Category Archives: Recreation

Plasticized Oceans

I lived thirty-two years on the lighthouses bordering on the Pacific Ocean. As a lighthouse keeper, I was also aware of the ocean as a living habitat that should be protected. We voluntarily reported oil spills, garbage, etc. For me it was a beautiful place, but I saw what man could do to the oceans in just a short period.

One prime example which I will never forget was back in the 1970s when I was at Quatsino lighthouse (aka Kains Island) where a mining firm near Port Alice was given government permission to dump mine tailings five (5) kilometers off the coast.

If the weather was bad, they only went as far as the entrance to the sound, maybe one (1) kilometer, and dumped their barge-load of rock garbage.

My crystal clear fishing water around the lighthouse turned from 40 foot visibility to a murky brown colour with a visibility of about one (1) foot because of the tailings.

The oceans are not a garbage dump! Please watch Chris Jordan’s trailer video below and then read the news articles.

We humans are ruining the oceans of the world!

The complete video can be found on the Midway website

Many more similar videos can be found here on Youtube.

The Garbage Patch

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UPDATE:

It used to be birds and seaweed that heralded a landfall - now . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 03, 2012 – Expedition Embarks To Study Effects Of The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The Robert C. Seamans, a tall ship owned and operated by Sea Education Association (SEA) will leave port October 3, 2012, on a research expedition. The journey is dedicated to examining the effects of plastic marine debris in the ocean ecosystem, including debris generated by the 2011 Japanese tsunami.

http://www.repost.us/article-preview/#!hash=25493d1f370b96693e04011b50db7bd

October 02, 2012 – Plastics at sea – North Pacific Expedition

An area of plastic debris was first observed in the North Atlantic Ocean in the early 1970s, but in recent years, a similar area of plastic debris in the Pacific Ocean has received the most media attention. Sea Education Association (SEA) has been studying both debris fields – in the North Atlantic for the past 25 years, and in the North Pacific the past eight. Click here…

August 12, 2012Ocean plastic an ugly threat

Yet the biggest contamination problem in the Pacific Ocean existed long before the 2011 tsunami. It’s summed up in that word from The Graduate: “Plastics.”

Mary Crowley, founder of the Ocean Voyages Institute, a U.S.-based environmental group, says the tsunami debris poses a significant risk to the ocean, but it pales in comparison with the vast amount of debris already floating in the ocean. Most of that debris is plastic and most of it comes from this side of the Pacific.

August 07, 2012 – Ship Tracking Tsunami Debris, Ocean Trash Makes Stop in BC

Marine litter a growing problem, but cleanup plans are in the works

The tall ship Kaisei, seen here docked in Richmond after several weeks of tracking debris and gathering research on the Great Pacific Patch and the Japanese tsunami. The findings will be presented at the Richmond Maritime Festival Aug. 10-12. (Courtesy of City of Richmond)

 

 July 24, 2012 – Litter From City Streets Ends up on Beaches

Trash falls out of a full garbage bin on Seventh Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, July 24, 2012. According to New York City environmental protection commissioner, there is a chance that trash laying in the city’s streets could end up on New York’s beaches. (Benjamin Chasteen/The Epoch Times)

 

 

June 12, 2012 – Five Global Companies Pledge Cooperation on Bioplastic 

 

June 12, 2012 – Kaisei sets sail for Steveston’s Ships to Shore festival Kaisei, a Japanese name roughly interpreted as “Ocean Planet,” has served as the iconic vessel behind research expeditions of Project Kaisei, a group that formed in 2008 to stem the flow of plastic and marine debris into the Pacific Ocean.

June 09, 2012 – Great Pacific Garbage Patch Is A Bigger Threat Than Tsunami Debris

June 05, 2012 – If the Sea Was a Child: In Honor of World Oceans Day

May 28, 2012 – Canada’s mass firing of ocean scientists brings ‘silent summer’

May 23, 2012 UVic PhD student shocked by fisheries job cuts in North Saanich

May 23, 2012 – Help with first wave of tsunami debris

May 22, 2012 – Research Finds World’s Oceans ‘Plasticized’

May 17, 2012 – Microplastics endanger ocean health

  – Big rise in North Pacific plastic waste

May 28, 2012Canada’s mass firing of ocean scientists brings ‘silent summer’

Canada is dismantling the nation’s entire ocean contaminants program as part of massive layoffs at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. 

 Many scientists say the purpose of the move by the Canadian government is not just cost-cutting but to eliminate environmental rules and protect the oil and gas industry. 

 

May 23, 2012 – UVic PhD student shocked by fisheries job cuts in North Saanich

The 29-year-old student is still in shock that her mentor, Canada’s only marine mammal toxicologist at the Institute of Ocean Sciences on Vancouver Island, is losing his job as the federal government cuts almost all employees who monitor ocean pollution across Canada.

