“It’s the only place in the world where I feel myself”

“I feel so at home here—like I know who I am and where I’m going”

What’s happening during a 3 ½ week program that is missing from their lives back home?

At home, young people can reinvent themselves several times in one day. The 13-year-old girl sitting at the breakfast table with her siblings is very different from the same 13-year-old girl seated with friends in the cafeteria. The 15-year-old boy visiting relatives at Thanksgiving is very different from the same 15-year-old boy in the locker room after football practice. Identity shifts occur often throughout a typical teenager’s day. From classrooms to the mall, the school bus to dance class, essay to Iphone, teenagers interact with a variety of people in a variety of settings, through an array of outlets every day. Parents, teachers, peers; home, school, subway; cell phone, laptop, skype—the variables are limitless. But more often than not, no one individual really has time to see or interact with the “whole” child and subsequently that child rarely ends up feeling known for who they truly are or want to be.

Providing the time and experiences during adolescence for your child to be known, understood and honored for their unique gifts is essential to their journey into adulthood.

At NWL, we have developed a series of programs to meet the specific needs of young people at different stages of maturity and development. In the context of a wilderness canoe trip, small groups of eight or ten teenagers along with their trip leaders travel through some of the most rugged and remote areas of northern Ontario and Quebec learning about the land, each other and most importantly about themselves.

Spending 20 days with a group of peers, facing the same challenges and moving towards the same ultimate goal is only a small piece of the journey. Once young people complete the initial work of learning the basic skills required for physically getting form point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ (paddling, portaging, setting up and taking down camp) they have TIME to begin the more important work of getting to know one another and being known.

Time. Now, there’s a concept. Rarely these days do young people have time to develop meaningful relationships with peers, mentors or elders in their busy, over-scheduled lives. The development and nurturing of relationships sometimes rely on brief text messages, one-hour classes or a family meal – a slow and at times unrewarding process. Having the time, support and environment to nurture, build and maintain relationships is a rarity indeed.

Similarly, teenagers seldom get the chance to work through conflict. Imagine a teenager without the ability to hang up on someone after a disagreement or slam a door when a relationship is challenged. On a canoe trip these avoidance techniques are simply not an option. Group members need to confront conflict and challenges head on in order to move forward with the journey. With the encouragement and support of both mentors and peers, individuals are given the tools they need to work through conflict, problem solve and most importantly, understand each other. They learn that part of being a member of a community is accepting the diversity within it. They learn that conflict and challenge can make both a group and an individual stronger and ultimately more successful.

The young people sharing a journey like this see each other in every light possible—exhausted after a long portage, relaxed and fulfilled watching the sunset, frustrated when things are not going their way, or full of adrenaline and giddy while jumping off a cliff into the crystal clear waters of a pristine lake. There is no option to retreat behind slammed doors or to ‘log off’ when the going gets tough.

At the end of a day on an NWL trip, groups will sit together around the fire sharing stories about the day or reflections from home. More information emerges for a ‘wholistic’ view of each member of the group. Puzzles are slowly put together—why one person has a difficult time dealing with conflict, why another uses humor to cover up their stress. These stories and insights allow each group member to be known. They are revealed for who they are and for who they want to be. And they are accepted. It is a freedom that many of them have longed to experience outside the home.

When trips return to basecamp, the results are very clear. Young people of all shapes and sizes hop out of their canoes gracefully and with confidence. Physically, they seem balanced in their bodies. Their faces beam with pride. Their smiles light up the beach. But the most rewarding part of their return is how they hold themselves within the larger community. Hearing their stories and watching them interact with peers, mentors, elders and family gives us an even greater sense of their journey and growth.

As experiential educators, we recognize that the need for each young person we work with to be known is key to the success of any program. With intentional programming that meets the developmental needs of the adolescent, Northwaters is an environment where elders, mentors and peers come together to understand the individual as a whole person. It is a place where young people are honored for their gifts, celebrated and understood.

