Unbeknownst to us, on Cedar Island (in fact, this island where we camped bears no name on the maps, but Matt and I decided to name it so for the gigantic forest of 100-years old cedars), our campsite was right on top of a slug factory! As we woke up, there were slugs everywhere: on the tents, on our baggage, in our shoes, our socks, our flotation vests, our headgear, in fact, everywhere. So our first task of the day was to “flick” our new friends away from their new habitats.
Slugs aside, yesterday’s rain continued this morning. A light, steady drizzle fell until the end of the afternoon followed by a scorching sunshine playing hide-and-seek with the clouds. First, they were white and friendly, but suddenly they turned menacing. Then came a strong headwind along with a heavy and steady rain. It really looked as if we were heading into a storm. Fortunately, this lasted only briefly, but it was heavy.
It seem as if the animals in the forest spread the word to the others to come and say hello on this last day of our expedition. After the sheep and butterflies of the first days, the ospreys, great blue herons, kingfishers, sparrows and other birds followed us down a stretch of river. To top it all, we were privileged to see beavers and the king of the Canadian forest. We saw a moose cow, 2012 vintage, feeding on the shores of the river. The headwind helped us get as close as 60 metres before she disappeared in the forest. What a sight!
Again today’s route is rather long, some 23 kilometres with a single rapid. Canoe races, Christmas songs (!), riddles, rest stops, turned this challenging day into a manageable and fun experience. Nonetheless, a happy feeling overcame the group as we neared the bridge marking the end of the nautical portion of the expedition. The feeling was somewhat damped by a heavy rainstorm as we were disembarking. No matter, a few minutes later, the sun was back and we could have our evening meal in the dry.
After supper, the participants took part in a sharing circle. We had to choose a work to summarize our expedition or to describe a new learning experience over the last days. Adventure. Knowledge. Expansion. Intuition. Well-being. Beauty. Raising the bar. Sharing. Discovery. Competence. Water. Endurance. Evolution. Connexion. Benefit. As each participant justified his or her chosen word, we could see how the magic of nature had operated once again…
Tomorrow, return to Cochrane by minivan. Bye bye Mosquitoes!!!