Into the Tobiatic, Day 1

How silly of me to worry about having time
to spend on my new sewing machine.
Our weather hasn't been the greatest!
This morning, it's 68 degrees and raining.  Oh, darn!
I'll have to stay in and practice my FMQing.

But lookie where I've been
when a stretch of nice weather was in the forecast!

It was my pleasure and delight

(ticks be damned!)

to have had the unique opportunity to do a little wilderness camping

in the SW interior of Cape Breton.

We were rained on a little,
but it was all just part of the adventure.

The Tobiatic Wilderness Area,

protected under the Wilderness Areas Protection Act

and designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve,

 encompasses over 257,000 acres of ultimate beauty.

Included in the Biosphere Reserve is Kejimkujik National Park,

the darker green area on the map,

with an area of 156 square miles.

(So yes, I had to do the math for the Tobiatic.  

257,000 acres equals 401.5 square miles.)

I hardly know where to begin,

or just what to say.
I was totally entranced.

The area is rife with landscapes influenced by glaciation-

outwash plains, eskers, kames, drumlins, and moraine ridges.
the last glacier passing through a mere 10,000 years ago.

These massive boulders, known as erratics, 

are strewn about everywhere,

including in the middle of the lake.

Evidence of inhabitants occupying the area 

date back more than 5000 years.

The Mi'kmaq Indians were present 400 years ago

when the first Europeans appeared.

Perhaps they pulled their canoes up into this very same spot.

Hope they watched out for the frogs!

Pickerel Frog
(Rana palustrus)

Green Frog
(Rana  clamitans melanota)

During our 13 miles of paddling

over two days,

there were little distractions around every bend,

We came across an active beaver's dam.

In the middle of one night, I was awakened by a loud

and mighty slap, splash, 

when a beaver felt threatened by something

lurking in the darkness,

and slapped the water's surface with his might tail

as a warning.

It was quite the awakening!

And even thought I didn't 'see' it,

it was exciting to hear.

Anyway, all along the shore of the lake were areas

showing slides in the mud 

used by the beavers to slip into the water.

So cool.

The Ranger waited patiently while I spent 

what must have seemed like forever

floating among the waterlilies

enraptured by all the dragon- and damselflies.

They don't mind sharing space.

Seeing a bear on an old logging road is one thing,

but being able to observe one REALLY in nature,

foraging along the shore,

was a whole new experience.

One more bear sighting, and I'll be able to declare 2014

as The Year of the Bear!

But at the moment,

it's The Day of FMQ,

so off to my new machine I go.

Have a great day

in your little corner of the world.

xo,

karen