Drone Video - Climbing Big Lonely Doug: Round 2

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Today I'm excited to have launched a new video which I filmed and edited featuring the Ancient Forest Alliance and Arboreal Collective's second climb up Big Lonely Doug, Canada's 2nd largest Douglas-fir tree! Doug has become the educational mascot of BC’s endangered old-growth forests - his massive size highlights their grandeur, while the dramatic contrast of the surrounding clearcut highlights the threat to them posed by industrial logging. The drone footage, captured using the DJI Phantom 3 Pro, of tree climbers (thanks to Matthew, Aaron, and Elliot!) in this sobering setting will help us raise the public awareness needed to pressure the BC government to protect what remains of the adjacent Eden Grove and endangered old-growth forests across British Columbia, and to ensure a sustainable second-growth forest industry instead.

My First Cougar Sighting in the Walbran Valley

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Well, the moment that I've been waiting half my life for finally happened. I saw a cougar. Not just one cougar though, TWO cougars!! After spending over a decade exploring Vancouver Island's old-growth forests (home to the highest concentration of cougars on earth) and driving thousands of kilometers of remote backroads, I was starting to wonder if it would ever happen. Did these giants cats truly even exist? They're so elusive you start to eventually wonder.

On the drive home though from the Walbran Valley Convergence, a celebration organized by the Friends of Carmanah-Walbran of the 1991 environmental protests in the valley, a large female cat bounded directly in front of my van from a small side road. The distance she coverage with casual effort was incredible. After quickly stopping in disbelief, I looked up the side road to see a second smaller cougar slowly sauntering off. After fumbling for my phone and shutting off the vehicle, I managed to capture a short clip of the animal walking away. We then reversed down the road to give them some space while I frantically asked friends in the back seat to pass me my camera bag which, of course, was buried within all of our camping gear. As I scrambled to unpack and assemble my camera and zoom lens as fast as humanly possible, the large female cougar walked back out across the road to follow the juvenile, presumably her cub. I had just enough time to snap a single photo of her through the front window as she looked directly at use before she too was gone.

Though I wish I'd managed to get a clearer shot, I'm so incredibly thankful to have had such an up close and intimate view of these almost mythical creatures. Instead of just catching a brief glimpse of a tail disappearing into the forest at night, we were treated to a nearly minutes-long experience - enough time to make eye contact with one of the most beautiful and powerful creatures to call the island home. It's a moment that I will never forget for the rest of my life!!

Carmanah Valley Research Climb 2016

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Over the July 16-17 weekend, I had the incredible opportunity to join a team of professional tree climbers and a UBC research student in the Carmanah Valley and photograph their endeavors.

The aim of the tree climbing project was to assist UBC Forest and Conservation Sciences Student, Vincent Hanlon in his somatic mutation research of Sitka spruce tre DNA. The climbing team, consisting of Jamz Luce, Matthew Beatty, and Ryan Murphy, used low-impact rope techniques to access and sample the highest possible new growth points in each tree, record specific sample location data, and to measure both the sample height and ultimate tree height. Over the course of 7 days they ascended 23 trees that averaged heights of 75 meters or 250ft, with the tallest (and largest by volume) measuring in at 84 meters tall. Their skills among the tree tops and dedication to helping further conservation and research efforts is something to behold. Trees were also accurately measure for submission to the BC Big Tree Registry.

The feeling of beginning on the forest floor, slowly ascending up the towering trunk of a centuries-old tree, before reaching the upper canopy at over 250ft in the air with panoramic views of a fully intact valley is an experience that truly defies words. It's humbling and beautiful beyond imagination. I can only hope that the photos captured here do it some justice. 

Thank you again to Vincent Hanlon, Jon Degner and Sally Aitkin at UBC Forestry for this rare and extraordinary opportunity and to the climbers for once again making access to this rarely-seen world possible.