May 23, 2012 – Help with first wave of tsunami debris

Although the Japan Tsunami has created unprecedented amounts of ocean trash, marine debris from foreign and domestic sources has been washing up on the Alaskan coast for a long time. Most of this debris is caused by human choices. The solution to the global problem of marine debris is changing our habits and the way we dispose of our waste, and the first step towards that solution is creating an awareness of the problem. 

May 22, 2012 – Research Finds World’s Oceans ‘Plasticized’

A marine expedition of environmentalists has confirmed the bad news it feared — the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” extends even further than previously known.

May 17, 2012Microplastics endanger ocean health

Tiny pieces of plastic contaminate almost every sea in the world. Now scientists have found that marine creatures like fish and birds are eating this microscopic waste, which may be harming their health.

May 09, 2012 – Big rise in North Pacific plastic waste

The quantity of small plastic fragments floating in the north-east Pacific Ocean has increased a hundred fold over the past 40 years.

 

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Related Websites (in no particular order):

A Mermaid’s Tear

The Daily Galaxy

Coastal Care

Rise Above Plastics

 

 

The Lightkeepers by Graham Chandler

Originally published in the January/February 2007 issue of Legion Magazine

We hadn’t expected gourmet Hungarian goulash served up on Royal Doulton china. But at the Cape Scott light station on the remote northwestern tip of Vancouver Island–a place that is normally engulfed in wet grey and storms–today is an exception. The sky is azure, there’s not a puff of wind, and Principal Keeper Harvey Humchitt and his partner Assistant Keeper Todd Maliszewski have house guests.

After sweating through 24 kilometres of squishy rain forest trails we’re no match for the fine linens and silver flatware spread impeccably before us on the dining table. The trek through the forest is the only way to get here without a boat or helicopter. After a couple of greeting barks from their dog Lady, Humchitt welcomes us to Cape Scott. Continue reading The Lightkeepers by Graham Chandler

Books on BC Lighthouses

Over the years since I started this website in 2005 I have collected many books on British Columbia lighthouses. Some with only a reference to lighthouse, others dedicated exclusively to BC lighthouses like Donald Graham’s books.

Later I will dedicate a page to each book as I have to some earlier ones, but right now I am more interested in showing newcomers what is/was available so that they will recognize them when they are found in a flea market or garage sale.

If you click on the photo left, it will take you to a modified page from my old website which lists books that I have collected over the years. It will also specify if the book is available for sale or not.

Listed below are a few more lighthouse-related books that did not make it onto that list before I created this new website. If you can, please send me an email or comment about a new book that you have found. I will add it to the list and we can make this as complete as possible. Also, if possible, would you please also send a scan of the front cover so I can add it to the pages. You know the old saying “A picture is worth a thousand words”. Thank you.

Shipwrecks Along the West Coast Trail – Richard E. Wells – Sono Nis Press

Silent Seige III – Bert Webber – 301 pages – Webb Research Group (December 1992) 

The Last Island – Alison Watt – Harbour Publishing – 978-1-55017-296-6 · 1-55017-296-4
$34.95 · Hardback 6.5 x 9.5 · 192 pp · September 2002 (Available)
http://www.harbourpublishing.com/title/TheLastIsland
ISBN-10: 0936738731, 10.7 x 8.3 x 0.9 inches

There’s A Landing Today – Richard E. Wells – Sono Nis press


Derrick Operation at Boat Bluff c. 2004

Derrick at Boat Bluff - photo Mike Mitchell

The derrick is another lifting device used on stations that do not have a rock in the sea for a highline and where seas were also relatively calm. It was used like the highline to lift and lower items to and from the work boats or lower the keeper’s boat or station boat in and out of the water. 

Definition – “a derrick is a lifting device composed of one mast or pole which is hinged freely at the bottom. It is controlled by (usually 4) lines powered by some such means as man-hauling or motors, so that the pole can move in all 4 directions. a line runs up it and over its top with a hook on the end, like with a crane. It was commonly used in docks.”Derrick (Lifting Device), 28 april 2006 12:06 UTC, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia  Continue reading Derrick Operation at Boat Bluff c. 2004

The Storm of October 1984

The article I posted earlier about the storm at Cape Scott brought to mind a story I had written for the old website. This story (below) brought to the attention of the government one of the important attributes of BC lighthouse keepers – they are on-site!

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Helicopter pad at McInnes

On Thursday October 12, 1984 Roger Mogg (my assistant) and I were up at the helicopter pad at McInnes Island  lighthouse enjoying the clear Fall weather after lunch. We had been shooting clay pigeons with our shotguns and a newly acquired launcher. The wind was light, with very few clouds in the sky, so it made a perfect day for target practice in between weather reports. 

