Arctic Foxes in Southern Labrador

On the prowl

During our visit to Battle Harbour (NL), August 2011, we learned that there were Arctic Foxes living in the collapsed ruins of the old school house at the abandoned communities of Matthews Cove and Trap Cove on Great Caribou Island (NL).  We were intrigued.  Surely Arctic Foxes didn't live this far south.  We had to go and see for ourselves.

Summer cabins, Matthews Cove (NL)

And so with our new friends, John and Robin, who were from Goose Bay and whom we met at Battle Harbour, we were taken in a small boat around to an old stage in Matthews Cove.  From there, we walked uphill a short distance until we could see the remains of the old school.  We waited and watched from a distance for a short time, but saw no activity.  With a light, but steady, rain falling from grey skies, and not knowing where the best place was to set up, we decided to explore around some of the old abandoned houses in Trap Cove.

Abandoned home, Trap Cove (NL)

Periodically, we'd carefully peak over the small intervening hill to see if there was any activity at the school.  Eventually, one fox made a cautious appearance, and then, another.  We slowly and quietly crept back and set up our tripods about 10-15 m from the school.  

The foxes were initially unsettled, particularly with the four of us nearby.  We sat quietly and waited.  Eventually four foxes appeared, one at a time.  Instead of the beautiful thick white winter coats that we had seen at Churchill (MB) during November a few years ago, these foxes had scruffy brown to grey to off-white coloured fur.  These were Arctic Foxes in their summer duds.  The seasonal variation in colour allows the foxes to blend into the rocks or vegetation during the summer, both for protection and hunting, just as their winter-white's made them almost invisible in snowy terrains.   

Visitors at collapsed old school, Matthews Cove  and Trap Cove

The collapsed framework of the old school with its multiple entrances (exits) was a convenient and easy alternative to living in a burrow in the ground or snow.

Foxes are carnivores and scavengers, and typically feed on rodents (mice, lemmings), small birds, fish and vegetables.  Such food was readily available from the nearby abandoned homes, stages and stores, summer cabins and locals.

Arctic Foxes typically range in weight from 3 - 9 kg, and from 75-115 cm long.  Their bushy tail is about a third of the their overall length.

Foxes at play; look carefully under floor-board

Locals indicated that they had seen as many as 9 foxes at the old school.  Arctic Foxes can have litters with up to 14 pups each spring (late May to early June).  During our brief stay at the school in early August, we saw only four foxes.  Where the other five foxes were was a mystery.  To our inexperienced eye, we could not differentiate the parents from the pups.

Ever watchful!

On the move ... coming at you!

With just the two of us nearby, the foxes quickly figured out that we were not a threat, so they just ignored us.  They groomed themselves, played with each other, found things to chew on, dozed, and hunted, either nearby or on the remains of the old school.  At times, they came closer than our cameras could focus.

Lookout ... behind you!

We saw them chewing vigorously on sharp scraps plastic and other debris from the school.  It left us thinking that such items would not be good for them if swallowed.

One way to get some iron in your diet

We could only stay for about 3 hours before having to head across the spongy tundra of Great Caribou Island in the rain, and back to Battle Harbour.  We enjoyed the rare opportunity to be this close to Arctic Foxes.

Play-time!

Battle Harbour, Matthews Cove and Trap Cove are communities that were resettled by the Provincial Government in the early 1960's.  Some of the old buildings are used for summer cabins in Matthews Cove and Trap Cove.  Many of the buildings at Battle Harbour have or are being renovated under the guidance and support the Battle Harbour Historic Trust Inc. to recreate a living outport.  

Battle Harbour, Labrador

Last August, when we decided to return to Calgary from Newfoundland via Labrador, we realized that we had an opportunity to visit Battle Harbour (NL), a place that we had long wanted to visit.

