Tahsis BC

Tahsis by Moonlight

2007-04-01T00:51:00.000-07:00

A bright moon on a clear nighttime sky lights up Rugged Mountain

Jim Pook was travelling back to Tahsis on Saturday March 31st, and took this shot in the early hours of April 1st. A clear sky and a brilliant moon & stars made for a wonderful night time photo of the head of Tahsis Inlet with Rugged Mountain above the valley section of Tahsis.

Unusual weather continues, snow blankets Tahsis

2007-01-11T11:30:00.000-08:00

Fluffy snow blankets Tahsis overnight, Tahsis residents wake up to a winter wonderland

I woke up on January 11th and saw trees coated with fluffy white snow on a crystal clear sunny day... anunusual sight in Tahsis. It was the heaviest and most beautiful snowfall I had seen since I moved to Tahsis 4 and a half years ago.

Alder branches along the Tahsis River

The snow muffled my footsteps on past the Village Works Yard to the Tahsis River, and I was instantly transported back to my years living in the East Kootenay winters of British Columbia.. the sights, smells and sounds of a sunny morning after a fresh snowfall. Everything looked fresh and new under it's blanket of white, and I realized that even though I liked Tahsis' mild year round climate, there was something wonderful about a cold crisp snowy morning under brilliant sunshine such as you experience every winter in the BC Interior.

I walked along the Tahsis River to the bridge, and took some more photos of Rugged Mountain and the Tahsis River before returning home. When I walked into the house, I had to knock my shoes against the doorsill to drop off the snow, and I realized this was something I hadn't had to do for many years...

50 Year Storm fails to dampen Tahsis Spirit

2006-11-17T09:52:00.000-08:00

Erv Spenser and Corky Roth of Tahsis Public Works are served a hot breakfast by Recreation Centre workers

Tahsis Public Works employees, Village Workers, The Tahsis Volunteer Fire Department, and Emergency Services were all out in force in Tahsis during the emergency conditions for what is being called a ’50 year storm’... the worst storm to hit the West Coast of Vancouver Island in 50 years.

Sharon Taprowski (front) and Lucille Collins whip up more eggs for hungry Village employees and Emergency Services workers

Tahsis had it’s power restored Thursday evening after the outage lasting since early Wednesday morning, however the road to Gold River has been washed out in 4 places and it is not expected to be reopened to public traffic for a week.

The Tahsis Recreation Centre and the Village office have remained open with the use of generators, and the Rec Center provided a warm place to hang out for chilled Tahsis residents.

Keith Orr and the Tahsis Christian Church Society volunteer breakfast crew came in Thursday morning to the Rec Centre to cook Pancake breakfast for the community. Keith Orr and crew also serve breakfast every Monday at the Tahsis United Church as a fundraiser for restoring Tahsis’ unique A-frame church along South Maquinna Drive.

Kim Anderson’s Spaghetti Sauce was particularly popular for the Thursday night dinner. So many Tahsis residents turned out the event started to feel like a Tahsis Community Dinner, and was a bright spot for the week.

Emergency workers checked on residents and handed out notices keeping residents informed of events, and provided emergency generator services as needed, such as at the Tahsis Building Supply so residents could get propane refills for furnaces and BBQ’s during the power outage.

Due to the road closure, Mayor Dave McIntosh commandeered all fuel supplies in town so that emergency vehicles could maintain services and assist residents until the road is reopened and new supplies can be brought into town.

The Tahsis Postal Station stayed open even during the power outage. Postmistress Jane Gilmour stayed at her post bundled up in mohair mittens and long underwear and kept track of sales on a piece of paper so residents could come in pay for their postal services when the power returned. Mail left in Gold River after the road closure was delivered this Thursday by Air Nootka; rain, sleet and 50 year storms do not stop Canada Post from servicing her remote Villages!

Bear Season again in Tahsis

2005-09-10T17:10:00.000-07:00

Roger looks at the bear, the bear looks at Roger

I was showing a house on Alpine View to a couple (Anne and Roger), when we surprised a bear in the back yard gorging on the fallen plums.

He took off across the fence, and ran to the front of the neighbouring house... Anne had a camera in her purse & I had my digital camera, so we dashed to the front yard to photograph the bear (not actually a very good idea, but in the heat of the moment…).

