Railroaded at the Tracks

This is a column that I had published in the Kings County Record recently.  There were a number of people fined locally on the same day for the same offense, but there were also a number of people let go with warnings.  There was no bulletin to educate people or let people know that CN would be more strictly be enforcing this law either.  Suddenly what had been accepted practice was no longer accepted and I was not happy to be made an example of.  
 

It has been in the local news lately that CN Rail has been issuing fines to those who trespass on their right of way.  It has created a bit of controversy, although, most I talked to seem opposed to the manner in which this whole issue of trespassing has been handled by CN.  Now, before I can discuss this any further, I have to make something clear.  According to CN, I am a criminal, or at least that was the way I was made to feel the day they issued me a ticket for $124.50.

The day had been going smoothly and I was in the downtown doing my weekly banking and mail run for work.  I parked my car out behind the bank with the railway tracks behind me.  I walked toward Main Street and the front of the bank whistling a country tune I had been listening to on the drive.  The ladies at the bank were friendly as always and I left carrying my mail that needed some postage.  I went back by my car and over the tracks toward the Post Office on Maple Avenue, like I have done a hundred times or more in my life.  I paid for my postage and sent my reports off to the government departments I answer to.  I come out the door and break into a light jog back across Maple Avenue to build momentum to carry me up and over the hill on the tracks, still whistling, with no criminal intentions on my mind.

Suddenly a car horn beeps and I see a police car with an officer beckoning me to come to him.  Thinking nothing of it I walk to the car, despite the fact that my car was closer.  I thought maybe he wanted some help with something.  To my surprise he greets me with a gruff and abrupt "Do you speak English or French?" without even leaving his car.

"Excuse me?" I ask.  He explains that I was breaking the law by crossing over the tracks and that people who walk along the tracks are often "irresponsible and stupid."  I explain that I have walked the same route a number of times and only to cross and that I never walk parallel to the tracks.  He asks if I had seen a sign stating it was an offence.  Of course I never did because I didn't even look as I didn't feel there was a need to.  The discussion led eventually to me receiving my ticket as I watch two youth cross over the tracks with no action taken against them. 

The whole situation was discomforting and I was a bit frustrated by the way in which the officers treated me.  The passenger railways have been on hard times and if this is the way they treat passengers then I can see why.  I would think instead of taking a confrontational approach to the issue they would work with the public to solve the safety concerns.  My recommendation would be to hold public consultations to develop safe pedestrian crossing areas and establish fences to maintain the right of way.  Currently there are not enough crossings for pedestrians and these could be tunnels under the tracks or bridges over them. 

Personal safety is important and I understand CN's concern about people crossing their right of way.  It is not the respectable people going about their daily business that typically result in accidents on CN's right of way and because I voluntarily approached the officer I feel that I was wrongly made an example of.  I will gladly offer to help CN develop a more public friendly, locally designed solution to the safety issues they face in Sussex and in the process maybe help them increase their client base as opposed to shrink it.  Of course I would have to ask for considerable leniency on my ticket.

Broadening my Horizons

Recently I was encouraged to send some material to another out door based website that was seeking bloggers for some writing.  They asked me to do a top 10 list and so I did.  Check out outdoorzy.com for my newest endeavor and let me and them know what you think.

Basic Baseball

Ball season is almost over and it struck me that I haven't yet submitted a column about baseball.  I have been helping out with the "Rally Caps" program and often help the develop skills and proper techniques.  In this setting, inspiration is easy to come by.  These young kids are eager to play, not always to learn, but at least to play.   The enthusiasm is contagious and I often find myself excited and encouraging them more loudly than likely necessary.  Helping kids in this type of surroundings is physically and emotionally rewarding.  Here is how I recall the practice from a few nights ago.

It was a hot evening and I was lobbing some pitches to the 6 year old kids.  I was already tired and my enthusiasm was waning when a young girl who had been struggling to hit pitches came up to the plate.  I lobbed a pitch to her and she swung hard and immediately I noticed improvement in her swing from the previous week, but she missed.  I seen her facial expression change to that look of "Oh no.  Here we go again."  She stepped back up to the plate and I threw another pitch to her.  This time she swung and rapped a hard hit down the first base line.  The hit was great but not nearly as inspiring as the surprise that came across her face.  Her face lit up with pride and lifted confidence.  I hollered at her to run to first and she quickly ran down the base path with teeth showing a large smile the whole way. 

