Tag Archives: Hartley Bay

Photography

Sunken History

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TheElbowFrenchRiver_1469

Thursday morning of our three day French River trip to The Elbow was a little calmer. The waters were quiet in pockets. At the edge of the beach at our campsite was a piece of machinery sunk in the water. Don and I could see the remains of a boiler. There was a drum with gears at each end. Probably for holding cable. Where we were camped was were the loggers released the logs from the booms. The logs were then sent through the Dalles Rapids to continue the journey to the river’s mouth.

So I set up the scene with the rusted out equipment in the foreground. The green of the trees and their reflection created a frame of sorts. The reflecting rocks added contrast and depth to the composition. I had to quickly set up for a shot as the wind came back within minutes.

Thursday night after we had crawled into our sleeping bags, Don and I were treated to a display of lighting and thunder. It rained quite heavy. When the next morning arrived everything was very wet. The trees were dripping and the wind was picking up. We had breakfast and were soon loading the canoe for our journey home. As we launched the canoe the skies were getting darker. After a half mile of paddling the heavens opened and it did not take long before we were soaked. There was some lightning and thunder in the distance, but it was soon heard no more. We were going with the wind this time, so that was a bonus. We made it back to Hartly Marina in good time. Just a bit stiff and wet.

The gear and canoe were loaded into my Ford Explorer well it was raining. I paid our bill before heading to The French Trading Post for some hot soup and coffee. We had a great trip. I am looking forward to doing some more exploring on the French.

A friend of mine Ray Thoms has published an interesting book called SUDBURY -A Retrospective View, comprises of a series of images that show the evolution of our City over the years. More info can be obtained on Ray’s site here.

http://sudburybook.com/

I will be in Killarney this coming weekend at the Killarney Art Show.

More info can be obtained here.

http://www.killarneyartshow.com/index.html

Well that is it for this week. Thank you for stopping by and visiting. Thank you for the comments.

Until next time Happy Trails

Photography

The French River Provincial Park

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Friday August 17 With all my camping gear,easels and my art work I finally got on the road by mid morning.I stopped in Sudbury to pick up some last minute supplies as was soon heading South.I was on my way to the French River Provincial Park visitors center.

I will give you a little bit of history of this large water system.The French River flows for 110 km from its Lake Nipissing source to Georgian Bay.For thousands of years the First Nations people followed the river system fishing and hunting.The French River was a major highway for explorers,traders and Jesuit missionaries as they pushed into the West to open up the country.Later the timber barons sent rafts of White Pine South along the river.Today many people paddle and boat on the French River camping and fishing.In 1986 The French River was designated Canada’s first Heritage River.A prime example of a glaciated Canadian Shield river environment.The above info was taken from the French River Visitor Information Guide.

My first stop would be the Flat Rapids Camp on the French River.Turning off the highway onto the Hartley Bay Road. Arriving at the campgrounds I checked in and soon had the camp gear set up.The Flat Rapids Campsite is run by very wonderful down to earth folks.I truly enjoyed my weekend here.I had a quick supper and soon was back on the road.

I crossed the bridge over the French River and turned off onto the road leading into the French River Provincial Park Visitor Center. This is a magnificent building that is well worth a visit.The layout inside is very well done.There is a lot of history to learn here as well as enjoying the visual display.The people that work here are wonderful folks and they go out of there way to help you.I can not thank them enough for their help and hospitality well I was there for the weekend.

Returning to Flat Rapids Camp that evening I hiked along the river shoreline looking for photographic opportunities.It was not a good evening and it was soon dark.

I awoke at dawn and was greeted by some spectacle scenery on the river.On this section of the river there are islands and exposed rocky shoals.There was mist to be had,heavy cloud cover.I set up for the above shot by using the point of one island in the foreground  and keeping another island in the middle ground.I then had the far shore and sky for my background.The sunlight was highlighting various sections of the scene when it would pop out.This is very important in getting that special composition.Just be aware of your surroundings.You will also note the position of the far island and the point were by I have created a S curve to lead the eye.At this time of day with the cooler morning temperatures that creates mist over the warmer water temperatures you can create mood in your composition.The rocks were wet and along with the reflections in the still waters created wonderful detail in the rock structure.All in all it was a great morning to be there.

Well that is it for now.So until next time happy trails.