Simply put, one of the reasons young people write comments like “this place is magic, it’s the only place on earth where I feel totally myself” is because they have been given the opportunity to be just that—totally themselves. They do not need to reinvent themselves because who they are is totally enough.

Returning home with this empowering sense of self has a strong impact on their lives and relationships. Challenges that may have seemed impossible before, become ‘just another portage’. A conflict with a sibling or parent becomes an opportunity to understand each other and make the relationship stronger. When young people face the world with confidence and a clear understanding of who they are, anything seems possible. When the world understands that young person and they feel known within it, the possibilities are limitless.

35 years ago a sophisticated suburban mother of four identified in her 2^nd born a need to escape the traditional.   It was clear that her stoic and resourceful boy was ready for a unique and identifying experience.  And so, at the age of 13, she sent him to Langskib.  To this day, she remembers with vivid clarity C.G. returning home from his summer in Temagami.  He was different she said.  Something had changed in him, this was very clear. Indeed, it was clear.  In addition to crossing a bridge he had chosen his life’s path.

C.G. has returned to Langskib every summer since then.  Beginning as a participant and soon becoming staff.  It wasn’t long before Dave Knudsen recognized his dependable nature, strong work ethic and impeccable craftsmanship.   He was hired on full time and began the long process of helping shape the organization and moving it forward.

When I first met C.G. he was devoted to his own personal growth and learning the skills required to manage people effectively.  Not much has changed.  He is dedicated to learning and his capacity for knowledge is overwhelming at times.  I’ve yet to meet another soul who can be simultaneously reading a book about small business organizational development, another on sustainable living, a Patrick O’Brien novel, Cycle World magazine and National Geographic. His quest for knowledge and curiosity combine with his diverse interests to make him an authentic ‘student of life, for life’.

Over the years his leadership has impacted more than an organization.  He has served as a mentor, surrogate father, friend and trusted colleague to generations of participants and staff.  During the off-season, it’s pretty rare for a week to go by without someone calling to ask C.G.’s advice.  Whether it’s someone looking for ideas on how to spend a year off, how to change a break caliper, frame a roof or how to face a particular conflict in their lives—he will make the time to help.

To me, C.G. embodies what Langskib and Northwaters represent: integrity, courage, community and the quest for excellence.

We put a great deal of value on symbols in this organization to recognize a passage from one place to another.  When I asked Bence (an infamous Excalibur Participant) what I should do to commemorate your 35 years here he suggested I commission a true to life statue of you for the cliff at Langskib.

While I agree, a statue would be great, I think it’s more important for you to hear these words and know they are true:  The community of staff sitting in this room are here because of important work that you have done.  The important work they do with young people on trail can happen because of your dedication to the philosophy of NWL and steadfast belief in the process.

As Caretaker of NWL , I know you will do what is right for this land and all those who walk upon it.  But I also know that as long as you breathe, you will uphold the core values of this place; the belief that simple living, hard work and risk changes lives.  Indeed, It changed yours 35 years ago and we are ALL truly thankful for that.

Or… “Why Langskib is like Mongolia”, by alumni Dave Roberts.

It has been over thirty years since I lead my last trip from the dock at Langskib canoe camp for boys.  I was a camper on the first Temagami Trip the year Dave Knudsen bought Camp Windshift which became Langskib. I was one of the first leaders, I co-lead the first Dumoines River Trip. I lead CG on his very first canoe trip; he later became the best assistant I had the pleasure of working with.

A lot has happened since I left Langskib;  some good, some not as good. I moved to the West, I worked as a cowboy on several cattle ranches in Colorado, I lead elk and deer hunters on horse pack trips into the Rocky Mountains for 11 years, did many other jobs, lived in several places. I married, raised kids, divorced and ended up with a desk job shuffling paper. I soon plan on changing that desk job to something more exciting.

