The Beauty of the Canadian Wilderness
It was the summer of 2013 when my Boy Scout Troop decided to take several scouts, including myself, north to the flowing boundary waters of Canada to go canoeing, where an astonishing sight awaited us. As we first drove into to Canada the scenery was similar to that of northern Wisconsin with paved city roads and typical suburban houses, but as the car ride continued the scenery changed; houses became more scattered, pine trees and maples became more abundant, and the land looked more and more unscathed as we drove deeper into the wilderness. Finally, our troop reached the base where we would receive our canoes and gear. Before we could depart we had to go through several ‘Leave No Trace’ training
…show more content…
Once there, we dismounted from our iron maiden, unloaded our gear, and marched our way down a one foot wide dirt path, overgrown by branches. As I marched down the path, with a seventeen foot long aluminum canoe laying upon my shoulders, I was keeping a keen eye out for rocks and roots on the thin pass that laid before me in order to keep my footing. As I continued walking down the trail and closer to the water, with my eyes aiming towards the ground, the overgrown branches caught the canoe several times, yanking my shoulders to the side each time. Once we reached the water’s edge our crew got the first glimpse of the Canadian wilderness that has been so highly remarked; as we looked over the large, glistening, body of water that laid before us, a crystal-clear lake unlike anything I have seen before. Surrounding the lake were colossal, green evergreen pines and maple trees with no civilization to be seen. As days passed the magnificence of the untouched wilderness only became more fascinating, however the practices that we had to endure to make sure the wilderness was not ruined came at a agonizing …show more content…
Once we were done eating we would poor water into our food bowl, swirl it around with our finger to clean the sides, and drink the water. Drinking the water from our individual dishes was not the worst part of this experience, the big pots that we had cooked in also had to be cleaned; as a crew my fellow scouts and I took turns on who would clean and drink the dishes for each night. Some scouts were not as lucking as the rest such as a scout by the name of Peter, a larger kid with brown hair who was about five and a half feet, regretfully for him he had to clean the dishes the night that our guide decided we should make macaroni and tuna, a mixture that made poor Peter almost vomit several times just to keep our food from harming Canadian wilderness. After all the dishes were clean and the food hung high in the trees inside a bear bag our crew sat down and watched the sunset. Sitting high up on a cliff, overlooking several sparkling lakes with the yellow light reflecting off the water, and a warm breeze blowing towards our faces we sat and watched as God casted darkness upon our wonderful view of the lakes and trees. With darkness came a new horror that all scouts and even
I had only to close my eyes to hear the rumbling of the wagons in the dark, and to be again overcome by that obliterating strangeness. The feelings of that night were so near that I could reach out and touch them with my hand… Whatever we had missed, we possessed together the precious, the incommunicable past. (170)
“A stronger light pressed upon my nerves, so that I was obliged to shut my eyes. Darkness then came over me,
Just north of Vancouver Island, there is an archipelago of islands shaped like an upside down triangle. Sitting just east of the Pacific fault line, experiencing upwards of fifty inches of rain per year, wind speeds as fast as 165 km/h, and heavily populated with trees weighing as much as three blue whales, one would expect the most turbulent part of these islands to be the environment, but they’d be wrong. The history of Haida Gwaii is one of the most complex and bloodiest in Canadian history. John Vaillant takes a look at this history and the way it forever changed the landscape of Haida Gwaii in the novel The Golden Spruce. By telling the stories of both the European loggers and the Haida, Vaillant demonstrated just how easily capitalism and greed can affect entire communities, the diplomacy between these communities, and how one tree brought these communities back together again.
The water was calm, like the morning; both were starting to get ready for the day ahead. The silent water signals that although rough times occurred previously, the new day was a new start for the world. As I went closer to the water, I heard the subtle lapping of the water against the small rocks on the shore. Every sign of nature signals a change in life; no matter how slight, a change is significant. We can learn a lot from nature: whatever happens in the natural world, change comes and starts a new occurrence. I gazed over the water to where the sky met the sea. The body of water seemed to be endless under the clear blue sky. The scope of nature shows endless possibilities. Nature impresses us with the brilliant colors of the sky, the leaves, the water. She keeps us all in our places and warns us when we are careless with her. After all the leaves have fallen from the trees, she will offer us the first snows of the year to coat the earth with a tranquil covering. That will only be after we have recognized the lessons of autumn, the gradual change from warm to cold, rain to snow, summer to winter.
