Thank You Readers and Viewers - around the world.
Between this Blog and the Nipigon Museum Blog I have over 10000 reasons to keep my fingernails short.
Sunday, 29 July 2012
Saturday, 28 July 2012
THE BEES LOVE JOE
Joe-Pye Weed
 |
| Eupatorium maculatum with small Bumblebee |
 |
| Joe-Pye Weed is a member of the Composite Family |
 |
| Species name maculatum means "spotted" July 27, 2012 |
 |
| Fritillary Butterflies find Joe attractive , too. July 27, 2012 |
 |
| July 27, 2012 |
Saturday, 21 July 2012
THE HAZARDS OF GARBAGE DAY
Rural residents have to take their own garbage to the dump (Landfill Site).
New Township By-law prohibits the feeding of ALL wildlife and birds must not be fed on the ground.
THE CONTRAVENORS
New Township By-law prohibits the feeding of ALL wildlife and birds must not be fed on the ground.
THE CONTRAVENORS
 |
| Black Bear July 21, 2012 |
 |
| Black bear, July 21, 2012 |
 |
| A second one coming to lunch. July 21, 2012 |
 |
| I like(being sarcastic) the part in the By-law about not feeding birds on the ground. |
 |
| Common Raven and Herring Gulls and Ring Billed Gulls |
 |
| Starting them young. July 31, 2012 |
 |
| You wonder at the nutritional value of garbage... |
 |
| until you see Big Mamma! July 31, 2012 |
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
POLLINATORS OF THE BOREAL, Nipigon
In 2008 Rowan Jacobsen wrote "Fruitless Fall..The collapse of the Honey Bee and the coming Agricultural Crisis" published by Bloomsbury USA New York.
252 pages plus sources and index.
I now pay attention as to "who" is in the flowers, and, much as I dislike wasps I don't go out of my way to destroy their nests anymore.
A few decades ago when I was packtripping into the Rockies I fould the wildflowers covered in flies. I literally had to shake them off the Penstemens in order to get a photo of the flower.
Here, in this part of the Boreal , we do not have them swarming the flowers, but they are there.
252 pages plus sources and index.
I now pay attention as to "who" is in the flowers, and, much as I dislike wasps I don't go out of my way to destroy their nests anymore.
A few decades ago when I was packtripping into the Rockies I fould the wildflowers covered in flies. I literally had to shake them off the Penstemens in order to get a photo of the flower.
Here, in this part of the Boreal , we do not have them swarming the flowers, but they are there.
 |
| May 10, 2012 Painted Lady out of hibernation on Marsh Marigolds |
 |
| Little Bumble Bee May 19, 2012 |
 |
| June 14, 2012 The flies on Mountain Ash |
 |
| Snowberry Clearwing Moth june 16, 2012 |
 |
| June 23, 2012 Canadian Tiger Swallowtail on Orange Hawkweed |
 |
| Bee on Wild Rose June 23, 2012 |
 |
| Bee on Wild Rose June 27, 2012 |
 |
| Beetles June 27, 2012 on Cow Parsnip |
 |
| July 1, 2012 Fly on Yellow Clintonia |
 |
| Buckeye on Clover July 3, 2012 |
 |
| Fly and Buttercup July 4, 2012 |
 |
| Bee on Mallow July 5, 2012 |
 |
| Pink Bordered Sulphur Butterfly on Orange Hawkweed July 5, 2012 |
 |
| Spreading Dogbane with wierd wasp July 13, 2012 |
 |
| Insect on Ox Eye Daisy July 17, 2012 |
 |
| Bee on Sweet White Clover July 17, 2012 |
Monday, 16 July 2012
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE vs FISH
From "Our Living Heritage, the Glory of the Nipigon"
page 85- 89
by Kelso and Demers
For the Nipigon Bay RAP Public Advisory Committee
Mill Creek Pub. 1993
" Nipigon had remained the hub of the Nipigon Basin settlements for the first half of the 20th Century. First the fur trade, then the sportsmen, then the railroad, loggers, hydro, Transcanada Gas Pipeline and the Transcanada Highway prolonged Nipigon's heyday well into the 1950's."
"Throughout the decades, as the number and location and size of nearby settlements rose and fell, Nipigon slowly assumed a character that was the intersection of an emerging North Shore Culture, flavoured with sports, fishing, hunting, hockey leagues, baseball teams, representing Ontario Hydro, CNR, CPR, papermakers, foresters."
"A simple chart of road building shows Nipigon as the hub of an ever expanding wheel of roadways."
