Country Roads Summer 2013

SUMMER 2013

C E L E B R AT I N G L I F E I N H A S T I N G S C O U N T Y

5TH ANNIVERSARY ISSUE FARMERS’ MARKETS BLOSSOM MUSIC & ALL THAT JAZZ IN NORTH HASTINGS PROSPECTOR’S OPTIMISM ROCK SOLID

C O V E R I N G T H E A R T S , O U T D O O R S , H I S T O R Y, P E O P L E A N D P L A C E S

Landscape Design/Architecture Full Service Garden Centre & Bulk Products Available Henri & Aquascape Fountains, Birdbaths & Water Features

EyE Candy For your GardEn

525 Frankford Rd., Foxboro, Quinte West - 613.967.1581 www.farmgategardens.ca

Good Food-Good Friends-Good Times under neW ManageMent

Summer at the Barley Pub & Eatery on beautiful Deer Creek

- in Madoc’s Historic Fire Hall For menus, entertainment schedules & more visit www.barleypubandeatery.com 40 St. Lawrence St. W., Madoc, Ontario • 613.473.1800 • chris@barleypubandeatery.com

Available At: Makin’ Waves Marine 29720 Hwy 62 N, Bancroft, ON 613-332-3777 www.makinwavesmarine.com

Have you looked at Stingray lately?

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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www.stirling-rawdon.com

Saturday, September Saturday, September8,7,2012 2013 11am-4pm www.gobuff.ca

www.juliaswomenswear.com 613.395.4100 • 14 Mill St.

613.395.6177

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32 Mill St.

www.finelinedesign.me 613.395.1717 • 22 North St.

613.395.0015 437 West Front St.

Saturday, October Saturday, October13, 19, 2012 2013 Farmtown Park, Stirling www.thegriffinpub.ca

STIRLING BED & BREAKFAST 613.395.2395 10 Wellmans Rd.

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613.395.9444 227 West Front St.

www.stirlingheritagewines.com 613.395.0002 30 West Front St.

Country Roads • Summer 2013

www.oakhills.ca 613.395.2611 1538 Frankford-Stirling Rd.

www.bellaeverafterboutique.com 613.395.4511 21 West Front St.

613.395.1647 282 Edward St.

www.biolivenutrition.com 613.395.6300 438 West Front St.

Country Roads

celebrating life in hastings county

Country Roads

celebrating life in hastings county

CR Country

CO-PUBLISHER & EDITOR Nancy Hopkins 613 395-0499 CO-PUBLISHER & EDITOR John Hopkins 613 395-0499

Roads

SALES DEPARTMENT Jennifer Richardson jennifer@countryroadshastings.ca 613 922-2135

celebrating life in hastings county

ART DIRECTOR Jozef VanVeenen CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Orland French Angela Hawn Sharon Henderson Lindi Pierce Michelle Annette Tremblay Sarah Vance Sheena Rowney Shelley Wildgen CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Sharon Henderson Jozef VanVeenen

“Caring for your family’s dental health”

h t i m S g u o D . r D ssociates and A

Dentistry

Family & Cosmetic Dentistry • Comprehensive examinations • Periodontal assessment • Routine restorative fillings • Cosmetic veneers • Crowns and bridges • Full dentures, partial dentures • Oral surgery • Implants

New PatieNts & emergeNcies welcome

COUNTRY ROADS, Celebrating Life in Hastings County is published four times a year by PenWord Communications Inc. Copies are distributed to select locations throughout Hastings County including the ­communities of Bancroft, Belleville, Madoc, Marmora, Stirling and Tweed.

Copies are also delivered to select homes within southern Ontario.

SUBSCRIPTION RATES: 1 year: $14.69 2 years: $27.13 3 years: $35.03 All prices include H.S.T. The contents of this publication are ­protected by copyright. Reproduction of this ­publication in whole or in part without prior written permission of PenWord ­Communications Inc. is prohibited.

The advertising deadline for the Fall 2013 issue is August 10, 2013.

COVER PHOTO: Photo by Mark Hopper Made possible with the support of the Ontario Media Development Corporation

HOW TO CONTACT US Telephone: 613 395-0499 Facsimile: 613 395-0903 E-mail: info@countryroadshastings.ca Website: www.countryroadshastings.ca For written enquiries you can reach us at: PenWord Communications Inc. P.O. Box 423, Stirling, ON K0K 3E0

At either of our two locations you will enjoy friendly people and gentle dentistry for your whole family.

