Tattoo Zoo

This is not a hoax. Yes it is going to be there for the rest of my life and I love it!
I have been wanting to get a Tattoo for some time now, but not your average wizard or ship & anchor. I have always been fascinated by tattoo's early history, It's tribal roots. Polynesians approached the body as a canvas. They had some amazing graphic artists who would mark the body in bands, sleeves, and plates, which would mark tribe, origin, landscape and would be added to as one grew older. Travels, hunting expeditions, and life ceremonies were marked on the body like life rings which told a personal story of there heritage and growth.
Now i am not from polynesia, so I did not get a polynesian tattoo. But i did use this approach to marking the body as ritual, to represent a change, that I am no longer who i was but changed forever by time and the world. This mark will be an ornament to mark this time of my life and no doubt there will be more periods of time worth marking.

It became important for me to have this done before I returned to Ontario (Yes you heard right. I will return shortly) For this time out here has been an incredible adventure and learning experience, it has allowed me to reconnect with old friends, make new ones and invest a great deal of energy in a new period of my life, which is just beginning.

I cannot thank Bryan Turnbull enough for doing this Tattoo for me. On short notice and with a broken leg he stayed 3 hours past close to make this happen. The work is nothing short of amazing. Strangely enough it's a big small world. Bryan has just moved out from Toronto and we now many of the same people. He even did some work on one my co-workers, Anna Bensick. The experience was great filled with conversation of common friends and transplanting travels. The shop is called "Tattoo Zoo" and it stands above other shops, friendly, informative and not to mention its great artists. Check out some of Bryan Turnbull's other work on his flickr page

Searching for a Home

After a week of work-prep (buying tools and safety gear) and doing some pitiful temp work for dispicable pay, I am back on mayne island to get the goods on the housing situation and work scene. No one has replied to my ads on island. There seems to be only two expensive cottages for rent which are unessicarily big. I get the feeling you really have to know someone out on the islands to get a toehold out here. Some people are pretty open and friendly others guard there slice of heaven. After talking to some people i was directed to check out a rough cabin that needed work to become livable. It is true, the caretakers are doing what they can to get a toehold on Mayne themselves, but the landowners couldn't care if anyone lived there. The place needs a wood stove, outhouse and a lot of love to be livable, but it doesn't feel like the safest place.

I don't feel that work could be too hard to find here, I've already given out my # for odd carpentry work, and picked up some quick cash splitting wood for a cottager. I will be doing a fencing job with colin back on Vancouver island tommorow, and then hopefully take a trip up island to see my step-sister Kerry and an old friend Melota. I want to check out the housing and work scene there before I make any decisions.
I will be returning to Mayne for a big party at Pat Henneberry's place and staying for a week of free cob building instruction!Yay my first green homebuilding class.
Pat and Kit are really amazing, creative, innovative, and welcoming people i have met here. Pat is a self-taught cob home builder. He just got back from Burning Man festival, and had some wild stories. See there webpage "Cobworks" for more info. I will have detailed stories and pictures of the work i get into later.
On saturday night I went for a hike up to Mount Parke park, with Jeff and Sam what a view! not to mention the sweet helicopter landing pad with peace sign. far-out!

Party to the Max w/ Raffi on Mayne Island

Wholly smoke! I don't beleive what an awesome time i had this weekend. I caught an early ferry to Mayne to visit Jeff and Samantha who have just moved there 2 days ago and who are reviving a farm, recording an album, oh ya and getting married too, all in this month. It's safe to say they are thrilled and excited and overwhelled by the opportunity and new life they are starting. I was a day early for a party I had been invited to for the landowner Jacky, who is fronting the finances for this farm revival.

I had no idea where they live or how to find them so I bike into what is considered the island centre. "That's where all the action is" the ferry attendant directed. I borrowed a bike to explore and headed for Miner's Bay. At the grocery store I asked about a community Bulliten board but there was no sign of jeff, so I asked about the unknown farm and it seems there's probably no one else on the island that hasn't heard about this farm revival. "Hardscrabble farms?" the storeowner projected. "There diggin a lake up there". It sounded about right. So off i went and soon found Jeff with a socket rench bent over the farm plough as he attached a second blade. A few seconds to register this stranger and he was all smiles. Just having arrived on the farm an hour earlier, it's just as exciting to him too. He tested out the tractor and it seems to pull real well.

The farm feild rolls out across a small valley and up a slope where giant ceder and fir begin a forest hill. 2 more fields extend to the east. This is big. In the bottom of the field bucket arms are digging a big pond right down to clean blue clay that will fill in the winter and be used as irregation in the summer. The north bank is being terraced for an orchard. Jeff is wide eyed and humbled by this opportunity but not afraid.

They have rented a place just a walk down the road, that will keep them until spring when the owners wish to take up residency again for the prime summer season. They call them "summerer's", there are also "weekenders" and these are terms created by the "full-timers" which are the 900 or so permanent residents which call mayne island home.

