A blog about my travels around the world, in search of wild parrots, great paddling opportunities and incredibly eclectic travel experiences, I try to make a difference by connecting people with nature, people with other cultures, and people with themselves by sharing my stories.
I've been fishing with tackle, spin-casting from shore, from boats and canoes; I've been deep-sea fishing in the Florida Keys; but I have never even picked up a fly rod.
That's why the next few days in New Brunswick should be interesting.
I'm staying at the O'Donnell's Cottages http://www.odonnellscottages.com/ in Doaktown, N.B. on the banks of the mighty Miramichi River.
And I'm here to fly fish - or at least to try to learn how to fly fish. And if my first day is any indication, it's going to be a steep learning curve for Yours Truly.
Outside the Atlantic Salmon Museum.
After settling in at the lodge, the group I was traveling with headed to the Atlantic Salmon Museum http://www.atlanticsalmonmuseum.com/ to learn all about this fish, the N.B. sport fishing industry in general - and how to actually tie flies.
Greeted warmly by Linda Gaston, the museum's executive director, she quickly introduced us to Bev Gaston, the man who'll be guiding us around the next few days. He in turn introduced us to Kim Mertens, fly tyer. (Hey, that's what her business card says!)
She ties flies. She also runs several programs that teach kids how to tie flies - kids as young as five - to get them interested in the outdoors.
Let me tell you, those kids could probably tie better flies than me.
It's not an easy art to master. Apparently, to be able to make money at it, you have to be able to tie at least 10 an hour.
Kim shows the art of fly-tying
Well, I won't be quitting my day job any time, soon - it took more than an hour to tie one, as my attempts at parroting Kim's moves were pretty lame - and then only with a lot of patient help from Kim was I able to complete it. By the time she was done helping fix my fly faux-pas, it almost looked reasonable.
Almost.
My fly - in all it's ... glory?
Yeah, I'd pretty much starve if I had to do this for a living.
But we sure were not starving when it came to dinner at the museum. They re-created a typical fishing camp meal for us, complete with steamed salmon, fiddleheads, fried potatoes, home-baked biscuits, corn bread and molasses cookies. And this was after we'd had smoked salmon and cream cheese canapés earlier. It's a good thing they'd already caught the fish, 'cause if I'd had to rely on my fly to catch supper, I'd still be out on the river.
At some point, we're supposed to do some paddling, on the Miramichi; too, and I know I can do that, all right ... but for now, I have to focus on getting this fly-fishing stuff down pat.
Up next: We learn how to fly-cast...I just hope I'm better at casting than I am at tying.
So I'm sitting perusing through my Newsfeed on Facebook. I notice another post from a friend who uses the app called "The Travel List Challenge." I checked it and saw that I've only ticked off SIX (yup, 6!) of the so-called Top 100 Places to See Before You Die.
That strikes me as odd, since I am a travel writer, I've been to five of the world's seven continents and had wonderful experiences. I'm scratching my head, pondering this, thinking, "Jeez, I guess I haven't really been to all that many amazing places..." - and then it hits me: this is just someone else's arbitrary list.
Just because someone else thinks the places on this list are "must-do's" does not mean they have to be "must-do's" for anyone else.
So I sat down to write my own list. Except it's a bit different; it's My OWN Travel Top 100 List of Places to See/Experiences to Enjoy Before I Die - but it's split in two: Places/experiences I've already enjoyed; and places/experiences I still want to enjoy.
Making my list, checking it twice - will my next trip be knotty or gneiss?
You may notice the latter list is a bit longer than the former. But hey, there are always new places, new experiences we want to try, so the list is always growing. Actually, both lists grow, since every experience gets shifted back from one list to the other once it's "in the bag" so to speak. It's just that thinking of new things to do always happens quicker and easier than actually experiencing them. And if you're really alive, you should always be adding new things to the second half of your list.
By the way, I almost hesitate to use the term "in the bag," as there can be a connotation associated with that term that I'm just bagging trips (similar to the "peak-bagging" mind-set of some amateur mountain climbers) to add to my list. These are all experiences I genuinely would love to enjoy while I'm still on this planet, though. Maybe I will, maybe I won't - but it sure won't be for lack of trying.
Anyway, here's my list:
My OWN Travel Top 100 List of Places to See/Experiences to Enjoy Before I Die
Done:
Gone scuba diving with sharks in Maui.