Last year, life was getting a little too slow and too domesticated, I was missing the adventures I had leading canoe trips, the traveling into the unknown, not knowing where camp will be until evening comes. I missed the nomadic life I lived as a cowboy. So I packed some belongings and traveled to Mongolia for three weeks. The people there still live the same as they did 800 years ago when Genghis Khaan ruled. They live in tents called Gers, they move their livestock with the season, packing all their worldly belongings onto ox drawn carts and live off the land. Mongolia is great, just what I was looking for, people with a nomadic spirit. The entire time I was in Mongolia I never felt alone, everywhere I went people treated me as a friend. I spent days galloping a horseback across the Mongolian Steepe with nomadic horseman, I stayed in their Gers, I learned their culture and shared experiences with them. I am learning their language and plan to return to Mongolia next year to visit with Mongol friends and other friends I have yet to meet.

Interesting enough, where I traveled in Mongolia is exactly the other side of the world from Langskib; same latitude as Langskib and exactly 180 degrees difference in longitude. I could not help to think back on the experiences at Langskib and the skill I learned. The canoe trips I lead were stepping stones for the adventures that followed. I was hired as a hunting guide and cowboy because of my skills I learned at Langskib, the ability to live in the wilderness. As Koonze, a cowboy friend, said “We are men that do not need to go home at night.” At the end of the day, home was where we camped, just as it was leading canoe trips. What was hardship to many was just another day on the trail for me.

Several years back I had the thrill of watching my daughter go out on her first Northern Lights Trip and several other trips in the following years. Stepping onto the dock at Langskib for the first time in thirty years brought back memories, seeing Northwaters for the first time show me how much the camp has grown since I worked there. And watching my own daughter return from canoe trips was an emotional experience beyond words for me, having my own daughter learn and experience the same things I did when I was her age.

Soon I will be up at Langskib and Northwaters for the Alumni Weekend. I hope to see old friends and share experiences with others who lead trips over the years.

Life itself is the journey, what an adventure!!

DR/

Summer Camp in the Winter!

New to the mill (and NWL) this winter is Jen Zahorchak.  Jen comes to us with many years of experience working with children and their families in camp settings throughout the US.  She and her husband Gregg moved back East from Oregon to work for Adirondack Camp in Lake George.  Recently, they purchased a home just a mile down the road from the mill.  Jen and Gregg come to us with much experience in outdoor adventure.  Each of their girls, Wren and Luna, have been on canoe trips in-utero and out, but Otis (4 months) is waiting for the spring thaw for his first out of belly adventure.  In addition to helping out with general administrative work, Jen is focusing her expertise on managing our website and online presence.  She’s the person to contact if you would like to contribute news, photos or stories to the blog or website – jen@northwaters.com

Once summer camp programs are finished and base camp is closed, (October 2 last year) our focus turns to planning for the coming season. In November, directors and senior staff spent 3 days with Rod Napier and Chris Cavalieri of The Napier Group. Chris and Rod, in addition to being our trusted advisers and experts on organizational development, are also able to represent the views of parents and grandparents of participants. Together we identified key program areas we could improve and ways in which we could make the end of session experience for parents even better. One exciting development is Waypoint, a one week program August 1-7, 2010 for parents.

Enrollment in Northwaters and Langskib regular sessions is more than 20% ahead of all previous records for this date. Don’t worry, we probably still have space for you, but keep in mind that if you are one of the folks that likes to wait until the last possible chance to enroll, you may find yourself out of luck. Enroll online or call 866-458-9974.

Outside of our regular canoe camp season, we have a full slate of school programs. Halton Waldorf School of Burlington, Ontario is sending classes in both June and September. The Sterling Hall School of Toronto and the Rudolph Steiner School of Anne Arbor are each sending classes for wilderness canoe adventures in September. We have formed a partnership with Alive Outdoors to provide a wilderness adventure program for the 10^th grade of the Greenwood school of Toronto in September as well.

The ice was late in arriving to Temagami and a number of our neighbors have been through the ice. Keewaydin Canoe Camp lost a snow machine but fortunately, Jason was uninjured. Unsafe conditions made it impossible for Claire and Eric Miller to reach Northwaters in mid January but they were able to get to Langskib for a very frosty visit.

