Monthly Archives: August 2012

Mount Robson Provincial Park – British Columbia

Posted on August 31, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

We stopped several times in Mount Robson Provincial Park. I find an advantage in most Canadian provincial parks is the accessibility of many of the featured places. Our first stop was at the visitor centre at the base of Mount Robson. We walked a few hundred metres up the Berg Lake Trail. The headwaters of the Robson River are located at the base of the mountain and begin with Robson Glacier. The river runs fast and has many areas where rapids and small waterfalls flow. The colour of the water is a product of the rock particles the glacier scrapes from the bedrock it passes over.

Mount Robson towers above the valley and dominates the skyline. It is not always fully visible, but is still the most imposing feature of this area.

We stopped again at Overlander Falls which is on the Fraser River below its confluence with the Robson. These falls are less spectacular than others we have seen, but even I was able to get down to the viewing area. They are about 10 metres tall and 30 metres wide.

A person realizes the slope of the river when they look at a picture of it below the falls. We captured the blue-green colour of the Fraser closer to its headwaters in these two pictures.

Our next stop was at Mount Terry Fox. Terry Fox is a Canadian hero who began the Marathon of Hope in St. John’s Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 by dipping his artificial leg in the Atlantic Ocean. He lost the leg to his first battle with cancer and had to stop the marathon on September 14, 1980 near Thunder Bay due to a relapse. He passed away at the age of 23, but left an important legacy for Canadians.

Our last stop was at Rearguard Falls which are at the top of the hill before Tete Jaune Junction. These falls are quite wide and hard to get good shot from above them. We took this picture at the bottom of the trail and stairs. It was still hard to do justice to the width of the falls.

I was down at the falls level. The provincial parks people built a great set of stairs for the final foray to the bottom for me. I was not getting any closer, but this captured a bit more of the width of the river at this point.

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Posted in Nature in All Its Glory, Photography and tagged berg lake trail, Mount Robson, mount robson provincial park, nature, photography, robson provincial park, robson river, Rocky Mountains, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Posted on August 31, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

It has been awhile since I reblogged a post, but I could not resist this one. David poses a tongue-in-cheek view of an emerging digital world. What are the implications? What are the unique qualities of community in the virtual world and which qualities do they share with traditional communities? I am looking at this as a topic area for my dissertation so this is humourous and thought-provoking.

Live & Learn

This about nails it…

Source: Happy2bsad

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Why Write Poetry

Posted on August 31, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Yesterday, I read a haiku written by someone who appeared to not enjoy writing haiku. Despite this, the person wrote an interesting, amusing, and thought-provoking poem.

I am not sure this is verbatim but it goes somewhat like this:

Here are five syllables

And here I write seven more!

Are you happy now?

The person who presented this poem indicated that despite having written haiku they were unsure why teachers wanted them written. I think there are good reasons, but I could be wrong.

1. Poetry calls for the best possible word choices. Most poetry is simultaneously spare and spacious. The spareness is in the number of words; the fewer the better. The space allows the reader room for interpretation. What did the poet mean? What senses are invoked through the word choice.

Words chosen

Describe my moment.

No two experiences identical

A jungle of meaning revealed.

Each sense sameness different

Worlds bridged.

2. Students learn about figures of speech and their importance in expressing what we want to say. We can compare unlike things and make sense of a complex world.

3. I tell students who struggle with reading and writing poetry is an alternative way of expressing themselves. I use ee cummings as a model so they overcome their worries about grammar, spelling, and capitalization.

i dig ee cummings

no punctuation

no capitols

won’t worry about spellin either

no sweat

aint no problem

i write poetry

4. I enjoy poetry. I always have. I remember a poem, The Elevator, I memorized in Grade 4. I think it Walter de la Mare wrote it. My friend memorized a poem called Douglas Fir, because his name was Douglas. What my enjoyment means, is I bring enthusiasm to the process.

I believe we need to tell students what they are learning and the reasons they are important. But, then it might just be me.

