Reflections: Part 2
Reflecting Back on the Beginning of a Long Journey
The waters were relatively calm, the clouds were minimal, and the sun was fierce. Luckily we began the day at a reasonable hour, so we were able to get quite a few kilometres in before the heat hit us. As one can imagine, you need to stay hydrated as a voyageur. But what comes along with staying hydrated? Well, I’m sure I don’t need to spell it out for you. And do you think the voyageurs stopped to go on shore every time one of the crew members needed to take a potty break? Doubtful. So what other option does one have? Go over the gunnel, of course.
Now Tomas, he is one heck of a fellow. Great sense of humour and one of those unique personalities that you expect to see a television series based on. So of course, Tomas, who insisted upon wearing his historic clothing for the entirety of the day, would have had to figure out eventually how to do the duty just as our ancestors did; clothing and all. This proved to be a bit of a challenge, for reasons I’m assuming one can imagine. An unexpected wave crashed against our boat and with all of our heads turned away, all we could hear was the squeal of Tomas and a great splash. As we turned around, Tomas’ face emerged from the water, eyes wide (from the shock of the fall, and the temperature of the water I can only imagine). A few folks reached overboard to drag him back in the canoe, as he began to yelp “Not yet! My pants are still down!” No folks, we didn’t have zippers in the 1800s. After a bit of struggle, we managed to get Tomas back on board, and shared one of the best chuckles I think any of us have had in a while.
We made it quite a ways, intending to stop on an island (which we so creatively deemed Lunch Island) that the navigators spotted on a map about two thirds along our route for the day. Unfortunately, the Ottawa River has flooded significantly this year. As we approached the island, we realized that it had become more of a mangrove. Though there were trees, there wasn’t a patch of land upon which we could land, have a lunch, and rest outside of the confines of our canoe. We were closer to the Quebec shore of the river, so we decided to canoe along the shore until we saw an appropriate place to take a rest, either in the bush somewhere or on a friendly person’s lawn.
We saw not too far away this phenomenal fuchsia pink house and figured someone who owns a giant pink house would probably be welcome to some visitors. As we approached, we saw someone in the window, but realized that the majority of the crew members don’t speak French, and only one of us is Quebecois. So through a quick and anxious discussion we decided that Matt would speak on behalf of our group so as to approach our potential hosts in the most respectful manner. A young woman peaked out the door, so we shouted, “Salut!” to which she replied with a polite, “Bonjour!” We replied, “Ça va?” to which she responded hesitantly, “Ouais, et toi?” Everyone in the canoe turned their heads towards Matt to begin the dialogue. He asks in French, “Would it bother you if we take a break for a moment on your property?” The woman pauses, an awkwardly responds in French, “I don’t speak well in French”. Turns out she was a Newfie after all! That would explain the colour of the house!
Written by Courtney Vaughn
