"Granite Highway"

Evening "entertainment" was part of the cruise... One could attend or not.

The most interesting "entertainment" I attended was a talk by naturalist, Bond Strand while we were docked at Westport.

He spoke about the forest and animal life around us on the "granite highway" - part of the Canadian Shield that extends south from northern Canada through many of the places we were visiting and on into the United States. We were able to quickly identify this rocky terrain, unsuitable for farming, where forests prevail - and animals move unimpeded.

Hearing his stories - and seeing the many examples of forest life he brought to show us - like these antlers - awakened in me an interest in life around the canal.

After his talk, I suddenly became more aware of the rocks, the birds chirping in the trees, the poison ivy beside the path - and the holes dug by snakes in the dirt.

His talk transformed the perfect "postcard" I was observing from the safety of the boat into a live biosphere that I immediately wanted to learn more about.