By Roy L Hales
They paddled almost every day, sometimes more than fifty kilometres a day. The two women were at sea for three months. They started in the icy waters of Glacier Bay, Alaska, meticulously tabulating the impact of single use plastic everywhere they camped. I heard the story of Mathilde Gordon’s 2,042 kilometre kayak adventure during her recent visit to Cortes Island.
Continue reading Mathilde Gordon’s 2,042 Kilometre Kayak AdventureBy Roy L Hales
Its almost 550 km from Squirrel Cove, on Cortes Island, to Puyallup, Washington by car, but centuries by canoe. In 1884 the Canadian Government joined in a conspiracy to destroy the canoe traffic that had been plying coastal waters, from Alaska to California, since the beginnings of oral tradition. First Nations people were restricted to their reserves and had had to obtain permission to leave. The reawakening started almost 30 years ago, in what has since become an annual event. A different nation hosts the gathering every year and this summer the gathering is at Puyallup. The Klahoose canoe Tl’emtl’ems left Squirrel Cove at 10 AM this morning.
Continue reading Tl’emtl’ems Left Squirrel CoveThere are good reasons that boaters are not allowed to dump chemicals, sewage and other debris in Carrington Bay, Cortes Bay, Gorge Harbour, Squirrel Cove, or Manson’s Landing. “[Cortes Island] has the best oysters in the area, [possibly] because it is supposed to have such pristine clean water,” says Julia Rendall, President of the 13 member Bee Islets Growers Corporation. She explained that violations “could close us down and if we are closed down I think we have to have three tests, three weeks in a row, clear. So it could, in theory, close you down for about a month.” Cortes Island’s unique environmental features resulted in the creation of several marine parks. Contamination is a concern for all islanders, whether they are shellfish harvesters or not. These areas are currently designated as “No Discharge Zones” under federal regulations. Never-the-less, violations periodically do occur and a recent incident illustrates the difficulties of trying to stop recreational boaters from polluting Cortes Islands protected areas.
Continue reading Stop Recreational Boaters From Polluting Cortes Islands Protected AreasOriginally published on Cortes Radio,ca, as part of the Deep Roots Initiative, Season Two.
What was the role of the canoe in pre-contact indigenous culture? What caused its decline? And how are canoe journeys helping the Klahoose and her sister nations rediscover their past? In this episode, producer Roy Hales asks how they awaken the canoes.
Continue reading Awaken the CanoesBy Roy L Hales
Mike Moore spends six weeks in the Antarctic most winters. Since 2001, he has worked as a zodiac driver, naturalist and lecturer for 14 seasons. Up until five years ago, he found it really hard to tell how the climate was changing. Since then, the public has been barred from visiting some glaciers because of crevices. In other areas, bare rock stands where there was once ice. The once clear deep Antarctic waters have become murky. New species have moved into the area and old ones are disappearing. In this morning’s program, Moore describes one man’s experience of the changing Antarctic
Continue reading One Man’s Experience Of The Changing Antarctic
