Today's Observed Predators

     There's a moose on top of the hill in front of the rising sun. Is it a bull? "I think that would make a great photo'" I think to myself as I drive down the highway wondering if it is worthwhile to go back.
     I am not as early as I would like to be. I generally like to be walking down the path before daylight to get far enough from the busy highway in hope of seeing wolves or other predators. It is a mile to the first spot that I can turn around to head back and another mile past the grazing moose to where I can turn back. By the time I get back to where the moose is standing, she has her head up watching me, as I am the only vehicle stopping on the busy highway. Instant alarm and moosey self-preservating concern kicks in about 10 seconds after I open my door, camera in hand. Time for a couple quick shots before the cow moves off. Oh well, I did not have the camera quite set well enough for the shot I envisioned. On to the next possible shot.

Great Horned Owl with Snowshoe Hare

     About two miles down the highway something black catches my attention from the corner of my left eye. Ravens circling and in some kind of flap over another critter on the fencepost. Something unusual going on here so I toddle on down the road to where I can turn back once again. I'm not making much headway this morning, oh well. I pull far off the highway as I can so the busy traffic can whiz by safely. A great-horned owl is sitting on the fence post holding a snowshoe hare. Poor bunny! The ravens are trying their best to harass the owl into dropping it's hard earned meal. I think the ravens have forgotten that they are fooling around with one of the greatest avian predators in the Boreal forest. All the owl does is watch them closely and duck its head as the raven dives it. The owl has its meal and is going to keep it. It soon flies up into a nearby aspen tree where it is well camouflaged and protected from dive bombers.

Pretty Well Hidden Great Horned Owl

     When I think of predators, I don't always consider birds. There are probably more predatory bird species than the more commonly thought of mammals. I am not even considering the greater numbers of deadly, tiny insects or microscopic creatures under our feet in the forest that most of us know nothing about.
     On this day I came across a very deadly Northern Shrike hunting any small songbirds such as the cute little Black-Capped Chickadees and White-Breasted Nuthatches or the Hairy Woodpeckers that I watch for a few minutes. Nuthatches, now that I think about it, are preying on any insects they can find in the cracks of the aspen tree boles. Same with the two woodpeckers that are digging hidden insects from their hideaway inside the rotting trees. The magpies and ravens that are harassing the owl are also very opportunistic predators, not at all shy about stealing baby birds, eggs or meaty scraps found on kills made by larger predators.

Too Quick Black-Capped Chickadee

     Here we are, well into the winter season, the first day after the shortest day of the year. Most birds have migrated south and today I have spotted eight species of birds of which only two are prey for predators. Chickadees and snow buntings do not have safe lives just because they are cute to us. They have to be on high alert at all times while they flit from seed to fruit gleaning every possible calorie during the day so they can survive the long cold nights without dying from hypothermia.
     On my walk today I came across several moose and noticed quite a few clumps of hair already scraped off their itchy hides. Ticks have begun their annual life cycle by attaching themselves to any moose that wanders past. Ticks are very predatory insects that can infest a moose by the thousands. Moose will literally scratch themselves bald trying to get rid of blood-sucking ticks. Moose can be so infested that they become weak from blood loss, cold due to hair loss and sick enough to die. I have seen moose carcasses that were so sick that even scavengers would not touch them.

Bull Moose

     I finally was able to get close enough to a bull moose for some decent photos today. They are pretty skittish as two of this fellows bachelor buddies showed me. For some reason this fellow was curious enough about me to allow me into his personal safe zone. Perhaps he noticed how handicapped I appeared walking through waist high shin tangle, knowing that he could easily out distance me if he found it necessary. Moose are big animals standing over five feet at the shoulders and weighing over 700 pounds in this case. This rack, although not large in comparison to very large ones, is respectable for this area of the world. It is more than four feet wide and probably weighs more than forty pounds. In less than a month this bull will lose his antlers and begin growing a new set in time for next years rut.

White-tailed Buck in the Rut

     A bit further down the trail, I notice a white-tailed buck, neck swollen by testosterone fuelled hormones, with his nose to the ground or high in the air, hot on the trail of a sweet smelling doe. This is the one time of the year that these deer lose their cautionary survival instinct and we can be lucky enough to get close enough for a shot. Normally he would have spotted me and I would never know he was even near, but today he walked right across the trail in front of me with nothing on his mind but a sweetheart. I think I can remember what that was all about.
     These moose and the deer will be well reminded to pay attention, and perhaps that was what the other two bull moose were doing by keeping their distance. There are wolves about and they are what I think of when I think of predators. There is no doubt that they are amongst the worlds top hunters of the world but they hunt in packs most often. Most predatory birds are solitary hunters. I have seen Bald Eagles assist their mates to chase down a gull or duck but otherwise they hunt on their own or steal from smaller successful predators.
     Some days it pays to stay in bed a bit longer than usual as you never know what is happening when, in the Boreal Forest.

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No Job

     I am no longer employed by Deerland Equipment by mutual agreement. It has not been my happy place for a few months but being afraid of the unknown and self-doubts, I stayed and made a living. I really wanted to be other places. With more and more pressure to get out and find sales, talk to people. sell old customers more equipment, do more demos, sell, sell, sell, I knew I was getting outside of my comfort zone. I was offered a different position within the company but took this as a "kick in the butt" to get out and do what I have want to do. I have some ideas that I will pursue along the path I began 9 years ago. I will get back into wilderness guiding, photography and writing.
     I have learned many valuable lessons about sales and humans over the past three years. Do you ever feel like saying something to some people?