View from the rocky hill overlooking Battle Harbour and tickle

Battle Harbour is an old community that is situated on a small rocky island, Battle Island, about an hour by boat, depending on the winds and sea state, west of Mary's Harbour (NL).  The tickle between Battle Harbour and Great Caribou Island to the west forms a sheltered narrow natural harbour.  The community became an important permanent settlement for the Labrador fishery with establishment of a mercantile saltfish premises there during the 1770's.  Battle Harbour prospered from the processing of salt-fish, salmon and seal until its residents were forced to relocate/resettle to Mary's Harbour between 1965-1968 under a provincial government sponsored program.  Some residents continued to use their homes seasonally as a base for fishing until the Government of Canada closed the cod fishery in 1992.

Restored mercantile premises and other buildings, Battle Harbour

Many original residents continued to use their homes as cabins during summer vacations, but clearly the community and the outport life was in decline.    In 1990, the Battle Harbour Historic Trust Inc., a not-for profit registered charity, was established to hold donations of property rights and funds, and to oversee the seasonal work of restoring the old buildings by volunteers and staff.  The intent of these dedicated people is to continue the lifestyle and community of an old outport for others to visit and experience.

The buildings of the old saltfish premises have been restored.  They contain numerous displays and artifacts that relate to and describe the Labrador fishery and life in the community.  There are other historical buildings, several of which are used for visitors to stay in overnight.  Visitors can take a guided tour through the fish premises and community, walk the numerous walkways and paths on your own, or hike around and over the rest of the wind and salt spray-swept island.  Many of the staff were born in Battle Harbour, or nearby, so they have many first-hand stories to tell.

We stayed comfortably at the Battle Harbour Inn, one of the restored buildings.  Here, we met John and Robin who were on vacation from their home in Goose Bay.  We spent our evenings chatting with them, and other visitors, in the cozy veranda, usually with a glass of wine in-hand.  There was a full kitchen for our use, but we chose to eat in the dining room that was located upstairs over the old General Store.  The food was great, and it gave us an opportunity to meet other guests and converse with some of the staff.

Battle Harbour Inn with 'sticks' in the foreground

Battle Harbour Inn with cozy veranda overlooking tickle

The geology of Battle Island is complex and fascinating.  The rocks include deformed and metamorphosed Proterozoic supracrustal rocks with mafic igneous sills in the northeast part of the island, and complexly folded  granitic pegamatites (intrusives) in the western half of the island.  According to Gower (2008), one pegmatite from the southern end of the island has a preliminary age slightly older than 1 billion years.  For those wanting more information about the geology of Battle Island, download the following PDF files: "Battle Harbour - A Geological Treasure in Eastern Coastla Labrador" and "Tourist's Guide to the Geology of Battle Harbour, Labrador" by Charles Gower (Newfoundland & Labrador Natural Resources).

Granitic pegmatites and old fishing boat

Deformed granitic pegmatites in a mafic hoast rock

The staff will take you by boat to Great Caribou Island which is just across the tickle to the west.  There, you can spend the day hiking and exploring the rugged natural landscape, and the old abandoned communities of Matthews Cove and Trap Cove.

Surprisingly to us, Battle Harbour is also the destination for adventurous sailors who have the right skills and equipment to sail through the cold, iceberg infested waters and along the rocky and 'sunker' strewn shores of Labrador.  Jamie and Lori, whom we met here, had sailed from Boston aboard their boat, "Sea Quester".  And, this was not their first visit. 

Jamie and Lori's boat, "Sea Quester"

Battle Harbour is rugged, but beautiful place that immerses you in the lifestyle of an old outport.  It's a place that we hope to visit again.

For more information about Battle Harbour, visit their website.

Icebergs In August, Newfoundland

During our visit to Newfoundland last summer, we traveled up the Great Northern Peninsula to St. Anthony, Goose Cove, St. Lunaire, Griquet, Gunner's Cove and Quirpon.  The icebergs were late coming south this year.  The locals could not remember seeing such large icebergs during August before.  When we reached St. Anthony, there were large icebergs grounded in many coves and visible on the distant horizon. 

