Rockhound: Opening the Treasure Chest

Volume 2 of the ‘Rockhound’ series is now available. This particular volume focuses on the perception of value in mineral resources and the shifting lens through which Ontario’s mineral wealth is seen.

In Rockhound: Opening the Treasure Chest we visit such old collecting classics as the Saranac Zircon Mine, Bear Lake, Grace Lake, Bessemer Mine and Kuehl Lake. The mineral focus is on apatite, rare earths, tremolite, diopside and the more exotic treasures that are displayed at the Bancroft Gemboree. For any rockhound, mineral collector or crystal enthusiast this is without a doubt an invaluable accompaniment to a summer of collecting. Within ‘Rockhound’ you’ll learn how and where to collect. Over 80 mineral locations are detailed along with directions and specifics on the minerals found there.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy or Rockhound: Opening the Treasure Chest visit the Lulu purchasing site here.

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Opening an unexplored section of Nexus Cave in the Eramosa Karst

Check out the video about the opening of the unexplored section of Nexus Cave in the Eramosa Karst, a protected karst landscape just outside Hamilton, Ontario. We moved about a ton of boulders and garbage from the bottom of some fissures to expose the openings to a water passage that feeds the cave.

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A Book on Collecting Rocks and Minerals in Ontario

Yes, that is indeed yours truly on the front cover. This is my latest book which is on rock and mineral collecting. As you can see its called ‘Rockhound: an Experience of the North’. This is actually the first of several books in the Rockhound series and it consists of several chapters detailing how to find minerals, identify minerals and the human experience related to that. This first book covers finding gold, feldspar, radioactives, sodalite, apatite, titinite and silver.

As it says on the back cover “In this first volume of rockhound we will explore the mineral world in the context of the whole experience – the deposits, the landscape and the people. whether you are a hard-core collector or a casual enthusiast ‘Rockhound’ will take you to where you want to goand show you what you never believed possible in the mines and forests of the north”.

If rockhounding interests you check out the preview of my book right here – click for a review of Rockhound.

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Papua New Guinea Documentary (Sepik River, Tribes and Malagan)

Papua New Guinea 375-001, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

I recently conducted an interview with Anne Gordon, a well known Canadian travel writer. Anne had just recently returned from Papua New Guinea and in particular, a trip up the Sepik River where she visited local tribes and learned something of the Malagan culture).

See the Papua New Guinea documentary interview with Anne Gordon here

As a travel writer Anne speaks about the benefits of belonging to NATJA and other travel organizations, the benefits such as sponsored trips and the professional development opportunities that are open for travel writing.

As Anne said, “New Guinea is undoubtedly the most exotic and fascinating place she has ever been, there are over 900 tribes scattered throughout the island and an an ecosystem that spreads both above and beneath the surface”. Many of New Guinea’s tribes maintain customs and cultures that hold a special fascination for us in the west. Head hunting and cannibalism still exist in isolated pockets and have been practised quite commonly within the last 100 years.

Anne Gordon’s interview centres around the Sepik River and the carver’s of the Malagan culture, in particular the master carvers of New Ireland, she shows many incredible pictures of the tribes in that area and the tribal culture of New Guinea.

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Ice Storm Ontario 2013 (Power out and tree limbs down in Guelph)

Ice Storm 2013, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

We seem to be at the tail end of a most disastrous ice storm. The storm began last Saturday and continued on till Monday morning. Tree limbs were tearing from trunks and crashing down all over Guelph, it was like something out of a disaster movie. It was not possible to even drive down the road without having to weave all over to avoid the debris. We lost power for a few hours, but it appears that there will be over 200,000 people in Toronto who will be cold and dark through Christmas.

For us, the sun is shining now and trees are glittering like forests of diamonds.

See a video of the 2013 ice storm (Guelph) here.

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Snogof – Breathing tunnel beneath the Forest Floor (Northern Canada)

snogof, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

This past weekend Jeff and I visited a spot in the forest where we had found a tunnel this past summer. We had been trying to dig into the tunnel but the bugs were terrible. Now that the ground is heavily laden with snow there is no such problem – now its the cold. Anyway, after about 4 hours of digging and levering frozen boulders we managed to create a hole large enough to look well into our suspected cave and what we saw within was an elliptical shaped tunnel that was plugged by boulders. A small waterfall dropped from the roof of the tunnel and beyond, a chamber in marble.