• People do not buy like I do. If I want something, I go get it. I have an idea about what I want and go find it. I will try to dicker price a bit but generally not overly successfully. I am getting ripped
• I try to purchase major items before I really need it. I don't wait until the snow is knee deep and begin my search for a snow blower. I try to purchase snow tires before the big ice storm. I try to purchase my Christmas gifts before noon on the 24th Dec. Other people don't. They will wait until the last moment and then be pissed if they can't find exactly what they want NOW! We had lots of stock yesterday
• Some customers are liars. "This tractor runs  beautifully, I just want a new one!" You hate it and you want to dump it on us!
• "What? is that all you will give me for my 1983 Massey Harry tractor that runs like a top? I haven't put a dime into her, doesn't need a thing. Don't worry about that tear in the seat, the dent in the rad, the leaking gasket, that muffler bearing is just fine, the missing grease nipple on the rad cap has been missing for a while now, just noticed!" 500.00 less
• You will never have exactly what a customer wants when he needs it yesterday. Hey jackass, we can order it for you. It's going to cost you!
• Why can't you deliver that machine to me at 8:00 tonight? Cause I have a life!
• You want how much for that mower? Are you nuts? I saw it in your flyer last week for 1/2 that! You're full of bear scat!
• Your competition has it on for 300.00 less than you. Same thing exactly! Please go buy it there then!
• I can get a Kubota for 3000.00 less! You deserve it
• I want a hat and a jacket for me and my kin folk if I buy that 300.00 used lawn mower. Go to the thrift shop
• The warranty is only 3 days passed! You could have called in when the problem first occurred and we could have covered it. 
• I will never be back if this is the kind of service I can expect from you. I thank you for that small blessing!
• The wife only drives that gator to the garden and back, It has never even seen a mud puddle! This machine is not a submarine! 
• I have to ask the wife! No Balls? (I can speak big now, as long as mine isn't here!)
• I am going to think about it. I am a gentle salesman. If you want it buy it. I am not going to hound and harass you. I am not going to kiss your butt to buy it from me! I am not going to call you at home at supper time or bed time to purchase anything. If you expect that, there is the next dealership down the road. You expressed an interest and I have given you the facts, the decision is yours now. (my downfall as a salesman)

     I am sure there are many other lessons and answers that I will think of over the next few days. I will try to add them. You are welcome to share your experiences in the comments.
     It is not all bad either. There are some great people out there if treated fairly. I will miss some of my good customers. They are working hard to get ahead and understand that two-way relationship building is important in marriages and in business.
     John Deere's do break down. They are fixable. You can get parts for them. They are expensive but you get what you pay for. If they don't work, we will make it right. If you wrecked it, you will pay. Don't lie to us, we can see what happened to cause the failure and will explain it, if it is your fault or the manufacturers fault.

I would like to thank all the great customers I had the privilege to sell a great product to. I would also like to thank Deerland and the great people dedicated to all of their customers satisfaction. I could never sell a Case or a Kubota tractor.

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Adventure, Trauma and Excitement

     I have to blame Wifey for my latest mishap. It all started off innocently enough with a visit to the dentist a couple weeks ago, which she insisted I do. He filled one and extracted one baby tooth that should have come out when I was in my teens. The bad part about it was that that tooth was one of the anchors for a partial bridge on my lower jaw. Now, with nothing to clamp onto, that clasp is just hanging there, in mid air, or, mid mouth, like a fishhook waiting for an unsuspecting, innocent fish to come by.

      Early Saturday morning, in the first snow fall, I am headed to Nordegg to do a presentation for the Junior Forest Wardens who are on a weekend camp out at wilderness camp Alexo. I had been asked by my daughter-in-law to do a show about my experience with salmon and bears. The JFWs are planning a trip on the West Coast Trail in August of 2016 so would like to be aware of some of the sights they may come across. I was happy to do it as I get to go to the west central region of Alberta for some much needed mountain time. I stopped for gas and snacks at Rocky Mtn. House before heading west toward my destination. One of the snacks I purchased was a bag of Cracker Jack which I would never do if Wifey was there to keep me on my sugar free, junk food free diet.

      “My, ain’t this real pretty” I am thinking as I am quietly driving along the empty highway, listening to staticky CFCW country radio as I motored further from its home base in Camrose.  I am watching for critters and scenery while munching away at my bag of Cracker Jack when a sudden and piercing pain struck my tongue. All chewing came to a halt. I gagged and tried to spit the half chewed Cracker Jack into my hand but my tongue won’t move. It has been impaled by the sharp bridge clasp. Talk about distracted driving for a second while I direct the car to the edge of the highway.

     I don’t know which way to take my tongue off the offending hook. I try to remember which way it curved so I could gently withdraw it from the metal trap. I can feel blood mixing into the half masticated popcorn, peanuts, candy and corn hulls. The bridge is now flopping about on my tongue mixing the mouthy mess into drool dripping from half open jaws. I get a grip on the steel bridge and attempt to empty my mouth without causing any more damage to poor tongue.

     “How come does this happen to me? Am I being punished for cheating on my diet?”

     Finally, after at least several minutes of struggle, it seems, I am finally able to free my tongue, rescue my teeth and clear my mouth of all debris. I can breathe without panic or further damage to painful tongue!

     It is Wifey’s fault, obvious as can be.

     I made it in plenty of time to find the remote camp and do some exploration before the show. I find the long abandoned town of Saunders after a quick visit to the turquoise coloured North Saskatchewan River. I enjoy my lunch while sitting alone on the bank watching the cold water flow quietly but insistently downstream. A river bank, wherever it is, is one of my favourite sit spots. I think it fuels my own envious wanderlust as I am a wanderer too. I am most happy, like the river, on the move, enjoying the journey more so than the destination, by far.