Another struggling hitter stepped up to the plate or maybe I should say, stepped on the plate.  I gave him pointers on his stance and the batter's box, which I am sure I have instructed him on before.  When I at last had him positioned he whispers "This is uncomfortable."  I quietly snicker as I head to the pitchers mound and lob in a couple of pitches.  After a few pitches he makes contact with one and stands confused at home plate.  I holler at him to run to first base and his response was "Where is that?"  I couldn't help but laugh out loud as I pointed and encouraged him towards first base with a high five when we get there.

Another young batter, who is stronger than most kids at this level, steps up to the plate.  He is brimming with confidence and I decide to throw a couple of harder pitches to him.  No matter to him, he watched the first one float to far outside, and as I piped the second one he whacks it out deep to left field.  This player too smiles the whole way down the first base path and I can see him thinking to himself "Yes I beat the coach.  Wooohooo!!"

The evening was filled with moments like these and every player wore a smile as a badge of honor at the end of the night.  I realize once again how great it is when we simply play for the joy of it and on this night I was back in mosquito ball myself and enjoying it through them.  I bet I threw over 90 pitches that evening and if the kids weren't tired out.  I sure was.  If you have a son or daughter, a niece or nephew, a grandchild, or simply a young friend playing baseball, I encourage you to get out and watch him or her play.  It is a great way to spend an evening out and the child will truly appreciate it.

 

All over it

I've been real busy at work lately.  It has made it difficult to provide a regular blog but that doesn't mean that I haven't been writing.  I have had a couple of press releases picked up lately and will actually disrupt someone's sleep tomorrow morning through a live interview on NB Maritime News Radio.

All this has been very rewarding as I am starting to see the fruit of my labor really blossom.  We have had a successful summer so far and still have a number of projects to pull off yet.  This might mean it will be a while before I get a full post up here but when I do it should be a good one.

Family Photos

My wife has been wanting to get our family photo done for some time now.  She had searched out a photographer and was anxious to work with her.  After the first sitting had to be postponed, the anxiety was heigthened even further. The evening finally came and we drove out to one of my favorite spots to have our pictures taken.  It was a great evening and now that we have had a preview of the photos my wife is now excited to get the finished product.  Genevieve Flynn was great a catching little moments with our kids and we really enjoyed working with her. She has a blog with her website and here is what she thought about our shoot.

Fishing again

Kids are great fun. It takes very little to entertain them for hours.  A couple of weeks ago I decided to take my son and a friend of his fishing.  The original intent was to take them camping out for a night but the day we were to go it rained.  Now normally rain doesn't bother me, but I mean it rained hard and I wasn't going to take two six year old boys out in the woods with that kind of rain.  I'm getting off the point though.

I postponed the trip and made it a day of fishing instead.  The boys were game from the get go and when I asked if they wanted to turn off onto the back road, they hollered a resounding yes.  I turned onto the back road with Rodney Atkins playing over the radio, the windows down, and the sunshining.  Cold water was on my mind as the weather the past few days had been warm so I was thought the ice cold Cedar Camp Brook might be a good spot.  Another bonus was that it was not an overly deep or large river so the boys would be safer while fishing in and around it. 

When we finally pulled up by the old church the boys could hardly wait to get out of the truck.  I slowed them down long enough to get sunscreen and bug spray on them.  We then made our way down to the brook and fished down stream towards an old beaver pond.  Before long they were tangled in the trees and shrubs that lined the banks and I made an effort to show them how to keep their lines in the water.  It took some practice but before long they were dropping underhand casts into the cold pools along the brook.  Shortly after that, I hooked a 9" brookie, and let my son reel it in.  He was really excited and was only slightly disappointed that we let it go.