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Posted in Education, Haiku, Lesson Plans, Progressive Education, Reflective Moments, Writing and tagged blogging, creativity, education, haiku, Progressive Education, reading and writing poetry, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Athabasca Falls August 2012

Posted on August 30, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I posted before about Athabasca Falls, but Kathy and I were there this summer and I thought I would share new pictures.

This is a view looking up river. The river is fairly wide and narrows rapidly at the gorge.

This is a view of the falls plunging into the gorge. According to the signs, the falls create, and recreate their path through the gorge constantly.

Kathy took this from the foot bridge which spans the gorge. I walked across which is a first for me. There are hiking trails on that side of the river that work their way further up-stream.

Kathy took this picture from the bridge to show the rings the water grooved into the wall of the canyon. It is like an old washing machine down there.

We got much closer to the falls on this side of the bridge. I got a much stronger sense of the power of the falls through the sound and the way it shakes the ground on that side.

I walked down these steps which are an old channel for the river and the falls. The water carved a new path and abandoned this one.

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Posted in Nature in All Its Glory, Photography, Uncategorized and tagged athabasca falls, athabasca river, Jasper National Park, nature, photography, Rocky Mountains, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

On the Road

Posted on August 29, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

It was a dreary day when we started home from Prince George, British Columbia but, when traveling in the mountains, that is a dynamic that adds to the view.

Barely on the road, we spotted a bear browsing on the shoulder above the highway about 10-15 metres from the car. We rolled the window down and he posed before disappearing from sight.

mountain peaks peek out

snow almost hidden from view

clouds blur the picture.

valley flowers bloom

richness on nature’s canvas

a soft brush at work.

Mount Robson revealed herself within a cloud-like frame pointing her majesty into the blue sky above. I enjoy taking pictures of Mount Robson when the clouds show something different.

I took this picture of Mount Robson a few days earlier. The white on the mountain is glacier or snow.

Kathy and I hiked a few hundred metres along the Berg Lake trail. We had not done this before, but it is a hike we will attempt next summer. I settled for this shot of Mount Robson which disappears from sight as you move along the path. In the foreground, is the Robson River which has its headwaters on Mount Robson and flows into the Fraser River a few kilometres further down the highway.

I borrowed this picture from Wikipedia, but a goal for next summer is to hike into Berg Lake, camp, and bring back pictures.

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Posted in Haiku, Nature in All Its Glory, Photography, Poetry, Reflective Moments and tagged berg lake trail, haiku, Jasper National Park, Mount Robson, nature, photography, poetry, robson river, Rocky Mountains. Bookmark the permalink.

Illuminating Blog Award

Posted on August 28, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I received an award while we were on the road and took time to consider this one, as there were few rules, but it arrived at an opportune time. The blog recently surpassed 350 followers and has 1400+ likes which is remarkable as most growth occurred over the past 2 months while I rehabbed a weary body and spirit. I rediscovered some creativity and things that feed the spirit through the process. That is attributable to those who follow the blog, like it, and comment on it.

I received the award from Carolyn at ABC of Spirit Talk.

Carolyn has a diverse and award-winning blog with poetry, photographs, her love of nature, and reflects on many aspects of life. I enjoy her posts and look forward to the her surprises each day.

Carolyn indicated there was only one rule and that was to thank the person who nominated me.

THANK YOU Carolyn

She did pass the award on to me so I am passing it to two people. Melody at Meanwhile, Melody Muses is a daily respite for me. I look forward to her poetry and fantastic photography. The subtitle of her blog is:

“God’s not finished with me yet. Until then, I muse.”

and

The second blog is Mike at Mike’s Look at Life. Mike photographs the ordinary things I often pass daily and reveals their extraordinary nature for me. He shares a wicked sense of humour and his creativity through prose and poetry. The subtitle of his blog is:

“communicating issues around life including horrific loss and overwhelming joy, and many things in between.”

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Posted in Awards, Blogging, Community and tagged awards, blogging, community, conversational journey, creativity, photography, poetry, prose and poetry, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

Sunwapta Falls in Jasper

Posted on August 27, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I got closer to these waterfalls then I normally do and they are impressive. I had not visited Sunwapta Falls before, but they offer an incredible view, sound, and event.

