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Volume 16 No. 17
After a wet weekend and a power outage (thankfully now restored), the weather is turning beautiful again!
Please check out the latest on the PaBIA marker replacement program, and, if you missed the in-person ToA Open House on the new draft of the Tree Preservation and Site Alteration By-laws, please consider signing up for the Online Open House that takes place tomorrow.
Today, Randy will be coaching boaters on how best to maneuver their own boats. Don’t miss GBB’s response to the questions about rattlesnakes that arose during the PaBIA Naturalist program. And read about three more books that are in the PaB Community Centre Library!
Table of Contents In this eBlast:
PaBIA
- Marker Replacement Program Update
- ToA Online Open House on August 22nd for the
- New Draft Tree Preservation and
- Draft Site Alteration By-Laws
- On the Water Boater Coaching – TODAY, August 21 & August 28
- PaBIA Sailing Races – this Saturday
- Check out the August Calendar!
OF INTEREST
- Pointe au Baril Library Book Suggestions
- Ojibway Club Post-Season Tennis – Everyone is welcome!
- Ojibway Club Granite Tennis Tournament – Sign Up
- ToA New Mass Notification System
- GBB – What To Do If You See a Rattlesnake
- GBA Update – August edition
- Yearbook Update – August 18, 2024
PaBIA
Missing/Broken Markers Contact Info
–
Should you find any
misplaced, missing or broken
PaBIA markers, please
email Tom Cavers IMMEDIATELY or
go to PaBIAi’s webpage!
In the last Marker Program Update, I communicated to the community the unfortunate situation we are experiencing this summer with an unusually high number of broken and missing wooden markers. The Marker Committee met to review the situation and determine what steps can be taken to prevent this going forward.
While many have suggested that vandalism may be the cause, we have no evidence of this, and it is certainly hard to think of the motivation for any such act. It is more likely that the damage is being caused by many other factors:
- Excessive speed in narrow channels where there is little room to navigate around the markers,
- Larger and larger boats trying to navigate through very narrow channels,
- Personal Water Craft (Sea-Doos) or other boats piloted by inexperienced drivers,
- Boaters not familiar with which side of the marker to navigate cutting in close to avoid rocks,
- Navigating at night with insufficient spotlights to find the marks.
There is nothing new about these factors, so why the big increase in damage this year and last? Since COVID, we have seen an unprecedented increase in the volume of boat traffic to the area and the size of boats being driven. Tourism is booming and many want to enjoy the Bay, just as we do. Tour operators are bringing large numbers of sightseeing boats and PWCs up from Parry Sound and other locations. It’s not uncommon to see a fleet of 10-15 PWCs touring around, led by a guide. Unfortunately, an increase in boat traffic leads to an increase in marker damage.
We have developed the following strategy to try to minimize the damage and reduce the cost of replacing the markers:
- Replace the wooden markers with permanent markers as fast as possible in the areas that are seeing the most damage (Hemlock and the Outer Channel).
- As the permanent markers are placed, situate them to make the channel as wide as possible.
- As water levels fluctuate, adjust the route of the channels to the safest location. Move the traffic to locations that are safer for boating, but also keep the markers from being hit. Don’t expect the new permanent markers to be in the exact same place as the old wooden markers.
- Continue to experiment with new marker types that may work is difficult placements. For example, the red marker at the entrance to Hemlock Channel continues to be a challenging placement.
If you are not familiar with the markers and channels, you can take a look at the PaBIA online map which has all the latest channels and markers updated. A quick look at the map before you set out can save you time and propellers! You can find the map on the PaBIA website here.
As always, please exercise caution when navigating in small channels and take extra care not to hit our new (and very expensive) markers! Remember that the markers are only aids to navigation, not lines on a highway. Their positions shift yearly, weekly, and daily with changing water levels, currents, and weather conditions. If you are unsure of the channel, slow down and proceed with caution, especially at night.
Celebrating Pointe au Baril Icons –
Emmaline Madigan and Bill Pugsley
Our beloved Emmaline Madigan and Bill Pugsley have decided that this will be their last summer as “Keepers of the Light” at the Pointe au Baril Lighthouse. They are retiring and would like an opportunity to say “so long” to anyone who wishes to drop by the lighthouse between 2 – 6 pm on Saturday, August 18th. Rather than gifts, please just bring cards and your well wishes. There will be cake and some refreshments served.