     The town was a coal mining town that was quite the happening place for several years. Now the only reminder of a town is a stone monument and a glass encased map of what it looked like. Even the railroad is gone except for the right-of-way and over-growing grade. I have to wonder how someone found the coal seam in this vast area. What if the seam had been half a mile up hill, would that wandering prospector still have found it?

Map of the coal mining ghost town of Saunders, Alberta

     There are about 80 or 90 parents, leaders and children of all ages at the presentation. This is a very involved group of people who enjoy the wilds of Alberta year around. It is not a babysitting service where you can just drop your kids off for the weekend. In this Junior Forest Wardens group, all parents are involved and helping the leaders teach valuable outdoor skills to interested youth. There are many games played, fires built, knives sharpened, scavenger hunts, meals cooked and cleaned up, wood to gather along with new friends made and respect for the environment gleaned. What a great opportunity this is for these young people away from city distractions. There are no computers, Internet or TV. Here, there is only fresh air, exercise, wilderness challenges and a badly needed Nature re-connection.

Ruffed Grouse, Not Our Dinner Today

     After a great meal of roast chicken, veggies and spuds topped off by wild berry crisp and ice cream we all went outside in the dark and drizzling rain to build a campfire. It doesn't take too long before the whole crew crowds around the blazing fire singing songs and enjoying the night. What a fantastic evening to take part in. After my presentation, I left in a heavy snow storm. I felt a bit guilty to be heading to a nice warm, dry motel room while most of the crew would be sleeping in smokey teepee's.

     The next morning I woke up and looked out to about 4 inches of fresh snow. I heard about it later from my son. Everyone survived, albeit a bit damp, smoked and chilly. Memories and adventure for all.

     The snow was not Wifey's fault!

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Spectacular Sockey

     There are few migrations that are so valuable to such a wide variety of benefactors as the salmon return to their natal river. It is one of natures great annual events but even more spectacular than usual every four years. 2014 is one of these highlight years so we decided to drive to world famous Adams River, B.C. to witness one of Mother Nature's miracles.

Male and Female Sockeye Salmon

     Several million sockeye salmon (onchorinchus nerka) have made the hazardous journey up the Fraser River and South Thompson River into Shushwap Lake. They then move into the Adams River and Adams lake where they will each lay and fertilise up to 4000 eggs before dying. Once the adult salmon have left the Pacific Ocean and began the 800 kilometre journey to the lakes, they stop eating, surviving on the fat reserves stored in their bodies. Hormones triggered by the fresh water begin a major body transformation making a spawning salmon unrecognisable from the bright silver adults that enter the river. The dead salmon have transferred their body weight of nutrients  from the ocean environment where they grew up to the lake, river and forest environments of their birth. These rich nutrients will feed everything from microscopic plankton to wildlife such as bears, mink, otters, ducks and eagles to fertiliser for the forest aligning the rivers and lakes.

Providing for the Future

     I have seen pink, coho, chum and chinook spawning migrations in the past but this is the first sockeye spawn I have seen. They have transformed from gleaming silver to bright red with green head colours. The males have developed long, hooked jaws which they use to bite competing males who want to fertilise female spawn as they are squirted into the gravel redds.
     An odour of rotting fish is noticeable as we wander the pathways of Roderick-Haig- Brown Provincial Park which contains the Adams River. We have arrived just as the gates opened to allow visitors to this site. We enjoy relatively light trail competion and are able to spend quiet time observing the fish. We watch as fishermen wade the river fly fishing for trout. I wonder if they are damaging delicate redds in the river but there are no wardens around chasing them from the cool clear river. By late afternoon, we are tuckered out and satisfied with our adventure but wishing for a more solitary experience. As we make our way to the car, we are amazed by hordes of people crowding the visitor reception and vendor area. I am happy to see that so many people are interested in this spectacle which bodes well for salmon as a whole.
     The next morning, we left before daylight hoping to find a river where there are not so many people. We had a hint as we drove toward our destination the day before as we were forced to weave our way through a "salmon jam" on the highway at the base of Roger's Pass. We drove down a short section of former highway to a very secluded, quiet place beside the Eagle River. The water was more clear and much colder and contained almost as many determined sockey. We enjoyed a couple hours of total solitude in the company of the fish, the forest and a family of bald eagles. What a perfect way to salute the salmon.

Eagles Misty Roost

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Realtree 3-D Poncho Coyote Feast

     I get up early to go to work so it is even better to get up early to go to play. I headed out to my favourite park for an early morning stroll hoping to see some moose, hear elk bugling or whatever might be happening today. The morning was chilly, not freezing as a very light west wind rattled the golden leaves still clinging to their aspen trees.  The rustling leaves and damp ground helped muffle my steps as I headed down the dark trail. The eastern sky was lightening with a faint reddish blush as high overhead I could hear geese making their way to an early whole grain breakfast. What a great day to be able.

     A moose is browsing on twigs and underbrush as I pause for a look. This cow moose is accompanied by a calf eating nearby, then another grazing a bit further off. Twin calves are most common and these all looked very healthy and ready for the rigours of winter.

     I was wearing a new Realtree camouflage 3-D leafy poncho so did not seem to worry the moose as normal. Interesting, I thought, will see if other critters act differently too. I don’t walk fast on these nature hikes. I like to walk and pause and sit down for a few minutes just to see or hear what is happening around me. I like to watch the sun light the tops of the trees before it peers over the horizon. The golden leaves are even more golden with the first morning light and they whisper and twitter at each other like girls primping for a date. Chickadees, nuthatches and juncos flit through the underbrush and scamper up the sides of aspen tree boles searching for their breakfast as well. Off in the far distance I can hear ravens and magpies squawking and squabbling over some found feast so will have to watch for that.

