Thunder Bay May 2013

So I’m up in Thunder Bay again. 

I convoyed up in Pink Penny with five other guys last Monday.   Good driving,  gorgeous views through the Shield, but definitely still lots of ice on the lakes.   When we arrived, my plan was to stay in a trailer at the shop and to cook and wash in the reefer kitchen, but in fairly predictable fashion, the kitchen was nowhere to be found.  So Naomi, my assistant cook, welcomed me to stay at her place. 

The first week was a lot of errands, and planning, and it was great to have a home base at Naomi’s house.  She lives on a farm 20 minutes outside of Thunder Bay, nestled inbetween the Nor’Westers.  It’s the kind of place where there’s a bucket of fresh eggs inside the door every morning, a box of kittens in the kitchen, and something freshly baked cooling on the counter.  I’ve decided that happiness is curling up in a beat up recliner beside a woodstove with a mug of tea, taking in the view of rolling pastures and a pink-purple evening sky.  Alice and Fritz are wonderful people with a wonderful home. 

Monday we headed out to the bush with our 15-seater diesel beast of a van loaded to the racks with groceries.  Our camp is an hour and a half from Thunder Bay, just off the highway that heads towards Armstrong. The camp is nothing too special, just a gravel pit left behind by loggers.  Accommodations are pretty fantastic though—we have a staff trailer, complete with beds, heat and hydro!  And it’s parked up on a bit of a hill, so I really feel like the king of the castle when I come out and see all the lowly planters in their tents below.  Just kidding, I love planters. 

So…cooking.  That’s the big reason I’m here.  To summarize: the week was long, and stressful, but ultimately rewarding.  I know that I should have known that things wouldn’t go quite as expected, but there were a lot more challenges than I was prepared for.  We have a crew of 65 planters and 9 staff, so we’re cooking for 75 people, though originally I had been told 40.   People told me, “Well, just make double of everything!”  Making double of everything takes twice as much time my friends, and unfortunately the time in a day is not doubling as well.  So over the course of the first three days I got a total of 11 hours of sleep.  Needless to say, when I napped on Friday, I napped HARD. 

Two days before we headed into the bush I found out that there is a vegan on our crew.  Not to worry, I spent several hours in Chapters reading about vegan cooking and assembling a mix of recipes.  One I arrived in the bush I found out that there are also two vegetarians, a girl that is lactose-intolerant, and a girl that is lactose-intolerant, celiac, and vegetarian.  So I am currently honing the skill of inventing foods with flax seeds and coconut butter. 

Despite bringing two vanloads of food into the bush, we were running low on several items by Thursday.  So we switched our dinner plans to something quick and easy, and drove back into Thunder Bay for the afternoon to buy yet another load of produce, eggs, and bread.  We’re currently trying to work out the logistics of driving a week’s worth of food in the van in a single load, when the van is only big enough to hold half of them.  #cookproblems

Making the food is the fun part.  I love baking, enjoy cooking, tolerate lunch prep, and despise dishes.  At 4 am it’s hard to WANT to get out of bed, but by 4:15, once I have a coffee in my hands, I really enjoy making breakfast.  Especially when we nail it, like we did with the honey and orange glazed french toast.  Unfortunately, the generator has killed that joy on several occasions this week, crapping out just as we reached the peak of breakfast rush.  Few things stress me out more than telling 65 planters there will be no coffee.  And walking empty-handed into the food tent, while a group of them unknowingly give me puppy eyes, holding their empty plates.  My goal is to make more than enough food every morning, and it’s brutal when it’s just sitting on the counter, unable to bake in time for bus departure because we have a crappy old generator. 

The crowning glory of the week’s problems was on Friday when the generator quit AND the water pump broke.  So we had no power or water.  Oh, and then Friday afternoon, while our supervisor was in town trying to get everything fixed, the health inspector came to camp, and Naomi and I were the only ones there to deal with him.  We didn’t dare start cooking while he was there because we didn’t even have water to wash our hands.  So for two hours we sat outside and waited.  And discussed how people would feel if we made peanut butter sandwiches for dinner. 

But Saturday we killed it.  Lasagna, garlic bread caesar salad with real bacon bits and homemade croutons, and banana cream poundcake for dessert.  Everyone ate til they were full, and even the guy who hates lasagna said he liked it.  Big W for the kitchen! 