Belleville

208 Bridge Street east (613) 966-2777

Stirling

9B tuftsville road (613) 395-2800

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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THE 1ST BANCROFT META-SPIRITUAL GATHERING July 26, 27 & 28 Lakeside Gems, 29277 Highway 28 South

Psychic Fair • Metaphysical Arts Trade Show Workshops & Demonstrations • Energy Workers Psychic Readings • Drumming Circle Guest Speakers & Visitors CO-HOSTEd By:

Lakeside Gems Nature Shop & Studio Rocks & Minerals - Jewellery & Gifts Books & Prints Open Daily 10 am – 5 pm Sunday noon - 4 pm www.lakesidegems.com

HigH-Speed Internet For All oF ontArio AvAilAble in Your AreA! We know there’s a lot to do and see online and with Xplornet’s new 4g network you can surf, chat, and stream video faster than ever before. looking for high-speed internet that is truly high-speed?

ANd

ContACt your loCAl deAler to Find out HoW you CAn get Xplornet todAy.

Mystical Creations New Age Shop

Desmond technology phone: 613.328.5558 eamil: desmondtechnology@gmail.com Multiple 4g towers and two 4g Satellites Available Free Site testing up to 10MB Speed Available

Meditation CD’s - Inspirational Cards Psychic Readings available on-site and much more.

8 Hastings Street North,Bancroft www.mysticalbancroft.com

Contact: Linda Bast 613 332-9894 or Rita Marie Browning 613 332-2055 For Vendor info - gathering@lakesidegems.com

Hours of Operation OPEN DAILY May 18 to Labour Day 10 am – 4 pm (last admission 3pm) Admission charges apply

Pack a lunch y! & spend the da June 23 – Strawberry Spectacular!

Local strawberries, entertainment and more.

July 7 – Fibre Fest Displays and demonstrations by Hastings County fibre artists.

July 24 (rain date of July 31) The Freddy Vette Cruise Night 3p.m. - 7 p.m.

August 15 – 18 Stirling Fair

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A celebration of rural life, agriculture and farmers.

437 Front Street West, Stirling, ON K0K 3E0 For info and tickets contact info@agmuseum.ca www.farmtownpark.ca 613.395.0015

Country Roads • Summer 2013

Come visit our Charming, Century old shop and view our fine seleCtion of gently used antiques, ColleCtibles. also toys, puzzles, lampe berger, briCkstone fine foods and lots of unusual gift items.

hours: Weekends: 10am to 3pm 22 mill street (Covered Bridge) stirling 613-395-6510

Cheddar Specialties, Imports, Gift Boxes & Baskets

• The Wilton Cheese Factory, located in Odessa (Wilton), Ontario is HACCP Certified.

• The milk used to make our cheese comes from the Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO).

• Only 100% whole milk is used to make our cheese.

• Our cheddar and variety cheeses are rennet-free with no added preservatives and are vegetarian friendly.

287 Simmons Road, Odessa 613.386-7314 www.wiltoncheese.ca www.jensencheese.ca

Your Smile Is Our Top Priority At Dr. Brett’s Family Dentistry it’s OUR mission to provide YOU with the personalized, gentle dental care you deserve in a fun, friendly atmosphere.

Saturday appointmentS available

Now offering IV sedation for Dental Anxiety

69 Division Street, Trenton, Ontario • 613-392-9586 • www.drbretts.com

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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e d i t o r i a l There’s a lot going on with this particular cover of COUNTRY ROADS and we’re dying to know if readers noticed it all.

Photo: Haley Ashford

Yes, the burst announcing our 5th Anniversary Issue is hard to miss, (a sincere thank you to everyone who has been a part of these past five years) - but there’s more.

Did you catch the name change? More on that later!

And does anyone remember our very first cover in Summer 2008? If so take a second look at this one – can you see the similarity?

For 4 ¾ years we’ve been known as COUNTRY ROADS, Discovering Hastings County – but that’s changed. We are now COUNTRY ROADS, Celebrating Life in Hastings County. It may seem like a minor change but we feel it’s an important one.

We strive to tell stories that ‘celebrate life in Hastings County’ and resonate with residents, weekenders/cottagers and the visitors that pick up a copy of our magazine. We try to paint a picture – a snapshot – of life in our beautiful and unique part of Ontario. In doing so we hope to pay it forward, engaging readers from wherever they may be to discover all that Hastings County has to offer. And that’s A LOT! We are very motivated to promote tourism in Hastings County but we are not solely a tourism publication.

Let us know what you think of our new name. Do you think it better represents what COUNTRY ROADS is all about?

We’ll always be ‘COUNTRY ROADS’. That first cover five years ago was a foggy image of Baptist Church Road north of Belleville taken by Stirling resident Brandon West. Fast forward (and it was fast) five years and this cover shot depicts another foggy day, this time in Belleville and captured timely by Mark Hopper. When we saw Mark’s photo we knew it was the one - because it is, and we are – ‘COUNTRY ROADS’.