When we went to the front of the house, the bear ran back to the garden again. So we asked Roger to go back to the garden, so hopefully the bear would come to the front again. We hid behind the hedge until the bear trotted back our way, but as soon as we popped out to take a picture, he went back again, and this time went through the bushes to head back towards the river.

Even though the photos we got weren’t that close up, we did get a close look at him when he was leaving the garden in the first place, and he (or she) was a very handsome looking bear with very thick healthy looking fur.. really a beautiful creature.

Just some of the adventures of being a Realtor in Tahsis…

Mike Bryan Photographs of Tahsis

2005-06-24T14:57:00.000-07:00

Tahsis local Mike Bryan was kind enough to send me these photos of Tahsis to post in the Blog. After each photo I have included his comments and notes on the photos.

If you have any comment or question about his photographs, Mike will be happy to correspond with you be e-mail:

mb407@telus.net

Rugged Mountain at Sunrise
"I (Mike Bryan) took it on December 21st around 8:15 in the morning. I happened to look out the front window and noticed it was pink up around Rugged. That's all it took to get me outside with my new camera (a Canon Powershot S1IS). I caught that view of the mountain somewhere along the 300 block of North Maquinna Drive beside the river."

Eagle flying over Tahsis River

A good catch on the Tahsis Inlet!

This was taken about a mile south of West Bay Park beach.

McKelvie Mountain with blossoming apple trees

This was taken in front of the village office on South Maquinna.

28th Annual Great Walk in Tahsis

2005-06-04T21:38:00.000-07:00

Christel Eadie walker #243 from Shawnigan Lake accepts soup from Josie Fletcher of the Tahsis Hospital Auxillary

After crossing the finish line for the Great Walk, entrants pick up their medal, t-shirt and certificate at the Captain Meares Elementary Secondary School gym and hobble a half block to the Tahsis Recreation Centre where the Communty Kitchen and the First Aid Station is located. The weather this year was overcast with occasional sprinkles of rain.

Jenna Dennison age 10 from Shawnigan Lake is the youngest walker to complete the Great Walk since 1992, finishing the walk in 15 hours and 8 minutes

Perry Crossley Walker #312 (13 hours and 20 minutes) from Maple Ridge displays her medal and certificate while resting after suffering from dehydration during the walk.

Perry walked the Great Walk for the first in honor of her mother who turned 81 this year, and in memory of her sister Lorna Kramer who walked it in 2000. With the cool weather during the Great Walk, Perry didn't realize she wasn't drinking enough water on the last half of the walk and ended up getting dehyrated and exhausted. Undeterred, Perry hopes to come out for the 30th Great Walk in 2007 and complete it again.

Great Walk volunteer Maureen Roth (from left) takes a break and sips some soup behind the scenes with Hospital Auxillary volunteers Judy Ellis, Paul Fletcher and Josie Fletcher.
The Tahsis Hospital Auxillary provides the perfect end to a grueling day of walking: a light meal of soup, salad, bun and a rice crispy square. This year the home made soups included Tomato Macaroni, Ministrone, Chicken and Rice, Potato Corn Chowder and Mushroom Soup.

First aid volunteer Mary Ann Rolf (affiliated with Comox Valley search and rescue) bandages the foot of Rose Kramer from Black Creek, who completed the walk in 15 hours+. This was Rose's 2nd Great Walk and the first one she completed to the end

No story of the Great Walk is complete without a picture of someone having their foot bandaged!

I caught up with Tahsis Lion's organizer Mike Nicolaye at the CMESS gym at the end of the day. These were his comments:

"We've had another successful year for the volunteers and walkers of the Tahsis Lion's Great Walk. The cool weather was great for the walkers--just the right temperature"

Mike went on the praise the volunteers from Tahsis and other BC communities such as Victoria, Maple Ridge, Shawnigan Lake, Gold River, and Campbell River.

I got a few statistics--out of the 324 registrants 275 walkers started the walk and 252 finished, 21 brought in by vehicle and with 2 more late walkers expecting. At the time I checked, $45,000 plus had been raised for charity. For more statistics and final figures, check the offical Great Walk website over the coming week:

www.greatwalk.com

April 27th 2005 - Forming the Aquaculture Co-operative

2005-04-27T21:18:00.000-07:00

Local Tahsis residents gather at the 2nd Public Aquaculture meeting

Local Tahsis residents and member of the Village Administration and Council met with Roberta Stevenson of the Nuu-Chah-nulth Shellfish Development Corporation to go over the business plan prepared for the Village and to discuss forming a Co-operative. While there were not the same numbers attending as at the January meeting, all those present were very interested in either becoming part of the co-operative or in being supportive of the project.