"There can surely be no clearer indicator of the prosperity of the Nipigon Basin in the '50's, than the building of leisure time camps and cottages on the watershed. Polly Lake, Rocky Bay, Lake Nipigon and the islands, Black Bay, Nipigon Bay, Kama, Black Sturgeon, Loftquist Lake, Fire Hill Lake, Stewart Lake are lined with cottages built in the mid-century hey-day of the northshore."
"But even before the cottage boom the watershed was subject to a degree of population pressure."
"Cameron Falls, begun in 1920 with only four houses grew to a population of 150 by 1943."
"Log drive camps that were located along the river at Virgin Falls, Pine Portage, Cameron Falls and on Lake Helen each usually held 75 to 80 men. The largest river settlement, at Pine Portage, housed 1,300 workers from 1948 to 1950 during the peak of dam construction."
"Although surprisingly large numbers of people were housed in camps and colonies along the river for 50 years, residents of those camps from the 1940's until the 1970's recall that few people were interested in fishing."
'Two periods of increase in fishing pressure have been observed by local fishermen. The first, after 1950, was attributed to increased leisure time. As the cottage and camp building spread from lake to lake, new roads, bridges, gullies, ravines and rivulets changed the way waters made up the ecosystem of the river. The new road to Pine Portage provided the access that contributed to the increase in fishing above Cameron Falls at that time."
"The second increase, first noticed in the mid 1970's, appeared to coincide with increased fishing for rainbow trout, and more recently Chinook salmon in the lower river."
"Both these periods of increased fishing served to create an unofficial task force of river watchers. Local fishermen, camp and cottage owners all developed a keen sense of proprietorship over these rivers and lakes. Truck and boat access over the years allowed a familiarity with the watershed to nourish a watch dog sentiment on water levels, spawning grounds and fluctuating fish populations. Those who had courted the fish life in the watershed for twenty or thirty years were the experts on the ecosystem by the early seventies."
"By the time Domtar ceased river logging in 1972-73, the new sporting freedoms this provided to local and regional residents was being viewed with care and caution by communities of sportsmen and cottage owners whose lives were intimately linked to the survival of the watershed's ecosystem. All of this lies against the historical backdrop of industrial and government efforts to both harness and preserve the water levels controlled by dams, apply chemical extensively for blackfly control and spruce budworm infestations and eradicate the invading sea lamprey. In such a setting it can be no surprise that the Nipigon Basin found itself with a resident population of environmentalists."
"Ultimately an issue like the decline of walleye in Nipigon Bay would alarm and energize those environment watchers. The walleye fishery was no longer commercially viable. The unnatural taste of walleye and whitefish flesh resulted in market drops. Commercial fishermen blamed the taste on the wastes from the Domtar Mill."
MAYFLY AND SLUDGEWORM
"As is always the case when nature is put under the microscope the simplest of symbols emerged to form the story of the Mill on the Bay. For fish to thrive they need to eat. If the food supply is removed, the fish die. For populations to continue, they need to reproduce. Ultimately that is the bottom line, the meeting place for the pulp industry and the fishery. Those valuable food organisms that supported both game and commercial fish species such as Mayflies and amphipods were casualties of pollution from the mill."
"On the other hand, the lowly Sludgeworm survived the pollution. That simple fact produced a stark reality - coarse fish that did not hesitate to eat Sludgeworms survived while game fish with, perhaps, a more particular taste in foods may have suffered. Of course the whole picture is not quite as simple as the symbols suggest."
"Netting surveys, discharge plume tracking and echo sounding of the Bay provided graphic measurement by which to gauge life in the Bay. The plume effluent seemed to have a life of its own - it went south, north and offshore. Fish were most dense in number where the effluent left the mill and entered the Bay! Fish density was lowest in the deeper waters offshore, while the greatest abundance appeared in a band along shore from the Red Rock wharf to Five Mile Point."
2012:
The Mill at Red Rock has been closed for nearly a decade now. The Nipigon Bay RAP is still monitoring the fish populations in this Area of Concern.
The Nipigon Bay is also part of the National Marine Conservation Area for Lake Superior.
page 85- 89
by Kelso and Demers
For the Nipigon Bay RAP Public Advisory Committee
Mill Creek Pub. 1993
" Nipigon had remained the hub of the Nipigon Basin settlements for the first half of the 20th Century. First the fur trade, then the sportsmen, then the railroad, loggers, hydro, Transcanada Gas Pipeline and the Transcanada Highway prolonged Nipigon's heyday well into the 1950's."
