Better than Breadcrumbs

Yellowknife has an ambiguous attitude towards its trails: they're well publicized in all the pamphlets, but try and find the entry points and it's a game of hide and seek. Tonight I was determined to walk the trail at Range Lake, the one I couldn't find the other night.

I'd been told I could get on it behind the Shell station (such is the juxtaposition of commercialism and nature in this city). When I couldn't find the entry point, I wandered about the subdivisions around the lake and, by chance, found a path to the lake. As I climbed the boulders, these painted footprints appeared, clearly essential to navigating around the trail. But just as I made this discovery, it started to rain. The weather is even more changeable than in Nova Scotia: it can be sunny one minute and rain the next and back to sunny again.


Another phenom the north seems to share with the east is power outages. For no apparent reason the power went off while I was watching Northbeat, which is why I headed out on the walk. And, also like home, the Power Corp here is asking for rate increases. Some people in the communities pay a horrific amount for electricity. But that apparently doesn't stop them from frivolity.

On my way to the trail, I came across this Inukshuk, planted in a garden and all decked out for Christmas.




I lunched today with Harmen Meinders, the news producer here, and one of many King's grads at the station. We went to A Taste of Saigon, one of two Vietnamese restaurants in town. It has an extensive menu, from "Sliced Well Done and Sliced Rare Beef Noodle Soup" to "Steamed Rice with Fried Seasoned Quails". I had the Vermicelli with Charbroiled Lemongrass Chicken Breast and felt as though I was back in Halifax on one of my Let's Do Lunch ventures for Information Morning.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Very few people I hung out with 29 years ago are still in Yellowknife. However, tonight I connected with Marie Wilson, a CBC reporter back then. It was a pivotal time in the North during those days: the last commissioner left his post, the territories got its own government and the battle brewed over the pipeline. We were a bunch of young passionate journalists reporting on the transitions, both at News of the North, where I became editor, and at the CBC. (We also partied hard in between.) Marie became a national reporter in Quebec during the referendum and, eventually, regional director in the North. Meanwhile, she had married Stephen Kakfwi, who became head of the Dene Nation, and later Premier of the NWT government. At that point, Marie left her job at the CBC because she felt it would be too difficult to continue on, given her husband's political profile.

My apologies to Marie for posting Stephen's photo and not hers--that's all I could find on the web. Marie and I attempted to catch up on almost 3 decades of life, from careers to families, over dinner at Le Frolic Bistro, where Stephen joined us later in the evening. Marie and I split a buffalo burger and Fresh Great Slave Lake Pickerel. I passed on the special of the day: PEI mussels cooked 7 different ways.

Television Northern Style

This is Carol Morin, host of Northbeat, the suppertime CBC television show that broadcasts to the NWT, Yukon and Nunavut. The show was especially interesting tonight because they it included a new weekly series called 'All Over'. Snooky Catholique, an aboriginal videojournalist who has been with the show for some time, has started to do stories in Chipewyan. Her interviewees speak the language and so does she; subtitles are in English. Today's first episode was about a Metis man who harvests birch sap and makes syrup. He's done this for years and hopes someone else will learn the craft. He claims it's good for arthritis and the bark of the tree helps infertile women. It's wonderful that the TV show has taken this step of broadcasting in an aboriginal language--and they gave it a high profile in the program. Carol is an engaging host, with her own sense of style and an easy manner when she's out in the field or doing interviews.

A City of Contrasts

Trailers are a common type of housing in Yellowknife, and some now fetch a quarter of a million dollars. Many morph into houses, with additions either above, below or beside the original mobile home.
This looks like two houses, but an addition, complete with arched window, has been added at the back. Rows of these trailers, modified or not, co-exist with newer housing. Just around the corner from this place is a crescent with such monster homes as the one below.

Both homes are located in the Range Lake area, near where I'm staying in the 'burbs. It's at the opposite end of Old Town where I find the architecture far more interesting. But I will say this: every house is different in the suburbs here.

There's definitely no cookie cutter approach: row housing, trailers and giant single family homes co-exist. The home to the left backs onto Range Lake.

I went in search of the trail that goes around Range Lake, but could only find an entry point between two houses.
It's so weird because the lake is right behind Tim Horton's, Mark's Work Wearhouse, PetroCan, etc. Once you leave the strip, it's very peaceful. Yellowknife is clearly a city of sharp contrasts.

A Sunday Stroll

Every Sunday morning back home I go on a two-hour walk along the railway cut in Brooklyn with my good friends Hazel and Kathy. So this morning I decided to continue the tradition on my own: I got on the Frame Lake Trail and continued to walk past my usual exit to get to the CBC.