Raffi is one of them. He showed up to the Farm dinner party as an invited neighbor. When he introduced himself i gave him a big hug and thanked him for being a part of my childhood. He laughed, i'm sure it happens a lot. I'm what he calls a "Beluga Grad" see his website for the amzing work he is continuing to do now.Raffi News.We had wine and olives and talked about his father, who was a portrait photographer in Cairo. His dad Poineered and simplified the early colour 3 step developing process that we are familiar with today. Once neighbors, friends and family had shown up. We dove into a great big Alberta Beef roast.
After dinner a banjo stuck up a chord in the living room by the fire. People gathered and joined in song. Then we sang some rounds, a guitar appeared, and we were treated to Raffi doing john denver and bob dylan covers. It was an awesome time. Samantha and two others are impressive singers and part of a group called "the No-shit Shirley's" an all woman acapella group. She is organising a group singing session on the island and after that night I can't say no to it. The evening was not complete without home-made blackberry pie. Raffi said he's a pie-athlete, trianing for a pie-athalon, and was first in line. As Jeff and I said goodbye and headed home, we heard Rafffi strike up "Baby Beluga". It was icing on the cake, and a good feeling that i should find a place to live and work on the island.

I arose at 6am to catch the ferry to swartz bay, and posted a couple rental want adds up as i left. Cross my fingers and i'll be an islander for the winter. Sorry no photo's from this party, you'll have to paint a picture in your mind for this one.

Eagle Paw Organics

This week I had a breif stay at Eagle Paws Organic Farm. It really does feel great to get into the dirt and after a long day of work enjoy some great organic homecooked foods. Eagle paws is located in East Sooke, Coastal dense forests and lots of fog. It's a beautiful farm with many varieties flourishing due to the hard work of Candice and her hard working apprentices and wwoofers.
My stay was breif partly because i need to get down to nickels and dimes, and find some paid work to cover my new bc auto insurance which is double than that in ontario. This week I've been spending much time online and searching classifieds for building workshops and apprenticeships.
This weekend I will head out to Mayne island for a celebration on the future Farm where Jeff and Samantha will live. I'll Hopefully have a chance to meet some locals including A cob home builder and find out more about work opportunities on the island. More on this later.

Shredding Waves on Long Beach, The Rainforest Coast

It's been a wonderfully wild week on Longbeach in Tofino, on the westcoast of Vancouver Island. On Tuesday Shannon and I, headed out towards Sooke and Portrenfrew, which is the end of the highway along the south west coast and the beginning of the west coast trail. We gassed up at a marina in port Renfrew and headed out on the logging roads north. Across into lake Cowachin for a night in an old logging camp, the type of lake a lochness would love to love in.

Then up out to see Nitinat sound (these are real bad roads and now i think i need new shocks and a tie rod) this is where everyone whose into kite surfing goes. From here it was north to Port Alberni and on to Tofino.

This is a beautiful place and a nice little town but it's a tourist trap too. Ucluelet is great with an active fishing village and community. When we got there no campsites were available we finally found a walk in site but they wanted $60 for a night! we talked them down to 40, and later found cheaper walk-in deals when sites opened up at Greenpoint provincial park (first come first serve).about $17 a night but no shower. So I was a salty dawg for about 4 days.

We nosed around the towns and had guided nature walks in the rain forest, but the most fun was the Beach. Everyone who comes here has to come for the Beaches and the surf. Huge wide sandy beaches that go on forever. Beachcombers keep your pants on. Tide pools and sea life all over. Morning fog (in fogust as they call it here) clears to warm sun and ocean breezes. For 8 a day you can rent a Boogie board from the peoples drug mart in tofino and a wet suit from long beach surf shop $15 (you need a wetsuit cause the water is cold). You can hit the waves (best at high tide) with no experience and have the most fun of your life getting your ass pounded by waves. I was really sore the next day but got back out there.



We picked up at least 7 hitchhikers mostly young travelers trying to get to beaches, all nice people, and Patrick and ukee from quebec who came out wave surfing one morning with us.
We met a crazy hippie named Claude Robert who goes to the Tofino sat. Market with his van and giant dream catchers to put out his wild vibe. He strangely doesn't sell these but charges tourists $1 to take a picture of him. He'll chase you down across a parking lot. No Jokes. I gave him some money to get a new fuel pump for the dream machine. We also saw a live folk show Jeremy Walsh on Saturday night.
On the way home we stopped at Cathedral grove to take in the big old growth (see photos on flickr) Now shannon is leaving for the east and i am getting the van worked on (new tie rod and shocks) to keep her going.
p.s. - no more logging roads