Grounded Icebergs, St. Anthony Bight, NL

Goose Cove, NL

Many of the icebergs were apparently remnants of the Petermann Ice Shelf which had broken off from a glacier in the northwest part of Greenland during early August, 2010.  The largest of these was about 55 square kilometres in size; too big to photograph.  It had taken a year following the counter-clockwise movement of the currents in Baffin Bay to drift ~4800 kms south to the shores of Newfoundland.   According to the news media and NASA, portions of the ice shelf survived until early October 2012 when it eventually grounded northeast of the Horse Islands (northeast of the Baie Verte Peninsula, NL) and broke apart.

Remnants of Petermann Ice Shelf, Goose Cove, NL

Icebergs, Goose Cove, NL

Even under overcast and drizzly skies, the icebergs were impressive.  

Autumn Colours with PD Effect - Going With The Flow

Chilko River, BC with PD Effect

What do you do when you go out to photograph wildflowers, and find that while the lighting is great, it is too windy to get sharp images?  You have two choices: Go Home with no images, or Go with the Flow, or Mother Nature in this instance,  and capture some artsy abstract images of the wild flowers moving in the wind. 

During a recent photo tour to photograph grizzlies, black bears, bald eagles and ospreys in the Chilko Valley, BC, there were also opportunities to capture images of the fall colours and reflections.

Bluff Lake, BC

Chilko Lake, BC

Getting sharp images from a small boat that is bobbing up and down due to water motion, or movement by other occupants, can be challenging.

While searching along the Chilko River for wildlife, there were long periods when there was no wildlife to photograph.  Most of the time, we chatted back and forth, or sat quietly while we watched the shoreline.  It was during these periods that I saw the opportunity to capture images of the surrounding landscape and fall colours.  Landscape images during a Wildlife photo tour may be heresy to some people!  However, I saw the situation as Going with the Flow and taking advantage of what was in front of me. 

When my meds for a Parkinson tremor wore off, I had another opportunity to Go with the Flow, and capture different image of the fall colours.  I used a Canon 5D MkII with a 300mm lens (image stabilization OFF) with no tripod and no meds.  My camera settings were:  ISO = 100, aperture = F8-16 and shutter speed = 1/15 - 1/50 s.  Live View was used so that I could see generally at what I was aiming, and attempt to control composition.  

Each shot was an experiment because I didn't know what the combination of my tremor and the bobbing boat might produce.  I quickly discovered that too slow a shutter speed produced 'muddy-looking' images with too much blur.  Too fast a shutter speed created images that look like out-of-focus accidents.  Unfortunately too, my tremor is not a Variable Control model, so I couldn't experiment with changing aspects of frequency, magnitude, patterns, etc.).  With my tremor full-on, I had to watch too that I didn't drop my camera overboard.

Fall colours along the Chilko River with PD Effect

Fall colours along the Chilko River with PD Effect

Fall colours along Chilko River with PD Effect

I think that the results of Going with the Flow and using PD Effect is an interesting way to produce impressionistic abstracts.  Each image is unique.

If you do not have a Parkinson or some other kind of tremor, you might use one of the techniques described by Freeman Patterson and Andre Gallant, "Photo Impressionism and the Subjective Image" (Key Porter Books, 2001).  Don Johnston's October 27th blog also describes some techniques to create similar results.

What kind of 'mover and shaker' are you?  What kind of abstracts can you create?

Zodiac Adventures From Port MacNeill, B.C.

With all of the rain that we've had recently, it makes me think back to being stranded in Bella Coola late last September when the road was washed out by heavy rains.

After escaping from Bella Coola to Vancouver Island, we had to decide what to do with this change of plans.  We first checked to see if there were any openings to photograph grizzlies at Chilko Lake, where we were supposed to be the week before.  Unfortunately, there were none.  So, what to do now?

We wondered if it was possible to photograph Orcas at this time of year.  By late September, most tour operators were winding down for the season, so there were few choices.  We checked with BC Tourism in Port McNeill, and were fortunate to learn about Angela and Ocean Rose Coastal Adventures.  She runs tours from Port McNeill in a zodiac.

With the hope of seeing Orcas, we headed off, sharing the boat with a deckhand and two locals from Port McNeill.  The Orcas must have heard that we were coming because they disappeared to the other side of Queen Charlotte Strait beyond our range.  We were not, however, disappointed in what we saw during our day on the water.