A January thaw in Westport brought the Boquet River thundering over its banks. Big chunks of ice made it too scary to do much more than just think about paddling, but still, it was a great reminder that paddling season is just around the corner. Temperatures have returned to seasonal levels so it’s back to ski’s and ice skates.

We hope you are all getting out wherever you are and look forward to another great summer.

C.G. & Jodi

Well, it’s finally happened.  Winter is here, and my thoughts now begin to shift from rivers and giant pine trees to cross country skiing and hot chocolate.  I live in Toronto where winter really never completely sets in.  While there are people running around in minus 40 celsius rated down jackets and there is talk of storms of the century, its really not much compared with the rest of the county.  Even though here in Toronto we don’t really “do” winter, the same sentiments arise once the weather turns colder.  People slow down a little bit, nest a little and eat a little more.

One of my winter traditions is to thumb through my pictures of the past summer.  I look at them fondly and think about the long days and warm nights in Temagami.  This picture in particular brings back memories of this past summer. In June 2009 I stepped into a new role as Program Director at our Northwaters Basecamp.  Along with this amazing new challenge I was also planning a wedding, my wedding for the end of August.  Now, in honesty when I told my plans to my friends, family and fiancé I was faced with a healthy amount of disbelief.  How would I mange to plan a wedding from an island in the middle of lake Temagami while my husband to be worked in Toronto? What better place to plan a wedding and be inspired than in the Canadian wilderness… think of all the decorating ideas I’ll get!   And for my fiancé I added that distance makes the heart grow fonder, so our separation would actually be an advantage.  My optimism however, proved to be a little naïve as I began to realize the demands of wedding and program planning.

Luckily for me, a supportive community who readily offered their ideas and help whenever I needed it surrounded me at basecamp.  From asking for colour scheme advice, to the use of the Hobart industrial mixer for my wedding favours, Northwaters was always there to help.  NWL creates a community where each individual is celebrated for their unique gifts, allowing everyone to feel safe and valued.  I felt that about the community on my very first trip on the Makobe River and it is a feeling that is cultivated and nurtured every summer.

The shift from a trip leader to a program director has been an exciting one.  I was thrilled to be able to meet and know many participants instead of just a small group.  I was also blessed to be able to see participants before their adventure, and have a chance to speak with them when they returned.  The change has also been a nice dovetail into my work outside the summer season; I am set to complete my Masters in Teaching from the University of Toronto this coming April.   I have included my passion for experiential and outdoor education into my studies, and I will carry it on as a teacher when I graduate.

Even though this past summer was probably the busiest time of my life, I wouldn’t have changed a thing about it.  I thought about my wedding when I was in Temagami, and I thought of Temagami when I was at my wedding.  The pull that you feel from canoe tripping with Northwaters doesn’t end when you leave the island, but sometimes it ebbs during the cold winter months; so I hope that my attached picture brings a little bit of the summer to you wherever you are.

I can’t wait to see what next summer has in store for me, but it’s going to be hard to top portaging while wearing a wedding dress.

Thanks to everyone who helped

Teeth to the wind,

Christine McKenna

Returning to base after paddling the Harricanaw River and crossing the James Bay

Hopefully, you will interpret the fact that we have managed to go the whole summer without blogging as a testament to our belief that summer is the time for many things, none of which can be done indoors. I’ll start out with something short here, so as not to risk injury to either of my blogging  fingers.

We are pleased to report the season was a success; Everyone is home safe. We enjoyed strong enrollment despite the economic malaise. While the weather was not great, it was not as rainy as areas farther South and water levels were good to excellent, even on smaller rivers, throughout the season. The month of September was absolutely gorgeous and school groups enjoyed near perfect conditions, the best in many years. The water and air were still warm enough for us to enjoy a swim September 28th, our final day of program for the year.

We have many great pictures and stories to share. From the early crew renovating buildings at Langskib, staff training with Michael Thompson, PH.D. noted child psychologist and author of Raising Cain, Protecting the Emotional Lives of Boys; two Leadership Programs on the Hayes River,  our first Annual NWL Alumni Staff weekend and Deep AGM and the mysterious case of the disappearing canoe.