See video for Snowgof – breathing tunnel here.

We are yet to access the chamber, but with great difficulty Jeff photographed a small segment of the chamber. In his picture you can see a wall of pure white marble and you can hear the water falling within.

Near the entrance the roof is encrusted with frost thus indicating airflow from deeper in the earth. In fact it was the smear of frost on the wall outside the cave that first got us digging there in earnest. Based on its proximity to the edge of a steep slope and no apparent resurgence at its bottom I am left to conclude that the water flowing into the cave must be dropping down deep quite quickly. I suspect that it goes down a shaft such as you see in Twin Trickles Cave.

Spring will reveal what lies beyond.

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Cave Exploration in Canada (video) Embryo Cave; return to mother earth

Embryo2, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

This past weekend Rob, Jeff and I visited Embryo Cave with the intention of digging out something of the earth plug at the lower end of the cave’s main stream passage.

see video of Cave Exploration in Canada (video) here

lying pressed between the rock and the dirt it was an experience from which I was unable to shake the feeling that it was as though we were returning to mother earth. We dug for some time in the earth as we suspected that in breaching an earthen crest up ahead we would possibly break into tunnel that led onwards and downwards. There appears to be a lower water filled level in this cave. The flowing stream bubbles up in sand part way along the main trunk passage and it sinks again just short of the earthen plug.

Sadly we tired before we got through the dirt, but it was close and next time we visit we will certainly complete the job.

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Cave exploration in Canada – Caving in Wasteland Waterway (Ontario)

IMGP7322, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Jeff and I made a recent reconnaissance in the Wasteland Waterway Cave system as we suspected that with the filling of the Blue Barrel sink, the cave passages had been blocked and so the deeper reaches of the cave system would now be sealed forever. But nature is more persistent than that and the sink had cleared itself out from beneath. On the surface there is a slight indent, but below the tunnel is perfectly clear.

see the video of Cave exploration in Canada – Wasteland Waterway here.

I suppose this now brings to light the question as to when we are going to push the tunnel to its very furthest endpoint. We strongly suspect that beyond the ‘gulch’ and the aerofoil the tunnels get bigger again. You ask what is stopping us? It’s a long cold crawl and a tight squeeze at the end of that which makes me somewhat leery.

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Adventure in Ontario, Exploring the Wasteland Waterway Cave in Ontario, Canada

Exploring the Wasteland Waterway Cave in Ontario, Canada, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

For cave exploring in Ontario this one is possibly one of the more exciting possibilities. This past weekend Jeff and I explored the tunnels for some short distance, but we were turned back by the conditions which were less than favourable – namely the cold, the prospect of a storm on the surface and my knee pads which kept sagging down and so my knees were torn to shreds.

nevertheless, for Adventure in Ontario I am still optimistic of eventually reaching the end. Thus far several pushes have not revealed the sump-point. On one trip we reached a spot called the aero-foil and past that a squeeze then bigger tunnels beyond.

I am thinking that the cave goes deep and the many sinkholes in the area must meet up with these tunnels somewhere beyond where we have crawled.

see the video here for Adventure in Ontario, Exploring the Wasteland Waterway Cave, Caving in Ontario, Canada

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Travel to Durban and Explore the Indian Culture

India2, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

If you travel to Durban you will discover that it is heavily influenced by the Asian Indians who live there, in fact Durban has the largest Indian population outside of India – ironic that its at the tip of Africa.

See video on travel to Durban and explore the Indian culture here.

If you are looking to make your own curry, there is the mix your own spices section at the Hyper-mart. A great meal of ‘Durban Curry’ at the Riverside (formerly the Athlone Hotel) and saris aplenty at the mall.

Most of Durban’s Indians are descendant from indentured labourers who arrived from 1860 onwards. Local labour was discovered to be economically self-sufficient so there was a need for hired help. The first ship arrived from Madras and despite the initial intention to have Indians work the sugar cane plantations they soon made a name for themselves as clerks, market gardeners and traders. In fact I can recall a fellow who had a property near our house in Kloof – ‘Paddyarchie’ who was our source of vegetables, we used to pop across and gather Kaki Weed to feed our rabbits from the edges of his land. I suspect mum used to trade some of our ever increasing rabbit population for vegetables (never admitted).

Ghandi is said to have spent time in Durban, helping local Indians oppose a bill that obstructed their right to vote.

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