This is a view at the top of the falls looking back upstream.

This is the first chute of water over the top of the falls as it shoots through the narrowing of the channel and over the lip of the valley.

A second view of the top of the falls with a tighter shot on the small cave across the gorge.

And then a last view of the river as it flows down the canyon, crashes into the end wall, takes a sharp left, and disappears from view.

Mount Kerkeslin stands guard over the Icefields Parkway between Sunwapta Falls and Athabasca Falls.

Have a great Monday August 27. 2012.

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Posted in Nature in All Its Glory, Photography, Uncategorized and tagged Jasper National Park, nature, photography, Rocky Mountains, Sunwapta Falls, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

On the Edge

Posted on August 25, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Kathy and I are back on the road this morning. It will be Monday before I post again. I disconnect to reconnect. I feel on the edge at this time of the week and summer. I go back to work next Wednesday and, for the first time in my career, I am not looking forward to going back. I am on the edge and find faith in something other than me.

Each step

Brings me to the edge.

Uncertain balance

On the edge.

Instability dances with stability

Harsh with the gentle.

Quiet the self

Hear the soul’s gentle words.

A still space reveals wisdom

A spirit of Faith.

Look forward;

Look down.

Go forward

Accept hands proffered in similar Faith.

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Posted in Mindful Life, Nature in All Its Glory, Photography, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Sabbath, Uncategorized and tagged creativity, Mindful Practice, nature, poetry, Rocky Mountains, sabbath, spirituality, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Stairway to Heaven (Sunwapta Falls in Jasper)

Posted on August 24, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I was sure I had visited Sunwapta Falls before, but, when we got there, it realized otherwise. Sunwapta River flows from Athabasca Glacier and the falls plunge over a hanging valley left by receding glaciers about 8000 years ago.

The path down to the overview above the falls is unique with the tree roots playing an integral role in the stairway. I got closer to the edge than I usually do. Initially, I was going to post a number of pictures, but changed my mind when I looked at this picture taken on my camera by Kathy.

Gnarled it wends

Nature’s stairway

Reveals beauty

Safely, I gain confidence.

I find a way

Previously impossible

Life now fuller, richer

Nature and creation await.

A ray shines down

Lights the path

Shines on each step

Of this ‘highway to heaven.’

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Posted in Nature in All Its Glory, Photography, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Uncategorized and tagged Jasper National Park, Mindful Practice, nature, poetry, Rocky Mountains, Sunwapta Falls, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Jasper Park Maligne Canyon

Posted on August 23, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

The cow elk picture posted yesterday was at the end of our trip to Maligne Canyon. It a challenge for me along the canyon rim with a drop of up to 50 metres. The canyon was an issue for explorers finding their way downstream to the Athabasca River.

This is immediately above the drop into the canyon and the river shows its turbulence already.

The river drops suddenly and its power is obvious. The holes are a product of the swirling water over time.

This is the first part of the canyon and the holes are visible in the top left hand corner of the picture.

The river turns 90⁰and hollows out the rock wall into a cylinder-like churning machine before roaring down the canyon.

The canyon has six bridges at various locations along the canyon and beyond. Bridge 5 is currently out of commission due to high water. Kathy took this picture from Bridge 1 looking back upstream.

After crossing the bridge, Kathy took this picture. In a particularly harsh environment, the trees are exceptional survivors in places as demonstrated here. This place is probably close to the 50 metres.

As we descended into the canyon, the river began to run slower, but there is evidence of the power of nature over the centuries.

Kathy took this from the 3rd Bridge where our hike ended. The gorge drops again and the river plummets one more time over and around the rocks in its pathway.

The Maligne River flows into the Athabasca below the 6th Bridge. We drove to this bridge and walked to where the rivers converge. We opted to skip the 4th Bridge because we would have turned back due to the closure of some of the trail.

On our way back into Jasper, we made a stop at an overview of the Maligne Canyon. Initially, there was not much to see and we were disappointed. As I walked to the other end of the walled parking lot, this lovely young elk caught my eye.

It took us about five minutes or more to walk carefully closer and not startle this animal. This is her home.