Rode a hot air balloon across the Serengeti, Africa.
Seen gorillas in the wild in central Africa.
Camped and game viewed in the Serengeti, Africa.
Visited Machu Picchu.
Seen wild parrots at clay licks in South America.
Canoed the Okefenokee Swamp among the alligators and wonderful bird life.
Whitewater rafted in North America.
Whitewater rafted in South America.
Whitewater rafted in Africa.
Rode elephants in Asia.
Seen orang-utans in the wild, in Asia.
Mushed dog sleds through the Canadian Rockies.
Taken an ocean cruise on one of the big cruise ships.
Visited Mayan ruins in Central America.
Kayaked the FloridaEverglades.
Ridden a train from one coast of Canada to the other.
Paddled on multi-day trips in six of the 10 Canadian provinces.
Rode down the Chao Phraya River, Thailand, on a converted rice barge from the ancient capital Ayuthaya to the modern capital Bangkok.
Experienced TigerTemple in Thailand.
Paddled in the Amazon jungle (Ecuador).
Camped and paddled (multi-day trip) in the desert (specifically, the Alberta badlands.)
Snorkelled with wild dolphins in the ocean surrounding Hawaii (the BigIsland).
Gone for a submarine ride, Maui.
Gone “sea-walking” (~ deep-sea diving) in Borneo.
Seen grizzly and black bears feeding at a salmon run in Alaska.
Gone deep-sea fishing in the Florida Keys.
Flown falcons and hawks in a “falconer for the day” experience on Vancouver Island.
Paddled among alligators in Florida on the EconRiver.
Snow shoed in Gatineau Park, Canada.
Hiked along the coast of Naikoon Provincial Park, Queen Charlotte Islands, B.C., Canada.
Gone “glamping” at the Rockwater Secret Cove Resort, SunshineCoast, B.C., Canada.
Whitewater rafted through Hell’s Gate on B.C.’s FraserRiver.
Taken a multi-day horseback riding trip in the Canadian Rockies.
Paddled to Grey Owl’s cabin in Prince Albert National Park, Saskatchewan.
Gone horseback riding in the Peruvian Andes.
Spent a night in the Presidential Suite at the Shangi-La, Putrajaya.
Visited the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.
Flown in an open cockpit biplane (just like the World War I flying ace!)
Got sharks?
To do:
See wild tigers from elephant back in RoyalChitwanNational Park.
Stay in the treetops accommodations at RoyalChitwanNational Park.
See wild African grey parrots in central Africa.
Whitewater rafting in Asia.
Whitewater rafting in Australia.
Whitewater rafting in Europe.
Ride camels across the dessert.
Sail down the Nile on a felucca.
Ride the Orient Express.
Ride the Eastern & Oriental Express.
Stay in the Somerset Maugham Room in Bangkok’s Oriental Hotel.
See komodo dragons in Indonesia.
Mush dog sleds on an overnight trip, anywhere.
See wild pandas in China.
Take an ocean cruise on a tramp steamer in the seas off Southeast Asia.
Travel to India on an ecoadventure. Paddle in multi-day trips in the other four Canadian provinces and the three Territories.
Paddle in multi-day trips in the other four Canadian provinces and the three Territories.
Visit the backwaters of Kerala (India).
Ride the Palace on Wheels in India.
Ride with Rovos Rail in Africa.
Ride the Royal Scotsman in the UK.
Ride horseback in Mongolia, and, if possible, hunt with golden eagles.
Have a drink in Rick’s Café, Casablanca, Morocco (yes, it does exist!)
Ride the Indian-Pacific Railway in Australia.
See the Spirit Bears of PrincessRoyalIsland, B.C., Canada.
Swim with wild manatees in Florida.
Kayak the Vava’u Islands in the south Pacific.
Kayak in Halong Bay, Vietnam.
Paddle the MekongRiver in southeast Asia.
Stay at the CanopyTower in Panama.
Canoe the Zambezi in Africa.
Safari in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, Africa.
Visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
See the pyramids and Sphinx in Egypt.
See the ancient Greek ruins like the Delphi Oracle and the Acropolis.
Play baccarat in a casino, while wearing a tux and drinking a Vesper martini (Vegas or Monte Carlo, doesn’t matter).
Go to the UKSpySchool.