Roberta Stevenson explains aspects of the Aquaculture Business Plan

In discussions about the proposed business plan, Colleen Hopkins ventured the opinion that many people had been 'scared off' of the proposed co-operative after hearing of the $60,000 investment required. A lively discussion then ensued of how to start up oyster farming with less of an investment, and various options such as raft sharing and starting up a smaller slower growing string operations were discussed.

Roberta had very informative background information and statistics on various options, and stressed that the larger investment would lead to a quicker one year harvest time frame and stronger financial returns. She stressed that the British Columbia was attaining an international reputation for it's clean waters and quality aquaculture products, and that Tahsis was in a very good position to develop a premium brand of product. Roberta passed out sample tins of Nootka brand smoked oysters, which are developing market and brand recognition in Europe.

Mayor Sylvia McNeil also emphasized that many Federal and Provincial programs were available to assist Tahsis residents in getting financing and to assist with startup and ongoing operation. She stated that the Village was very committed to helping locals set up a co-operative to provide local entrepreneurial employment. Mayor McNeil stated that the Province was very interested in our Aquaculture project, and Tahsis was beginning to be seen as a Pilot project for other coastal Vancouver Island villages.

By the end of the meeting several locals were discussing forming the co-operative, and Colleen Hopkins offered to organize the field trip to the Gold River Band's Oyster Farm on May 15th. Dan Dahling volunteered the use of Head Bay Station's van for the trip.

Colleen Hopkins is starting the process of forming the c-operative, and locals or individuals interested in relocating to Tahsis to participate in the Co-operative can contact her at (250) 934-5539 or by e-mail:

colleen_26374@hotmail.com

Several of the Tahsis locals interested in joining the Co-operative with consultant Roberta Stevenson. Left to right James and Rita Johnson, Dan Dahling of Head Bay Station, Roberta Stevenson, Colleen Hopkins and Martin Davis

Spring has Sprung in Tahsis

2005-04-20T13:43:00.000-07:00

The trees across the street have a full set of blossoms

After a few false starts followed by cooler weather, the sun is out, the buds and flowers are emerging and spring has sprung in Tahsis! The weather is fabulous this week... yesterday going down to the post office I definately felt that 'Spring' feeling in the sun and breeze. The hummingbirds started to arrive in March, but this last week there has been a profusion of chickadees and other birds, and last night the frogs started croaking. It looks like they found that little waterfall pond my neighbour put in last summer, because I swear it sounded like two of those frogs were just outside my window. After the silence of winter, it felt like nature was abuzz and creating quite a racket this last week!

The berry bushes down the street from my house are showing flowers

Early Spring snowfall in Tahsis

2005-03-21T09:51:00.000-08:00

Jim stopped on one of the bridges on the way home and took this picture at twilight

Jim and I were driving home from Gold River on Sunday night, in a snowfall that had started that afternoon when I was teaching a Digital Editing class for North Island College in Gold River. Driving conditions were still very good as twilight approached, and the forest along the Tree to Sea Drive between Gold River and Tahsis was utterly beautiful in the snowfall.. it was one of those snowfalls with big slowly drifting snowflakes. We stopped on one of the bridges and took this picture down the creek.

The next morning in Tahsis, my view from my office window at our house.

After the beautiful springlike weather Tahsis experienced last week, it is nice to see one more snowfall in town and on the mountains.

Emergency Preparedness Seminar in Tahsis

2005-03-20T19:42:00.000-08:00

Tahsis volunteers attend a morning seminar on Emergency Preparedness

Local Emergency Preparedness volunteers attended a seminar and workshop on March 5th 2005 as part of MEP (Municipal Emergency Preparedness) planning for the Village.

The Emergency Preparedness Instructor covers basics in the morning class

Instructor Russel Roy of Earthquake Search and Rescue instructs Tahsis Emergency Workers in the morning, followed by a practical workshop in the afternoon. The workshop involves simulating a serious earthquake along the West Coast of BC, with speakers roaring out the sounds of an actual earthquake and volunteers playing the role of injured civilians.