"Throughout the decades, as the number and location and size of nearby settlements rose and fell, Nipigon slowly assumed a character that was the intersection of an emerging North Shore Culture, flavoured with sports, fishing, hunting, hockey leagues, baseball teams, representing Ontario Hydro, CNR, CPR, papermakers, foresters."
"A simple chart of road building shows Nipigon as the hub of an ever expanding wheel of roadways."
- 1920 Cameron Falls is linked by road to Nipigon
- 1920 Port Arthur is linked to Nipigon
- 1937 Hwy. 17 links Nipigon to Schreiber
- 1950 Hwy 585 links Cameron Falls to Pine Portage
- 1950 Hwy 11 links Nipigon to Geraldton
- 1961 Hwy 17 links Nipigon to Sault Ste. Marie
"There can surely be no clearer indicator of the prosperity of the Nipigon Basin in the '50's, than the building of leisure time camps and cottages on the watershed. Polly Lake, Rocky Bay, Lake Nipigon and the islands, Black Bay, Nipigon Bay, Kama, Black Sturgeon, Loftquist Lake, Fire Hill Lake, Stewart Lake are lined with cottages built in the mid-century hey-day of the northshore."
"But even before the cottage boom the watershed was subject to a degree of population pressure."
"Cameron Falls, begun in 1920 with only four houses grew to a population of 150 by 1943."
"Log drive camps that were located along the river at Virgin Falls, Pine Portage, Cameron Falls and on Lake Helen each usually held 75 to 80 men. The largest river settlement, at Pine Portage, housed 1,300 workers from 1948 to 1950 during the peak of dam construction."
"Although surprisingly large numbers of people were housed in camps and colonies along the river for 50 years, residents of those camps from the 1940's until the 1970's recall that few people were interested in fishing."
'Two periods of increase in fishing pressure have been observed by local fishermen. The first, after 1950, was attributed to increased leisure time. As the cottage and camp building spread from lake to lake, new roads, bridges, gullies, ravines and rivulets changed the way waters made up the ecosystem of the river. The new road to Pine Portage provided the access that contributed to the increase in fishing above Cameron Falls at that time."
"The second increase, first noticed in the mid 1970's, appeared to coincide with increased fishing for rainbow trout, and more recently Chinook salmon in the lower river."
"Both these periods of increased fishing served to create an unofficial task force of river watchers. Local fishermen, camp and cottage owners all developed a keen sense of proprietorship over these rivers and lakes. Truck and boat access over the years allowed a familiarity with the watershed to nourish a watch dog sentiment on water levels, spawning grounds and fluctuating fish populations. Those who had courted the fish life in the watershed for twenty or thirty years were the experts on the ecosystem by the early seventies."
"By the time Domtar ceased river logging in 1972-73, the new sporting freedoms this provided to local and regional residents was being viewed with care and caution by communities of sportsmen and cottage owners whose lives were intimately linked to the survival of the watershed's ecosystem. All of this lies against the historical backdrop of industrial and government efforts to both harness and preserve the water levels controlled by dams, apply chemical extensively for blackfly control and spruce budworm infestations and eradicate the invading sea lamprey. In such a setting it can be no surprise that the Nipigon Basin found itself with a resident population of environmentalists."
"Ultimately an issue like the decline of walleye in Nipigon Bay would alarm and energize those environment watchers. The walleye fishery was no longer commercially viable. The unnatural taste of walleye and whitefish flesh resulted in market drops. Commercial fishermen blamed the taste on the wastes from the Domtar Mill."
MAYFLY AND SLUDGEWORM
"As is always the case when nature is put under the microscope the simplest of symbols emerged to form the story of the Mill on the Bay. For fish to thrive they need to eat. If the food supply is removed, the fish die. For populations to continue, they need to reproduce. Ultimately that is the bottom line, the meeting place for the pulp industry and the fishery. Those valuable food organisms that supported both game and commercial fish species such as Mayflies and amphipods were casualties of pollution from the mill."
"On the other hand, the lowly Sludgeworm survived the pollution. That simple fact produced a stark reality - coarse fish that did not hesitate to eat Sludgeworms survived while game fish with, perhaps, a more particular taste in foods may have suffered. Of course the whole picture is not quite as simple as the symbols suggest."
"Netting surveys, discharge plume tracking and echo sounding of the Bay provided graphic measurement by which to gauge life in the Bay. The plume effluent seemed to have a life of its own - it went south, north and offshore. Fish were most dense in number where the effluent left the mill and entered the Bay! Fish density was lowest in the deeper waters offshore, while the greatest abundance appeared in a band along shore from the Red Rock wharf to Five Mile Point."