So all in all it’s been challenging, but worth it so far.  I’m meeting some great people at camp, having a fun time in the kitchen with Naomi, feeling large and in charge, and pulling off some stuff I didn’t think I could.  C’est bon!

Went for a skate around Boulevard Lake

Checking out the crazy amounts of water in Kek

Farm life

Don't miss that

Photos of us actually cooking food another time.  

Summer 2012--Banff to Vancouver...and back

Wednesday:  Ultimate highlight of our trip!  Wednesday we went white water rafting down the Kicking Horse River near Yoho National Park.  We were on a raft with 6 other people and a guide.  We started at their basecamp….or at least where the basecamp used to be before it was washed down river a week earlier.  Because there had been so much rain in the area for about a month, the whole river was shifting and growing, and was especially full and fast—perfect for a fun ride.  As we started we asked how big the rapids would be.  There are 6 classes of rapids, 1 being moving water, getting progressively more fast and strong until you reach 5, which means “your middle name is Danger”, and 6 which means “you’re an idiot, you’re going to die”.  We were going to hit class 3 and 4, which turned out to be some pretty awesome rapids!  The raft slammed up and down through a stretch, soaking everyone with waves of shockingly cold water, and nearly sucking Jordan out to sea.  The water was freezing—“just melted this morning”—so I’m glad we managed to stay in the raft til the end.  Seriously amazing trip! 

Thursday:  We’d set up camp the previous night in Yoho, so Thursday we drove through the park to see he sights.  First stop, the town of Field, for real coffee.  Next we stopped at Emerald Lake, found a shady little nook and spread out to read with a perfect view of the mountains and turquoise water in front of us.  Then we headed up to Takkakaw Falls, once the tallest falls in Canada.  I dunno how other ones became taller…but it’s their claim to fame, and it gives some perspective on what Jordan proceeded to do.  As we walked up the path towards the scenic lookout people passed us muttering, “…like a shower…a really freezing, cold shower.”  We made it to the look out, got misted by the very cold water, then began to climb up to the base of the falls.  I made it about another 200 meters, before I gave up.  I was slipping on the loose rocks, soaked to my underwear, and the gusts of wind from the falls were strong enough to send me looking for shelter behind a big fallen boulder.  But not Jordan.  He made it another 200 meters, all the way to the very base of the falls, where for a few heart pounding moments, he disappeared from view.  He came back down soon after, drenched and shivering, and very proud.  I’m so glad I was not his mother.  Props, Kim.   

Emerald Lake--the gorgeous view while we read

Jordan hiking to the base of  Takakkaw Falls

Our setup in Yoho

mmm...re-fried spaghetti...

Friday:  Friday was another driving day, and we made it all the way out to Vancouver to stay with the Harskamps.  What an incredibly hospitable couple—we were immediately sat down with a glass of wine and a beer, then served a delicious salmon dinner. 

Saturday:  We explored a corner of Vancouver by bike, touring around Stanley Park, stopping to enjoy an hour on Third Beach, the “hipster beach”.  We managed to blend in, although we forgot to bring a joint.  Wow.  We spent the other half of the day on Granville Island, checking out Buskerfest and the market, particularly appreciating the donuts.  That night we headed over to Burnaby to visit Alaina, Greg and to meet Owen, who is 2 months old and about as adorable as they come.  They served us an amazing meal, (which we appreciated after some of the dinners we had at camp) and I think they appreciated having a couple of friends who know how to play euchre.  Al and I kicked the boys’ asses, in case you were wondering. 

Biking the seawall in Stanley Park

Sunday:  We joined Al and Greg for church and got to see where he works as a pastor at Willingdon.   We headed into Vancouver afterwards to explore Gas Town a little bit, an area lined with cobblestone streets, and unique shops and restaurants.  We curled up in a snazzy coffee shop to read.  We also spent a couple hours at the Vancouver aquarium, which was another high light.  There were so many types of fish!  One of them was the biggest in the world, and was probably as long as our car.  These other one were tiny eels that burrow their tails in the sand and then poke their heads out.  All in a row they looked like adorable blades of grass with tiny eyeballs.  So many strange and cool sea creatures, loved it.