Emergency workers search the Tahsis Recreation Centre for injured people after a simulated earthquake

Duck and Cover-- while emergency workers search the building, a recording of an earthquake signals a simulated aftershock, and the emergency workers crouch and cover the backs of their necks

The workshop simulated real emergency scenarios such as fires, injured residents, gas leaks, and frequent aftershocks.

Volunteer Russ Nickerson finds an injured teen in the Tahsis Recreation Centre lobby (volunteer Sean Arsenault)

Volunteer Batista Bertoia and assistant aids injured volunteers in the First Aid Station set up in the Recreation Centre Gym

Group leaders report to the Instant Commander Keith Moeskau. Keith is one of three volunteer Emergency Coordinators for Tahsis

An injured volunteer waits in the kitchen for assistance.. the kitchen is a hazardous place during an earthquake.

Emergency workers carefully transfer a badly wounded volunteer onto a stretcher

Currently, Telly Weisman of Emergex (a company offering emergency preparedness seminars /www.emergexplanning.com ) is in town Easter week giving EOC (Emergence Operations Center) training and ICS (Instant Command Systems) training over the week to the Tahsis Emergency Prepardness.

Leiner River Estuary Trail already a popular spot with locals and visitors

2005-03-18T13:19:00.000-08:00

Locals D.E. Conibear and Ray Robbins walk along the Leiner River Estuary Trail in early February with dogs Paige and Molly

I took these photos in early February, and when our spring greenery comes out more I will take more.. this is truly a spectacular spot to view the Estuary and our local forest. This trail is close to Tahsis and is already a popular spot for visitors and locals to walk... the Village of Tahsis has already had to expand the parking lot

Paige--a black lab-- takes a little too long on a side excursion into the forest, and Ray goes and retrieves her

One of the View Platforms along the Leiner Estuary for birdlife and wildlife viewing

What a spectacular view from the platform! 3 platforms from the first phase will be ready for this summer.

The Leiner River Estuary Trail is a project of the Tahsis Economic Development Society, working in conjunction with the Village of Tahsis, and has been 3 years in development. Construction started in the fall of 2004. The project hires local workers, and is being constructed in accordance with environmental guidelines for protection of the Estuary, fish habitat and wildlife habitat.

Ferns, moss and forest surround the Estuary.. a very peaceful and beautiful place

Martin Davis hurries to finish a line of concrete pillars.

Project Manager Martin Davis hurries to finish a line of concrete pillars before the tide comes in. On February 9th Martin and another trail worker were building the support for another viewing platform , one day before the highest tides of the year. It was around noon, and already water was starting to flow into the work area.

The work on the pillars is finished for the day, and Martin takes a breather and poses for a picture.

Martin is a local cave and bat expert-- find out more about our local bats at his website: pacificcoast.net/~iskar/

First hummingbirds of the year spotted in Tahsis

2005-03-15T14:26:00.000-08:00

Chris Fincati is the first person to spot a hummingbird this spring. On Friday afternoon March 11th Chris Fincati (local scroll work artist and president of the Tahsis Hummingbird Society) put out a new hummingbird feeder. On the 12th at 4:45 PM a hummingbird came to the feeder, and returned 3 times that day. It was a male Roufus hummingbird.

For more information about hummingbirds in Tahsis see the website for the Tahsis Hummingbird Society at www.hummingbirdnorth.com

Sharon Armella of Nootka Mist Guest House spotted a hummingbird at her hummingbird feeder on Sunday march 13th in the afternoon. Sharon had put her feeder out on Saturday -- Sharon used the glass tube feeder with red flowers and little perches for the birds so they can feed while perched. Sharon put them out because her spouse noticed some migrating geese, and Sharon finds that hummingbirds tend to show up shortly after the geese. She also has noticed that the hummingbirds show up shortly after the little flower buds appear on the salmonberry bushes.

Halloween a Hoot in Tahsis

2004-10-31T23:43:00.000-08:00

This fiendish crew gave a good scare to Tahsis villagers on Halloween
This ghastly crew made each persons trip through the Haunted Castle a frightful and delightful experience
The big hit this Halloween was the Haunted House at the Recreation Centre. A community effort, the haunted house used the castle theme from last years Grad Dance to create a Haunted Castle inside the Rec Centre gym.