We’d like to have a bit of fun and take a stroll down story memory lane from A to Z. Amazing Graze Alpacas – do you recall Bill Bickle’s stunning photos of the alpacas?

Buddhist Retreats – we were as surprised as anyone to learn Hastings Co. has them Carver Paul Shier – we’ll always remember his Thundering Silence sculpture Christmas at O’Hara Mills – a popular holiday tradition Deseronto Pilots of the First World War – Deseronto Cemetery Elk re-established in North Hastings Fosters - John & Janet – accomplished cinematographers Going Once Going Twice – local auctioneer Boyd Sullivan Harlan House – one of the world’s finest ceramic potters lives and works in Lonsdale Ives – Bancroft raised Clay won Olympic medal in the Luge James John Nash – Street in Marmora named after WWII soldier Kraft Hockeyville – Stirling-Rawdon beat out all of Canada to win the title!

Luge Run in North Hastings – try if you dare! (BTW -We didn’t – we just wrote about it) Mercier – Luke the luthier, builds and repairs stringed instruments Nutwood Observatory – the perfect place for stargazing Ormsby - Population 20 - worth the trip!

Peter C. Newman – yes the prolific author and magazine publisher did move here Quinte Symphony’s 50th Anniversary – bringing the best music to our ears Rock and Roll – A roadtrip of the rocks and minerals in the county Sled Dog Races – Marmora’s SnoFest is Canada’s longest running race T-Rex – Dinosaurs come to life at RCI Trenton Uma the Painter – The colourful world of Madoc’s Dianne Woodward Vette – as in Freddy Vette & the Flames – long live the King!

Whitewater canoeing & kayaking at MACKFEST. We’ve got a lot of rivers!

Xmas Pantomime – a Stirling tradition!

Yarnell, Cy – a founder of the Ad-Astra program at CFB Trenton Zlin – the inspiration for Batawa built by Thomas Bata

•

Nancy & John Hopkins

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

contributors Angela Hawn thanks her lucky stars for landing in Hastings County after years of an ‘on the road’ lifestyle teaching ESL in Asia, Europe and the Canadian Arctic. Although she loves to travel, some chance meetings here with a few people in the publishing business finally allowed her to put to use a few things learned long ago at Carleton University’s journalism school.

When not writing or travelling, Angela enjoys the inspiration and humour consistently delivered by the nine- and 10-year-olds seen in her day job as an elementary school teacher.

Her dream job? Why, travel writer, of course.

Interested parties take note: for the right assignment, she’d work cheap. Closer to home, Angela seeks editorial advice and often, just plain old validation, from fellow travelling companions, husband, Mike, and their two incredible daughters, Maddie and Isobel.

Michelle Annette Tremblay writes because she’s interested in everything.

Interviewing fascinating people and sharing their wisdom and ideas is one of her favorite things and has led her to writing features for newspapers and magazines. After completing a Creative Writing degree from the University of British Columbia she spent many years teaching and writing on the west coast of Canada and internationally. But, a country girl at heart, she gave up the city life to return to her roots in Paudash, ON, where she freelances for multiple publications and is the Creative Director of WordBird Media. When she’s not picking remarkable brains, writing or photographing the wonders of rural Ontario, she’s usually in her garden, running after her kids or cooking up something yummy with her husband.

Sarah Vance is a member of the Board of Directors for the Art Gallery of Bancroft and an active supporter of the Bancroft & Hastings Highlands Blues and Jazz Festival. She is an elementary teacher with the Hastings Prince Edward School Board and a member of the York River Public School Council, in Bancroft, where she works and where her children study. Sarah and her husband live in L’Amable, with their three children.

V O LU M E 6 , I S S U E 2 , S U M M E R 2 0 1 3

Contents

Our very first issue Summer 2008.

Photo by Brandon West

10

16

30

38

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

10 LOCAL FLAVOUR

8 EDITORIAL 8 CONTRIBUTORS 23 JUST SAYING

By Angela Hawn

16 MUSIC TO THEIR EARS COVER PHOTO This stunning photo was taken by Belleville resident Mark Hopper. It has been selected by Canadian Geographic for one of their special photography sections.

His extensive collection of area photographs can be viewed at http://500px.com/sharkey12

By Sarah Vance

30 WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD

By Michelle Annette Tremblay

38 BEE FEVER

By Michelle Annette Tremblay

correction The “Whistle No Longer Blows Here” article that appeared in the Spring 2013 issue of Country Roads contained the following text under the Sulphide section.