2012:
The Mill at Red Rock has been closed for nearly a decade now. The Nipigon Bay RAP is still monitoring the fish populations in this Area of Concern.
The Nipigon Bay is also part of the National Marine Conservation Area for Lake Superior.
Sunday, 15 July 2012
CAMERON FALLS DAM
Historic Photos from Ontario Hydro
![]()
 |
| Cameron Falls Generating Station |
 |
| Nipigon Museum Photos The finished product 1920 |
Saturday, 14 July 2012
REPORT ON THE EFFECT OF WATERLEVELS ON THE NIPIGON RIVER DRIVES OF 1939
From the Abitibi files researched by Mary Ellen MacCallum 1991
Nipigon Historical Museum Archives
Author unknown
The Effects of Waterlevels on the Drives
Waterlevels have a definite affect on the driving of this river . (Nipigon) High water at Virgin Falls will flood all low places along the river and make for a very heavy rear.
The first place below Virgin Falls where low water affects the drive is Victoria Rapids. Heavy sidejams are built up and while this could not develop into anything serious, it becomes a nuisance.
Lake Emma levels only affect the rear. The raising and lowering of this lake sometimes leaves one end of a glance-boom in such a position that wood may get over or under and float back into the bays,
White Chutes is not seriously affected by either high or low water. One centre jam forms in low water directly in the middle of the Chutes and is cleaned off in high water. The eddy, on the other hand, appears to act the same in high or low water.
Pine Rapids produced many interesting situations due to the variations in water levels. Low water built up jams and in some cases high water would take these away, while in other cases, high water would make them worse.
At the wide stretch of river opposite the Fire-Ranger's shack, we found that the island in the centre built a jam outwards, and shoal rocks between this island and the shore completed the jam so that practically the whole river would be jammed at this point. We had to watch this very carefully and keep breaking the jam down, in order that it wouldn't develop into anything too serious. High water would sometimes partly clear this and sometimes it made it definitely worse.
To the foot of Pine Rapids the level of the river was determined by the amount of water flowing through Virgin Falls. There is an apparent effect created by the flow from Virgin Dam. With very high flows, there is apparently enough current created to move wood in most of the sections even in adverse winds.
From the foot of Pine Rapids down to Lake Jessie and Lake Jessie itself, we are on the other hand, absolutely dependent on Cameron Dam for their water level.
Rear is the big factor from Pine portage to Lake Jessie, and high water on Lake Jessie affects the rate we can get wood out at the mouth of the river. Without a fair wind it is fairly difficult in high water, while in low water these is a definite current at this point.
Lake Jessie within a week's period, will vary as much as three feet occasionally, and one and one-half feet as minimum. We have trouble getting our boats into dock when the water is low, and have, of course, to watch that we do not run aground, but outside of that and the rear, this level does not affect us.
The water level above Alexander Dam varies according to the flow from Cameron and the Flow into Alexander. Only on very few occasions was this level allowed to rise over the spillwall and on this account we did not experience any undue strains on our glance and walk-booms. High water also leaves considerable rear on the reserve shores and affects definitely the rate of wood that can be put through the flume. A Level of 14" to 20" above the spillwall gives us our best results, while our next best results come from no water going over the wall, but the flume full open and the water up to the wall.
The river below Alexander and Lake Helen itself are definitely tied up with the amount of water that passes through Alexander Power Station or over its spillwall. High water throws up a very heavy rear and the low shores of the river and Lake make it difficult to put back into the water at low levels. High water moreover, gives us more push to get our rafts out of Lake Helen and down the lower stretch of river.
We had excellent co-operation from the Hydro Electric people in the matter of getting water when we required it or shutting it off when we didn't need it.
The best policy is to keep them well informed of our plans ahead of time so that they will do nothing which will hinder us with the movement of our wood unless they find it absolutely imperative. During the rear we were given water levels because we warned the Hydro people ahead of time, and they reduced Lake Jessie reserve to take care of the extra water.
...
"rear" means getting all the strayed pulpwood back into the water and down the river with the rest of the drive.
1972/73 was the last time the Nipigon River was driven.
Nipigon Historical Museum Archives
Author unknown
The Effects of Waterlevels on the Drives
Waterlevels have a definite affect on the driving of this river . (Nipigon) High water at Virgin Falls will flood all low places along the river and make for a very heavy rear.