Gravestones line the front of the Haunted Castle in the Tahsis Rec Centre
Danny from the Cook Shack was the host, who escorted victims to the entrance to the Castle entrance. Inside the castle (we won't give away all the secrets) were an assortment of grisly scenes, demented fiends and a crooked labyrinth of passageways, including a spider infested tunnel that you had to go through to escape. Apparently, more adults lost their cool and screamed in fright in the castle than kids...
Here are a few pics of the frights inside. To see more you have to come out to Tahsis on Halloween!

A bone dinosaur by sculptor Doug Edward comes alive and rips the arm off a hapless villager
After the Haunted Castle, the Village of Tahsis put on a spectacular fireworks display outside the Rec Centre.

Fireworks display Halloween night in Tahsis

A fabulous day in Tahsis at the Cook Shack

2004-09-29T01:44:00.000-07:00

View of the inlet from the Cook Shack deck

I was at the Cook Shack & took a picture from the deck... the wind was quite high today but with the sun sparkling on the water it was one of those fabulous fall days we have in Tahsis.

While I was taking the picture a couple having breakfast on the deck asked me if I did the newsletter on the web, meaning the tahsisbc.com blog.

Angela & Mick Scribens, having breakfast at the Cook Shack

We chatted a while and I asked if they wanted their pics on the blog, and they thought it would be a great idea to say hi to their friend Darren, who they said checks out the blog every other day and will probably be visiting Tahsis in October.

Angela and Mick and their daughter Samantha relocated to Tahsis on September 1st, and they are very much enjoying the Tahsis ambiance & Samantha is enjoying the local school. The Scribens are 'regulars' at Danny's (The Cook Shack) already, and were even out watching the Salmon egg collection at the Tahsis River last Sunday.

Mick says Hi to Darren in Calgary and adds:

"Hope you're enjoying the 9 to 5, Darren!"

Cook Shack interior

Scuba Divers count Salmon in the Tahsis River

2004-09-28T01:08:00.000-07:00

Al Eden and Shawn Hayes return to the Public Works yard after counting salmon in the Tahsis River during our recent run of sunny weather. Al is from Qualicum Beach and Shawn is from Campbell River--both are in Tahsis doing contract work for DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans).

I was taking my tin cans to the recycling depot outside of the Village of Tahsis Public Works Yard when I ran into two scuba divers.

I asked them if they were counting salmon, and Al Eden replied in the affirmative. According to Al Eden, his gut feeling is that the Chinook count was up over last year. However, he qualified that by stating:

"We will have to wait till we report our figures to Head Office, where they will run an analysis on the numbers."

Al continued:

"It's too early to tell for Coho, since they are just starting to return. We have counted Sockeye as well, though probably there will only be 400 to 500 in total for Sockeye, they don't have big numbers here."

I asked how the egg gathering had gone on Sunday when the local Salmon Enhancement volunteers had come out to collect Chinook for the local hatchery. Al replied

"The collection went very well, and the eggs are already incubating at the hatchery (Conuma Hatchery)."

Currently, the Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society is taking their fry to the Conuma Hatchery, since their local water supply needs upgrading before it will be reliable enough to keep the hatchery in town. Currently several local service organizations and businesses are raising funds for the local volunteer hatchery.

Anyone wishing to send a donation can do so through the Village office:

Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society
C/O Village of Tahsis
Box 519
Tahsis BC V0P 1X0

------
note: speaking of Salmon, I was talking to Lucille Collins of Ceepeecee Cabins, and she had a probable explanation of why there were so many bears in the townsite this fall. She has been out on the hills in the inlet, and she said that the unusually hot weather this summer had dried up the berries on the higher elevations on the mountains, and the bears were coming down earlier and in greater numbers looking for food, berry bushes and fruit trees in town.

Pig Roast raises over $700 for grads

2004-09-28T01:05:00.000-07:00

Cook Marco from the Maquinna Resort First Landing Cafe helps out roasting the pig for the Community Pig Roast last Saturday

The Community Pig Roast raised over $700 for the Captain Meares Elementary Secondary School Grad Class. The family event took place on Saturday September 25th from 6 to 8 pm, and was followed by a live band at the Captain Cook's Pub.

The pig is done, and one of the cook's starts carving it up for the hungry crowd

The turnout was excellent, though the crowd had to fill up on homemade bean salad, potato salad and hot dogs as the pig was a bit behind schedule. The cook had been working on the BBQ from 6:00 am in the morning, but it's pretty hard to time just how long it takes to roast a pig...