The trail bypasses residential areas, peacefully separating the downtown for the lake.
Loons nest on this smaller lake and fish on the bigger lakes. I heard and saw one as I was coming back. Carved out by a glacier, the lake is acidic from the rock and, so, doesn't support much plant life. However, bullrushes, cattails and sedges rim the edges. I met cyclists, joggers, parents with strollers and the occasional soul wandering about in an alcoholic haze.

I went as far as the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre which opened when I worked here oh so long ago. Indeed, I met the Prince himself and wrote a commentary for radio about what I considered to be all the fuss and bother.

One of the reporters who worked with me on News of the North, Alison, was escorted out because she crossed the line in order to get a photo. She said she was more scared of me and what I'd say if she didn't get a good picture!

The centre marks about halfway around the trail. The path is paved to this point, and soon after it's more rugged. Instead of continuing on the circle, for some reason I headed back in the same direction. There's always next Sunday.

Cheers to Yellowknife

I spent my afternoon sampling orphan wines from the local Opimian Cellar. Here I'm on the deck of the house where the event was held. It's at the tip of Latham Island, jutting between Back Bay (in the photo) and Great Slave Lake.

This part of the city is amazing: very old buildings and architectural wonders compete for space among the rocks. Water is trucked in during the winter, then water lines are opened up to the houses around now. Septic tanks are in the basement and get emptied weekly.

Houses are built in and around the huge boulders. I got a chuckle out of this guy watering his "lawn"--a few tufts of grass between the rocks.

It was a glorious day--in the high 20's, which I'm warned is not seasonal. After the tasting, a few of us, mostly from the CBC, headed to the WildCat cafe and ate dinner on the outside deck. I had the whitefish, which was fabulous and the veggies were well prepared. I vow to eat my way through the menu there. Think I'll get the wild game satay next time ....


Speaking of wild game I picked up some interesting food from Northern Fancy Meats this morning: a muskox steak ($7.80) and caribou sausage ($3.44), as well as a Wild Cohoe salmon steak ($5.58). This store has everything, from organic Alberta beef to stuffed char. It's within walking distance of where I live.

Given all my attention to food, it's anybody's guess why I bought "The South Beach Diet" and companion cookbook this morning at the giant flea market held in the Multiplex, a sports centre. The vendor offered the two books for a loonie--how could I resist? I bought too many books, I admit. I had gone in search of kitchen stuff but, other than a Braun handblender which I bought for two bucks, I didn't find anything much. So I've got lots of food, a cookbook and not much to cook with...

Of Hummers and Snares

When I got to work this morning I had the good fortune to meet Mabel English before she headed back to Inuvik. She's the announcer/operator of Nantaii, a daily show broadcast out of Inuvik to the Gwich'in communities of the western Arctic and Old Crow, Yukon. Mabel is retiring from the CBC in November, after five years of hosting the show. She's 70 years old.

That five years has helped her to buy a truck and a cabin in the bush. Now, she wants to spend time with her 20 grandchildren, taking them out on the land, teaching them about their traditions, from the medicinal uses of spruce gum to how to set a snare.

The radio day sounds quite different up here, with several shows broadcast in aboriginal languages. No Jian Ghomeishi; no 'Q'. And the morning show effectively ends at 8 a.m. to make room for 3 news packages in different languages. Those who broadcast out of Yellowknife come to the morning meeting. There's lots of interchange about stories and ideas.

I got a car for the weekend--it's a Ford Focus, that looks like a dinky toy next to all the hummers and humungous pickup trucks on the road. At first, the rental place tried to give me an Escort with a crack right across the windshield.

I went to the Co-op Store to load up on groceries, where I found everything from fiddleheads to frozen Saskatoon berries. Granted, the fiddleheads looked as though they had jet lag. There were also strawberries from California for only $2.99. But they were scary--almost as big as my head. Meanwhile, I hear people at work talking about trying to grow tomatoes, a challenge given the rocky terrain, sparse topsoil and short growing season.

A workspace with a view

No, I don't have an office but I do have a big-ass desk with a TV, radio, computer, printer and window. The view isn't terrific but the light is lovely. I'm across from the radio people and the TV folks are around the corner. We're all on the same floor, but in separate sections.

It's interesting hearing the northern interpretation of some national stories, such as the one about the U.S. trying to put an end to American hunters bringing home Polar Bear trophies.
For some Inuit, big game guiding has become a way of life that allows them to send their kids to university. The chase was on today for one such guide, but he was out hunting and they couldn't get hold of him for the morning. Apparently, a cross between a grizzly and polar bear was discovered recently. The story went national but I never saw it: I guess he was one ugly dude.

The weather took a turn to the warm today--it was 28 degrees in Fort Good Hope! While the ice is gone from Frame Lake, I don't expect to be jumping into the water there anytime soon.

