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Haze and the Lake
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Images
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A long day's drive up to Golden, a few prospects up there, but at the end, all in all, too far, there are far too many local points of interest, no reason to drive this far...
Some pictures of Kootenay Lake I took along the way:
The Tourist Economy
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Miscellany
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I've never worked the "resorts", and while you could hardly call this place a resort 90% of the economy in the summer derives from Tourists, or "Part-Time" locals who summer here and winter elsewhere.
The tourists, they're the tippers, they have money, they spend money, they know - for the most part - how to tip, and without them I couldn't afford to be here.
However, the tourists, these same sightseers, they slow down the service in the local cafe's and restaurants, locals have to wait in line for tables at their favorite haunts, to grab a coffee at the bakery, they drive the speed limit, they fill the ferries with wait times and getting off a ferry behind a parade of motorhomes all driving 20 under the speed limit to gawk at every single chipmunk or roadside deer (85 KM to Creston, No Passing), well, it takes a lot of patience. They own vacation properties that sit vacant for 80% of the year while the locals, the people here serving them, live in tents down on the beach or up logging roads or if they're "lucky" at the BBI or one of the trailer parks in the neighborhood. The tourists, they're driving newer, nicer cars, they've got current registration, insurance, credit cards, they represent every dream everyone who ever moved to the Kootenays had to leave behind...
This love-hate thing with tourists, I'm getting it...
Gray Creek Pass
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Miscellany
- Hits: 1286
Other days off exploring other prospects, 50% Prospecting, 50% visiting successful sites and retrieving specimens.
I try a couple of forestry roads, looking for Amethyst, heard it was in a couple of neighborhoods, can find nothing, have no idea where precisely it all is, looking for clues in the geology, interesting, but nothing...
And then the Gray Creek Pass over to Kimberly, there's points of interest on the far side, although the whole road is of interest, scenic, and the change in geology, scenery, vegetation, when you reach St. Mary's Lake, is amazing. And the explorations there, more beryl crystals, I find the geology, some schorl, but not the intrusions, too much time was wasted on the pass. And I check another claim for Quartz, but it's all landslide, there's no clue whatsoever where this discovery may have been...
99.9% looking, .1% finding, but I'm getting better at it (I think).
I use the Gray Creek Pass to get to Calgary, need a varied route, and the road - typical logging road for 70KM, you save no time, but when I arrive in Calgary I find I've almost a quarter tank of gas, this is unprecedented, no real savings in time but the mileage is clearly superior (at the expense of my shocks I suspect), a worthwhile diversion from the traffic of the Crowsnest Pass - only saw a single car each way, and abundant wildlife - bear, deer, mountain goats, and as always there's the infinite pleasure of discovering a new and deserted road ...
Recipes from an Australian Barista
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: People
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He carries his instant coffee around with him in his "swag", which means all swaddled up like a newborn baby. He loves his instant coffee. And he sort of doesn't like that Canadian stuff that's made with real beans and grounds, lacks something in the flavour department he finds.
Which inspired me to transcribe some notes and recipes from an Australian Barista, so you can enjoy Australia's finest coffee experience without the threat of Kangaroos and Dingoes.
- Black Coffee: 1 Teaspoon (from hear on in abbreviated to tsp) of instant coffee crystals. Mix in 1 cup hot water. Wait to cool, drink.
- Milky Coffee: 1 tsp instant coffee crystals. Most of a cup of hot water. Milk and sugar to taste.
- Espresso: 1 tsp instant coffee crystals. 2 oz of hot water. Stir vigorously.
- Americano: 1 tsp instant coffee crystals. 2 Oz hot water. Wait 1 minute, add 10 oz more hot water.
- Canadiano: Use 1 tsp of instant coffee crystals to make 16 oz cup of instant coffee. Hold in reserve. Use 1 tsp of instant coffee crystals to make 2 oz of espresso, then top up with the cup of instant coffee.
- Cappucino: Make an Aussie style espresso (see #3). Boil milk, taking care not to burn it. Froth milk by blowing into it with a straw. !! NOTE: Take care, boiling milk will scald your face if you're not careful !! THIS IS WHY AUSTRALIAN BARISTAS ALL HAVE BEARDS!! Add frothy boiled milk to Aussie espresso. Add instant coffee crystals to top of foam to make a happy bearded face.
- Cafe Latte: Add boiling milk to Aussie Espresso. Don't worry about foam. Swirl some instant coffee crystals into top to make a pretty picture.
These recipes would probably be better done in a series of instructional YouTube videos. I'm gonna talk to him and see if he's ready for the kind of internet celebrity that will bring...
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