Docking is available at the lighthouse and next door at Jim and Cheryl Forth’s. From Forth’s, there is a path from their dock to the lighthouse.
PaBIA Sailing – Saturday, August 24 @ 2 p.m. for Races #7 & 8
Everyone is encouraged to come and join in. If you’d like more information regarding the sailing, and opportunities to join a crew, contact PaBIA’s Sailing Commodore, Andrew Vanderwal.
Should you wish to get weekly, more detailed information regarding the sailing races & rendezvous following each race, please email Andrew to be added to the list. The full year’s schedule can be found on PaBIA’s website!
ToA Online Open House on August 22 for the
New Draft Tree Preservation and Draft Site Alteration By-Laws
The Township of the Archipelago will host one more public open house to gather public feedback on the revised Draft Tree Preservation and Draft Site Alteration By-Laws.
- An Online Open House on August 22nd from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. You can register here for the online open house, where you can also submit comments online and read the revised drafts.
The revisions include significant changes to the Draft Tree Preservation By-Law, which, if passed as currently written, would prohibit clear-cutting, as well as destroying native shoreline vegetation and trees within the shoreline buffer area, (the first 7.5 metres from the shoreline). This means that property owners would be free to cut trees on their property outside of the 7.5 metre shoreline buffer, as long as it is not clear-cutting. There are exceptions currently written to allow for many regular property maintenance activities within the shoreline buffer area, including removing damaged trees, or trees that obstruct a solar panel, for example.
The Draft Site Alteration By-Law remains largely unchanged, but both revised drafts make it possible for the Township’s Manager of Development and Environmental Services to grant exceptions and impose conditions to allow for quicker processing.
POINTE AU BARIL LIBRARY
PAB Community Centre: Monday & Wednesday: 9:30-11:30am
The beautiful sunny days of June, July and August 2024 have passed all too quickly. For many in and around Pointe au Baril this means a return to home – near or distant. The transition from the natural beauty of Georgian Bay to the intense urban architecture of towns and cities can be quite unsettling. With this in mind, the week’s library eblast will focus on books that might ease the adjustment to urban life. Each of the three books focuses on that sacred element of nature – trees.
Forest Walking, sequel to The Hidden Life of Trees, is sub-titled Discovering the Trees and Woodlands of North America. In the introduction the author, Peter Wohlleben, writes, “When my publisher asked me to write a book for people to take with them when they went out walking in the forest, I said yes right away… When I talk of the forest, I’m talking about a community in a forest left to its own devices…Huge mother tress provide their children with the conditions they need to grow up slowly, which leads to strong, healthy individuals.” After reading the book, here is the big question. Over the next ten months will the message of Forest Walking provide the impetus for us to negotiate decisions that will truly reflect a deep respect for the natural environment?
Richard Powers’ novel, The Overstory, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize 2019 and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2018. Written in the form of fables, it is a sweeping narrative on the life of trees. “From the roots to the crown and back to the seeds, the novel unfolds in concentric rings of interlocking fables that range from antebellum New York to the late twentieth-century Timber Wars of the Pacific Northwest and beyond.” With its structural arrangement in four sections, the book encourages pause and reflection on “the handful of people who learn how to see that world and who are drawn into its unfolding catastrophe.” Like the memorable fables of our youth, the lessons of The Overstory will endure.
This is the second John Vaillant book to be highlighted in the 2024 PAB eblast. I highly recommend The Golden Spruce. This non-fiction is, “an environmental true-crime story of a glorious natural wonder, the man who destroyed it, and the fascinating, troubling context in which this act took place.” The central character is a sacred 300 year old Sitka Spruce; the antagonist, Grant Hadwin, a timber scout. After cutting down the sacred spruce, Hadwin disappeared and has never been found. “Vaillant deftly braids together the strands of this thrilling mystery, he brings to life the ancient beauty of the coastal wilderness, the historical collision of Europeans and the Haida and the harrowing world of logging.” Deeply compelling!
Of Interest
SIGN UP
FOR OUR ANNUAL FUN
GRANITE CUP TENNIS TOURNAMENT
Saturday, September 7th @ 9 am
(Raindate: Sunday, September 8th)
PRE REGISTER BY THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5th
to determine teams
Contact BRAD HONSBERGER
POST-SEASON TENNIS
AT THE OJIBWAY
Open to the Community – EVERYONE is welcome!
