Letters to Smed - The Ice Hut (cont'd)

Hey Smed,

Just came up from checking my gear. Found out why my reel stopped working last winter. Seems that plastic gears don't like -30 degree temps. We should give Sam a call to remind him to pick up his license...

"Little more was said as we packed our belongings onto the remaining sled and filled our hands with the rest. We were at a place where the road narrows even farther and becomes uneven, when we first laid eyes on Red-Green. Its windows peering like two defiant eyes as it teetered on top of a ridge of snow at an awkward angle. There was a sharp bend in one corner of the roof. When I asked Smed what happened, all he said was, “Hit a dam tree!” I jokingly queried as to whether the sled broke before or after he hit the tree. “Right after,” he said. We all stared at the hut but didn’t say another word.

Deciding that further discussion might prove hazardous and that discretion might be the best option at this point, we blasted off toward the cottage, unloaded our luggage and then back down the road we plodded to see if we could convince the dam hut, as it was now affectionately known, to follow us to the lake.

Smed manned the remaining sled and slowly took up the slack as we sunk in our heels and pushed at the back. After a slight protest it was off again, swaying from side-to-side down the road. I’m not sure, but judging by the way that he was driving, Smed seemed determined to turn the dam hut into firewood. He rounded the final bend near the cottage, and with the lake was only a few meters away Red-Green slammed the brakes on once again.

Snow had piled so high at the front of the hut that it brought the sled to a grinding halt. The challenge was now personal. The hut had already ruined Smed’s favorite machine and elevated his blood pressure to unimaginable heights, but the battle of wills continued. Normally calm, calculated and collected Smed’s eyes glowed and became almost demonic. Blue smoke belched from the sled as Smed was clearly determined to win the battle. Those of us that were still somewhat grounded in reality rushed to the sled and convinced him to concede this one to the hut before we had no sleds to use at all.

Out came the shovels and soon we were ready to edge onto the ice. Smed was convinced by this time that the hut was alive and hated him. Even though the ice was a good foot thick he was sure it must be doomed to sink."

Well Smed ole' buddy I'm off to pick up some supplies...won't be long now!

Ed

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Letters to Smed - The Ice Hut (continued)

Hey Smed,

Back at ya again. Well I got to thinkin' that good ol Red/Green must be just about out of surprises but I do have to chuckle when I think back to that first trip...

"Don and I arrived later that afternoon, after navigating backroads that looked more like rivers than roads, and were looking forward to relaxing in a nice, warm ice-hut, that would of course by now be sitting on the ice over a school of Walleye. Now I should point out that this location is not one where you just drive up and walk out onto the ice. The cottage is a good ½ hr. walk from where we park the cars. But thanks to the virtues of modern technology we were able to call Smed and arrange to have him meet us at the parking lot with his snow machine. He usually has two machines with him, one that’s left at the parking lot for us to follow him down the cottage road while our luggage and copious fishing equipment and supplies are packed around us and tied to the sleds. There was to be nothing usual about this trip…..

Smed was waiting for us at the parking lot when we arrived. At first glance it was clear that he was not a happy camper. When I asked where the second sled was the floodgate opened.

“I think I wrecked the $^%#*& thing when I was trying to pull that $%^&*?? hut down the road,” he replied.

Now Smed is not known for being the most patient type and was not about to wait for help before dragging Red Green down the road, a trait that seems to be more common amongst the male population than is evident with the opposite gender. I guess that’s why our wives never join us on these trips. They would never understand our inflexibility and need to act on impulse with no real plan or rational. Now believe me, I have nothing against, and even encourage, women to accompany their men on outdoor adventures, but think of how many good stories would be lost if we always acted in a rational manner."

Well I better head out to clear the driveway before the missus gets home. I don't want to wind up with a sprained wrist again...oh yeah, another ice hut story...

Ed

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Letters to SMED - The Ice Hut

Hey Smed,

I just got through reading the 2007 "Darwin Awards" (http://darwinawards.com/ ) and got to thinkin about our annual ice fishing trip. Man I can remember the first time we laid eyes on that ol' shack like it was yesterday:

"The ice-hut was conceived from thoughts of frozen toes and a runny nose. And, according to Sam, it would be a nice place to relax and read a good book if the fish weren’t biting. It became a living, breathing thing on a cold January day in a carpenter’s workshop, several hours drive from its final destination. Isn't an ice-hut, something that's designed to give warmth and shelter to cold weary fisherman, a thing that should be crafted lovingly with ones own hands? Could it be that it resented being traded for a couple of maple logs cut from Sam’s woodlot?