The first place below Virgin Falls where low water affects the drive is Victoria Rapids. Heavy sidejams are built up and while this could not develop into anything serious, it becomes a nuisance.
Lake Emma levels only affect the rear. The raising and lowering of this lake sometimes leaves one end of a glance-boom in such a position that wood may get over or under and float back into the bays,
White Chutes is not seriously affected by either high or low water. One centre jam forms in low water directly in the middle of the Chutes and is cleaned off in high water. The eddy, on the other hand, appears to act the same in high or low water.
Pine Rapids produced many interesting situations due to the variations in water levels. Low water built up jams and in some cases high water would take these away, while in other cases, high water would make them worse.
At the wide stretch of river opposite the Fire-Ranger's shack, we found that the island in the centre built a jam outwards, and shoal rocks between this island and the shore completed the jam so that practically the whole river would be jammed at this point. We had to watch this very carefully and keep breaking the jam down, in order that it wouldn't develop into anything too serious. High water would sometimes partly clear this and sometimes it made it definitely worse.
To the foot of Pine Rapids the level of the river was determined by the amount of water flowing through Virgin Falls. There is an apparent effect created by the flow from Virgin Dam. With very high flows, there is apparently enough current created to move wood in most of the sections even in adverse winds.
From the foot of Pine Rapids down to Lake Jessie and Lake Jessie itself, we are on the other hand, absolutely dependent on Cameron Dam for their water level.
Rear is the big factor from Pine portage to Lake Jessie, and high water on Lake Jessie affects the rate we can get wood out at the mouth of the river. Without a fair wind it is fairly difficult in high water, while in low water these is a definite current at this point.
Lake Jessie within a week's period, will vary as much as three feet occasionally, and one and one-half feet as minimum. We have trouble getting our boats into dock when the water is low, and have, of course, to watch that we do not run aground, but outside of that and the rear, this level does not affect us.
 |
| Near Island Portage Days on the Nepigon by Millard 1917 |
The water level above Alexander Dam varies according to the flow from Cameron and the Flow into Alexander. Only on very few occasions was this level allowed to rise over the spillwall and on this account we did not experience any undue strains on our glance and walk-booms. High water also leaves considerable rear on the reserve shores and affects definitely the rate of wood that can be put through the flume. A Level of 14" to 20" above the spillwall gives us our best results, while our next best results come from no water going over the wall, but the flume full open and the water up to the wall.
The river below Alexander and Lake Helen itself are definitely tied up with the amount of water that passes through Alexander Power Station or over its spillwall. High water throws up a very heavy rear and the low shores of the river and Lake make it difficult to put back into the water at low levels. High water moreover, gives us more push to get our rafts out of Lake Helen and down the lower stretch of river.
 |
| Near Cameron Falls by Millard, Days on the Nepigon 1917 |
We had excellent co-operation from the Hydro Electric people in the matter of getting water when we required it or shutting it off when we didn't need it.
The best policy is to keep them well informed of our plans ahead of time so that they will do nothing which will hinder us with the movement of our wood unless they find it absolutely imperative. During the rear we were given water levels because we warned the Hydro people ahead of time, and they reduced Lake Jessie reserve to take care of the extra water.
...
"rear" means getting all the strayed pulpwood back into the water and down the river with the rest of the drive.
1972/73 was the last time the Nipigon River was driven.
SEDGES OF MAATTA'S ROAD
 |
| Domain: Eukaryota 1.5 million described species Retrorse Sedge |
 |
| Kingdom: Plantae 350,000 described species Golden-Fruited Sedge |
 |
| Division: Magnoliophyta 265,000 described species Green Sedge |
 |
| Class: Liliopsida 58,000 described species Woolgrass |
 |
| Order: Poales 18,000 described species Woolgrass expanded |
 |
| Family: Cyperaceae 5,000 described species Awl-Fruited Sedge |
 |
| Genus: Carex L. 2,000 described species Golden-fruited Sedge Species: Carex aurea 1 described species |
 |
| July 15, 2012 Golden-fruited Sedge |
 |
| Bladder Sedge July 18, 2012 |
 |
| Carex infumescens, July 18, 2012 |
Friday, 13 July 2012
CATTAILS GROWING OLD
 |
| Common Cattail Typha latifolia July 3, 2012 |
 |
| Cattail Family Typhacea |
 |
| July 10, 2012 |
 |
| July 13, 2012 |
 |
| July 13, 2012 |
 |
| July 13, 2012 |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)