Juicy, Tart Cranberries

     I love the smell of the autumn forest. Tart, post frost high-bush cranberries (makes my spit run to think of them), damp and rotting aspen and poplar leaves and buds sweeten the occasional bison patty and moose droppings. With the light breeze mixing and blending the wild raw ingredients there is created a natural “eau de bush” which comes in many essences depending upon the location of the trail and quantity of ingredients.

     I am mesmerised by golden sun beams shining through the forest, lighting dark red rosebushes, many still green aspen tree leaves as well as many shades of grey and taupe coloured tree stems.

     “Why?”  I ask myself, “Do some aspen trees still have green leaves while some are golden and others are already stripped naked? Is it location, micro-climate, genetics, light, shade, wind exposure, dirt, health, water availability, age or whatever combination of all of above?” There are always more questions than answers. Everything is not created equally in the bush either. 

     Further down the leaf littered trail squabbling ravens are more noticeable as are the squawking magpies. About one hundred yards off the trail to the west, I see many flighty scavengers flitting in and out and around the bush. Some seem to be landing onto an unseen runway while others perch on branches in observation or waiting mode.  My curiosity makes me question these events so I quietly make my way in for a look. I have three things going for me today; I am heading up wind, the sun is at my back and I am wearing my new camouflage suit. I follow a little used game trail for a ways then have to veer off through the brush that tugs quietly at my Realtree poncho.

Coyote on Bison Kill

I pause often, listening and watching the actions of the birds. I find a dead log lying amongst the shin tangle that gives me a bit of elevation and makes for a quieter pathway leading in the right direction. I hold onto some brush for balance as I slowly make my way toward a standing tree where I pause and lean against for a brace. I can see part of a coyote working away on a dark coloured corpse that I assume is a moose. As I snap a few pictures another coyote appears which causes the first to snarl a warning to stay back. I want to get closer if I can but knowing how skittish a coyote can be I am hesitant. I wait until the coyote’s head is buried in the carcass and I step down from my perch trying to be as quiet and stealthy as I can. The brush tugs at my poncho as I slowly move toward another dead log. The coyote looks up often, perhaps sensing something, but the meal is more important. I step up onto a second log but it is very wobbly so I am pretty tentative as I slide sideways carefully.

Suspicious Coyote

I spot a third coyote head peering through the brush watching some apparition wobbling sideways so I pause. This suspicious coyote is unsure so it ducks back out of sight. I am finally able to make it to another standing tree that I can lean against and support my camera. I am within 25 yards and can see most of the kill tucked down into a small clearing.

     For the next hour and a half I watch quietly from my precarious perch. The log I am standing on is rotten so every time I relieve one leg to the other, I feel it give way. I am expecting it to crack and dump me into the brush but it never did. The kill is directly upwind from my position so I am getting the full benefit of “eau de rot gut” so not only am I camouflaged by sight but my body odour is also masked downwind. I hope I am not going to carry this essence home with me. Wifey may not find it very appealing. I am also watching carefully for a bear that should be attracted by the scent. I do see that the dead beast is actually a bison, perhaps a year or so old.

     I am sure the coyotes were suspicious of the strange creature observing their actions but they never got so concerned that their meal was interrupted. I am fairly positive that without the camouflaged 3-D poncho I never would have approached so near.

     What an honor it is for me to be able to spend so much time in such close proximity to these wary coyotes. Even the skittish magpies did not seem to mind my close intrusion.

     On my way out of the forest I happened upon another moose. I thought I would check out to see its reaction to a close encounter. I was slow and methodical as I circled to try to find a position that I could get a photo through all the brush. I was watched very closely but the moose never took a step. I finally found a spot where I could see the glint of its eye with the sun behind my back that I could snap a few photos. I thanked the moose as I backed off and went on my way.

Cautious Moose

     I did get a bit of a strange reaction from three women who came jogging down the trail. They seemed more concerned than the moose or the coyotes but they did safely pass by with some relief. I will definitely be using this 3-D poncho for stalking and photographing wildlife in the future. I will not be using it if I ever have to stalk the elusive and discerning human female!

Snow Goose Migration

     What a great day! Life is good! What great fun!

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Snow Goose Migration Stopover

        It looked like snow covering a pond, but this is early autumn and 16 degrees. We are in the midst of beautiful “Indian summer” harvesting weather with a brisk west wind blowing. Snow doesn’t trumpet either. This pond is covered by thousands of resting Snow geese, Ross’s Geese and a few dark morphed “blue geese.” There are some Canada geese and Greater white-fronted and ducks as well. These geese are resting for the afternoon after feeding on surrounding fields of harvested wheat and peas. Hundreds of small flocks and family groups have gathered at this pond just a few miles east of Edmonton. It reminds me of a convention or large family reunion. The hubbub of hundreds and thousands of geese catching up on all the news and gossip from the past year is comparable to our own gatherings. Flock after flock fly in to land amongst the larger flotilla. Each new flock glides in gently, upwind, to splash down in tiny gaps to join the greater convention. The flock gently drifts with the wind toward the east and south side of the pond. Some of the geese sleep with head tucked under wing, bobbing along with the windy flow while others bathe, splash and prune. Many wander up onto the muddy beach to rest or gather grit to refill their gizzard.

Plenty of Room For All

     A lone coyote glances hungrily at the mob as it wanders along the shoreline and cows graze in the surrounding pasture as geese and ducks land continuously while gulls, ravens, magpies and even a Northern Harrier fly over with little notice from the flock. All at once there is a massive explosion as every goose leaps off the water with frantic wings and deafening screams of alarm. How do they not collide with one another? Higher and higher they lift then circle overhead and around the pond wailing and crying fearfully the whole while.