The morning moved into the mid-afternoon and we caught plenty of trout and I decided to keep two for a shore lunch.  We made our way out to the road that runs parallel to the brook and the boys chatted back and forth, and dragged their feet from time to time as they walked up ahead of me back to the truck.  None of us were quite ready to head for home yet so I took the boys to a spot along Trout Creek where the boys could fish or swim if they liked.  It was also a nice spot to cook the trout, the hot dogs I had packed, and boil some tea.

My father who had hoped to join us earlier, met up with us along Trout Creek, and this helped me as I prepared lunch.  I was cooking the trout on a stick and I thought this would impress the boys but they only stopped briefly to say half heartedly "Thats cool."  They then decided they had enough fishing and went swimming instead.  When lunch was ready the boys quickly came and devoured their share of the trout and hotdogs and then splashed back into swim. 

When I finally joined them in the water we all laughed and splashed.  At one point, my son's buddy was sitting on the shore.  His lips were blue and he was shivering and out of concern I asked if he was alright.  His response "I'm just loving this."  That pretty much summed up the day to a tee.  I loved watching my son and his friend bond.  I loved watching them explore the river and the nature that surrounded us all day.  Maybe most of all, I loved the memories that we were all making together.  It was a great day and worthy of being shared here.

Anticipating the Next Cast

The Kennebecasis River is a scenic river and participants enjoyed casting throughout the evening.

The air was un-seasonally cool and a steady breeze was blowing.  A swishing sound could be constantly heard as I stood along the banks of the Kennebecasis River as my eyes watched flies skit over the water and a number of birds flit through the willows.  It was an idyllic scene as participants in the Kennebecasis Watershed Restoration Committee's "Beginner Fly Fishing Workshop" practiced fly casting.

Along the parking area behind the Church center participants were able to practice their casting without getting a line caught.

I was very fortunate to aid in putting this great event together and couldn't help but smile as twenty participants lined the banks of the Kennebecasis River to try their hand at catching speckled brook trout using fly.  Most participants had never cast a fly until the night before when we all met to go over some basics at the St. John's United Church Center.  The purpose of the event was to give anyone who wished to try fly fishing an affordable and enjoyable means to do so. 

Some people learn quickly while others a bit less so but one of the best things about fly fishing is that if the fly is on the water you have a shot at catching fish.  Another enjoyable fact about fishing is that it is great just being on the water.  Many of the participants were smiling even as they untangled their lines for the umpteenth time. 

There is something simple yet difficult about fly fishing and it reminded me somewhat of golf.  I can play a whole round of golf and curse the whole way around the course but if, suddenly I make a great shot, I fall in love with the game all over.  Similarly with fly fishing, just as you are tiring of it, you'll suddenly make a great cast or see a trout turn on the bottom and you make that next cast and then another and another.

Fly fishing is healthy for you and for the fish, especially if the angler uses conservation based angling methods such as barbless hooks, catch and release, and active retrieve.  These methods also make it more sporting as it makes it harder to catch the fish.  Let's face it, in today's society if angling was about truly catching dinner, it would be easier and cheaper to go to the nearest grocery store and buy fish.  Fly fishing also forces you to observe what is going on around you.  What are the trout eating?  Where is the best trout habitat? And what kind of nymph are under that rock you just accidentally kicked?

The twenty participants at this event signed up with no illusions of being able to take a trout home.   They all wanted to come and learn the artistic skill of feeding brightly colored, floating line, with a small hook dressed to look like a fly, through tiny eyelets spaced along a thin, light rod.  When done right, there is a tight loop of line and a rhythmic swishing that result in a feeling of anticipation every time the fly hits the water.  I think many of those who were on the river tonight were not only anticipating the bite of a trout but also the next time they could try fly fishing.

 

Near Perfect Sunday II

A perfect spot for a Sunday lunch.  I don't know if it can get better than this.

"Note: This is a version of a column that I had published in the July 5th edition of the Kings County Record.  It is part 2 of 2 part series on a hike my brother and I completed across the Parlee Brook and Upper Trout Creek watershed.  It was a great day and I hope you enjoy the read.