Have a drink in the Kasbah in Algeria.
Go storm-watching on Vancouver Island’s West Coast.
Sail around the Caribbean (on a sailboat).
Spend several days enjoying the outdoors at the King Pacific Lodge, B.C., Canada.
Visit Stonehenge, UK.
Visit Tintagel, UK, the purported birthplace of King Arthur.
Visit Glastonbury Tor, the supposed original burial place of King Arthur.
Take a Sherlock Holmes Tour of London, UK.
Watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, live.
Go to a New York Jets’ home game.
Go to a Kansas City Chiefs’ home game.
Visit Petra, in Jordan.
Visit Wadi Rum in Jordan (Lawrence of Arabia was filmed there).
See wild cockatoos in Indonesia.
Have a drink at the Raffles Hotel, in Singapore.
Hike the Black Forest, in Germany.
Sail in a Viking longship in a fjord in Norway.
Smoke a cigar and drink rum at La Floridita, Havana, Cuba.
Go to a St. Louis Cardinals home game.
Spend an evening at the Explorers Club in New York.
Attend Oktoberfest in Germany.
Visit the CanadianCanoeMuseum, in Peterborough, Ontario.
Visit the National Aviary, in Pittsburgh, PA.
See a sumo wrestling match in Tokyo, Japan.
Machu Picchu: it took my breath - literally.
Now that you've read it, maybe you recognize some things you've done, places you've been to - and places/experiences that I've listed here that you would also like to enjoy. That's cool.
But more important than that - go out and make your own "bucket list" of travel places/experiences that you genuinely want to enjoy - and don't worry about what's on mine or on anyone else's list.
Wandering around on Facebook the other day, I noticed one of my friends posted something about the Abbotsford (B.C.) air show, which takes place every August. For some reason, it piqued my memory about the time I made like Snoopy, the World War I flying ace. (No, not the video game - the "REAL" WWI flying ace, as read in Peanuts comics or seen on "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" animated Halloween special.)
Really. I lived my "Snoopy" fantasy not in a video game, but in real life.
Well, sort of ...
I was on a group tour of the Valiant Air Command Warbird Air Museum, (which, by the way, is hosting its own 2012 airshow, starting March 9), located near Titusville, Florida. We'd spent the previous day on the water, paddling down the Econ River. This day, we were focused on the air. While waiting for the tour to begin, I noticed an open cockpit biplane sitting on the tarmac outside the museum. Then I noticed a sign offering rides in the plane.
Stearmanbiplane - my transport for the day.
While not exactly a WWI plane - it was a 1930's Stearman biplane, used to train American combat pilots between the two world wars - it was close enough for me.
The flights are not included as part of the museum tour; it is run by Warbird Flights and it is booked separately. And in this instance, it was not part of our scheduled tour. But I quickly convinced our tour leader to let me "play hooky" and trade some ground time for some time in the air.
I quickly made my arrangements, then began my wait. And wait...and wait...I thought, "I'll never get out of Casablanca..." Oops! Sorry! There's another one of those "Casablanca flashes" I get from time to time (well, it is the 70th anniversary, after all...)
Eventually, the wait ended. As we rose up into the air off the tarmac, I finally caught my breath – we were airborne! Now I could actually relax and enjoy the experience of the wind rushing past me in the open cockpit of the Stearman.
Exhilaration quickly replaced my nervousness about taking my first flight in a open cockpit airplane. While the worst part of the trip was waiting around the hangar to go up, the actual flying itself was much too invigorating to waste any time worrying – even when the pilot asked me if I wanted to take over and "drive" for a while.
If you're in the Titusville, Florida area March 9-12, 2012,
you might want to check out the air show.
I tentatively took the control stick and followed his instructions to keep the top of the fuselage level with the horizon. I was only "driving" for a few minutes, but during that few minutes, I gained a very healthy respect for "fly boys" who piloted these kinds of planes. It took incredible concentration on my part just to keep the plane level. And I didn't have to worry about fuel, air speed, communicating with air traffic control towers or any of the other myriad thoughts that occupy pilots in the air.
During the 20-minute flight, we did not spy any red Fokker triplanes; however, the thrill of playing "Snoopy, the World War I Flying Ace" in search of his nemesis, the Red Baron, was too much. When we found a boat on the river far below that wanted to play "tag" with us as we banked back and forth above it, I couldn’t resist parroting Snoopy, by shouting, "Curse you, Red Baron!" just once.