Tuesday, September 3rd
till
Monday, October 14th
Mixed Round Robin Daily @ 10 am
(Rain Delay, 2 pm)
COME OUT AND ENJOY THE FUN!
The Archipelago’s New Mass Notification System
The Archipelago’s new mass notification system is now officially live! This advanced platform is designed to keep you informed and connected with the latest updates and critical information.
What Makes It Better?
- Instant Alerts: Stay updated with real-time notifications about emergencies, weather updates, and essential public safety information.
- Multiple Channels: Choose your preferred communication method—email, voice call, text message, or voice call on your cell phone—or select all four, ensuring you never miss an important update.
Effective September 20th, 2024, the new mass notification platform will replace the current ENews system. To continue receiving vital updates, you must create a new mass notification profile on the Township website. Please note, if you sign up for the new Mass Notification System now, you may receive duplicate notifications until September 20th.
We are confident that this new system will significantly enhance our communication with you, keeping you informed and prepared!
In the late July edition:
- A UNESCO Geopark designation in Georgian Bay?
- There’s still time to email your MP about the capital gains tax changes
- TC Energy’s internal “playbook” video leaked
- What Transport Canada heard from you on VORRs and long-term anchoring
- Township of the Archipelago announces public consultations for Site Alteration and Tree Preservation Bylaws
- The summer edition of UPDATE is now online
- Could Our Lakes Benefit from an Annual Checkup?
- Don’t Miss the Premiere of All Too Clear: Beneath the Surface of the Great Lakes
- Are you the Georgian Bay Land Trust’s next Executive Director?
- Reminder – New Rules About Dogs Crossing the US Border Take Effect August 1
- Water Levels Report
Click on the logo or this link for the latest from the GBA
What To Do
If You See a Massasauga Rattlesnake
The following clip was taken from “Living Alongisde Zhiishiigweg” found on the GBB website. Please read the article in its entirety to learn more.
Rattlesnakes are shy and love nothing more than to be left alone! They rely on camouflage first and biting as a last resort. Most negative interactions can be avoided by simply giving the snake space, not harassing it, and moving on. Interactions with humans are stressful for them, which is why they may become defensive
Here are some tips to help keep everyone safe:
- Leave the snake alone and allow it to move on naturally.
- If you have a gestating female on your property, consider flagging the area and teach your family and visitors to keep away and respect the snake’s space.
- Wear close-toed shoes if you are going to be in prime snake habitat.
- Use flashlights at night to see where you are stepping.
- Look before you put your hands somewhere, especially if you are berry-picking or lifting an object that a snake could fit under.
- Keep pets on a leash when you have a rattlesnake nearby. If you are worried about your pet, talk to your vet about the proper dose of Benadryl to keep on hand in case they are bitten.
- Do not try to relocate the snake. Research shows that snakes are very sensitive to the area they know and relocating them can kill them.
While some of these might be a mild inconvenience to you while enjoying time in Georgian Bay, it is important to help protect a species that is under threat due to road mortality, direct persecution, and habitat loss. Take the time to observe and understand this amazing species!
Yearbook Update
With each eBlast, we will provide you a list of names of those members who have provided updated contact information. The details of all the changes since the 2023 yearbook came out in early May are provided in THIS printable format for you to print out and insert into your own Yearbook! Changes as of June 23 are below.
For reporting Markers’ problems
contact Tom Cavers by cell (pg. 267 in yearbook) or email
For contacting Secretary-Treasurer and Asst. Sec. Treas.
Nancy Rogers and Elise Findlay: contact.pabia@gmail-com
Baillie, Jonathan & Jessica (new members)
Bedell, Katharine & Joe (addition)
Water Levels
Lakes Michigan/Huron Water Levels August 16, 2024.
To better read the charts, please click on the chart for the Daily or Six Month Forecast Water level chart and the corresponding websites
Please support PaBIA’s Yearbook Advertisers 2024
This site’s advertising feature was created to provide assistance for special local information & events for existing Yearbook advertisers only.
Emergency
• PaB Nursing Station
• Canadian Coast Guard
Search and Rescue
800-267-7270
• PaBIA Emergency info