Everyone had a good time socializing while they waiting, and the sense was that now the tourism season was over, people could really kick back and relax and catch up on what was happening with their neighbors.

The crowd tucks in to an excellent spread

Bears, bears, and more bears

2004-09-23T08:21:00.000-07:00

Momma bear crossing the road outside my window

Well, lots more bear activity in Tahsis since I posted Christine Hendrix's photos of the mom with 3 cubs! A few days ago a big black bear came by early in the am and got into our next door neighbour's carport and took out his garbage can, took it to the empty lot across the street and rolled it around for a while trying to get in. Jim and the neighbour found this objectionable, and went out there to shoo the bear away... well, the bear didn't shoo and Jim and Wally finally went back inside.

My opinion... let the bear have the garbage can--but that's just me.

One of the cubs walking across my lawn

I was talking to Cathy at Westview Marina, and she reported a bear went down the ramp to the docks, and went up the side staircase to her upstairs suite on the main marina building. There was a gate at the top which the bear didn't crawl over, but the dogs were quite excited for a while by the visit.

Momma and one cub at the edge of our property crossing over into the neighbours yard

And, two days ago we had a visit at our house by a momma bear and 2 cubs... most likely the same ones photographed by Christine Hendrix. Here are a photo of the mom bear crossing the road outside our house, one of the cubs crossing our yard, and one of momma and one cub at the edge of our yard walking over to our neighbours yard. We could hear the progress of her and her cubs by listening to which dogs were barking in the neighborhood. I went out in the car to see if I could get a photograph of them on the river bank, but didn't see them again. Of course, a 1979 pinto with a broken muffler pipe is not the best thing to go bear scouting with.

I've put a call in to the Conservation office and the Nootka Sound RCMP with a request for a comment and more information on the unusual level of bear activity, and hopefully I'll have something from the to post later today or tomorrow.

Mother bear with 3 cubs raids Alpine View apple tree

2004-09-07T19:27:00.000-07:00

One cub in an apple tree while mother looks on

The last few days bears have been wandering through Tahsis looking for berry bushes, fruit trees and attractive garbage and compost bins. Christine Hendrix has seen quite a few bears on her property at 523 Alpine View ( Gentle Valley Guest House & Chris's Art Gallery ), and she finally had a good photo opportunity when a mother bear with her 3 cubs started climbing the next door neighbors apple tree.

Two cubs in an apple tree...

"Steve (my husband) was working on our fence doing repairs when he spotted the bears and called me. I went to the window in my art studio and had a good view of the bears in the apple tree so I took a dozen pictures on my digital camera. Then, thinking I might want to use more pictures for a painting, I went into our guest suite at ground level to get another angle. I took another dozen pictures."

Three cubs in an apple tree!

"I wanted to go out to the back yard and get closer, but I thought that would be stupid. Especially since I had seen the mother bear chasing off a male bear in our back yard last night."

More cub antics... one cub takes a precarious position to get that last apple...

The pictures of the bears in our backyard next to the next big rocks were taken last night, of the same bears. I have a picture that didn't come out very clearly of the mother bear confronting and chasing off a male bear."

Male bear about to enter Gentle Valley Guest House's back yard on Sunday at twilight

Mother bear confronts male bear and successfully chases him away

A cub follows his mother closely

Sadly, we heard today from Ted Enfield that a male bear had killed and eaten one of the mother bear's 3 cubs today, at a close by spot across the Tahsis River. However, Steve Hendrix remarked that the mother bear was looking very scrubby and skinny, so it is probably for the best that she only have the 2 cubs to take care of over the winter.

There have been many more bears about town this year than last year. Last week Debra Connibear saw a bear break down a the fence and break a big branch on a neighbor's apple tree up on Discover Crescent. She described the bear as the biggest one she had seen, at least 3 to 4 feet at the shoulders when down on all fours. She has also noted that a lot of her favorite berry bushes have either been stripped by the bears, or are in the process of being stripped.

The Salmon have not yet started to go up the river in big enough numbers to provide the bears with food, but the bears have already come down from the hills in anticipation of the salmon run, so they are rummaging around the Tahsis berry patches and fruit trees in the meantime. Many locals have remarked there are many more bears about the town than last year.

What to do about a Black Bear in your compost at 4:00 AM

2004-09-02T04:02:00.000-07:00

1. Yell "Hey" and startle your cats, and get the black bear to look up momentarily from it's position on top of your compost box.