View from the cockpit.
The museum itself occupies 10 acres of property at the Space Center Executive Airport in Titusville. It displays, maintains and restores all types of aircraft that were indigenous to the world's military air forces going all the way back to WWI and covering present-day aircraft.
The main display area is approximately 30,000 square feet in size and is wide and high enough to accommodate the wingspan and tail assembly of all but the largest bombers.
In addition to the main hangar bay, an area of 15,000 square feet is dedicated to the display of memorabilia associated with the "Valiant" individuals who flew and maintained these aircraft.
If you really want to experience living flying, though, combining the tour with a flight makes for a much better experience than just a tour alone...
While I wouldn't mind joining some of those above-mentioned clubs (and would like avoid a few, if possible), if you guessed any of those, you guessed wrong.
I'm talking about joining ... (drum roll, please!) ...
I am actually celebrating my second anniversary of having joined that illustrious club, so I figured I should shout it to the world (or at least the Internet!)
For those not familiar with the Sour Toe Cocktail (or without the inclination to click on the link above, because you just can't tear yourself away from my riveting prose!), essentially, it involves taking a shot of your favorite liquor libation which also shares a glass with a (get ready for this) a sour toe - that is, an actual human toe that has been dehydrated and preserved in salt.
And - get this - in order to actually qualify, you have to drink the drink and let the toe touch your lips at some point while drinking.
Like the club motto says, "You can drink it fast, you can drink it slow - but the lips have gotta touch the toe."
Only in Canada, you say ...
The tradition began in Dawson City, in the Yukon Territory. Originally, the toe (the original one thought to have been "donated" by some "sourdough" from the Klondike Gold Rush days, probably one lost through frostbite while mushing down the trail) had to be placed in a beer glass full of champagne in order to be an official, genuine Sour Toe Cocktail.
These days, it's a bit more relaxed, it can be any drink - even non-alcoholic, apparently - but where's the fun in that?
Captain Dick welcomes me to the fraternity.
Now ideally, you would become a member of the club by drinking the cocktail in the Yukon. However, Yours Truly became a member in Vancouver, during the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Like many other tourism boards, Tourism Yukon hosted an event during the Games.
It was at that event I had the opportunity to sit down with Captain Dick, the official head of the club, and became a member of this illustrious group. So in a sense, I was sort of on "Yukon soil," kind of like when you're at a Russian embassy in a foreign country, you're considered to be on Russian soil.
Anyway, I sat beside the captain, and I had a choice of rye whiskey, rum, vodka or tequila to mix with my toe. Sadly, there was no Yukon Jack available, that would have been my ideal choice. But, my second choice was whiskey.
A friend of mine, fellow travel writer Lenora Hayman, stood by to snap a picture of the momentous occasion. However, her camera was not as fast as my quaffing ability - I picked up the drink, belted it back - and she still hadn't got the pic.
So I did the only thing I could - I froze in stop-action mode, holding the glass up to my mouth, the toe resting against my lips, all the liquor drained.
For half a second, I toyed with the idea of putting the tip of my tongue on it to really see what the toe tasted like, but common sense quickly overruled that, and the picture was taken. Whew!
It didn't really taste that bad, the whiskey was good, went down quick - and I became a card-carrying club member for life.
By the way, although you get a membership card and certificate, you don't get to keep the toe - you have to give it back.
Now, if you want an opportunity to join this elite group, this would be a perfect year - in fact, this month would be the perfect month to do so. The Yukon is hosting its 2012 Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous Feb. 23-26, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Alaska Highway (also known as the Alcan Highway).
Snowshoeing, one winter activity you can enjoy in the Yukon.
Even if you can't make that date, a trip to the Yukon at any of the year will give you the opportunity to become a member of the Sour Toe Cocktail Club, as well as providing plenty of other excellent travel adventures, including paddling trips and bird-watching in the summer, or dog-sledding and snowshoeing if you prefer to visit during the winter.
Well, unfortunately I did not make it to the Tales of the Cocktail opening night bash as I had hoped to, Sunday night. From all reports, a good time was had by all, though.
