The End is Near

After our time on the Reserve and return to camp, we realized that Michael had accomplished all his goals for the trip, so we changed some tickets and shortened our trip by a few days.

On our last day in camp, we asked to spend most of the time relaxing (which was amazing!!!) but we did make one last drive up into the mountains….

Sadly, it was time to break camp and start the trip back home the following day. Since we were the last travelers through Babine camp, it wasn’t just US leaving…. it was EVERYTHING associated with the camp!!

While we packed our bags and cleaned out our cabin, Michael and Tammy proceeded to take down the two tents…..

……AND dismantle the Teepee….

There were LOTS of ropes involved!!

The last thing to go was the Starlink technology…..

It was certainly a luxury to have fast internet.

At last the truck and trailer were loaded and we made one final stop to pick up the inflatable…..

We then had….

a quick barge trip across the lake,
a long drive to Prince George,
an overnight at the BonVoyage Inn (and Greek food dinner),
flight to Vancouver,
afternoon and evening in the hotel catching up on blogs and other work,
flight to Salt Lake City,
3 hour layover,
flight to Atlanta,
ride to our home with “Driver’s Seat” doing the driving.

WHEW…..it was great to fall into our own bed and enjoy a great night’s sleep!!

This trip has been amazing. Although rustic, I grew to have a deep affection for the Babine Camp….even the outhouse!! As I made my final walk from the “No and Go”, I reflected that I would miss this peaceful and relaxing place.

We have met wonderful, kind people, seen sights that many will never have the opportunity to see, and enjoyed the hospitality of Michael and Tammy at Driftwood Valley Outfitters!! Thanks guys!!

………………………………………….

One last thing, as we were flying to Vancouver, an exciting event happened back in Prince George….. Desmond and Devondre GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL…..

This is a HUGE accomplishment for these two young men, for the people of the Takla Lake First Nation Reserve AND for Michael Schneider and his “Driftwood Outdoor Guide and Business Apprenticeship Program”.

WELL DONE!!!

Tomorrow we will resume our regularly scheduled programming. Be sure to come back!!

If you enjoy this blog, please share it with your friends!!!

Thank you…….

A Meadow Walk & A Sun-downer

On Monday, the day after we returned from the Reserve, Michael (our host), suggested that we go on a “photographic safari” and see if we could find any more bears!!

As we were starting out, Michael pointed out two trees that had been destroyed by Grizzly Bears….

When we asked how he could be so sure that they were Grizzlies, he pointed and said “one of them left some fur”……

Okay….now we know there are Grizzlies around!!

As we started down the first path, we fell into our usual arrangement, he went first, Michael pulled into the second position with me trailing at the rear. But Michael (guide) immediately stopped and said….”No the camera goes first”.

All I could think of was this scene from the first Indiana Jones movie…..

Our first trail led to this gorgeous lake…..

Michael told us that there were often bears here and he spent a few minutes “glassing” to see what he could find…..

Alas, there were no bears!! (I am not sure if I was happy or sad!!)

I did love the markings on this tree as we were walking out…..

I assume that a bear did NOT make those!!

We moved to another area and immediately found more LARGE Grizzly paw prints….

We followed along the path and climbed down this steep descent into the meadow…..

At this point I am hoping that there is a winch to get me back up!!

We walked along a narrow meadow, bordered on one side by Fleming Creek…..

The area was green and lush and gorgeous and I spent much of my time with the camera in front of my face…..

I loved this large field of seeded-out dandelions…..

….insuring that there will be a HUGE crop of pretty yellow flowers next year!!

We passed tons of blueberry bushes, all bloomed out and ready to produce succulent berries…..

Michael had previously told us that there weren’t as many bears this year primarily because last years berry crop hadn’t been very good. We hope that every bloom will produce a berry to feed a bear this year!!

Michael know this area like the back of his hand and he was willing to answer our copious questions as we walked along….

And, yes….he is carrying a firearm. Remember we are in BEAR country!!!

I captured two small flowers in the field. This beautiful purple one…..

….and this variation of an Indian Blanket…..

The afternoon was spent in camp and then around five, Michael suggested that we go out again. This time Tammy and Inya (her four legged companion) joined us as we saw amazing mountains again…..

Michael and I were curious when we ended up on Babine Lake again, and even more so when host Michael and Tammy started pulling chairs and other paraphernalia out of the truck. We were then informed that we were having dinner on the beach…..a “Sundowner” of sorts!!

While Michael got the fire started…..

…..Tammy hopped into the boat and roared into the Lake in search of FRESH fish…..

I LOVE that Inya is watching her carefully from the shore!!