In Louis Hennepin’s “A Description of the Fall of the River Niagara, that is to be seen betwixt the Lake Ontario and that of Erie,” and his “The Author sets out from Fort Frontenac, and passes over the rapid Stream, which is call'd The Long Fall. He is kindly receiv'd at Montreal by Count Frontenac,” Hennepin offers the reader a late 17th-century description of the Niagara River and Falls, as well as the river systems leading to Montreal. Similarly, in “A Letter from Mr. Kalm,” Peter Kalm also offers a description of the Niagara Falls region. Though written approximately 60 years apart and from different perspectives, both authors offer the contemporary reader a glimpse into the relationship between European explorer and North American wilderness. Beyond the fear, awe, that the Hennepin text emulates, the Kalm text also demonstrates an early modern
Bogard appeals to pathos, the reader's emotions, and tugs at the reader's heartstrings. By asking, “Who knows what this vision of the night sky might inspire in each of us, in our children or grandchildren?” Bogard draws out importance about the affecting power of an untainted night sky. He relates the problem to others' experiences, families, and future generations to better get the point across. Through the emotion Bogard induces, readers suddenly feel defensive in preserving the darkness for the sake of their mental and physical health.
Cabela’s stores all around the country are built with the impression that they are, in fact, all about the outdoors. The way each building is constructed takes on the appearance of a giant log cabin. Inside the stores are full of naturalistic scenes of different landscapes around the globe, impressing their customers with model habitats, planes hanging from the ceiling, and mounts of animals filling the heart of the store. Customers walk the aisles in awe on their way to finding materials for an expedition in the open air. It is truly woodland
As I inched my way toward the cliff, my legs were shaking uncontrollably. I could feel the coldness of the rock beneath my feet when my toes curled around the edge in one last futile attempt at survival. My heart was racing like a trapped bird, desperate to escape. Gazing down the sheer drop, I nearly fainted; my entire life flashed before my eyes. I could hear stones breaking free and fiercely tumbling down the hillside, plummeting into the dark abyss of the forbidding black water. The trees began to rapidly close in around me in a suffocating clench, and the piercing screams from my friends did little to ease the pain. The cool breeze felt like needles upon my bare skin, leaving a trail of goose bumps. The threatening mountains surrounding me seemed to grow more sinister with each passing moment, I felt myself fighting for air. The hot summer sun began to blacken while misty clouds loomed overhead. Trembling with anxiety, I shut my eyes, murmuring one last pathetic prayer. I gathered my last breath, hoping it would last a lifetime, took a step back and plun...
“People who are passing through, on their way to the Lakes of Muskoka and the northern bush, may notice that around here the bountiful landscape thins and flattens, worn elbows of rock appear in the diminishing fields and the deep, harmonious woodlots of elm and maple give way to a denser, less hospitable scrub-forest of birch and poplar, spruce and pine — where in the heat of the afternoon the pointed trees at the end of the road turn blue, transparent, retreating into the distance like a company of ghosts.” (Munro
Moodie, Susanna. Roughing it in the Bush; Or, Life in Canada. London, England: Richard Bentley, 1852) and 3rd. ed. (1854). Print
There are many National Forests in the United States, and they are spread over the whole country. National Forest also have a huge variety of climates. Ranging from the very cold weather of the Chugach National Forest in Alaska to the warm weather of the Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana or even to the intermediate weather like our on Wayne National Forest in southeastern Ohio. National Forest are also very helpful towards humans and the way we live. On the other side of the hand they may also be harmful to us. Indeed there are many interesting things in the world of National Forest today.
If we choose to fight in that darkness, believing that we can see anything at all – be they false truths of science, religion, or even love, then were are the ignorant armies fighting in darkness. The most powerful aspect, or trick, of “Dover Beach” is that it does not tell the reader what to think. Opinions will be strong and varied, but certainty is nearly impossible.
“The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil waterway leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky – seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.” (96)
Being invited to a friend’s house the other day, I began to get excited about the journey through the woods to their cabin. The cabin, nestled back in the woods overlooking a pond, is something that you would dream about. There is a winding trail that takes you back in the woods were their cabin sits. The cabin sits on top of a mountain raised up above everything, as if it was sitting on the clouds.
The sunset was not spectacular that day. The vivid ruby and tangerine streaks that so often caressed the blue brow of the sky were sleeping, hidden behind the heavy mists. There are some days when the sunlight seems to dance, to weave and frolic with tongues of fire between the blades of grass. Not on that day. That evening, the yellow light was sickly. It diffused softly through the gray curtains with a shrouded light that just failed to illuminate. High up in the treetops, the leaves swayed, but on the ground, the grass was silent, limp and unmoving. The sun set and the earth waited.