Organised Panic

     I look around to see what caused the mass panic but notice nothing; “wait, what is that black spot?” Far overhead soars a lone bald eagle, circling on thermals and invisible up drafts, drifting east with the breeze. The eagle drifts along, nonchalantly, as only a great predator can.

Lone Hunter

      “Did every goose see that tiny spot and recognise it as danger at the same moment? Was there a telegraphed alarm signal passed on by sentry geese?” What fantastic eye sight they have. I have seen this happen before in other places. Flocks of gulls will often panic as will some ducks when an eagle passes overhead.

     “Will an eagle do this just because he can or is it looking for a slow or wounded laggard?” Many times, I have witnessed eagles hunting birds such as gulls, ducks and I once watched one take a Canada goose. After several attempts at killing the goose from the air, the eagle landed on the water and swam to shore with the badly wounded goose. Once it had landed the meal, another pair of eagles challenged the hunter and took over from the tuckered warrior.

I looked behind me as I was about to leave and spotted the earlier coyote hunting for mice ssince he couldn't get a goose. I was just in time to miss the classic coyote pounce but did catch this celebratory wag.

Happy Meal

     The large flock action was a spectacular sight to witness on this beautiful autumn day. These are the WOW moments I live for and that happen every day if you are lucky enough to be able to spend time with Nature whenever possible.

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Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump

It must have been quite the sight to see; scores of charging bison tumbling off a 10 meter cliff to their death. This flood to the senses happened at Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump annually over the past 6000 years until the total depletion of Bison by 1860 or so. There are other buffalo jumps scattered throughout the west but this one is well preserved and has a spectacular visitor centre/museum hosted by local Blackfoot native people. This is also a World Heritage Site that is visited by thousands of people annually.

Imagine Buffalo Pouring Over This Cliff

We walked the paths and trails at the base of the cliff on the main killing ground. The native campsite would have been placed upwind away from the odours and out of sight of the charging herds. There is a small spring and shallow coulee at the cliff base where water would have been available for drinking, cleaning and boiling fat from bones. This mass slaughter would have been a gruesome sight, even cruel by today’s sensibilities, but was a life giving necessity then. Bison provided food, clothing, shelter and tools for the Blackfoot people. A successful hunt was a time for celebration, much like our own Thanksgiving celebration. A bountiful harvest assured everyone’s survival for the coming year.

Bison Skull

The native people planned this hunt for weeks in advance and it took place in the fall of each year. The cooler temperatures would have helped to preserve the meat and the bison hides would be prime and fully furred in preparation for winter. Cairns of stones and brush would be strategically placed, like a giant funnel, along a well planned route designed to force the bison to the cliff. Runners, wearing wolf skin robes would slowly begin to move the herd using the bison’s own protective nature and tendencies to herd together to combat danger. Soon the herd was moving faster and gathering together and then breaking into a run. Native men converged from the sides to prevent escape from the cairn dotted runway and quickly an all out stampede was happening. Dust billowed from churning hooves, calls and bleats of cows and calves trying to stay in touch, coughing, grunting, horns clicking and hooves rumbled over the prairie landscape to the cliff brink. The front runners tried to stop but were pushed on by the rest of the herd, over the cliff. Most would have been killed outright but some of the last would have only been maimed. Hunters based at the cliff base used arrows, rock clubs and spears to finish any wounded buffalo. An awful silence would then have descended over the valley as the enormity of the event was absorbed.

Then began the work of butchering with skinning, gutting and dragging carcasses away for further processing. When separated the carcass would be de-boned and meat cut into strips to hang on drying racks. Hides would need to be staked out for fleshing, drying and then tanning. Bones and fat would be rendered and stored in cleaned out bladders or stomachs. Sinew would be gathered and stretched and rawhide strips cut and made soft and pliable.

Blackfoot Tipi at the Jump

Along the cliff base and in the surrounding hills are many wild berries such as saskatoons, cranberries and chokecherries which were used to make nutritious and portable pemmican. The limbs of chokecherry were also favoured for making arrows.

With a successful hunt came a time of celebration; dancing, drumming, songs and stories would have echoed off the sandstone cliffs. Soon the well stocked people would scatter to their home lands for shelter from impending winter.

As we walk along the trails around this heritage site, we use our imagination to envision what must have been a powerful assault on all senses. It was a different time and a different way of life. The basics of life today are the same, food, shelter and security but with a much different way of getting there.

The Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump is located about 20 kilometres north and west of Fort McLeod in southwestern Alberta. It is open year around and it costs about 12.00 to enter but worth every penny. This is one of the best museums I have ever seen depicting any event. It is wheel chair accessible and has rest rooms, gift shop and small cafe where you can order a genuine Buffalo Burger for lunch.

Glacial Erratic Under Cliffs and Big Prairie Sky

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Canola Harvest

Towering dust clouds attract my attention as I drive the back roads of rural Alberta on this hot, late summer day. Combine harvesters are running flat out threshing standing or swathed grain. Wheat, barley, canola with some peas are the main crops grown in this region located north and east of Edmonton. The area around Fort Saskatchewan is some of the very best agricultural crop land in Western Canada. Deep, dark, fertile soil combined with adequate rainfall, long sunny days and relatively long growing seasons produce above average yields of grain.