Squamish Loggers Days

I drove down from the mountains and through Kamloops, where I picked up some organic Veggies and a fresh caught salmon tail for dinner at the local market. Down into steep mountain valley's, trains flying by down into the outskirts of Vancouver for a nights stay.
The next day I headed into Vancouver to find Jeff Taylor's place. I spent the entire day lost in parts of both North, West and downtown Vancouver. It's turns out there are 3 east 15th streets. Finally i met up with Jeff and we headed out to and Ethiopian restaurant for dinner with his fiancee Samantha. Jeff and Samantha will be getting married next month and moving out to Mayne isl. in the Gulf where they are planning on developing a piece of land and starting a farm. Jeff invited me to come work later in the season when they get set up out there. It's a wonderful opportunity and I will defiantly take them up on it. Samantha is a wonderful gal with a background in folklore and ethnomusicology she loves to teach through song. Jeff's a lucky guy. I hope i can help in some way to make their dream farm a reality.
The next morning I was up early to go have breakfast in North Van with Douglas Curran, an extremely talented documentary photographer who i have admired for a long time. He has created visual portraits or Traveling tent preachers, Metis communities in Alberta and UFO cults. But now he is heading out to Milawi in Africa where he has been going for the last 15 years to photograph the Nyau masks and rituals. check out his stuff at http://www.dougcurranphotos.com/
I headed into MEC and Bought a pair of Hiking boots, and headed up to Squamish. The highway 99 up the edge of the coast is a great drive however it is under heavy construction to expand it for the 2010 winter Olympics in whistler.
Squamish is a beautiful town surrounded by mountains. It seems like everybody here is super active outdoor sport enthusiasts. It's the long weekend and I didn't book ahead so i spent two days sleeping in the van in a parking lot with a bunch of other climbers. It seems that climbers from all over the world make a stay here to climb the "Stawamis Chief" the second largest sheer granite face in the world. I hiked up the back side on my first night there. 655m to the top for an unbelievable view of the whole valley and bay. This an incredibly steep climb and could possibly be renamed the Millennial stair master 3000 and be included as a new winter olympic event.
The next day I went into town and rented a tricked out mountain bike and rode some amazing trails through dense old growth and giant fern woods.
Sunday is when the Loggers festival was happening. I got up early and went to the loggers breakfast with a Japanese Climbing instructor named Take. Take writes freelance for Rock and Snow, a Japanese climbing mag. I went early to the logging sports to get out on the field while qualifiers were on. I met a number of world champion sportsman and learned all about these games. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the fest. Logging and deep sea fishing are the worlds most dangerous jobs and these loggers put there Mad Skillz to the test, Burling, climbing 90ft poles, chopping, cutting and felling trees onto a stick in the ground the size of my fist. This is a terrificly exciting event to see for yourself. More photos available on flickr.



I have now just landed in North Langeford at Colin Amey and Cat's house. THey have chickens and a small garden, selling eggs and berries and jam at a farm stand on the end of their driveway. I feel really welcome here, but Shannon Amey and I are hitten' the road and heading up to Tofino for the week for camping and hiking. More on this later when we return.

Jasper National Park - The Rockies

Day 11-14

From Drumheller I took a little trip to the Royal Tyrell Museum to learn all about Dinosoars and Paleontologists. This brand new museum was a worth-while stop. Then it was up and out of the Badlands and onto rolling prarie hills toward Lacombe, where i visited a twin dome baptist church and got a little tour. I drove on past Rocky Mountain House on Hwy 11 and into the foothills of the rockies. I stayed in a little roadside stop that night, and made a warm fire, the mountains beckoning in the distance.
The Next day i drove out into the thick of the Rockies. Early morning caught many white tail deer family grazing beside the road. This is truly a beautiful drive. I'd love to do it on a motorcycle some day. There are no trucks allowed on the "icefields pkwy" so apart from the odd rv the traffic is great. You just gotta roll down the windows and take in a deep breathe of that fresh sweet mountain air.
Just before you reach Jasper there is a little side road 93A. Turn here and stop first to check out Athabasca falls, then if you follow the Athabasca river you'll reach a mountain road going to Mt . Edith Caval, which is where Becky manages a rustic hostel. Rustic meaning no electricity. Simple and gorgious. There are a few panabode cabins, all of which have woodstoves and gas lanterns. Most visitors come for the day and see the glacier, but a few intrepid mountain climbers make an ascent(some skill required).

Becky has just returned from a 4 day canoe trip with Hieka (her releif manager) in the park, and on top of that Heika's friend Sasha showed up on his motorcycle.
I've spent the last 4 days with this gang and it has been fun. Good food, stories and not to mention scrabopoly! (it's exciting and I'll have to teach you guys it some day)
On Sunday i went on a hike around to the back cirque of mt. Edith Caval and ascended the alpine forest up to the skree at the tree line (7000ft) It was a lot for my first big mountain hike about 6 hours. But I went up with Jack (general manager of Hostels International for Jasper region) and Roger and Laurie (hostel managers). It was great excersice. We got up close to a ptarmigan family who blend in well with the trail in summer and have a total white plumage in winter. I have to say Jack and Roger are a comical pair and in better shape than I. They set a good pace.



The Next day I hiked up to the alpine meadows with Becky and we caught up on a lot of stuff. The Wildflowers are incredable up here. I will do my best to identify them later for you later. (see rocky mountain High gallery on flickr). We saw Clark's nutckracker and Raven. Also a Mother and Baby Marmot. who live in the glacial moraine(rocks).

Last night we had a great exaustive game of scrabbopoly which we invented. It includes as you can guess scrabble, monopoly, but also trivial pursuit, poker and a free market).
Today is town chores in Jasper a beautiful but expensive town. I am heading north west out on the highway to BC tonight on my way to visit with Jeff Taylor and Douglas Curran in Vancouver (2.5 days drive)