Perhaps even inanimate objects have feelings and require an element of respect. Sometimes that respect is inherent, like when you gaze upon a well-crafted fishing rod or reel. Other times it must grow over time, like a new pair of boots. In rare circumstances the object blatantly demands your respect, something that may take years to realize.

Red-Green, affectionately named after the fictitious TV handyman, arrived at the lake in late January, the biting depths of the Southern Ontario winter, during the worst thunderstorm I’d seen in years. Fields were flooded and took on the appearance of small lakes. Streams turned to raging torrents and gnawed through the constraints of their banks at every opportunity. Was it coincidence, or omen of things to come?"

...Well Smed ol' buddy we need to make some plans. Talk to ya soon.

Ed

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Climate Change & Wildlife Habitat

These days we often here talk of climate change and the potential impact that global warming will have on our society. But what about the affect of climate change on wildlife and wildlife habitat.

Many of our wildlife species are completely dependant on a very narrow band of acceptable climactic and environmental conditions in order to survive. Serious study of the effects of climate change on habitat must be undertaken and planning models must be tuned to reflect the new reality.

In short, when an ecosystem undergoes a dramatic change it can no longer sustain resident and migratory wildlife populations. New species of plant and animal life take over and indigenous species disappear.

So why don’t animals and birds simply move as their habitat changes? The fact is that they do, and much can be learned by the studying the slow migration of species into regions where they were previously unknown. But what happens if they can’t move? Take the animals and birds of the northern tundra for example. They rely on food sources that are only produced in regions of permafrost. As the permafrost vanishes due to sustained periods of higher than normal temperatures new types of vegetation will take over. These species simply cannot move further north to find food sources because it will simply cease to exist.

Species like the ptarmigan, arctic fox, and polar bear will simply cease to exist. And guess what? It is very likely to happen in our lifetime. Many scientists firmly believe that this is a “when”, rather than an “if” scenario.

There are other fragile ecosystems like the prairie pothole region that runs from the north central US through Southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and into Southern Alberta. This ecosystem provides a stopover for almost every migratory bird along the Mississippi flyway accounting for 80% of the waterfowl in North America. This ecosystem is already at risk due to improper farming and development practices. Over the next 50 years the potholes that provide a safe secure stopover for a wide variety of waterfowl will simply cease to exist.

Don’t take my word for it! Do your own research and form your own opinions, but you will find that, in spite of government rhetoric to the contrary, many of these changes are inevitable. Wildlife studies must now focus on how to plan for the new reality and forget about sustainable management models of the past.

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Hunters or Poachers?

I recently read about a Supreme Court of Canada decision that just made my blood boil. It was a decision in favor of the insurance industry, http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2007/10/19/scoc-autoinsurance.html, regarding a case where someone was shot in the leg because the shooter thought he was a deer.

Although I think it is an interesting and just decision that is not the subject of my rant. It is the fact that the shooter was referred to as a hunter. You see the shooter was taking aim at what he thought was a deer with the aid of the headlights of his car.

Friends, that is not hunting, it is poaching! And, it is illegal! I believe that a lack public, as well as media, understanding of hunters and hunting are to blame. Somehow it is viewed that anyone carrying a firearm in the pursuit of game animals is a hunter. Or, for that matter anyone that plies our lakes, rivers, or oceans in search of fish is a fisherman.

I do not hide the fact that I am an avid hunter and fisherman, but I am also a conservationist and avid watcher of nature. Both mainstream media and the public need to understand that hunters and fishermen abide by a set of moral rules as well as abiding by rules and laws laid down by various levels of government. We may not always agree with them, but we always abide by them.

Those who hunt or fish out of season; those that keep more game than they are allowed; those that take antlers and leave meat to rot; those that kill for various profitable animal parts; and those that hunt at night by shining light in the eyes of animals are not hunters; they are poachers! It is high time that mainstream media began educating themselves and at the same time educating the general public that those who perpetrate these crimes against wildlife are criminals; not hunters.

One more thing while I’m on the topic. The annual deer rut (breeding season) is either underway, or will begin shortly. You will no doubt hear media personalities stating that deer are being chased onto the roads by hunters whenever there is a deer/car accident. That is yet another misconception that leads to public misunderstanding.

During the rut bucks (male deer) have only one thought on their minds and just like adolescent boys their hormones outpace their brains. It is the bucks chasing does onto highways that causes the vast majority of deer/car accidents this time of year; not hunters.

If you are driving in rural areas at this time of year be especially vigilant in the periods around dawn and dusk.

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