CANADA DAY

 

145 years ago a group of men, in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, declared that four colonies would join as one dominion, which they called Canada. Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Lower Canada and Upper Canada were the four colonies. Interestingly, Prince Edward Island did not join the dominion at that point; the feeling was that it would lose more than it would gain.  

Canada – or rather those Canadians who like to speak publically about our history – likes to find the dark, the nasty, and the miserable aspects of our history. In a previous generation, the historians created a dull picture of Canada's development. Neither is correct, in my less than humble opinion.

Our Fathers of Confederation are touted as drunkards, especially John A. MacDonald, the man who became Canada's first Prime Minister.

 He might have been a drunk, but he, and the others in that group of inspired men, had an idea that created a country that, for many decades, grew from strength to strength. Canada was a country with a vision for its 'persona', if countries can have such a thing, and I think they can. Canada wanted to develop the west, create thriving cities, be a welcoming abode for hard-working immigrants. It certainly seems to have done all that. Latterly, Canada wants to create a multi-cultural nation, in which we accept each others cultures, but we all strive to be Canadian, living according to Canada's laws and precepts. There are some hiccups with that, perhaps because we seem to have no strong vision about what our country represents. We present ourselves based on what we were, so in effect we are looking backwards instead of forwards. I am hopeful that there will be a swing of the pendulum, and we shall create a new vision for the future before we reach our 150^th year of confederation.

One of our continuing stereotypes is that Canadians like to get outdoors, into the 'wilderness'. The Group of Seven painted that emotional stereotype in the 1920s and 1930s.

(Bright Land, Arthur Lismer)

 It endures today. Canadians go to their cottages or camps as soon as schools close, and return to their more urban lives at the last possible moment before schools open. We spend the summer swimming in pseudo-warm water, canoeing and kayaking along our many lakes and rivers, and hiking along trails in our provincial parks. We get out into our wilderness.

  

Canada's National Parks are one of the main protectors of Canada's wilderness. They are our bastions against commercial exploitation of our forests, mountains, and sea coasts.  There is plenty of private and crown land available for companies to harvest our natural resources, so the National Parks remain exploration-ready expanses of land ready for us to enjoy.

  

We are fortunate to have a National Park about an hour away. The 381square kilometre Kejimkujik National Park is in the Mi'kmaw district known as Kespukwitk.  There is plenty of evidence of early Mi'kmaw settlement and culture in the park.   

Kejimkujik is also within the UNESCO designated Southwest Nova Biosphere Reserve. The Tobeatic Wilderness Area, to the west of this Park, is also part of that biosphere. It is possible to move from the Park to the Wilderness Area along connecting waterways. 

Today, Canada Day, the National Parks offered free admission. I took advantage of that, and went to Keji for the day... 

our two dogs and I.  We had a wonderful time, walking along paths bordering the Mersey River. 

I drove us to Eel Weir, which is the end of the road, and a part of the park that we cannot reach in the winter. Well, I suppose we could reach it, but in winter it is 8 km of walking along a snowy road, usually filled with snow drifts which makes for a rather exhausting and joyless experience, especially because then it is 8 km back again.   However, driving along the tree-lined, well graded gravel road was so easy that it was a pleasure to get to Eel Weir. Beyond it, there is a difficult 19.5 km (return) wilderness walking trail that eventually leads to a Fire Tower. I did not go there; I took the easy walks: ”Flowing Waters” which is a 1 km loop, and several meandering walks of my own creation, following portions of the designated trails, well marked on a readily available map. 

My objective was to be near water so the dogs could get a drink when they needed it.  

The best spot for me, today, was Eel Weir. There was a picnic table, a bench overlooking the river, and a Canadian icon – a canoe perched on a rack waiting for someone to paddle away up the river.

Somehow, having experienced a soft version of Canada's wilderness, I feel that I have suitably and stereotypically celebrated Canada Day, the day that we set aside to commemorate the declaration of those Fathers of Confederation 145 years ago. As I drove home, CBC radio was broadcasting a call-in programme in which persons were stating how glad they are to live in Canada, and what a warm reception they received when they arrived here as immigrants. I suspect that is what those Fathers of Confederation dreamt would transpire over the ensuring years, decades and century since their meeting. And although they met in a city, the wilderness of Canada was just on the doorstep, figuratively speaking, in 1867.       Today, it is an hour away from me,   and certainly within easy reach of all Canadians who choose to visit our National Parks across the country. That is one aspect of the conceptual legacy that the Fathers of Confederation left in our charge.