Snapshot: Sunset over Port Renfrew Marina

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May and June have been incredibly busy months for me. I've been away from home almost non-stop which has meant little time for updates! Most of my time has been spent in Port Renfrew working on the construction of the Avatar Boardwalk, guiding writers and travelers to the various ancient forests, filming with drones, and exploring some new areas myself! At the end of a grey day last weekend I was treated to an incredible surprise sunset. Nice to see such rich colour out there :)

Exploration: Cheewhat Lake & Carmanah Valley 2016

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Over the May 14/15 weekend, three friends and I packed the van and made the dusty four-hour drive out to the Cheewhat Lake/Carmanah Valley region to pay visit to many of the country's largest trees. Around Cheewhat Lake grows Canada's largest tree, the Cheewhat Giant, along with the 3rd, 4th, and probably more of the largest western redcedars known. Thankfully, these are protected within the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. I had never visited the giant cedar at the north end of Cheewhat Lake before. It was bit of mission to get there as well as the road along Doobah Lake was quite grown in and the trailhead was nearly invisible but in the end we found it and boy was it worth it!! Such an immense tree!! The GPS coordinates for Canada's 3rd largest redcedar at the north end of Cheewhat Lake are: 48.70070, -124.75124 The trailhead is: 48.70175, -124.75104. The trail begins in second-growth before entering incredible old-growth that includes some unique culturally modified trees and ends at the lake. Near the Cheewhat Giant (GPS: 48.69395, -124.74459) we also found the remains of a half finished canoe in the forest. This forest, and the many giants it harbours, must be my favourite place on Vancouver Island.

The trip also included a visit to the breathtaking Sitka spruce groves found in the Carmanah Valley. Such a timeless place. Not far from the parking lot we also spotted an new giant cedar that was almost 40ft around! Sometimes the big trees are hiding in plain sight just waiting for people to find them. Felt great to get some bushwhacking in as well and rekindle the drive to start looking for new record size trees that may still reside in the dense rainforest landscapes of Vancouver Island! Now that the BC Big Tree Registry is online, it's also easier than ever to nominate new discoveries. See: http://bcbigtree.ca/

I'm forever grateful for the legacy left by the late Randy Stoltmann and amazed by the many big tree discoveries he made. Tragically, he passed away in an avalanche in the early 90's at age 31 - the same age as me. I can't help but wonder what it would it would be like if he were alive today. What questions one might ask him. What new discoveries he might have made in the last 20 years. He left behind such beautiful tales of explorations and is and true inspiration to all lovers of wilderness. We can still visit and enjoy the Carmanah Valley today in large part because of him, and for that and more I extend my greatest thanks.

Snapshot: Incredible Clouds Over Victoria, BC

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Here are some images of the incredible clouds and sunset in Victoria tonight as seen from Summit Park. It's pretty rare to see mammatus clouds and other stormy type patterns but the hot humid weather today put on quite the show! Wish we had unique and interesting weather like this here more often!

Climbing Big Lonely Doug - Round 2

Two weeks ago I had the incredible opportunity to once again team up with members of the Arboreal Collective to ascend Big Lonely Doug, Canada’s second largest Douglas-fir tree! Working with climbers Matthew Beatty, Aaron Kinvig, Elliot Wright, and James Frystak, we managed to capture some awesome images and incredible drone footage of the climb. Photographers Martin Gregus Jr & Sr from the One 50 Canada Society were also present to shoot photos for a future book publication of theirs.

In order to get the first rope in place, the climbers use a 12-foot slingshot to launch a weighted line precisely over one of the top branches. Then, using techniques that allow you to climb the rope itself instead of the tree, they ascend skyward without impacting the tree. The experience is both exhilarating and humbling (and a lot of hard work). Definitely stands out as a highlight of my life!

Big Lonely Doug measures 66 m (216 ft) tall, 4 m (13 ft) wide, and 12 m (39 ft) around the base. It stands alone in a 2012 clearcut in Port Renfrew in Tree Farm Licence 46 held by the logging company Teal-Jones, in the unceded traditional territory of the Pacheedaht First Nation band. Big Lonely Doug is a clear example of both the incredible grandeur and terrible destruction of BC’s endangered old-growth forests. Click here for maps and stats on how little old-growth remains.

Snapshot: Amazing Rainbow near Port Renfrew

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While filming with a documentary crew in Port Renfrew last week, we saw one of the most incredibly vibrant rainbows that any of us had seen before. It appeared to be emanating right from the heart of the ancient forests on Edinburgh Mountain, the largest intact area of old-growth forest in the region, which we took as a sign of hope and good fortune. It doesn't get much more magical than that!