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Carol Patterson

INSPIRING EVERYDAY EXPLORERS Through wildlife tales and trails

Carol Patterson

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The world’s best nature festival

May 25, 2016 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Okay, I’m biased. I have no formal criteria, no judging panel, and no independent auditors. Just my own crazy fun time in the mountains have me declaring British Columbia’s Wings Over The Rockies annual wildlife love-in as the best nature festival on the continent and perhaps the world. Fresh off its twentieth (!!) year of operation, this grassroots celebration of all things bird and nature related in the Columbia Valley offers 120 events over seven days. Do you know how much work it is to arrange a single event? Scattered over an area 130 kilometers long, setting up over 100 events is a huge job but there is no huge staff behind this well-organized festival. Jami Scheffer is the glue that keeps everything together but Columbia Valley volunteers also do lots of work.IMG_4455
I learned about the geology of the Rocky Mountain Trench from geologist Sid Leggett, watched John Zehnder and his dog herd sheep on hay fields left long for long-billed curlews, followed Brian Wesley through burnt forests in search of warblers, and dabbled in eco-psychology with Natalie Forrest. It was obvious that each of these leaders put considerable time and energy into organizing their event and sharing their love of nature. They started on time, were considerate of participant’s skill and energy levels, and let you know if they were going to run past the ending time. Everyone ran late but no one minded. People were so busy searching the sky for white-throated swifts or paddling through rock flower blue water, the only thing that got them back to their cars was the promise of the next event. “I’m here for the whole week”, “I’m doing two or three events everyday” were phrases I heard again and again as I gathered with a new group of nature enthusiasts for each event.IMG_4461

Some of the events offered access to nature areas not available any other way. Michelle Porteous of BC Rockies Adventures made sure I and three other bird watchers could paddle our kayaks then led us down the Columbia River to a grove of trees sheltering Lewis Woodpeckers. These red-bellied, red-necked birds are red-listed in B.C. That means they are extremely rare and a sighting is a lifetime event for a birdwatcher. I told Michelle it was the best kayak trip ever because I got the chance to watch these birds demonstrate their fly catching skills and didn’t have to swim down the river to do it (there is no overland access to these birds).IMG_4450

Baiba Morrow of Wildsight – a Columbia Valley and Rocky Mountain conservation group – sponsored a hike around Lake Enid, a popular place for people to go crazy with off-road vehicles. I would have been deeply depressed if I had visited this overused area on a weekend on my own. “Is there free camping?” queried one person in our group as we walked by a group of tents. “More like free-for-all camping on weekends,” quipped Baiba, explaining how people ignore fences and signs to drive wherever they want. Forest management experts Phil Burke and Peter Holmes who pointed out where steps had been taken to mitigate done by the most invasive of species – Homo sapiens, led our hike. Some of these activities were successful – a recent installation of a wooden boardwalk and alternate quading path stopping the mud bogging in loon and grebe habitat. Others were unsuccessful. “We destroyed that road and put in rocks to keep people from driving over there,” Phil said, pointing to a sensitive grasslands, “people came in with heavy equipment and rebuilt the road.”IMG_4486

I think what I love most about Wings Over the Rockies is the chance to lift the curtain and see what was going on in the forests and wetlands of the Columbia Valley. Those things that you don’t notice when you are rushing to Home Hardware. I was amazed at the dedication and effort put into preserving one of North America’s longest intact wetlands by a relatively small population (approximately 10,000 people call the valley home). So yes, this tiny of festival for wildlife and wilderness lovers gets a gold prize for its best efforts. I can’t wait for next year and the chance to judge it all again.

If you go:

Register for events online at www.wingsovertherockies.org. Sign up as soon as registration opens (early April) as events sell out quickly. Remember events may be 130 kilometers apart and allow enough time to make it from one event to the next.

Sample events at both ends of the valley to see the tremendous diversity of habitat. Columbia Wetlands Adventures offers the chance to paddle the braided channels of the Columbia River on the northern boundaries of the festival www.wetlandsadventures.com Climb the hoodoos south of Fairmont to experience the dry landscapes at the southern reaches of the festival.

Enjoy the food at local merchants. Some of my favorites are:

  • Fresh fish tacos at Leo Burrito in Radium http://leoburrito.com
  • Pizza at Peppi’s Italian Fuel in Invermere http://peppisitalianfuel.com
  • Tony’s Greek Grill in Fairmont Hot Springs http://columbiavalley.com/tonys-greek-grill/

Getting to the valley – The valley is a 90 minute drive from Banff or three hours from Calgary. You can fly to Cranbrook and rent a car for a sixty-minute drive from the south.

Filed Under: British Columbia, Events Tagged With: bird watching, british columbia, nature

Shorebirds: Tofino’s understated tourists

April 22, 2016 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Drive to the western edge of Vancouver Island and you’ll find the surf-mad village of Tofino. Toque-wearing surfers cycle by, their surfboards clipped to a small trailer, the money saved on petrol buying them more time in this rainforest paradise. Motorhomes that were popular in the 70’s – and worn-out in the 90’s – limp along highway 4 as surfers coax more life from them; neoprene wetsuits dry on car mirrors as shaggy haired guys heat soup and discuss surf conditions.
IMG_4046

Weaving around the world’s hardiest surfers – waters are bone-chilling cold even in July – are other travelers who stroll the Pacific Rim National Park beaches. Some of them chow down on crab and mac cheese at Long Beach Lodge Resort, or hop a boat for a tour of Clayoquot Sound. Others are pecking the sand for their lunch, their trip to town accomplished by wing flapping. These are the shorebirds that fly thousands of kilometers from South and Central America to their breeding grounds in the north. They are the tourists not counted by visitor bureaus but Tofino is very popular with traveling birds.