As we headed down the strait under grey skies past Alert Bay, we saw Cormorants sitting on a navigation buoy.

As we entered a small inter-island channel, we caught a brief glimpse of several Ringed Seals before they slid into the water and out of sight.

We carried on under a light drizzle.  Two, somewhat soggy, Bald Eagles kept a watchful eye on our progress from their perches in coniferous trees along the shoreline.

At the west end of one of the islands, we found a rocky island covered with about a hundred Sea Lions  (females, ~2 m long and ~270 kg; males, ~3 m long and ~900 kg).  What a sight.  A few were in the water, popping up periodically to check us out.  Most, however, were quietly resting on the rocks with their eyes closed.  We didn't know whether they were sleeping, or just resting, and we weren't about to check.  A few of the bigger Sea Lions snorted loudly with wide-open mouths, and aggressively pushed back and forth.  This was not a place to go walking with your camera.

Leaving the islands, our attention was drawn to the raucous noise from hundreds of sea birds feeding on Herring Balls that periodically came near the surface. The birds rose several metres into the air, then dove past each other into the water without collision, but many near misses.  What chaos, and what a racket, as the birds fought for their share of the herring.

We sat and watched the birds for some time, then noticed a fast moving disturbance on the water about a kilometre further north.  Pacific White-sided Dolphins (~2 m long and weighing ~150 kg) porpoised through the water at great speed, presumably in search of herring or other food.  They raced one way for several hundreds of metres, then abruptly headed off in another direction.  What a spectacle!  And what a challenge to get a decent shot while sitting in a bobbing zodiac as they sped by, diving in and out of the waves.

We did not see any Orcas, but we did see several Humpback Whales that were feeding in the area.

At one point, after seeing a feeding whale go past with the usual sea birds following in its wake, we noticed that there were about 25-30 dead sea birds floating on the water.  There had been no collision that we were aware of, so we were mystified about what had happened.  Most of the birds were clearly dead.  Four seemed to be still alive, but in obvious distress.  Angela pulled the boat alongside one of the birds.  As we watched, it stopped breathing, and slowly slipped beneath the waves. The remaining three birds were carefully brought aboard and covered to keep them warm.  Angela contacted a biologist-friend by cell-phone for advice.  Although there was little hope, she was encouraged to bring the birds back for examination.  Only one survived the journey back to port.  We never heard what happened to it after we left, so we were left wondering.  Watching Nature take a life is hard, but it is Nature's way.

We had a full and enjoyable day on the water with Angela and the others on the boat.  Angela showed great sensitivity in staying at a respectful distance from wildlife so as not to disturb their activities.  We found that photographing from a bobbing zodiac was quite a challenge.  Nevertheless, we came home with some 'keepers', some new knowledge, and a few stories from our adventures with Angela.

Image Montages for Display at Parkinson Society's 4th Annual Hope Conference 2011

On June 3-4, 2011, the Parkinson Society of Southern Alberta is hosting the 4th Annual Hope Conference in Calgary.  The conference organizers asked if there were people with PD who wanted to display their 'creative endeavours'.  Since I qualified, I decided create four image montages (Landscapes, Flora, Birds and Mammals) to show at the conference.

A number of people who previewed the montages asked if they are available.  If you are interested, please contact me at info@imagesbyknight.ca for details.  A portion of the profits from each print will be donated to the Parkinson Society of Southern Alberta.

LANDSCAPE

Clockwise from upper left: Ice and snow, east of Pond Inlet, northern Baffin Island, NU;

Sunset at Perce, QC; Autumn Trees, Pavillon Lake, BC; Sunrise over the Bugaboos, BC;

Sunset at Long Beach, Pacific Rim NP, BC; Storm waves at Long Beach, Pacific Rim NP,BC;

Winter storm clouds near Bow Summit, AB; Prairie winter southeast of Calgary near Mossleigh, AB

FLORA
 Clockwise from upper left:  Tulip; Iris; Pointed Mariposa Lily; raindrops on Spruce needles;
new forest growth; tree moss; Sunflower