We hope you are enjoying Autumn and getting out wherever you are.

Warmly,

C.G. & Jodi

In the language of the Tema-augauma-anishinabi people, Temagami means, “deep waters.” Temagami is a lake, as well as a town of the same name. To some, Temagami is a place of vacation, somewhere to run a houseboat and go fishing. To others it is a livelihood. To me, it is the place where my heart is at peace, the home of my spirit.

Temagami is feeling, an experience. It is like a smell, something that will never be completely explained. The definition of Temagami cannot be bound by words of any language. And each person has a different definition. Temagami is the surrounding earth, water and sky. It is trust, the circle of friends. It is the flow of the water and the rush of river. It is the stillness of dusk and the reflection of the trees and the bright sky in the clear water. Temagami is the rock of the canoe and the rhythm of the paddle stroke. It is a memory and a fond sigh. It is the star-covered sky and the call of the loon. It is the northern lights. It is safety and strength. Temagami is the courage to face doubt and fear, and to triumph.

Temagami is a teacher. Each canoe trip upon her waters has its own trials; each day has its own challenges. Each challenge is difficult and demanding, yet each is overcome. I have been to Temagami and learned the patterns of myself. I have learned the simplicity and complex beauty of life. The most amazing experiences of my life have been in this wild land. I have felt incredible pride and power after lifting the canoe off my shoulders and placing it in the water. I have been afraid and doubtful, and have come out alive and grateful. I have been so tired, my mind and body were drained of any feeling except quiet joy and peace. In Temagami I have been humbled to the lowest level, and have been raised up to touch the sky.

Temagami, more than any other one thing, has shaped me, made me what I am. It is there that I have found my visions. Until I see those green trees against the clear blue water, until I feel the sway of the boat, and hear the gentle lullaby of the water, I will dream of Temagami.

Moving ice shaped the surface of most of northern Ontario and Quebec. Four great glacial movements ebbed and flowed across this land, the last being about 11,000 years ago. Lake Timiskaming was formed by one deep gorge, in contrast to Lake Temagami where the great moving sheet of ice created one large lake with six long, narrow strands instead of six separate lakes. When the glaciers finally receded, a huge lake close in size to the present day Great Lakes covered much of the north. It eventually filtered away, leaving behind fertile alluvial deposits, the basis of the rich farmlands around Englehart, Earlton and New Liskeard. The lands around Temagami were wave-washed and left with only a thin accumulation of soil.

Native people have lived in this region for about 5,000 years. The first people in the region appeared in the Archaic Period, from 5000 B.C. to 400 B.C. These earliest people’s lives followed the seasons and the land. In the fall, they camped by the waterways to harvest migrating waterfowl. They moved inland in winter to trap and hunt, and in spring they returned to the water to fish. Fish were caught with bait and traps rather than nets and harpoons. As the days lengthened into summer, the families gathered berries and roots and they socialized. Dugout canoes were used for lake travel, the bow was the main hunting weapon, and native copper was a boon to their existence. This easily-worked metal provided axes, spears, and jewelry. Gradually these people spread out and traded with others to the south.

During the Middle Woodland Period, from 400 B.C. to 800 A.D., seine-net fishing ensured food stocks. Pottery provided food bowls and cooking utensils. In the Late Woodland Period, from 800 A.D. to 1600 A.D., permanent campsites were developed and gill-netting was introduced. The people began experimenting with rock painting, and ceremonies became common.

Archeologists have barely scraped the surface of the land in examining the years of aboriginal life in Temagami before the coming of Europeans. Promising excavation sites are found on terraces near sandy beaches as well as on river and lake banks, sheltered bays, points and islands. Thor Conway, an archaeologist with the Ministry of Culture and Communications, finds evidence of early habitation at almost any well-used portage. At Sand Point the diligent searcher can find remains of several temporary Indian camps. Artifacts in this area dating to the 15th century include arrowheads, pot shards and tools.