Gas Town, Vancouver

Cutest eels ever, right?

Monday:  Said good-bye to the Harskamps and the Rockies, and drove all day to Calgary.  We rolled in to meet Jesse for dinner and drinks.  He took us around his neighbourhood, showed us where he works and hangs out.  It was great to catch up, since it’s been a couple years.  Also, he has an amazing cat.  It’s like a baby leopard crossed with a genius house cat.  It can jump and it’s smart.

Heading east for the first time

Morning drive out of Vancouver, clouds climbing the mountains

Enjoying the view of the Rockies one last time

Tuesday:  drove all day to Estevan, Saskatchewan.  Fairly uneventful. 

Salt flats in Chaplin, Saskatchewan

Happened upon Dog River and Corner Gas

Wednesday:  drove all day to Minneapolis to visit Anneke.  She and her boyfriend, Jeff, took us out to a local pizza place, and then an amazing “make your own Sunday” bar.  But better than the great food was catching up after another half year of not seeing each other.  It made me wish for a rainbow bridge from Hamilton to Minneapolis, because it sucks having to go so long without seeing a good friend.  We enjoyed it for the 10ish hours it lasted though.

Getting flatter, still pretty

Thursday:  drove all day to Hamilton.  It was long.  And our 4^th anniversary. 

An amazing trip, all in all.  I feel spoiled to have seen so much of Canada, and even more, to have done it all with my best friend.  To many more years of adventures and anniversaries, love!

My best friend

Summer 2012--Thunder Bay to Banff

Wednesday:  Jordan picked me up Wednesday morning.  It was glorious!  I got in the Subaru while everyone else got on the bus.  Suckers!  He navigated the windy gravel roads away from the misery- and mosquito-ridden camp, and then I took over in Long Lac so he could sleep, since he’d driven through the night to save me.  We made it to Thunder Bay by noon, and headed straight for the Hoito for a deliciously greasy breakfast.  We stayed the night in Kakabeka Falls, enjoyed some sub-par Shake Shop icecream, as per planter tradition, then really enjoyed watching Spiderman, since we were rained out at our campsite.   

The Hoito in Thunder Bay--up for best greasy spoon against the Thunder Bay Restaurant.

Thursday:  Drove to Brandon, Manitoba.  Uneventful.  Campground was crap—they had a swampy pond for a lake.   Totally lame. 

Manitoba:  Subi crossing the country like a champ.

Friday:  Drove to Lethbridge, Alberta.  Arrived to find Robyn sitting on the fence waiting for us!   After crossing 4 provinces in 2 days, it was great to stop and take a break.  Robyn’s family were gracious hosts, immediately feeding us, and then Robyn took us out to see a bit of Lethbridge.  We climbed part of the deathbridge (any higher, and I likely would have re-created my anxiety-panic moment on Ree’s roof), caught up over drinks at Robo’s favourite café/bar place, then headed back to watch a movie. 

Saskatchewan

Alberta

Weekend: Robyn took us to Writing on Stone, which was amazing!   In the middle of flat Alberta, there is a valley with hoodoos—oddly-shaped pillars of stone—carved out by the water and wind.  And you can climb them!  Jordan was in his glory, I definitely a bit more tentative (heights…anxiety-panic thing…)  Such a neat geological feature though.   Then it was off in the other direction to Chinook Lake to camp for the night with Robyn’s brother Josh, and his wife Tori.   It was amazing to watch the mountains get closer and closer, bigger and bigger, until were were right in the middle of them.   Camping turned out to be a DeGroot family affair, as Robyn’s brother Pieter and sister, Meaghan were there as well.  Great company, and a great day at the beach on Sunday.  We read in the sun, surrounded by mountains (which I couldn’t get over), learned how to play spike ball, and jumped in the glacial lake for all of 20 seconds.   After they left, Jord and I decided to stay another night, and we pretty much had that loop of the campground to ourselves.  It was both eerily and beautifully quiet.