In fact, I enjoyed it so much, I'm planning to go to a few more evening presentations that are part of the festival. Tonight (Monday) I'll be taking in On the Trail of Genghis Khan , then Tuesday night, it's "Tiger Night," featuring the film Conflict Tiger (the inspiration for Vancouver writer John Vaillant's book, The Tiger) followed by a reading by Vaillant from his book and capped off by the movie, Broken Tail, the story of a Bengal tiger in India (I've already seen it twice - it's an incredible film!)
But about the ocean traverses...
The first part of Saturday's presentation was a slide show and talk by Paul Gleeson, about rowing across the Atlantic Ocean with his girlfriend as part of an international race (which he later turned into a book.)
He was humorous, charming, witty - your typical Irishman. A very inspirational talk, as well. He left us with four questions:
1. What would you do if you knew you only had five years to live? 2. What would you do if you had no limitations? 3. What would you do if you knew you could not fail? 4. What would you like to see if you could meet yourself in the future, five years from now?
Crossing the Swell: Paul and Tori row across the Atlantic.
Beau Miles: by kayak around Africa
Following a short intermission, we then watched an amazing film about Beau Miles attempting to kayak around the southern tip of Africa from Mozambique to Namibia. Lots of hardship, there, in terms of dealing with waves, bureaucrats, more waves, wind, and the usual nicks and other health issues that are a part of long-distance kayak touring.
If you're really into paddling, there's more in store at the VIMFF. Wednesday night is "Kayak Night" and features several short- and medium-length films about kayaking. Those hit the waves at Denman Cinemas.
Also running that night, at Centennial Theatre, are several other water-conservation oriented presentations, as part of the "Sacred Headwaters" theme, including White Water, Black Gold.
I might not make it to those, having had my fill (if that's possible!) of water, paddling, rowing et al, already. But I'm really pumped about Tuesday's "Tiger Night."
From Sasha Snow's film, Conflict Tiger
Oh, and by the way - there are plenty of other films that do showcase mountains, mountain climbing and bicycling. But, as you have may have guessed, given the title of my blog, I'm more of a paddler than a pedaller, more of a birder than a climber.
The VIMFF website lists all the themes and movies as the festival continues through until Saturday, Feb. 18.
From time to time in this space I've alluded to some of the various beverages and concoctions I've enjoyed, both at home and in my travels around the world.
Regular readers may have picked up on the fact that I love "vintage" ... anything. Vintage travel books, vintage travel stickers, vintage travel posters, vintage movies, vintage music, vintage clothing - the list is pretty much endless.
So it stands to reason that any event that combines cocktails with a vintage theme is almost a "must-not-miss" event on my social/travel calendar.
To quote from the invitation/press release I received the other day:
"This event will take you back to 1930's Vancouver, a favourite Hollywood haunt at the height of U.S. prohibition ...1930's-themed cocktails from Hendrick's Gin, Glenfiddich, Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum, Tullamore Dew, Grant's and Gibson's Finest will be served by spirits superstars like Charlotte Voisey - the two time Tales of the Cocktail Golden Spirit Winner and William Grant & Sons Global Brand Ambassador - and Xavier Padovani, the Global Brand Ambassador for Hendrick's Gin."
Wow. Guess I better dust off the old fedora for this event. (But for the record - I won't be wearing spats. I don't own spats. In fact, I've never worn spats. I've had a few, mind you ...)
Running through until Wednesday, the entire multi-day event features tastings, seminars and lots and LOTS of good food. And cocktails.
Of course, Yours Truly will be blogging about the opening after attending it. But until then, to honor the spirit (or "spirits") of the event, I'll share with you a few cocktail recipes (some vintage, some not so vintage) along with some book titles you may want to check out.
STORK CLUB
Named for the famous New York night club, from The Stork Club Cocktail Book (1946)
- 1-1/2 oz gin
- juice of half an orange
- dash of lime juice
- dash Cointreau
- dash Angostura bitters
A stork club: icy cold and ready to sip.
Pour ingredients into an ice-filled shaker. Shake, then pour into a cocktail glass.
(While the original recipe is taken from the book listed above, I came upon it in one of the books I consider to be one of my "cocktail bibles": Straight Up or On the Rocks, A cultural history of American drink, by William Grimes.)
VESPER MARTINI
Here it is, the official, the one-and-only James Bond Vesper Martini. This makes ONE martini, so use with caution ...