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Plovers are one species of shorebird seen in Tofino

Behind the hotels and spas that pamper human visitors are the Tofino mudflats, gooey coastal wetlands that at low-tide serve up a nutrient buffet for sandpipers, whimbrels, and plovers. Shorebirds fly long distances, sometimes half-asleep with one eye open and one eye closed (similar to a red-eye economy flight for humans). In addition to being some of the world’s longest migrators shorebirds are also some of its biggest eaters. They consume about a third of their body weight each day as they prepare for migration and eat so much they poop every two minutes!

Tofino mudflats
Tofino mudflats

In late April, Tofino boasts impressive numbers of shorebirds. “Our most prevalent shorebird is the western sandpiper,” said Andy Murray, Tofino Sea Kayaking guide and naturalist, “150,000 Western sandpipers can pass through here in three weeks!”

The beach in front of Long Beach Lodge Resort is a comfortable place to look for shorebirds
The beach at Long Beach Lodge Resort is a comfortable place to look for shorebirds

The town celebrates these understated tourists by holding the Tofino Shorebird Festival each year. From April 29- May 1, 2016 you can take a kayak tour with Murray, learn to photograph birds, hop on the M.V. Lady Selkirk to look for Tufted Puffins and Rhinoceros Auklet, or if you’re really adventurous, journey to the offshore Continental shelf break to see pelagic birds.

If you decide to go:

Register for festival events at http://raincoasteducation.org/events/tofino-shorebird-festival

Reserve your hotel in advance. Hotel sponsors with great birding onsite are:

  • Long Beach Lodge Resort http://www.longbeachlodgeresort.com
  • The Wickaninnish Inn http://www.wickinn.com
  • Jamie’s Rainforest Inn http://www.tofinorainforestinn.com

Look for shorebirds at the end of Sharp Road (the turn-off is by the Dolphin Motel). Best viewing is mid-tide rising.

Warm up after birding with a Forest Sour cocktail at the Great Room. http://www.longbeachlodgeresort.com/site/cuisine/great-room.html

 

Filed Under: British Columbia, Events Tagged With: bird watching, birds, Birdwatching, festival, nature, tofino, travel, westcoast

Five nature festivals to get your spring on

March 31, 2016 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Five nature festivals to get your spring onWinter has its own beauty but after five months of dark evenings (and mornings), scraping car windshields, and dressing like the Michelin man before heading outside, I am ready for spring! It is a time of renewal for Mother Nature and her enthusiasm for new life invigorates mine. (I’m also enjoying the extra sleep since I put the shovel away.)
If you’re looking for a way to celebrate spring why not head out to these Northwestern nature festivals and enjoy spectacular wildlife, yummy food, and entertaining speakers?

The Brant Festival in Parksville-Qualicum Beach, British Columbia runs until April 17. Thousands of Brant geese take a break from their northward migration to feast and rest. You can follow their lead and enjoy spring-themed dinners, art displays, and relaxation ocean-side while you watch the avian action. Dolphins and whales sometimes join the party. http://www.brantfestival.bc.ca

Drop into Hoquiam, Washington for Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival May 6 – 8. You won’t be the only one from out of town. Shorebirds from as far away as Argentina stop before heading north to the Arctic – a 15,000 mile round trip if you’re counting – and you can see tens of thousands of birds in the Grays Harbor estuary. To get your tickets for bird tours or a special presentation on butterflies head to http://www.shorebirdfestival.com

Wings Over the Rockies in Invermere and B.C.’s Columbia Valley May 9 – 15 is one of North America’s longest running and largest nature festivals. There are seven days of hikes, paddles, horseback riding, and evening presentations. I’ll be speaking Friday, May 13 at 7pm with my stories and pictures in “A travel writer with a birding habit”. Tickets for all events go on sale April 11 at http://www.wingsovertherockies.org

Utah’s Great Salt Lake Bird Festival May 12 -16 has a great lake and great birding. The birds come for the lake, the people come for the birds and for the celebrities who love birding. James Currie from Nikon’s Birding Adventures TV appears this year and will get everyone excited about our feathered friends. One year at this festival I had the pleasure of meeting Brad Harris – the record-setting birdwatcher played by Jack Black in the movie The Big Year – and realized I’d become an official bird-nerd! Get your binoculars on at http://www.GreatSaltLakeBirdFest.com

British Columbia’s Meadowlark Nature Festival May 19 – 23 highlights overlooked attractions in the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys. You can canoe, hike, participate in indigenous cultural events, stargaze, paint watercolors, or be a rock gummy (geologist for a day). Tickets go on sale April 9th at http://www.meadowlarkfestival.ca

These are some of my favorite festivals but there are more. What’s the best festival you’ve attended?

Carol

Filed Under: British Columbia, Events Tagged With: birds, Birdwatching, festivals, nature, spring

Sam Horn delivers great tips on speaking

June 1, 2012 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Sam Horn is one of the world's greatest public speakers so I was thrilled when she shared her expertise at a recent gathering of the Calgary chapter of the Canadian Professional Speakers Association.

Sam Horn and Carol Patterson

People with very diverse backgrounds fine-tuned their 'elevator speech' – I found it very helpful in answering that question "what do you do?" Not always an easy question for those of us working in developing tourism destinations.

To learn more about Sam Horn visit www.samhorn.com

 

Filed Under: Events

Make Money Doing What You Love

April 24, 2012 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

If you want to make money doing what you love, check out the Road Less Traveled workshop being held in Calgary May 9th.

Whale watching in Baja

Carol Patterson, who has turned conventional training as a professional accountant into an uncoventional career as a tourism consultant and travel writer, will share strategies and techniques to help your dreams come to life!

For more details visit http://bit.ly/n3qgMy

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: events

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