2. Realize that if the black bear thumping on your compost box didn't wake up your neighbours, yelling "Hey" probably did.

3. Get your camera and realize the bear is too far away (far end of the yard) to photograph with your flash, and that it is NOT WORTH IT to get within flash range.

4. Resign yourself to a few more claw marks on the lid of your compost box, and go back to bed.

Note: The next day we figured out he was a male bear, because he left the compost lid up.

Community BBQ raises $1045.35 for Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society improvements

2004-09-01T05:43:00.000-07:00

A hungry and enthusiastic crowd lines up for the Salmon BBQ

Corrine Dahling and Alison Arsenault of the Tahsis Trading Post organized a successful Community Salmon BBQ on Sunday August 29th that raised $1045.35 for the Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society. The Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society needs improvements to the water line for maintaining the salmon fry over the winter.

The BBQ was held at the Maquinna Mall, and the rain didn't dampen the spirits of the local crowd that came out. Randy Musfelt barbequed the Salmon for the event, and received multiple compliments and requests for his grandmother's secret salmon BBQ recipe.

Alison Arsenault takes a break from co-hosting

Russ Nickerson won the draw for the Gift Basket, Fishing Guide Gilles Darvault won the Head Bay Station basebal cap & movie rental coupon, and Roger won a trinket box painted by Alison Arsenault and several movie rental coupons.

Co-host Corrine Dahling entertains Madison

Special thank to Lindi Edwards and Matthew Lechot who looked after the kids attending the event and organized games.

Nicole Musfelt, cook and helper for the BBQ, ladles up some hot choclate while Joe Scott husks corn in the background

Anyone wishing to donate to the Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society, can send a donation care of the Village of Tahsis,

Village of Tahsis
Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society Fund
Box 519
Tahsis BC
V0P 1X0

Zack Miller from Bellingham Washington wins Westview Marina Derby with 43-2/3 lb Chinook

2004-08-22T00:29:00.000-07:00

Zack Miller (right) from Bellingham Washington shows off the 43-2/3 pound Chinook that won him the Westview Marina Derby and $1000 Canadian

Zack Miller from Bellingham Washington and Shawn Langley from Lynden Washington were fishing 10 miles out from Tatchu on the 'Quick Fish', a 27 foot Orca. Zack decided to pull in his lines, put the rod down and was leaning over the side with the lines in his hand when suddenly he saw the water boil 3 feet away as the monster King hit the hook! Zack grabbed the rod and played the Chinook for 15 minutes till his friend Shawn Langley of Lynden Washington netted the fish.

Zack was thrilled to win the derby, and at the awards party generously donated $200 towards the Tahsis Salmon Enhancement Society.

Musical Coffee House on Friday August 27th, 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM

2004-08-13T23:49:00.000-07:00

Debra Conibear sings for Coffee House

Sacred Grounds Coffee House will be holding another musical Coffee House on Friday August 20th, the Friday of the Westview Marina Fishing Derby.

The Coffee House will be from 5:00 Pm to 10:00 PM and will feature Conibear, local musician Roy DuLong, and an Open Mic for local and visiting musicians.

Local Tahsis Musicians Roy DuLong and Debra Conibear

Map showing route from Westview Marina to Sacred Grounds Coffee House

Weekly flight now connects Tahsis with Seattle

2004-08-13T23:35:00.000-07:00

Brad Pattison pilots the re-inaugural flight of Sound Flight to Tahsis from Seattle

Pilot Brad Pattison visits Tahsis, signalling the return of weekly direct air service between Seattle and Tahsis by Sound Flight of Renton Washington after a hiatus of 2 years. Previously to that, Sound Flight made hundreds of flights to Tahsis with a daily service.

Brad said:
"I'm glad I was picked for the 're-inaugural' flight, as this is my first time to Tahsis. The natural setting here is breathtaking.It's outdoors all around you. Really different from Seattle.. I love it up here... that's why we're here."

Brad went on to say:
"I am very impressed by the airplane dock here in Tahsis, obviously a lot of work has gone in to the dock to make it an important part of the Tahsis tranport system."

Brad went on to explain that Sound Flight is the only US airline to specialize in flights to the west coast of Vancouver Island, and his company gives their pilots specialized training and experienced instructors--such as Mark Schoening, who has flown the west coast of Vancouver Island for 15 to 20 years--to train on the weather and geography of West Vancouver Island's rugged coast.