Jordan in his glory

Robyn, the fearless guide; me, the very timid follower

Chinook Lake, Alberta

Monday:  Drove to our next destination, White Swan Provincial Park in B.C.  We heard that it had hot springs that weren’t as touristy as the ones at Radium or Banff, so we decided to check it out.  To get into the park we had to drive down a logging road that wound through the mountains, getting increasingly higher, and higher, and with decreasing safety barriers.  At one point I could look down out the passenger window, and about two feet from our tires the road just dropped off….about 500 meters down to a river bed.  It was so freakin’ scary!  (Again, heights…anxiety-panic thing… There’s a great video I made where you can hear the fear in my voice.)  But we made it in alive.  Only to find out that the hot springs are currently cold.  Go figure….It was a gorgeous campground—turquoise lakes very literally hidden in the mountains, a carpet of green going up on every side.  But we decided to head to Kootenay to camp instead, so we took Death Road back out and headed further north.  We found a campsite, again very eerily alone, and then headed to Radium to relax in some very touristy, but hot hot springs. 

The road into Kootenay National Park

Relaxing in Radium Springs

Thumbs up for big horned sheep walking down the centre lane.  They don't even care.

Tuesday:  Enjoyed a lazy breakfast at our campsite, then did a bit of touring.  We saw Moraine Lake, another gorgeous blue-green lake, and had lunch sitting on a log in the icy water.  We considered hiking a steep trail to a glacier in Kootenay, then decided, hey, it’s vacation, let’s sit on a beach in Banff instead.  And it was awesome.   We came back to our site to find that the dishsoap we left on the picnic table had attracted a bear, who ripped open and guzzled the entire bottle.  He also dragged our stove into the woods, shredded our doekjes, and poked a hole in our mattress.  Somewhere in the forest a bear was burping bubbles.  We did eventually hike later that evening (since it doesn’t get dark til 11), which included crossing a suspension bridge that was closed because of a giant hole ripped  in the middle, with a freezing river rushing below (again, excellent film footage covering the feat if you’re interested).   We made it across alive and back to our site to enjoy s’mores….and to discuss escape routes if a grizzly visited our site that night.

Moraine Lake, Alberta; floating on a log as we eat lunch.  Delightful!

Can't get enough

We so B.A.

The fate of our dishsoap.  Luckily, we lived to see Wednesday.  More stories to come!

Summer 2012--Last Tree, Manitouwadge

The last two days of planting we went from swamp to swamp to swamp to more swamp. Most planters will pee their pants in excitement over a really good sphag swamp, but not me. I get confused about how to manage it, can’t find my trees, bag the wrong number of PJ (non-swamp trees), and get soaked up to my knees so I have wet boots for the next few days. Give me furrows or brackie. More predictable. That being said, Monday and Tuesday weren’t terrible days. I was still planting with Lindsay (we agreed we kept each other off our asses) and it was nice to share the miseries and joys of planting.

"Iz the Wiz" 

 Tuesday’s misery: we were dropped off with two guys, who were supposed to lead us to our new piece. They told the bus driver the wrong road, which they didn’t realize until the bus drove away. The block we were in was kilometers long, and no one was going to be heading down the road. So we started walking. But we ended up at the main road and, the guys realized we had gone the wrong direction. So we started walking in the other direction. We walked about 4 kilometers, in our stupid huge boots, full jugs of water banging off our hips in our planting bags, trying to find a comfortable way to carry our shovel, before our knight in big white truck, Brad, came to rescue us and drive us to our piece. It’s shitty to walk for an hour and not get paid. Especially on a day when Barnes announces to the bus no one’s coming home til everyone hits 2k. Not an unreasonable demand, but I need that hour.

 Tuesday’s joy: jumping in the lake (see prior posts to read about “jumping in the lake” and where it ranks on my scale of awesome). All throughout the day Lindsday and I discussed cold things that would be incredibly satisfying: ice caps, a jump in the lake, a jump in the ocean, standing in the Artic…. So I took the opportunity to ditch the bus and jump in Brad’s truck with Tim and a couple other guys, as we all crossed our fingers and hoped he stopped at the lake. And sweet glory, he did. I like that one minute we can be falling asleep on the bumpiest gravel road, exhausted and unable to move, and then someone says “swim” and we all hustle out of the truck to strip down to our sweat- and dirt-stained boxers or bra, run down to the lake, dive in, and come up smiling, feeling like a million bucks. It truly is one of my favourite things. Sweaty boxers and all.

