Hike, Canoe Making, Glass Blowing

The hiking trail near Barb's house...

that leads to the Hidden Lakes...

and a high viewpoint.

Patterns made in leaves by tiny parasitic worms.

Carving a ocean going canoe out of one 800 yr old cedar tree.

A finished product in the native cultural centre.

A glass blowing business.

Some of the finished product.

A bald eagle.

Whitehorse as seen from across the Yukon River.

Art created by one of Barb's friends.

Friday, August 25^th.

This morning we took a short walk from Barb’s townhouse to her favourite hiking trails. Great hike through the yard of the school where she used to teach, through the forest to various views of the three Hidden Lakes. It was an up and down trail and once we bushwhacked over the soft mossy surface to pick up a different trail. We walked for a couple of hours before returning to her place to have a sandwich made from the last of the lake trout from the other night. The weather today was cooler and cloudier and seemed like a good day to tour Whitehorse. The city itself is not that exciting to look. It is growing quite rapidly and having some growing pains as people show up faster than the infrastructure can keep up. She took me to a tent area by the river where a group of local natives are carving an ocean-going canoe from an 800-year-old cedar tree from British Columbia. The smell of the damp cedar was amazing. I watched as they chipped away flakes of the wood with an adze axe while Barb talked to some people she knew. The natives didn’t want to be in the photo but let me take the photo. Then we went to the cultural centre where they had a finished canoe on display as well as lot so beautiful, beaded clothing, moccasins, and coats. Next, we went to a shop where they made objects and art from blown glass using four blast furnaces. Interesting watching them work the glass into balls. We walked around town checking out a couple of shops and small local art galleries. We drove across the river along a dirt road up and around the hill to Long Lake where she likes to swim. It was too cool to swim, and we sat and dangled our feet. The water is very cold, much colder than at the cottage. We fell to talking to a couple from Calgary who were newly retired and up to visit their daughter who is working up here for the government. On the way back to town, I finally got some good shots of a bald eagle. It was sitting on a telephone pole overlooking the river. We went to a nice local restaurant for dinner, where I had arctic char and Barb had a cauliflower steak. Outside the restaurant were three pieces of art made by a friend of Barb’s. They were bears inlaid with a mosaic of coloured glass. Another great day. Back to the townhouse where we relaxed and talked before heading off to sleep.