The names of the lakes and rivers underwent numerous spelling changes. Grey Owl noted in 1936 that the “the word is Ojibway Indian derived from ‘Temea’ meaning ‘deep’ and ‘Gaming’ meaning “the Lake’ in particular, not a lake in the general sense. “Temeagaming ‘meaning ‘deep-at-the-shore’ is probably the original word slurred to ‘Temagamings.’”

Europeans appeared in the area during the 17th century, but for most it was no more than a place to rest en route to somewhere else. Lake Temagami was not on the great fur -trade routes, and native people had to travel to sell their furs and fish. The area was rich in wildlife—bear, moose, timber wolf, snowshoe hare, lynx, marten, fisher, and many birds. In 1620, Champlain, who was at Lake Nipissing, referred in his journals to the people who hunt and fish to the north. Between 1650 and 1661 marauding Iroquois made several forays into Temagami, cutting off Temagami trade ventures to the south. The Hudson’s Bay Company built a fort at Moose Factory in 1673 and the French Compagnie du Nord began trading nearly six years later. Temagami natives thus began trading north from Lake Timiskaming, eventually traveling much farther north and meeting the James Bay Cree. The European trade caused the natives to rely more on imported goods and less on items of their own manufacture, especially after the Hudson’s Bay Company changes its long-standing policy and began to take trade inland. Following the merger in 1821 between the HBC and the North West Company, the new governor decided to increase competition with rivals such as the American Fur Company of Sault Ste. Marie. This company had a small post on Lake Temagami. Independent traders also set up business on the lake. In 1834, one of those independents was hired by the Hudson’s Bay Company to set up a small trading post on the south side of Temagami Island.

The Temagami Island post was only occupied intermittently for several years, as the Hudson’s Bay Company had difficulty keeping staff in such places. Young men were leaving the United Kingdom in a wave of immigration to Australia and elsewhere; for those already in Canada the new railway boom offered high wages and less isolation than life in the fur trade. James Hackland, manager of the post in 1857, wrote in his diary that “of all the places I have been exposed to since I joined the Hudson Bay service, this is the most wretched.” The Temagami Island Post did not have a trade monopoly anyway, so it never figured prominently in Company plans.

Business at this time was coming not only from trappers, but from surveyors, prospectors, and those who were exploring the land. Company buildings thus began to look more like general stores than fur-trade posts. By Confederation the present location of Temagami village was marked by a couple of cabins. The post on Temagami Island had never been conveniently situated, being at the bottom of a steep hill, so in 1876 it was moved to Bear Island. The only signs of the old post are the remains of a root cellar and a small overgrown cemetery.

The pace of development quickened in the last decade of the 19th century due to prospecting, government survey work, and the colonization movement, and in 1894 C.C. Farr, the founder of Hailbury correctly predicted Temagami’s future as a tourist area: “It is not, nor will it be, a settler’s paradise; but summer tourists will rejoice in it and be glad, for a greater land than Muskoka is there.”

By this time, a few buildings were marking the site of the village of Temagami. Until the arrival of the railway, canoe was the only way supplies and mail reached Temagami. Construction of the Temiskaming & Northern Ontario (later to become the Ontario Northland) Railway north from North Bay didn’t begin until 1902.” No private-enterprise builders could be found and so the province built the line itself. The rocky terrain offered construction challenges equal to those of the more publicized route along Lake Superior. The line reached Temagami in 1904, and by 1909 the station had occupied two different locations. With the discovery of silver at Cobalt in 1905, rail service dramatically improved. The railway laid out the town site and built the first log school in 1907. Church services were held only in summer until 1911, when an Anglican minister became the first year-round clergy.

Soon after this, the First World War dried up the tourist traffic to Temagami. It would not return until after 1918, but it returned with a vengeance—it was not uncommon to see up to 300 people on the station platform at train time. The post-war travelers were a different lot from the pre-war ones who had come mainly from the wealthy classes. Now Temagami became host to energetic young loners seeking adventure in the wild, expressing the desire to get back to life in its basic form. These were the first of the canoe trippers who always looked upon Temagami as a special place.

