in Algonquin Park  since the late 1930s. The focus in Part III  is  to share insights into the archeological work that has been done in the Park since the 1990s. Most of the investigations have been initiated by private archeologists with permission from the then Park Authorities.  This musical interlude is calle...

This is the second of three episodes on archeological activities that have taken place in Algonquin Park since the late 1930s. The focus of Part II  is to provide some insight into the archeological work that was done from 1939 to the late 1990s, mostly by private archeologists with permission from the then Park Authorities.   This musical interlude is called Ride the Wind and comes from Dan Gibso...

Episode 53: Digging in Algonquin Park Part 1 - Indigenous Origins This is the first of three episodes on archeological activities that have taken place in Algonquin Park since the late 1930s. The focus of the  Part 1 is to provide some insight into the archeological and anthropological origins of Algonquin Park's first visitors. This musical interlude is called Arrival and comes from Dan Gibson’s...

Episode 52: Tom Thomson Remembered: Anniversary Special Given that it is the anniversary this week of Tom Thomson’s disappearance and ultimate death 106 years  ago, I thought it would fun to take Algonquin Defining Moments in a slightly different direction. Published two years ago by  Deryck N. Robertson from Paddler Press in Peterborough, Ontario, Canoe Lake Memories is a book of poetry with refl...

Episode 51: Habitat Impacts due to Climate Change In this episode, I’m focusing on sharing some of the latest research and thinking on how climate change may impact the habitats of Algonquin.  Specific focus is on the work on both climate projections overall and the expected impacts to fish habitats.  Musical interlude is a composition by Sara Spring called Under Cold Water which can be found anyw...

Episode 50: PT2 - Salamander Research Update with Patrick Moldowan. This is the second of two episodes where I sat down with Patrick Moldowan from the University of Toronto’s School of the Environment and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Board Chair of the Wildlife Research Station to share his recent research insights into the world of the Spotted Salamander. Amphibian research has occurred p...

Based out of the Wildlife Research Station, amphibian research has occurred periodically in Algonquin Park since the mid-1980s.  In 2008, Glenn Tattersall from Brock University initiated a continuous study of the salamander population. Still very active today, this research has generated an extensive body of knowledge, which may be showing us that salamanders could be key ‘canaries in the coal min...

Episode 48:Lake Opeongo PT3 (Leaseholding 1925-Present) In this last of 3 Lake Opeongo episodes, my focus is now on leaseholding activities on  Lake Opeongo beginning about 1925 including a detailed history of Opeongo Lodge,  the life and times of John Bates (Opeongo's only private leaseholder), Lake Opeongo tragedies and few of my own Lake Opeongo musings.  Much of the content comes from a now ou...

Episode 47: PT2 The Great Opeongo Lake  - Colonization 1850-1925 In this episode, I’m going to focus on recounting the history of the early Lake Opeongo colonization efforts that began in the early 1850s with the building of the   Ottawa Opeongo Colonization Road. Then I’ll share some stories about the Dennison Family’s farming efforts and early attempts at leaseholding on the lake until about 192...

Episode 46: The Great Opeongo Lake - Times Before 1893 In this and the next two episodes, I will focus on sharing as much history as I can about Algonquin’s largest body of water, Lake Opeongo. Much of the content comes from a now out-of-print 1998 book by S. Bernard Shaw, called Lake Opeongo:  Untold Stories of Algonquin Park’s Largest Lake. I’m also for the first time, going to try to share as m...