Touring, Birds and Animals

Most writers travel alone. We are lucky to travel together, and to give readings and writing workshops together. Being a writer can be a lonely business, and it takes a huge amount of emotional and physical energy to be on a tour. It really helps to have a fellow traveller to share the long trips.

Birds and animals help us when we travel. The first question we ask is, "What will we see first?" As we set out on our drive, we usually spot an eagle or sometimes two or more in the Fraser River delta or Fraser Valley areas. They may be flying or sitting in a tree.

Eagles are everywhere we go. We appreciate seeing them. On our tour with our new book The Gathering Tree, we drove to Dawson Creek, BC, and then across the Lesser Slave Lake area of Alberta to Edmonton. We saw two eagles by the side of the road, feeding on deer that had been hit by vehicles. One eagle was on the way to Wabasca-Desmarais, Alberta, the other on a small highway north of High Prairie. The eagles were not afraid of our car. They calmly went about their task of survival. Seeing them less than 15 feet away was unusual. Their white markings are very bright.

We have seen black bears, a grizzly, wolves, moose, foxes (including parents with four kits in Drayton Valley, Alberta), elk, mountain goats, mountain sheep, porcupine, rabbits, an opposum (we think! near Cambridge, Ontario), many smaller animals, as well as a great gray owl and three great horned owls. The number of deer on the northern roads is climbing and we see fewer moose.

A great horned owl was Larry's "pet" in his book As Long as the Rivers Flow (Groundwood Books). We saw a great horned owl on the road to Wabasca-Desmarais when As Long as the Rivers Flow came out. It seemed like a good sign, and it was.

We often travel in Alberta in the spring and fall. Awe-inspiring flocks of Canada geese, snow geese, and sandhill cranes fly over Lesser Slave Lake, Winagami Lake and the Wabasca lakes. We pull the car over, get out, and watch and listen to the din as thousands migrate overhead. The birds were spectacular in October of this year, from McLennan east to Wabasca.

We enjoy remembering the birds and animals we have seen on our travels. We are privileged to share the earth with them. -- Larry and Constance