The 1920’s brought a road to Temagami: a crooked, hilly single-lane road from North Bay. A good trip from there took at least two hours. The 1930’s were the Depression years and there was a vast gap between those with jobs and those without. Lucille Ball, Bob Hope and Jimmy Stewart were among the wealthy who visited the area. There were tourists in the summer and some work available on the railway, but for many, government road work was the only source of employment. The road from Timmins to North Bay was upgraded and the new Route 11 highway opened with two paved lanes. The new road meant a smoother trip, but not much change for Temagami in any other way.

Although the Second World War slowed post-Depression growth in the area, it does give an indication of how much Temagami had grown since the Great War. In the 1914-18 war, 33 residents had joined up and 4 did not return. In the 1939-45 conflict, 100 men served and 8 were killed in active service.

In the 1930’s the Royal Canadian Legion supported the band in its attempts to gain a land settlement, for many of the Temagamis were veterans. But not until 1943, when Canada purchased Bear Island from Ontario for $3000, did the Temagamis have a home base, and then it was less than 283 hectares. From that time forward the band has attempted to regain its heritage lands via court action.

In 1951 the Ontario Provincial Police received the first radio-equipped launch in the province to patrol Lake Temagami. In 1968 Temagami was incorporated as an Improvement District with a council appointed by the province. Ten years later the municipal representatives were elected and had responsibility for a much larger area.

From the 1960’s to the present, Temagami’s image has changed drastically. It is no longer seen as mainly a quiet tourist-oriented community, but is now a forum for widely differing political viewpoints, and includes numbers of ecology and economy -oriented organizations. The Temagami Lakes Association, formed in 1931 by cottagers on the lake, has always been concerned with the preservation of the Temagami area. In 1970 its main concerns were water quality, the preservation of the area at the expense of logging close to the lake, acid rain, and increased tourist traffic. A locally sponsored initiative, the Temagami Regional Studies Institute was set up in 1978 to determine the environmental concerns of the area. A more aggressive group, the Temagami Wilderness Society was formed in 1986, primarily to protect the Old Growth pine trees from logging. Members of the organization were not only property owners, but conservationists from across the continent with ties to other groups such as Greenpeace. By contrast, Northcare was organized to conserve the land as a viable economic entity. This interest in promoting economic growth came to prominence with the closure of the Sherman iron ore mine and the depletion of wood reserves for the Milne and other logging companies. Yet another interest came from the Native community. In 1973 the band obtained a land caution. This effectively prevented new uses on the land. A major tourist development had been proposed at Maple Mountain, a sacred area for the Temagami Indians and the caution was granted by the government because the native people had never signed treaties with either the federal or the provincial government and they claimed much of the surrounding territory. As a result, 10,360 square km. in the 110 townships were closed to development.

Although money was given to the community to develop tourist potential and new parks were announced, the provincial government found itself unable to placate any of these interest groups. An Advisory Council was formed to determine ecologically sound land use and potential for the area. But in the fall of 1989 an extension to Red Squirrel Road north of Temagami was built to access old-growth pine for further cutting, and the situation came to a head. Construction was blocked by Native people, members of the Wilderness Society, and the Lakes Association. Several NWL staff helped support the blockade on the Red Squirrel road. Different factions have developed within the native community regarding who should be included in the land settlement and what the settlement should include. Over the years much work has been done to bridge these differences and progress has been made. After more than a century of struggle, a final settlement is expected by 2004 which will give the native community approximately 129 acres of land.

In the past twenty years, many more people have become involved in the future of Temagami and new groups, each with its own unique perspective, have been formed. The Temagami Wilderness Society was created in. In 1974 the AYCLT (Association of Youth Camps on Lake Temagami) was formed with the mission of bringing the camps together in a spirit of cooperation and respect. The Temagami Alliance was created in 1998 acting as a bridge between Resource Extraction Groups and Environmental Groups. Within the township numerous interest groups exist as well. Although differing views regarding what is best for the future of Temagami require continued negotiations, progress towards a sustainable vision for the entire region is being realized.

References, Temagami by Michael Barnes.