BIRDS
Clockwise from upper left:  Mountain Bluebird; Common Loon and chick;
Gannet; Marsh Wren; Trumpeter Swan; Snowy Owl; Osprey and chick

MAMMALS

Clockwise from upper left:  Polar Bear, Churchill, MB; Polar Bear sow with cubs, Churchill, MB;

Lynx, Yellowknife, NT; Arctic Fox, Churchill, MB; Grizzly Bear, Tweedsmuir PP, BC;

 Black Bear, Jasper NP, AB;  Red Fox, Prince Albert NP, SK; Bighorn Sheep, Jasper NP, AB

Growing Your Photography: A Creative, Impressionistic and Artistic Side of PD

At first glance, you might think that the image here is an interesting mistake.  Others might think that the image is the result of some photographic technique whether intended, or accidental.

Fall Leaves with PD Effect
Canon 5D with EF24-105mm f/4 L IS USM
Focal length 105mm; 1/20s at f/16; ISO 100

When you're photographing, it's easy to place your camera over the tripod holes of other photographers whether you are participating in a photo tour or workshop, or visiting locations where others have been.  The real challenge is being able to see what others miss, and to experiment with different compositions, perspectives, lighting, equipment and techniques.  During a course at SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology) a few years ago, Bill Marsh stated that it was important to have images that were "first, best or different" in the business of photography.

There are many ways to do this:

     - Stand exactly in the same place from which others have photographed, and try to see

       what they saw differently 

     - Try using a different lens, depth of field, shutter speed, etc., or different photographic
       accessories (e.g., regular and special effect filters)

     - Try or invent different and unusual photographic techniques, e.g., see the book, 
       Photographic Impressionism and the Subjective Image, by Freeman Patterson and
       Andre Gallant

     - Go to a different location that provides a different view or perspective of what others
       have photographed, and be the first to create an image from there

     - Find an object, scene or situation that has not been previously photographed

     - Go on a photo outing, tour or workshop with others and compare your results

The last suggestion is a powerful way to learn from others.  A good example of this can be seen in the variety of excellent images from the participants of Darwin Wiggett's Fire and Ice Photo Tour, November 2011.  The images seem to fall into two broad groups, scenic and artistic-abstract.  For example, my images are more scenic and traditional.  While I was impressed by everyone's images, I was really humbled by the creative and artistic flare exhibited in the images by three of the participants (Alan, Marko and Igor), plus another (Sonia) who shared her images of flowers one evening.  Through the images of this latter group, I saw a growth opportunity for own photography that will require me to slowdown, throw away the rule book and really experiment with artistic creativity. 

The impressionistic image above is a step in that direction.  It is a hand-held shot taken when I didn't have my tripod, and my Parkinson medications had worn off sooner than expected.  On that occasion, I had two choices; either put the camera away and forget the shot, or experiment.  The image here was the result of the latter ... no fancy equipment or technique, just a camera in the hand of someone with PD with 'meds' off.  Don't you wish that you had this handy vibrating tool for creative photography in your camera bag?  I need to try mine more often in different situations.

Most of the time, I look for interesting and different compositions, perspectives and lighting to create good objective images of a something, a situation, or a scene, always hoping to be 'first, better or different'.  A key lesson that I've learned from the image here, and from photo tour described, is that I need to experiment with creating impressionistic and subjective from time to time to grow my photography in some new directions.

New Slideshow Images and Galleries

This Blog is to let you know that I’ve put some new images on my website.  Clicking on the caption beneath each image will take you to the slide show or gallery.

NEW SLIDE SHOW – a selection of wildlife images from 2010 

Big Horn Sheep, Jasper NP

TWO NEW GALLERIES

1.  Bugaboos (CMH)

Bugaboo Mountains, BC

 2.  Storm Waves and Beach Scenes, Pacific Rim NP

Storm Waves, Pacific Rim, BC

Stay tuned for more new galleries that are in preparation:

     - Wildlife from the Channels near Port McNeill & Robson Bight, BC
    - Jasper NP Wildlife in the Fall
    - Early Winter Ice and Sunrises, Canadian Rockies

All the best,

John