My lovely friend Marny introduced us to her godson John St. Louis, via email. As mentioned in the previous blog entry, we were disorganized, couldn't get connectivity through the outback regions of Canada and, after spending 4 hours in the Javaroma cafe, updating my blog...and being asked by the owners, to clear tables and make sandwiches because I'd been there so long, I managed to leave a voicemail message for John. Our campground had no cell phone bars at all and we thought that we had more chance of being struck by lightening than getting a callback from John. Just before 9 pm the night before we left Yellowknife, the phone rang (miraculously) and I took it outside the van because reception was so bad. John had been at a driving range when he picked up his messages and asked if he could come and visit us at the camp. What a delight! He is so engaging, adventurous, fun and we didn't want to let him go. He had to leave by 10:30 or would have his pumpkin (vehicle) locked up in the camp parking lot. We had hoped to have dinner with him at Fuego's, a beautiful restaurant with fantastic food, where Bob and I had dinner, however that part was not to be because of our lack of coordination.... we really, really wish that we'd had more time to spend with this wonderful man. Thank you for sharing your godson with us Marny! We are looking forward to connecting with John when he next comes to the GTA to visit family. I'm putting together some of John's life in Canada and the NWT.
Born in Toronto, John is a free spirit who has lived and found success, on both coasts of Canada, With his pioneering spirit, he decided to try the far north, with intentions of staying "just a little while" in Yellowknife. He has been a fishing guide and an aerial mining surveyor (among the hundreds of other exciting jobs) and thought Yellowknife might provide a job in mining investor relations. Instead, he ended up with a lucrative government human resources job (my word...who ever read "government" and "lucrative" in the same sentence?) and is still there after 7 years. We asked what he does for fun in the summer and he told us about his long days of boating (land of the midnight sun remember!), time spent with friends and golfing. A few years ago, he participated in an over 700 km paddling race from Whitehorse to Dawson City, in a voyageur canoe with only two "forced" breaks. Snoozes were on top of gear in the bottom of the canoe. Winter fun for John is "mushing". He doesn't have his own dogs yet however we kind of think that he will.... one of these days.
John told us that Yellowknife (and the NWT's) has among the highest per capita incomes in the country, the people are the friendliest (we'll attest to that!) and the lifestyle is quite attractive. He also told us that this summer was unique because the bugs were not as bad as usual. We had heard about, and anticipated (with gallons of Deet) the Manitoba and NWT- tear-a-strip-off-ya mosquitoes and blackflies and to date, hadn't experienced anything worse than a typical summer boating on Georgian Bay. The chilly start to the season seemed to work in our favour. There are however, ENORMOUS flies locals call "bulldogs" that actually smacked into the windows of our van, as though they were heat-seeking missiles that would rather die trying to get at us, than give up and go home (kind of like the Leafs). We know them as horseflies in Ontario. Apparently they take huge chunks of flesh as well and we were fortunate to avoid that particular experience. No wonder John loves summer life on the water...no bugs out on the islands!
We encountered the Deh Cho Bridge manager on our wait for the ferry back over the MacKenzie River on our southbound trip, who told us that prospectors today are renting trailers in Yellowknife for $1800/month, WITHOUT running water or electricity. Waterfront properties are a fortune, most selling for over a million and $2 million not being a stretch at all. So! What is this quiet wealth all about:
It is said that the gold of Yellowknife is paved with streets. Why? The Con Mine tunnels actually run beneath the city streets. Yellowknife was literally built on gold mining. It's name originates from the copper-bladed knives once used by the Dene people. Prospectors and geologists continue to search for valuable metals and minerals such as lead, zinc, copper, cobalt, silver, nickel, rare earth metals and diamond in the Slave geological belt, which stretches from Great Slave Lake, all the way to the Arctic coast. Mining is still a very important part of Yellosknife and the Northwest Territories' economy in the 21st century. Other Yellowknife fun stuff:
One of the northern homes of the Inuit throat-singers. I am really, really wanting to hear these singers live and if we could have stayed for Aboriginal days, probably would have heard them. This is an eastern Arctic type of singing and it can be heard in areas all the way to Alaska. We'll try again in Inuvik.
Home of the TV shows Ice Pilots, Arctic Air and the Folk on the Rocks Festival when the July skies are always sunny for the ultimate weekend North of Sixty. Throat singers have come all the way from Tibet for this fun event.
Ragged Ass Road: Legend has it that this street, the most famous in Yellowknife, was named by Lou Rocher and his drinking buddies one night. "Ragged ass" means "dirt poor" and was inspired by a dismal prospecting season that year. Although the shacks and shanties that once made up the street are mostly gone, some still stand as storage houses for larger homes that have been built. Chances are, if you live on Ragged Ass Road now, you aren't dirt poor. The street signs have long been a coveted item and now you can buy them at gift shops around town, mostly because the street signs were stolen on a regular basis.
Houseboats: The 20 or so multi-coloured floating houses on Great Slave Lake have long been a source of fascination for Yellowknife visitors. The houseboaters are a committed bunch, most of them living on their boats year-round. The boats, many of which have been built or renovated by their residents, are painted in a delightful array of colours and make for a beautiful panorama. Rumour has it there's a fish living in the corner of one unlucky (guess which one), sinking houseboat's living room.
Golfing at midnight: While the game has been played here since 1948, today's 18 hole course is a bit of a strange one (this one's for you Margaret). The fairways are mostly sand, and you'll find yourself driving balls off a piece of portable plastic turf, although grass was added to two holes last year. The design and natural beauty of the course makes for a memorable, if challenging experience. Watch out for ravens who steal your ball (the Territory bird), however if one does, don't bother to chase it. Feel like teeing off at 10 p.m.? No problem! Golfing stays wide open with a tournament that starts at midnight!
Did you know that Yellowknife is the only capital in Canada that celebrates National Aboriginal Day as a statutory holiday (June 21)????
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| Guess which houseboat has a fish in the living room |
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| Beautiful homes near the waterfront |