"This is the way to stay in business--keep your customers happy and safe"

More information about Sound Flight can be found at their website:
www.soundflight.net

After a short visit, pilot Brad Pattison heads off to the next stop

A great family day on the water!

2004-08-13T23:08:00.000-07:00

Brett shows off a 22 lb Chinook

Brett Cornelius from Redwater Alberta shows off the 22 lb Chinook he caught all by himself (well, maybe a little help from Dad and guide Jim Pook).

Carmen, Brett and Paul Cornelius from Redwater Alberta

The Cornelius family from Redwater Alberta caught 6 Chinook 13 to 22 lb and 1-9 lb Coho on their fishing day with guide Jim Pook. Paul said they saw a grey whale, three friendly Sea Otters who came quite close to the boat, and several eagles. A great family outing!

Build it and they will come: First Tall Ships in 100 years dock in Tahsis

2004-08-05T00:52:00.000-07:00

Cathy Daynes of Westview Marina stands on her new Tall Ship dock, built this summer to accommodate the first Tall Ships to visit Tahsis in 100 years. In the background is the second Tall Ship to arrive, the HMCS Oriole from Victoria

Cathy Daynes and staff built the new Tall Ship Dock just in time for the SSV Robert C. Seamans' visit from July 25th to July 28th. Now the HMCS Oriole from Victoria is docked at the marina until 0600 hours on Thursday August 6th, when they are off to Tofina, Port Alberni, then back to Victoria their home base.

The HMCS Oriole at the Tall Ship dock at Westview Marina, Tahsis

Cathy talked to Captain Steve Tarrant of the SSV Robert C. Seamans on the morning of the 28th before they left.

"He said regardless of if he would be on board the next time the ship came up the coast, he would highly recommend that they make the the trip to Tahsis. They had a great time!"

At 1800 hours the HMCS Oriole received a visit from a delegation of 2 from the Tahsis Art Society... Director Alice Thompson and musician Willdeve. Following the tradition established by Chief Maquinna in 1778 who greeted the first Tall Ship to visit the West Coast of North America with hospitality and song,Willdeve greeted Captain Lieutenant Commander Gary Davis and crew with her original songs "The Swans of Tahsis".

Willdeve performs her original song, "The Swans of Tahsis" for (right to left) Josiane DesAutels of Saint-Hyathince Quebec, Captain Gary Davis of Victoria, Eric Flanagan of Winnipeg, Alan Douchette from Newfoundland and Carlos Flores from Victoria

Willdeve went on to play her ballad on the meeting of the Mowachat band and the crew of the Resolution in 1778, and favorites such as "Bobby McGee" and "House of the Rising Sun". The Captain brought out his banjo, and joined Willdeve in an enthusiastic playing of 'I want to go Home'.. something of a theme song for their ship, which is used to train new recruits, officers and non-commisioned officers for the Canadian Navy. More crew members joined in with improvised instruments from the ship's mess, and small instruments supplied by Willdeve.

Captain Gary Davis of Victoria plays his banjo in an impromptu jam session

Jamming on the HMCS Oriole... Willdeve on Guitar, Alan Douchette (partly hidden) on mess hall spoons, Carlos Flores and Eric Flanagan on shakers and Captain Gary Davis on banjo

Willdeve performs her Ballad of the meeting of Captain Cook and the Chief Maquinna in 1778

The HMCS Oriole is the oldest commisioned ship in the Navy at 83 years, commissioned in 1952. There is actually a book about the HMCS Oriole called "The People's Boat HMCS Oriole: Ship of a Thousand Dreams" by author Shirley Hewett. See the website on the book for more information about this ship's fascinating history before and after it was commandeered for service in the Canadian Navy during WWII.

http://www.heritagehouse.ca/press_releases/peoplesboat2003.htm

More Information about the Oriole can also be found on the official Navy website: http://www.navy.gc.ca/oriole/

This voyage of the HMCS Oriole is an outreach voyage to recruit young people to the Canadian Navy, and to visit all the small communities up and down the coast of BC, Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii.

Captain Lieutenant Commander Gary Davis said they have had many memorable adventures on this voyage, and some of the most memorable was a 4 to 5 day visit to Haida community on Haida Gwaii, and a feast put on for them at Prince Rupert by the family of a crew member.. though the captain remarked that "Smoked Sea Lion is an acquired taste".