Greenmantle crew. I managed to sneak in. 

Anyways, I was so glad to be done on Tuesday. One week of planting, but I was toast. And I missed Jordan. I realized on the drive back, that I have now planted a “last tree” four times. Once in Black Bay, before I started cooking, again that contract because when we came back to the mainland I cooked AND planted one day, once after last year’s week and a half stint, and one more this year. And all four of those planting experiences added up to one full rookie year. So I am no longer a rookie! Yay! Now I CAN’T go back, because that means I’m a vet and I would have to step up my production. Not happening. I planted my last tree.

Summer 2012--First stop, Thunder Bay

So, it’s June. Which by tradition now, means I’m in Thunder Bay, finishing up a tree planting contract. Jordan and I are finally doing the road trip out West that we had wanted to last year, so since I was done a bit earlier than him, I caught a cheap flight up to T Bay and now I’m in the bush, planting until he comes to pick me up and take me to the Rockies.

I arrived at the airport on Monday, and got picked up by Justin, guy in charge of the plants. When I arrived, I wasn’t exactly sure how I was getting 6 hours into the bush, but as it turned out, Justin was driving out that day, so he offered to take me. It seems the less I plan, the more easily these things work out. It was a long drive, and Justin’s easily bored. One game was “turn on the heat and see how long until Danielle turns it off”. Just to ruin his fun, I refused to turn it off. Which turned into a stubborn standoff, to see who could handle the truck blasting heat with the windows closed for longer. About an hour and a half later he pulled up beside a lake, and, as it turns out, I am the more stubborn.. He got out first and lost. And then I had the best swim. A few more shenanigans, a few more swims / bridge jumps, and a few wrong turns later, we pulled up at camp. Cue nervous pit in my stomach.

At camp I’m staying in classy conditions this year—Muller is letting me bunk with her in her trailer, which comes complete with electricity and sometimes running water. We watch Community together before bed. Life is good at night. During the day…well…planting is planting. Lies. Planting sucks. I’ve only been here for a week, but I’m seriously wimping out this year. I’m ready to leave already. The first two days were really hot, and I spent a lot of my time swatting away deer flies, puking between bagups, and wondering why the heck I had decided this was a good idea. Thursday morning I woke up with my eye swollen shut from bites, and since it was also getting hard to breathe and swallow, I decided to stay back at camp for the day. Allison drove me into Manitouwadge to the hospital, just to be sure, and they gave me a couple shots of Benedryl, which knocked me out for the afternoon. That was nice. By evening I still looked like an ogre, which earned me the nickname “Fiona” from Brandon, but since then it’s gotten a lot better.

"Fiona"

Swamp foot has begun 

The next two days of planting were a lot better. Cooler, more wind, less bugs, no ogre-face. And a bug turban. I planted with a girl named Lindsday, which also helps pass the time a bit faster.

PB Friday for Linsday

Things that I like about planting--laying on a gravel road is comfortable 

Now it’s Sunday and we’re in town, waiting for the bus to bring us back to camp. Oh, side note—our bus is awesome. Dan got a ticket because it was yellow, so we painted it on Friday night. One guy at camp can do graffiti, so he painted “The Wizard” on the side in silver, and we all helped paint the rest blue. It’s the coolest planter bus I’ve seen yet. Photo to come. Anyways, I heard a truck is going back to the bus, and to avoid walking, I’m gonna jump on that. Two more days of planting, and then Jordan will pick me up and I can start telling you about adventures out West! Peace!

Finished Planting, Started Cooking

Well my planting career is now officially over! (Although, everyone says that…multiple times it seems…). Monday I was on the van crew, and we headed out to a block with clay soil. The planting wasn’t great, but wasn’t terrible either. It was a hot day, but during my last bag-up a storm rolled in and it just POURED! It was awesome--that was the kind of rain I like to plant in!