Geese Heading to Harvested Fields of Grain

 I stopped to take some photos of one of the larger farm operations in the region on Saturday. They are running four new S-680 John Deere combines with 35 foot straight cut headers. It is an impressive sight to see:  four machines travelling down a standing field of canola as the grain cart operator rushes from one to the other dumping hoppers full of black seed on the fly. 140 feet of grain is cut each length of the field at over 4 miles per hour means a quarter section of land is harvested in just a few hours. Each combine should be able to cut 160 acres per day given decent harvesting weather. You couldn’t design a better day than today for this farmer. It is about 25 degrees and the west wind is blowing about 20 miles per hour. Hay and straw bales are scattered accross many fields as geese vee their migrating way through blue skies as dust and chaff billows out the back end of each combine while reels bat the standing crop into the front end.

I flag one combine down for a ride and get a new education. These new machines hardly resemble the combines of my youth. First of all, they are large. The 35 feet of header is hydraulically controlled automatically by computer with the help of sensors located underneath.  The reel doesn’t just flail away either. It is also controlled electronically. These combines are steered, not by human operators, but by Global Positioning Systems (GPS) assistance. I watched as the operator turned at the end of the field then let the combine strike off a new swath through the standing crop. The next combine will have exactly the correct width of swath for the full length of the field. The GPS system knows where in the field it is at all times and runs perfectly straight lines as well. This is impossible to do manually. We used to try it with the old machines but could never come anywhere near perfect. Think of the efficiency of operation when you drive these huge machines to full potential all the time. There are no more pie shaped or narrow strips to cut with a small portion of header unless the field is cut up by obstacles.

Another 35 Foot Swath Harvested

 Electronics continuously monitor yield and moisture content of the crop as well. I remember having to drive to town to get the moisture content tested at the grain elevator before knowing if the grain was safe to store. Dry grain will store in the bin safely while waiting for delivery to markets. Tough or damp grain will heat and spoil very quickly making it worth much less money or destroying it completely. The field of canola being harvested today is testing 8% moisture at 52 bushels per acre. This is an average yield in this area but well above average for other regions of Alberta. This field is a bit cut up by sloughs, bush and a small farmstead so has about 400 acres so will yield approximately 21,000 bushels of canola. Each bushel weighs about 50 pounds. Right now the fluctuating price of canola sits at about $9.00 per bushel.

Each bushel of this oil seed contains about 45% oil so there should be about 1200 liters of oil per acre or 480,000 liters of high quality cooking oil in this field.

4 In a Row

The 55% remaining of the seed is meal which is used as a high protein supplement in animal feed.

Years ago, the one of my first jobs was working for a large farmer in the Wanham area of Northern Alberta. They had 5 model 95 John Deere combines and we wondered if that was as big as it could get. That was only about 15 years after the combine took over from stationary threshing machines. Since then it has been about 55 years to advance harvest technology to the current state of efficiency. Previous to computers and GPS technology, combines had just got larger in size. Who knows where farm technology will be in another 50 years.

Sunset Harvest

Harvest is my favorite season of the farming cycle. This is the time when all the work, worry, weather and risk has finally all come together for a total quantity. The next few months will be spent monitoring, hauling and marketing the harvest as well as finishing the final accounting for the year. Planning for the next year will begin the cycle all over.

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Grasslands National Park , Spectacular

We got plenty of questioning looks when we said we were going to tour Southern Alberta and Saskatchewan for our holidays this year. I had Grasslands National Park as my main destination but almost missed it as there were so many distractions to see along the way. As it was, we only got to see the west block of the park so will have to go back for a second look.
Distances are vast in these provinces. The prairie stretches on and on and on; always another rise, coulee, more grass and sky. I have to think of our ancestor settlers who came by oxen drawn Red River Carts. These rough and durable boxes on wooden wheels move at about 2 miles per hour on flat ground. Every coulee, hill, creek or river added additional time to getting anywhere. A man on a horse might travel 4 to 5 miles per hour so what we may travel in our car in one hour would take up to 3 days for them to cover. I look over the landscape and see cart jarring rocks and gopher holes to fall into and unreachable horizons stretching on into a distant bluish haze. Progress would have been marked by the passing of a distant rock or the ascent of the next ridge line. This land seems flat but it is not. It undulates and flows for miles, through drainage coulees and draws, small knolls and natural dips and swales. On any rise you overlook long miles over seemingly deserted land.
This prairie is treeless except for shelter belts that were planted by settlers trying to minimize the wind while collecting drifting snow. There are places where there is not a single tree for as far as you can see. I saw one tree that chose the road side ditch to live and it had been preserved. It was the only woody specimen in this area. It looked very bedraggled by few branches sticking out the east facing bole, but stood proudly, doing its part to provide shelter and a roost for hunting hawks. The seed for this tree must have been dropped off on a flyover dropping from a passing bird.
It is agricultural land, for the most part, these days. Some of this land is now cropped and the land that is too marginal or rocky is pastured. There are many sections of hard grass land that feed very healthy herds of cattle. It requires many more acres of ground to feed a cow here than it does on tame grass pasture but this hard, prairie grass is very nutritious.
The cropped land, this year anyway, has had too much rain throughout southern Saskatchewan so many crops are later than usual. Farmers are going to be under tremendous stress before their grains are all stored safely in the bins.

Abandoned Prairie Homestead

As we drive, I wonder at the stories that the walls of the abandoned farmhouses and homesteads could tell. There are many beautiful looking old homes that are no longer used. Many of them are situated on a slight rise with tremendous views of surrounding landscape. The beauty of the land grew upon these settlers as it does on me.  Ever-changing skies, spectacular thunderstorms, big, brightly lit night skies, sunrises and sunsets along with the play of mid day light across the visible miles draw us in. Did the optimistic builders sell out to larger farmers, go broke or frustrated and give up or pass away with no interested heirs? We are losing these stories as the older generations pass away.
I remember running some of this equipment and trucks that the prairie is slowly reclaiming. Wind, moisture, insects, time and neglect assist the prairie's reclamation efforts. I have to think back to when the farmer drove his brand new, to him, 1949 Chevrolet truck into the yard and filled it with grain harvested from the once mighty Massey Harris 92 combine.