Just then Karen called up that Stan at Egg Island  had just notified the Coast Guard radio station in Bull Harbour  that he had unexpected high winds and seas. Roger and I looked at each other and joked that Stan must have been into his home-made wine again! Looking down towards Calvert Island  (between us and Egg Island) from our location on the helo (helicopter) pad we could see only clear sky with a trace of cirrus cloud. Calvert was over forty miles (64 kms) away and we could just see the top of it on the horizon. Egg Island was further south still.  Continue reading The Storm of October 1984

Submarine Races at McInnes

 

Our viewpoint - photo Paul Kurbis

On our lighthouse at McInnes Island we got to see many submarine races. It was usually a random event, and if the weather was good we would sit up at the front of the lighthouse beside the foghorns with our binoculars and radio and notepad waiting for the races to begin.

 

Weather like this was not good - photo Colin Toner

We were notified by radio beforehand and noted the times on our notepad. Good weather was always a necessity, as if it was too rough you would see nothing. The children loved the event as it could occur at any time of the day and so sometimes they could stay up late at night to watch and cheer, or even miss school.

 

 

If the weather was bad we went back and waited impatiently for the next announcement on the radio. They were mostly US submarines as Canada has not too many serviceable ones. Plus, the American ones were faster and provided more fun.

 

If you ever get a chance when near the ocean, try and take in this rare event. See the video below for a touch of the excitement!

 

Continue reading Submarine Races at McInnes

Risking it All – Oil on Our Coast

 

Risking it All – Oil on our Coast is a short film that outlines the plans for the pipeline and tanker route and what it means for our beautiful coast. It is produced by Twyla Roscovich in association with Hartley Bay & Gitga’at Nation, Oil on our Coast is meant to inspire, empower and help fuel the battle to save what sustains us. – Twyla Roscovitch

Risking it All – Oil on our Coast from Twyla Roscovich on Vimeo. Continue reading Risking it All – Oil on Our Coast

Sister’s Island c. early 1950s

Here is a continuance of the tales of Juanita (Swanson) DuLong. Somewhere around the early 1950s, probably after a year at Fiddle Reef lighthouse the family was moved to Sisters Island. Juanita says:

Sisters Island

Fiddle Reef’s plumbing was a cistern and hand pump. Cold water only. 

Sisters was a little tamer and had a bathroom. When we arrived we found the tub full of coal. The running water was cold only . A reservoir on the wood and coal stove heated enough water for small tasks.

At that time  the lighthouse tenders also burned coal. The smoke could be seen well off.

While on the subject of heat, Dad nearly took a finger off chopping kindling. Mom patched it up, and a doctor later told her he “couldn’t have done it better himself”.

Here there were more and bigger buildings. I actually had a bedroom instead of my little pallet in the angle of the hallway (on Fiddle Reef). I cannot remember much about the day to day station workings, but I do remember the foghorn had a very brassy sound. Continue reading Sister’s Island c. early 1950s

Surviving on Fiddle Reef Lighthouse c. 1950s


View Larger Map

On January 21, 2012 I wrote about a family that lived on the lighthouses in the 1950s up to the 1960s, all in the days of no electricity – only kerosene lamps. I now have another installment from Ms. Juanita (Swanson) DuLong. She was only four years old at the time on Fiddle Reef, but memories are hard to erase – especially Lighthouse Memories!

List of Lights #215 - Fiddle Reef Sector

The map above shows the location of Fiddle Reef (1898 – 1978) just off Oak Bay, Victoria, BC. The lighthouse was on the rock under the green arrow. The lighthouse is long gone and is replaced with a white cylindrical tower with a white light and a red sector. Continue reading Surviving on Fiddle Reef Lighthouse c. 1950s

Discovery Island Lighthouse Rots in the Sun

Automated in 1977, these videos show what happens to a sadly neglected automated lighthouse. What a place for a B&B! Thanks to Discovery Island website for the information. Just for your information discoveryisland.ca does not seem to be working anymore.

The two following videos I found on Youtube were originally posted by the website discoveryisland.ca

Take a look at the tower and lantern that the keepers so meticulously maintained. 

Originally the keepers at Discovery Island would manual record the wind speed and direction, air temperature, sea temperature, humidity, sea level pressure, wave height, ocean swell height and direction, visibility and sky condition and then report it back via radio about seven times a day. Now due to the automation of the lighthouse the weather reports have gone the same way.

The new weather Instrument are mounted on the top of the tower and measure the wind speed and temperature and then automaticly report it back to Environment Canada, when it is not broken.

Only twenty-seven MANNED lighthouses are remaining says the government!