Today I investigated how much it would cost to swim at the pool right across the road from the CBC. It's a lovely large centre with noontime swims and adult-only swims in the evenings.

The price is right, especially if you're a senior, and apparently I qualify because a senior here is anyone over 55. I wonder if that works at the movies too. I'll have to check it out--Shrek 3 is playing.

Civility and Civilization

I was so absorbed in my thoughts as I walked along the trail this morning en route to work that I forgot to take the path that leads to the CBC. So, I had to backtrack a bit--hardly as problematical as missing an exit on the rotary. My only near miss was a fox that shot out in front of me, near the spot where I leave the trail. On the weekend, a black bear on a trail 40 km near Yk encountered a couple and their dog: the people were OK; the dog wasn't so lucky.

Working at a job that is more or less self-directed and doesn't involve filling a 2 1/2 hour program is a challenge--one that I embrace. And today I got my teeth into a special project: co-ordinating what I hope will be a radio/TV special in mid-June about the pipeline. The help is greatly appreciated because the programs run on very lean personpower. The afternoon show consists of two people: the producer and host who is an announce-operator. There's no AP, no tech, no director.

I keep running into people who know people who I know. The following greetings are to some CBC colleagues: to Kim Garrity from Sonja Koenig; to Nina Corfu from Loren McGinnis; to Mary Lynk from Catherine Pigott. And I met a fellow who thanked me for leaving the News of the North 29 years ago, because he got my job at the newspaper and then joined the CBC. This afternoon I took part in a Respect in the Workplace session that will be mandatory for every employee across the country. I am happy to report it was all quite civil.

Slow Food Yk style

Situated in what's called Old Town, this historic log cabin cafe only opens during the warm months. Elaine Look and I had lunch there on Victoria Day. Elaine had picked me up at the airport on Sunday, after my flight arrived four hours late from Calgary, and just before she had to work on the taping of a live concert.

The menu at the Wildcat Cafe includes Buffalo burgers ($15) and a Musk-ox caribou stew ($29) for dinner. I opted for the breakfast menu, which includes a northern version of Eggs Benedict that comes with smoked Arctic Char --as good as, if not better than Atlantic salmon! Food is more available and less expensive than I'd expected in the stores.

This is my alternative to the Wildcat...my kitchen.
The accommodation is located in commercial alley, right across from Foods Extra, a 7-day a week grocery store that carries President Choice products.

A quart of milk costs $1.25 and almond butter is $7.59. Some of the shelves are bare right now because the ferry has just started to operate again for the season. Yogurt and hangers are two items in short supply.

From the balcony of my suite it looks as though I'm in New Minas. I'm next to the Hospital and very close to Tim Horton's, Wal-Mart, and Coyote's Bar and Grill. But just a couple of minutes away there's a wonderful trail around Frame Lake that I take to get to and from the CBC.



The temps have been quite cool and, as you can see, there's still some ice on Frame Lake. Bikes and pedestrian share the trail that goes around the large lake. For me, it's a quiet pleasant walk that takes under 15 minutes to get to work.
I come out at the Aquatic Centre and right across the road is the
headquarters for CBC North.

Will they remember me?

Last time I went to Yellowknife, I took my Yorkshire Terrier, Spetse. She survived the cold and the ravens and became a mascot at News of the North. But the latest in our cat collection since we moved to Newport Landing, Flo and Leo (back to front), are staying behind with Brian.

I've put them on this blog for my own interest--I'm still playing here--plus I want a photo of their adorable little faces. They have filled our empty nest (with apologies to Bronwyn and Carsten who are irreplaceable, of course, though neither one plays fetch like Leo does).

Aldous Last Supper

Wine, food and friends--what better way to spend the second last night before leaving. Using lettuce from her cold frame, tomatoes from her greenhouse and a chicken raised on the property, Kathy cooked up one of many scrumptious meals we've enjoyed at Armitage Farm. Don pours a crisp Riesling from Gaspereau Vineyards, which was followed by a bottle of one of his own wines.
Dessert included baked rhubarb, picked from the rows of plants where I usually gather a winter's supply. It is these fresh local foods, from the asparagus to the zucchini, which I will be salivating for in the North.

Princess of the Midnight Sun

My colleagues at Information Morning in Halifax gave me this night mask, which will not only block the midnight sun but could keep me warm on chilly nights. Too bad the feathers make me sneeze. And I have to confess: the cats got hold of it right after the photo shoot and worked all the fuzzy trim into a gummy mass.
I'm wondering how many equally entertaining items I will be able to fit into my suitcases. Packing is proving to be an exercise more complicated than figuring out what to put on the morning show. How much of my shoe collection do I need for 4 months--or, more to the point--how many pairs do I want? Is that why they gave me a mask with "Princess" on it?