Tuesday was another good day at the same block. The three rookie girls and I had to walk in to the back of the block, and since it had stormed the night before, it was a muddy walk! My boots are a lot harder to walk in when there’s 10 lbs of mud on each foot! So we took our time getting in our land after that….which I didn’t mind! The little things made me happy on Tuesday. I think I thanked God for each cloud that covered the sun, lol. I was also pretty stoked that Erica had an ipod I could borrow all day to drown out the sound of the bugs. And when the tree checker left wild flowers at my cache, I planted with a smile for the next half hour. (On the bus he said, “Yeah, chicks totally dig flowers”—he’s got me pegged). The end of the day was the best though—instead of having to walk back out to the bus, Jon picked up the 4 of us girls on the quad, with two hanging off the back, and two of us on the front. Then the bus stopped at the river beside the road so that we could jump in and cool off. Seriously—very few things make me happier than jumping in cold water after sweating buckets!

Wednesday I stayed at camp to do groceries, some baking, and to start cleaning the cook shack. It feels great to be back in the kitchen, and since I haven’t done a ton of cooking this past year (thanks to my wonderful husband who does it for me!) it’s been a real treat to cook for the planters. Since I start at 4 am, and the planters are working longs days, I have quite a bit of time during the day, so it’s a leisurely pace. I’ve gotten good reviews so far, and I’m excited for the stuff I’m making in the next few days too. I’ve had a couple requests, so I’m gonna attempt to re-create my “6k Surprise” dessert invention ...although I may have to rename it 4k Surprise this time. It’s also been chill because there’s a lot less planters, since it’s mid-July and people need to get home. Sometimes it looks like this contract will never end as the crew keeps getting smaller and smaller. I’ve decided not to book a ticket home until I know for sure that there are only one day’s trees left. Hopefully that’ll be Monday, and Tuesday I’ll fly home. We’ll see I guess!

Well, I should go check on the lasagna—here’s hoping it’s a hit!

PB Saturday

Saturday was a great day! At one point, I was actually smiling in my piece. That is rare. In the morning the crew was split into two groups--one in the van, one on the bus. (Sidenote--why do you say IN a van, but ON a bus? You get INto both and sit ON seats in both...). Anyways, I was on the bus with all rookies, except Brandon, one vet. We were pretty worried we were being sent out to some shitty land, but we ended up pulling up to a block of beautiful, creamy soil with fresh furrows!


The weather was great. It was a hot day, but there was a bit of a breeze, so the bugs weren't unbearable. And I had my ipod cranked so I couldn't hear them anyways. That's the worst--just hearing them buzzing all over you. At one point our supervisor, Jon, came walking through my piece, wielding a shovel and an axe. We chatted a bit about the land and then he casually added, "Oh, yeah, and there's a bear." Great! He went on and explained, "I saw something moving in a tree so I looked up a thought, 'Oh look a koala!' and then I realized, 'Bleep! There's no koala's here!' and when I turned around there was a huge mother bear standing on her hind legs 20 feet away!" Even better--a mother bear! So I asked what to do and Jon says, "Well, mother's get kinda aggressive if you get aggressive so...just pull your headphones out and listen for screaming." Aw man! I don't wanna get eaten by a bear today! So I did take my headphones out, and I listened to the symphony of black flies, deer flies, horse flies, and noseeums for the rest of the day. My routine changed a bit too--plant a tree, look around, plant a tree, look around... But, no bears in sight!


We planted a long day, and I planted hard, so I ended up hitting 3k! Last year my PB was 2400, so I was pretty psyched to beat that by a bag-up and a half. I found out later that Jon promised ice cream to anyone who hit 3k, so we stopped in Kek on the way home. That was the best way to end the day for sure!


Sunday was nothing special, but it was relaxing. As a nomad I've had to rely on the good graces of others to get around, and the planters didn't fail. I got a ride into Thunder Bay with Dave, had a place to sleep at Leif's, got picked up to do laundry by Ian, and then spent a few hours climbing Mt. McKay with some of the guys. That was a tough climb, but the view was worth it!


I spent a little while today planning what to cook for the end of the contract. Before I left Jordan bet me $10 that I'd be asked to finish the contract cooking, and sure enough, since it's going so long, the cook has made other plans, and Green Mantle needs a cook. So I'm filling in for the last 3 or 4 days, and I'm pretty excited to whip out some of those great recipes from last year! More fun to come yet this week!


Anyways, time for bed. Peace, friends!





Mt. McKay











My fingers after Day 4. And that's after a shower! I guess you don't need a band-aid when you have a dirt scab!