- 3 oz. dry gin
- 1 oz vodka
- 1/2 oz. blonde Lillet (it's a French aperitif)
Pour ingredients into chilled cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well for one minute. Strain into chilled martini glass with a large, thin slice of lemon peel.
Fill shaker with cracked ice. Add ingredients. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
CANOE RIVER SPECIAL
Try as I might to find one, none of my cocktail reference/recipe books featured any kind of drink with the word "canoe," "kayak" or even "paddle" in their name. However, a search of the web turned up this recipe on Drinks Mixer :
- 1/4 cup Kahlua coffee liqueur
- 1/4 cup Bailey's Irish cream
- 3/4 oz Grand Marnier orange liqueur
- 1 dash Absolut vodka
Pour all ingredients into a blender 3/4 filled with crushed ice.
Blend until smooth. Pour into a cocktail glass, and serve.
Skates and skis, snowshoes and sleds - take your pick; you can enjoy activities involving each one of those types of winter equipment at Gatineau Park, in Canada's Capital Region.
Ottawa just finished playing host to the 2012 NHL All-Star Game this past Sunday, and that, of course, involves skates. However, while watching hockey can be fun, if you like a more active pastime, you'll want to lace up a pair of skates and head out to Gatineau, located about a 20-minute drive from the heart of Canada's capital city.
Over the bridge and through the woods...
I was born in Ottawa, but moved away when I was two and I only returned once, back in 1974, for a fall weekend of football watching. So I'd never see Gatineau, except in photos.
This past March (2011), I was lucky enough to return and finally spend some quality time there, and while I can skate, I can also snowshoe. Actually, snowshoeing is one of the easiest winter activities you can participate in; if you can walk, you can snowshoe.
While the park offers some great paddling and bird-watching opportunities, those types of activities (especially the former!) tend to take place during the summer months when it is warmer - but also much busier. And while you can't paddle in the winter, you can still see birds and other wildlife, as the park is home to deer, beaver, black bear and nearly 230 bird species.
The park is much quieter in the winter, and I don't just mean because there are fewer people. With the ground covered with snow, all noises seem to be muffled, the white winter blanket acting like a natural layer of soundproofing. Even snowshoeing with a small group of people as I was for two days last March, you can hang back just a bit and quickly be surrounded by stillness and silence.
But it's not completely silent. Ten minutes along the trail, I could hear the rat-a-tat-tat of a woodpecker, banging on a nearby tree looking from something to nibble on. Below on my right, I could hear the gurgling of a stream not completely iced over. Keeping rhythm with these sounds was the steady crunch-crunch-crunch of my snowshoes biting into the snow along the trail.
Trudging across the tundra, mile after mile...
You also want to keep your eyes open; while you may not see wildlife itself, you will see many signs in the snow, such as footprints, something you won't see as easily in the summer.
One of the trails, close to the visitors' centre, takes you to the former visitors' centre. From there the trail heads off in several different directions.
You won't run out of trail, anytime soon. The park contains 55 kilometres of trails just for snowshoeing.
If you're too young to snowshoe, you might end up like Santa Claus, riding a tiny sleigh - but instead of reindeer, your sleigh will probably end up being pulled by a parent. During my excursions in the park, I saw this practice on a few occasions.
If you like something a bit quicker, there are also designated cross-country ski trails - more than 200 km, in fact, for classic cross-country skiing and 100 km shared with skate skiers. There are another 45 km of back-country ski trails.
If you're really adventurous, you can camp overnight in the park (yes, many people do enjoy winter camping!) by registering to use the yurts, cabins and campsites designated for that activity.
Former visitors' centre
Even if you choose not to stay overnight, you can enjoy a full day, there. And if you get tired of skiing or snowshoeing, the visitor centre contains a permanent exhibit, "Gatineau Park: Protecting Nature and Sharing Our History" as well as temporary seasonal exhibits, washrooms, a lunch room (no snack bar, though, you need to bring your own food) and gift shop where you can buy Gatineau Park books, maps and souvenirs.
Even though I spent parts of two days there, I wanted to explore the park much more, but alas, my schedule would not allow it. At the beginning of this post, I said I finally got to spend some "quality time" in the area. I guess "quality time" is all relative; I could have used a few more days just to explore the park. As I'm writing this, it strikes me that there is another aspect of quality time: the more quality a place has, the more time you want to spend there.
I guess Gatineau is another gem to add to my growing list of "places to return to."
