Gabriola, if you drive through The Tunnel tonight, you’ll notice four of those traffic-control saw-horse thingies, each bearing an orange flashing light. Two on the left of the road, two on the right… not far from the Elder Cedars Nature Reserve. What the heck are they there for? The Gabriola RCMP seem to be all [...]
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Each Hallowe’en, Gabriola pumpkin-carvers leave lit jack-o’-lanterns along the roadside in The Tunnel. I love this tradition. I’ve just come back from viewing some of the pumpkins, and here’s one of my favourites. I think I’d call it The Scream, wouldn’t you? Or stick with the Norwegian and call it Skrik. I don’t know which [...]
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It’s a Weird Horse-Driven Eco Car. Can’t you just see yourself driving down to Silva Bay in one of these?
Filed in environment 2 Comments so far
When it’s deer hunting season on Gabriola, that means hunters are in the woods shooting at deer. What else would it mean? Well, here’s a New York Times article about a hunting competition that even a deer can love. The deer hunters returned to the tournament checkpoint tired and hungry, their camouflage clothing soaked with [...]
Filed in wildlife 2 Comments so far
You carving pumpkins this year, Gabriola? If you’re hoping to leave an impressive jack-o’-lantern in The Tunnel tomorrow night, you might take inspiration from an article that features the most amazing pumpkin-carvings I’ve ever seen. Wow. The artist, Ray-Villafane, has put a photo gallery of pumpkins he carved on the web for you. Well worth [...]
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While wandering through the Gabriola woods this afternoon we misplaced a trail, and wound up here. Just look at that tree — what a face! If you’ve been thinking of going to the Hallowe’en thing at Twin Beaches (or some other Gabriola Hallowe’en festivity) and need costume inspiration, here it is: go as the ghoulish [...]
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If you went from Gabriola to Nanaimo this afternoon, you might have noticed all manner of commotion, smoke, and noise in the Nanaimo Harbour: there was a boat on fire. It seemed to be a 30-40 foot boat (though what can one tell from afar?), and there was lots of brown smoke to start with. [...]
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These pumpkins are outside Gabriola’s Village Food Market. Think they’ll all sell by Hallowe’en? If they don’t, what will Village Foods do with the leftover pumpkins? If we were in Florida, leftover pumpkins could be donated to the big cats. Go see this short video, Big Cat Hallowe’en, and be delighted. If you like watching [...]
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There’s a Gabriola woman who uses parasols on sunny days in the summer. We see her walking along North Road, looking composed and parasol-worthy. I think of that woman in October, when zillions of mushrooms appear in the Gabriola woods. Some, like this one, look for all the world like miniature parasols. Would Gabriola’s Lady [...]
Filed in Gabriola Island,mushrooms 2 Comments so far
We’re at the start of Gabriola’s monsoon season, but think ahead to summer, when we’ll all be short of water as the island’s summer visitors arrive. Maybe a sink like this would help get the message across about water conservation.
Filed in environment,Gabriola Island,weather One Response so far
Oh Gabriola, I have the perfect art project for you: moss graffiti. The idea is that you smoosh up some moss, add yogurt or buttermilk, and a bit of sugar. Then you use that glop as paint, and paint your work of art onto a garden wall or the huge rock in your back yard. [...]
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In the middle of the Gabriola woods, far from any trail, here we have it: a section taken out of a log, presumably so that a hiker can walk through the log instead of clambering over it. (In the summer I found a similarly modified log on a different part of the island.) Who took [...]
Filed in Gabriola Island,trails 2 Comments so far
Those on Gabriola who can’t take their used glass bottles to GIRO should throw them in the rubbish, says the RDN – no more glass in blue boxes. Meanwhile, get a load of this: Ancient Romans Recycled Glass. Where are the ancient Romans when we need them?
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Gabriola is out of luck when it comes to styrofoam recycling. GIRO doesn’t take styrofoam, so we take our styrofoam to the Nanaimo Recycling Exchange. A bit of a pain, but oh well. Styrofoam might not be a problem in future, if this biodegradable styrofoam made from milk takes off. Has potential, yes?
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Hey, Gabriola homeschoolers, here’s a fun idea to steal! From the New York Times: At Harvard, the Kitchen as Lab. These Harvard students were making chewy fruit gelées for From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science, an undergraduate course that uses the kitchen to convey the basics of physics and chemistry, a most unusual Ivy [...]
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Many of us on Gabriola are concerned about the island’s ecosystem. We worry the kelp beds at Berry Point (and elsewhere), wonder if our eelgrass is in decline, and so forth. If these sort of things interest you, this Vancouver Sun article might be worth a read: Action needed to save ecosystems in peril. The [...]
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Today is the first of Gabriola’s walk-in flu clinics for this fall. Location: Gabriola Medical Clinic, 377 Berry Point Road. Times and dates:
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You know I’m interested in housing, and I’ve got a soft spot for small houses, houses made of recycled materials, portable houses, and related odditites. When I heard that somebody (in the US) is having a house made out of a Boeing 747, I imagined an ugly little shack. But this thing… well, it’s serious. [...]
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