She was successful and quickly brought in a nice size Lake Trout. The colors in the skin were so pretty and Michael effortlessly prepared the fillets…..

They heated olive oil in the pan and slid the four fresh fillets into the skillet and added 4 more pieces of Haddock.

While it cooked……

…..I spent some time photographing a Loon that was also doing some fishing…..

Before long, the food was ready…..

….and we all enjoyed a delicious dinner of fish and Potato Salad….

I will say that, having grown up in West Texas, we didn’t get a lot of fresh fish and I am not much of a fish person. But the Haddock was excellent and the Fresh-Caught Trout was AMAZING!!!

Many thanks to Michael and Tammy for making this happen!!

Well, we have one more full day left in camp. Come back tomorrow as we finish off this amazing trip!!

Michael and I love to travel and see new parts of the world and then I love to take those memories and turn them into quilts!!! I hope that you enjoy traveling along with us!!

Be sure to subscribe to the blog so you don’t miss a single trip!!

BEARS & Other fun things

By Sunday morning we had finished all of our interviews on the Takla Lake First Nation Reserve and were ready to head back to the blissfully peaceful camp.

Our drive was relaxing, except for the yelling of “BEARS” from Michael (our guide). We stopped four times to watch Black Bears as they danced across the road and into the fields.

The first one sat and watched us watch him for a few minutes…..

….and then decided that we really weren’t that interesting, so he could head to his Sunday brunch……

The second one was a small female who peeked out at us from the bushes…..

Two others crossed in front of the truck but didn’t stop to let us visit with them.

And then we turned a corner and Michael yelled “GRIZZLIES!!!……

We spent the next 20 minutes watching this pair as they walked slowly down the road.

The lighter colored female seemed fairly oblivious to our presence as she kept to the road, but the male was agitated by our being close and he kept crossing back and forth by the female…

It was a totally surreal experience to watch these massive creatures in the wild!

We came upon a small Mule Deer and expected it to run away, but instead it pranced it’s way toward the truck…….

In addition to the wildlife, we also enjoyed some amazing scenery. Seeing these mountains in the background is always awe inspiring to me….

One of the things that we noticed was that the weather was constantly changing. It would start out cloudy….then get sunny….then rain a bit…. then fine back up again. But, when it started hailing I knew that I wasn’t in Georgia anymore……

But, when we arrived in camp 10 minutes later, it was sunny and warm again!!

Since we had been so busy at the Reserve, we decided to loll around camp for the afternoon. I started to lay down and take a nap, but instead decided to go outside and play with some watercolors that I had brought with me.

When I am doom-scrolling on Facebook Reels, I often watch videos about painting and I have learned that your paintings look much better if you tape off a border to start with. I had brought a small amount of painters tape with me and started there….

WOW….I feel so professional!!!

The other thing that I have learned is to start by covering the page with water using a large brush….

….and start adding colors to the water, allowing them to blend together….

I kept playing with this background, adding yellow and purple flowers….

….until I had a painting that I liked…..

Next, I decided to tackle the trees in the background. I knew that I needed different colors of green and had so much fun mixing until I got the color I wanted….

I struggled to get the Aspen trees to show up on top of the dark pines, but eventually added enough white to it. There are probably 15 layers of paint on those lighter trees!!

I was happy with the final result….

Having this little guy visit….

….was the perfect end to a varied and amazing day!!

Meet Monique

One of our interviews in the Takla First Nation Reserve took us to the home of Monique….

Our purpose in visiting her was to hear of her passion for the mental health of the Takla Nation, particularly for the youth.

She is actively involved in programs designed to bring healing, beginning with the adults who are still struggling with the scars from the Residential Schools that I mentioned in y esterday’s post.

Monique spoke with great reverence about the importance of the hereditary Elder system in the Takla Nation. She herself is a Chief and a medicine maker. Her title will become “Elder” once she turns 65.

Just as Julie had, she told of how she gives away the things that she makes…whether it is canned bear meat or an elixir to cure a cold.

She also talked to us about the importance of the Potlatch. I had actually seen this word written in RED on the calendar at the school……

….but I hadn’t understood what it meant. The word itself looks like “pot luck” and that was my immediate thought……

I WAS WRONG!!

The Potlatch is a ceremonial gathering of all of the clans in the reserve. It can be a celebration where someone gains “status” (more about that later), a sending out of the spirit of someone who has died, a celebration of a new birth, or even a shaming ceremony to discipline members of the clan.

We were told that the four clans…. Beaver, Bear/Wolf, Frog and Caribou…. enter the room separately and sit on the four sides of the room. As the ceremony progresses, individuals share their resources with other clans, handing out food, supplies and even money if needed.