Chevy 2 Ton Grain Truck Massey 92 in Background

Old churches and cemeteries mark the last plots of ground the pioneers will use. They are well maintained by future inhabitants and some of the stones give us some ideas about where they came from as well as their passions. We also noted school district signs marking where schools once stood. Many were one room schools with a pair of toilets set back in the yard and some even had hitching rails for the horses that carried students to their studies.
Once thriving, vital small towns show signs of dying a slow death due to neglect.  Potholed and cracked streets lead to boarded up stores and businesses and abandoned homes. Hidden infrastructure like water and sewer lines are crumbling and it will not be long before many towns cannot afford to maintain water or sewer treatment plants. There are a few optimistic “for sale” realty signs staked into neglected lawns or nailed onto tumbleweed-lined wooden fences. Prices are reasonable if you could find a way of making a living here. Many of the town schools have been closed or converted to other uses as student numbers dropped and continuous centralization occurs. Even once proud ball diamonds and backstops are no longer used and suffering similar decay due to abandonment. Former vital prairie sentinels, the grain elevators are being torn down and replaced by new power producing wind cyclone sentinels. The prairie is slowly reclaiming the land in its slow and patient manner. "The meek shall inherit the earth," is proven here. Like the wind that never ceases, the grass never stops growing or spreading to cover and protect the precious land.

Windy Wheat

Even amongst obvious neglect there is pride, promise and optimism for the future. Large farms and livestock operations have the most modern equipment and comfort available. Parts of the prairie are dotted by oil and gas wells, pipelines and pump jacks with storage tanks. Other farmers have diversified into raising new crops such as lentils, peas and bison. This always has been a land of change and will continue to evolve and thrive with sturdy people.
We did finally make it to the Grasslands National Park Visitor center in Val Marie, Sask. After getting some hints, directions and advice we headed down the road and across the Texas gates. As the name implies, this is grassland. It is a small fraction of a threatened, unique landscape now protected and preserved for future generations. This park will continue to grow as surrounding land can be purchased from existing landowners.

Plains Bison Bull

In 2005 about 75 Plains Bison were introduced to Grasslands Park from Elk Island National Park. In the spring of 2006 they were set free to roam where buffalo are supposed to roam. In 2013, the herds numbered about 350 members and are doing very well. The bison we saw look very healthy and content. They suit this landscape as expected. Bison are good for the land and the grass. With a combination of grazing, wallows, prairie dogs and fire the park will slowly revert to natural prairie grasslands.

Black Tailed Prairie Dog

We drove into a Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colony too. These critters are known to be keystone species to prairie grasslands. These prairie engineers provide homes to endangered and threatened species such as the burrowing owl, prairie rattlesnakes, Horned lizards, Swift fox and most endangered of all, the Black-footed Ferret. The burrows they create mix soil strata, fertilize with droppings and carcasses, allow rainfall water in and grass seeds to germinate. They provide food for hawks and owls, ferrets as well as coyotes and foxes. This chunky little ground squirrel is very alert and entertaining to watch. They are much larger than the pocket gopher that is also native to this region. One of the highlights, for me, was to see a wild Burrowing Owl. These shy little owls are listed on the endangered list due to habitat loss and chemical spray residues. Today, we spotted 3 of them scattered throughout this prairie dog colony.

Endangered Burrowing Owl

There are many short trails to information placards scattered along the road through the park. These worthwhile informative signs describe many aspects of the terrain, the settlers and wildlife that you may be looking at.
We wandered away from the car to have a look into the Frenchman River valley. Here, we spotted the first Bison in the park. Two solitary bulls were grazing calmly in the river valley, well away from a larger herd of cows and calves. They suit this area very well. These two bulls were in premium condition with prime coats ready for the coming winter. I had to get closer so I wandered down the hill behind a knoll, well hidden and downwind from the grazers. Bison are not supposed to have great eyesight, but they spotted me as soon as I stuck my head above the hill top. We were about 150 yards away so they did not panic and run away. I enjoyed the time I spent with these two icons of the grasslands.

Where the Buffalo Roam

As I gazed around with my binoculars, I spotted three, cud-chewing, mule deer bucks lying on a windswept side hill about 300 yards away. They were a bit downwind but I could stalk them from behind another knoll, which I did. I emerged through some sage wavering in the wind to a point that I could watch them. One of them caught my wind and stood up which caused the others to also stand up and mill about. They could smell me but couldn’t see me so were confused. Five or ten minutes passed before the spooky one lay back down. I backed off behind my hill and wandered back toward my distant car. Even if the land looks lifeless and flat and barren, I learned long ago that you just have to sit down for a few minutes and watch. It never ceases to amaze me what emerges from hidden hidey-holes.
As the day was progressing we thought we would check out a local B&B called the Rosefield Church Guest House. It cost 125.00 per day so we booked one night then headed to Val Marie, about ½ hour away, for groceries and supper. This guesthouse no longer serves breakfast unless by special order. Many of their guests are artists or photographers who typically leave before sunrise, so they miss breakfast. They do provide a fully stocked kitchen so you could provide yourself with any meals you like. We got back in time to watch the sunset in Grassland Park. The light is beautiful here at this hour, not to be missed by any photographer or sky watchers. Grasslands is a dark sky preserve so we got out and watched the Milky Way as best we could with the waxing full moon. Timing and luck must be right for everything. Distant coyote chatter brought to life an otherwise quiet night as I wandered down the gravel road. I am not a very nocturnal creature but do enjoy the night time in any wilderness setting. It is certainly a special time here under the prairie sky.