You'll have to wait for my next column to hear about it though."  That is the way I ended my last column where my brother and I were hiking across the Parlee Brook watershed.  We had walked from Friar's Nose across a open rock ridge and just explored a great waterfall on an unnamed tributary to Parlee Brook.  We took some photos and video of this waterfall and now I can tell you about the rest of our near perfect Sunday.

There are 5 sets of falls through this short reach of Parlee Brook, each with a deep cold pool

We continued down the tributary until we met Parlee Brook and headed upstream to have lunch at the large waterfalls I knew were there.  The cold, deep pools, at the bottom of the falls were crystal clear and looked like an impressionist's painting.  We enjoyed our lunch and thought briefly about taking a swim but knew the water was much to cold and the air not near warm enough.

One of about 20 grave markers in the old cemetary, this grave held a two year old girl who died in 1883..

After our lunch we made our way down Parlee Brook to the Donaldson Road crossing.  We struggled up a small tributary with some interesting geology that if it was a larger stream would lend itself to a great water slide.  We came out to the Walker Settlement Road and paid our respects at the old cemetery there.  It was humbling to read the grave markers and see how young some of those who died were and how long ago it was.  We wondered what the area would have looked like back in the late 1800s. 

These falls are scenic no matter the time of year you venture in to see them.

We were now heading into the Upper Trout Creek watershed and were going to follow yet another tributary down to the Creek.  I have walked this tributary twice before in the winter and I was looking forward to seeing it under spring conditions.  A short distance down the stream we encounter another waterfall that cascades down more than 25ft in two stages.  The topography and geology are rugged and steep on both sides and we are continually drawn down stream to see what is around the next turn.

Sometimes when you venture down an unknown stream, you have no choice but to get your feet wet.

Suddenly the already steep terrain narrowed in and the only way to continue down the stream was to get your feet wet.  We pushed a bit further until suddenly we looked over yet another waterfall.  We had to back track to a point we could scramble up and around the steep valley and then we could resist sliding back into the ravine to view the falls from the bottom.  The narrow ravine held a deep pool that is well hidden like natural jewel and I was again feeling blessed on this nearly perfect Sunday.

This narrow ravine held a cascading ribbon of white water that likely has been cutting away at the conglomerate rock for centuries.

So why was the day only nearly perfect and not perfect?  Well, once we finished up the hike just before sun down we drove into where my brother and parked his truck only to realize, for some reason his electronic lock wasn't working and we had to break into the truck.  This was just the right amount of humor and humility we needed after such a great day.

The last stretch to home was through some scenic farm fields that overlooked the Chamber Settlement area in the upper Trout Creek watershed.

Are you looking for a near perfect way to spend a couple of evenings?  There is a Beginner's Fly Fishing workshop being hosted by the Kennebecasis Watershed on July 13^th and 14^th.  For more information, check out the Kennebecasis Watershed Restoration Committee on Facebook, or call 433-4394.

A cool link to find new trails

I feel like I have been trying to provide this service for years but now someone else found a way to get paid to do it.  This is an awesome resource for those looking to get out and explore some of our great trails and amazing places.  Remember when you're out there though to respect it and trash it in trash it out.

The Bay of Fundy has been getting lots of accolades lately with the "New Seven Wonders" and the UNESCO designation on the New Brunswick side.  Hopefully this will lead to more people wanting to conserve its biodiversity and wild places.

Check out the link here.

Not Just Another Day

I feel blessed to be Canadian and to live my life, but even more so on Canada Day 

Canada Day is not just another day.  It has become a day that I anticipate every year.  It is a day that always turns out to be enjoyable and eventful, no matter the weather, or circumstances.  For the last number of years I have spent it with virtually the same people.  A combination of family and friends come together to catch up, swim, and eat their fill at the Reicker residence.  This year was no different for my family, but that doesn't mean it was just another day.  Canada Day has become THE day for summer fun.  We cram an enormous amount into one day.  A good breakfast, a parade, bouncy castles, water balloons, music, swimming, swings, food, and last but not least fireworks,  Yep no doubt about it, Canada Day is just another day, but just a bit more active than normal.

I hope you had a great Canada Day. 

We had a full Canada Day and all of us from the smallest up felt incredibly fullfilled but tired in the end.