Just like Julie, Monique had a beading setup sitting on the table in front of her….

As she talked, she absentmindedly took a stitch or two….

When I asked what she was working on, she said she was making a headdress for a “Naming Ceremony”, the next step up on their “status”. This is where one receives their spirit name, which tells you something about that person, their personality, or their mission in this life. They are often given names from their Ancestors.

The woman who will wear this headdress is in her mid-thirties and is being given her grandmother’s name. She has already been thru the “smoke ceremony” where smoke is used to cleanse. She has also appeared before the Elders and has proven that she is a good person.

Monique has already made the apron that she will wear…..

….and also the shawl….

I love the beads and bells….

Isn’t that a fun way to attach the button…..as a square rather than two lines!!

So, Monique now has to finish the headdress….

The center will feature a professionally embroidered “Bear/Wolf”clan emblem and the beaded flowers will decorate each side of the piece.

I asked about the color purple and was there a significance to the color. Monique smiled and said….”no, it is just her favorite color”.

From looking at Monique’s house, I think that it is also HER favorite….

As we left, she thanked us for coming and thanked Michael (our guide) for his continued work with the young men. As the decal on her truck said, she is a…..

….to the youth of the Takla Lake First Nation!!!

Michael and I love to travel and see new parts of the world and then I love to take those memories and turn them into quilts!!! I hope that you enjoy traveling along with us!!

Be sure to subscribe to the blog so you don’t miss a single trip!!

Julie!!

It is always astounding to Michael and myself that a small, innocuous event can turn into something sweet and meaningful. That is what happened today.

You have met Derek and his Grandmother in previous posts. Well, Julie is his Great Grandmother….

When I asked her age, she shyly said 86, but with a caveat that she was one of 13 kids and her mother got confused with birth dates, so she could be older or younger!!

When she was a child, the government took she and her siblings away from their parents and sent them to a “Residential School”. These schools were mandated for all First-Nation children and were designed to basically “make them white”. As she wiped tears from her eyes, she told us that she was there for 5 years and when she returned home, she could no longer speak the family language.

She has gone on to work in many trades, from working in a canning plant to planting trees for the logging companies. In both jobs, she moved into leadership roles. She and her husband had 4 girls. One has passed away but the other three are functioning members of society and hold high positions in their areas of expertise.

In talking to her, you can tell that she is a strong woman and very proud of her heritage.

We were told that there was a Grizzly bear wandering around the village and she said that she went outside and yelled “Grizzly bear, go back to the mountains before someone shoots you”! She proudly told us that the bear hasn’t been seen since!!

But back to how we met Julie. She had set a fishing net the previous day and she needed someone to help her bring it in. Michael (our guide) and Michael (my husband) quickly agreed to help.

It was raining fairly heavily as we walked up to her boat, with Julie walking with a cane….

She spryly crawled into the boat and pointed to where the guys should row to. When they arrived at the net, she stood up and started pulling it in….

She was pleased when she pulled in two fish….. a Sucker Fish and a Char….

She said that it was still a little too early to catch many fish but that she would bring in a bunch in a month or so.

Back on land, she invited us into her house for a cup of tea…..we gratefully agreed!

As I sat down at her table, I noticed a pair of moccasins sitting there….

She had made them for Michael’s wife. They were made from Moose hide and had beaver fur trim.

I then looked around the table and realized that this was her sewing table, complete with various projects that she was working on…..

….including her reading glasses!! Those are VERY important for me!!

She told me that she is currently using mostly Moose hide that has been commercially tanned….

….but she used to stretch the Moose hide on stretcher bars and use a tool to clean the hide and then tan it herself!! She also told me that she often hunts Moose and carries the nickname of “One Shot Julie”!!

She was proud of her work on the moccasins, showing me how she lines the upper part with fabric so that the bead threads don’t wear out faster.

She was starting her next project and showed us how she transferred the design onto the leather…..

I loved seeing her workspace filled with beads, needles and bits of leather…..

I asked if she sells her work and she said no. She will give them to whoever needs them! She does the same thing with extra moose meat, Bear meat or fish. She keeps what she needs and passes the rest on to those around her.

I left her house knowing that I had been in the presence of a strong woman who has lived a long life and made creativity a part of her inner being!!

The visit was one of the highlights of the entire trip!!

Michael and I love to travel and see new parts of the world and then I love to take those memories and turn them into quilts!!! I hope that you enjoy traveling along with us!!

Be sure to subscribe to the blog so you don’t miss a single trip!!