Golden Sunrise

Dewy Dragonfly

We were up before daylight and on the road in search of a great viewpoint from which to watch the sunrise. Fog rose stealthily from the meandering river and dew sparkled as first chilly, golden rays shone onto hanging spider webs and nestled dragonflies. Once again, walk slowly and see what you are looking at proved to be valuable advice this morning. Beauty is in the details of the grasses at our dew soaked shoes and pant legs, not just in the glorious, wide open landscape.

Spider WebTiara

 

Beauty on the Prairies

We drove across part of the prairie region last week. I will cover several highlights over the next few weeks, so this is a quick look at the region we wandered around in. We put 3500 kilometers on our car over the past week of exploration. 10 times that many will still not cover the land properly.

 I am sure that you can see further on the prairies than you can on the ocean. It is flat, generally, but there are rises, rolls, coulees, river valleys and hills that undulate, like ocean swell and rogue waves. The trees you see are generally planted trees. They are windbreaks for homestead shelter from the predominantly west wind or strips designed to catch snow, thereby preserving moisture. Each tree was ordered from a catalogue sponsored by the government to try to make the prairies and farms more habitable. Caragana, Manitoba maple, black poplar and more made dense habitats for birds, wildlife and humans who all needed and welcomed relief from the ever blowing wind. Without the hand planted trees, there are none. You can drive for miles without seeing a single tree. Sage brush comes as close to woody as you can find for the most part. In some areas berries such as Saskatoons or Chokecherry shrubs grow, especially in coulees or draws where there may be a bit more moisture and shelter from the wind and direct sunlight. More than 70 species of grass are the main ground cover here. Needle and thread grass, fescue, wheat grass and prickly pear cactus grow on the parched land. This land can be 35 degrees or more in summer and more than 40 degrees below in winter. It is a dry heat and dry cold but add wind for a blast furnace summer drying effect and windchill in winter. The prairie is a land of extremes and constant change and challenge. It can deceive you into thinking it might be easy to live here. It can also deceive you into thinking it would be impossible to thrive here. You do not have to drive far to see abandoned farm buildings and machinery, but they are found wherever anyone farms or settles. Evidence of people living on this land dates back almost 10,000 years. We paused at a medicine wheel that has been dated back to times before the Egyptians built the pyramids.

Centre Cairn of the Sundial Hill Medicine Wheel

Teepee rings are found in hundreds of places across the prairie grassland region of North America. We paused at the Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump in Southern Alberta where evidence of human habitation has been found from more than 5000 years ago. This land as we see it today was formed and shaped by a glacier that totally covered most of the central and northern plains and then began receding 12,000 to 10,000 years ago. Large rocks called "erratics" are evidence to the movement of the giant glacier which dropped rocks carried from the Rocky Mountains into Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Glacial Erratic at Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump

These rocks have been used as scratching stones by Bison from herds, numbering by some estimates 60 million strong, that once grazed the land. Bison moved, like the hunters and gatherers who followed them, grazing, fertilising, mating and birthing feeding on the land until being almost completely wiped out in a wasteful blood lust of greed and debauchery. Unlike the passenger pigeon, bison had a few long sighted benefactors who could see what may happen and herded a few hundred survivors to private preserves and then to government protected parks. From less than a thousand surviving bison, we now have a fairly stable number that are being monitored and raised and moved to other regions to re-establish viable, healthy populations. We saw some of the transplanted plains bison in Grasslands National Park that have been moved from Elk Island National Park. They belong here, they suit the country perfectly. They are a wonder to see and we can only imagine what must have been at one time.

The Alberta Birds of Prey Nature Centre was a highlight for me to see. Dedicated people rescue sick and injured wildlife in hopes of healing and returning them to the wild. 

Flight Demo of Harris hawk by Dedicated Rehabilitator

Owls, hawks, eagles and more on on display. Many are too damaged to return to the wild. One bald eagle is blind, a victim of someone with a shotgun, but he is still and eagle; proud, defiant, regal and aware. He watches with glass eyes as you move around him, using heightened senses other than his sight. Free flight demonstrations by a Harris hawk or barn owl show how dependent birds are to food, just like our dogs and cats. I saw my first burrowing owl here and later saw wild ones in Grasslands. Many of these endangered owls will be released in hopes of raising wild numbers to where we no longer have to interfere. We saw Calgary Zoo staff in Grasslands Park here to count black-footed ferrets, another endangered species from this region. The ferret and the burrowing owls both live with their prey, the black tailed prairie dog, another threatened species. All these species along with the tiny Swift fox, Greater Short Horned lizard and prairie rattlesnake are threatened or endangered due to habitat loss, poisoning, over hunting and agricultural practises.

Pronghorn Family

Another aspect of the prairie region I like to explore is the settlement of the land by immigrants from Europe and Asia during the past 100 years. The European exploration and exploitation of the land and its native people and wildlife began 100 years earlier by fur traders and trappers which I have touched on in previous posts. My family ancestors took part in the agricultural settlement of the land in the early 1900s when my maternal great great grand parents arrived at  Bittern Lake, Alberta and in 1927 when my paternal grandfather arrived to take a homestead in the Peace River region.

The prairie region of Canada covers a vast area of varied habitats. Some of these areas are more people friendly than others to thrive in but none were easy.

I like to read and peruse history books that have been written over the past 20 years or so by various historical societies. The family stories are all transferable to any other region. Big families, hard times, weather, drought, floods, fire, pestilence, accidents, church and schools, no money, good or poor crops, cattle and wheat prices were and still are common issues that were dealt with year after year.

I look forward to exploring these places and issues for the next few weeks.

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