Rivers without fish

Sunday was B.C. Rivers Day, a day set aside to celebrate our "province's spectacular river heritage."

We were out and about, hiking through several forests in the Fraser Valley, including areas fingered by tributaries of the Chilliwack River.

The weather was fine, the sky was blue, but where were the fish? Usually at this time of year, the waters are thick with red-tinged spawning salmon. They're often so thick in the shallow streams they look like you could walk across their backs to the opposite shore.

But not this year -- the waters run free and clean-looking, but there aren't any fish. Because this is our traditional time for hiking there, I don't think it's a matter of our timing. Still, I can hope that's all it is.

First day of autumn

A walk in the bush has to be one of the best ways to mark the changing of the seasons. Today it's mostly wandering, but all the while keeping an eye open in case there might be some edible mushrooms. It's always amazing to me the way that something as soft as a mushroom (I mean, really, their first name is 'mush') can be so resilient and can grow against rock or hunks of wood.

Of course, sometimes we encounter more than mushrooms. Looks as though some creature was feasting on venison here.

Tie-dye inspiration?

Sleeping seems almost a waste when there's so much beauty to see. This is the view we've been looking at from our 'wilderness bed'. The weather's been so perfect, we've been sleeping in the tent.

These last few nights, with the full moon shining in, it's been easy for me to understand how people might have been inspired to invent tie-dye as an art. I haven't been able to figure out how to take the night photo inside the tent without using a flash (which would give me a plain white inside, without the intricate shadows cast by the tree branches in moonlight). Still, this morning shot reveals something of the textures, if not the subtleties of the night patterns.

Hurrah!

I guess all the complaints from the public paid off. At last, sanity (and democracy) seems to prevail. The powers that be have now determined that yes, Elizabeth May, may participate in the televised debates.

It seems like such a small step, but also seems like a very good sign of things to come. Who knows, one of these days we might even get an opportunity to have proportional representation!

But much closer to home, today is also the day that George and John decided to make sausages. They made enough that we should be able to pull them out of the freezer all winter long. And really, it's quite the wonderful performance when this particular pair of men decide to cook together...

What are they afraid of?

Yet again, it looks as though the Greens are going to be blocked from participating in the televised debates among the leaders of Canada's political parties. Green Party candidates are running in over 300 ridings, yet Elizabeth May is not being given the opportunity to represent her party to the Canadian viewing public in this important forum.

What's with those guys anyway. Are they afraid they'll look bad?

In my books, if they don't take a stand insisting that May becomes part of the broadcast, they'll really look bad -- worse than they already do.

Let the Greens speak

For too many election campaigns, I've watched Gilles Duceppe engage in the national debate with leaders of the three major parties. Although he's done a great job of asking questions and demanding answers from those leaders, never once have I had the opportunity to vote for a member of his party.

Why? Because I don't live in Quebec.

The Green Party has grown to the point where they will again be running candidates in every province of the country. Shouldn't Elizabeth May be allowed to challenge the other party leaders in the debate?

Really, without her participation, the fabric of our democratic process looks awfully thin.