“If you search around through the undergrowth on the south side of the road, you can find a set of concrete steps leading to where the United Church used to stand. Nearby, on the other side of the road, stands a high chain link fence topped with barbed wire to discourage visitors to the site of a disused mine shaft.”

We wish to advise readers that all of the property mentioned in this paragraph is private.

Where does your community live?

24 ADVERTISER INDEX 26 TELLING TALES 28 ARTISANS AT HAND

Living her dream

37 43 44 46

CROSSROADS MARKETPLACE COUNTRY CALENDAR BACK ROADS

Flying To The Finish Line

You’ve got a copy of COUNTRY ROADS in your hands and that tells us you’re interested in Hastings County.

WANT MORE? Join the COUNTRY ROADS Facebook page.

You’ll be the first to get a sneak peak at upcoming issues, new things on our website, and a whole lot more.

C O V E R I N G T H E A R T S , O U T D O O R S , H I S T O R Y, P E O P L E A N D P L A C E S We are ALL Hastings County, ALL the time! Come join us!

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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Local

Flavour

Farmers’ markets open doors to ­communities

BY ANGELA HAWN

S

Photo: Joe VanVeenen

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

ummer is finally underway and it’s almost time for the tomato taste test challenge. You don’t need much: a couple of ripe tomatoes, one fresh off a local garden vine, the other strictly hothouse, crated and transported several hundred kilometres before arriving at tomato purgatory (a.k.a. the grocery store.) Salt and/or pepper are optional. Now close your eyes, take a bite and chew. Which tastes better? No, let’s rephrase.

Which tastes more like papery mush?

If you want to eat tomatoes of the yummier, more authentically tomato-like variety, the solution is relatively easy. Do your tomato shopping at the closest farmers’ market.

Jackie Tapp, president of the Belleville Farmers’ Market Association, agrees wholeheartedly with this advice but quickly points out frequenting your local farmers’ market produces several benefits far and beyond finding luscious tomatoes. With enthusiasm, she paints a picture of Belleville’s year round market as it might look during peak season: produce, meat, honey, syrup, baked goods and preserves, arts and crafts, trees, plants, cut flowers. From Mother’s Day to Hallowe’en, 40 or so vendors hawk their wares to a steady parade of market patrons.

It’s a little hard to imagine all this on the chilly mid-April evening set aside for interviews with various Hastings County market representatives.

After a couple of warmish days, the Weather Channel warns temperatures will plummet back to wintry digits and a storm warning is in effect.

A few scary meteorologists have even bandied about the term “ice storm.” Those fresh-tasting tomatoes feel very far away.

You can find almost anything at a Hastings County farmer’s market – including these “Alley Cat” musical instruments at the Madoc Market.

Photo courtesy: Madoc Market

Homemade products like a variety of breads, and preserves are just some of the many products for sale at the Maynooth Farmer’s Market. Photo: Christine Hass

But despite the lingering cold, Tapp quickly warms to her subject and the market journey starts on Pinnacle Street. Head west from there to hit Trenton’s riverside Front Street Farmers’ Market. Twenty or so kilometres north, Stirling vendors set up in the parking lot outside the Public Works building. From that hub, markets spoke deep into Canadian Shield territory, selling both the delicious and the beautiful in Marmora, Madoc, Coe Hill, Bancroft and Maynooth.

In the Words of Bill Clinton: “The Economy, Stupid!”

Old enough to remember those t-shirts worn by the former president’s first campaign team in the early 90’s? That slogan still holds. Everyone likes the idea of eating a more locally-based diet, and who wouldn’t want to support your county’s farmers? The resulting good karma might even boost the local economy at large.

Tapp firmly believes in the positive ripple effect created when one chooses to eat goods produced close to home. Local food growers support numerous offshoot businesses, from abattoirs to tractor sales. Look a little further and watch the ripples reach a whole other level. A centrally located market might even generate income for a community’s business section, drawing customers to nearby stores.

“The downtown needs us,” Tapp insists. “Not everyone might think so, but they do.”

As treasurer for the Madoc Market Vendors’ Association, Patricia Blakely sees the relationship between Madoc’s covered market and the

downtown business section in a pretty symbiotic light. Market-bound customers naturally gravitate from the market’s Village Square toward Madoc’s shops and restaurants and vice-versa.

At the very top of Hastings County, market spokesperson Christine Haas says the people of Maynooth know a good thing when they see it. Established five years ago, both the seasonal market and the once-a-month winter market have breathed new financial life into the community.

“The market has a big influence,” Haas reports.

“There’s a restaurant in town that has standing room only, often with people lined up to get in, on market days.”

Tapp firmly believes in the positive ripple effect created when one chooses to eat goods produced close to home.

Go Marketing, Go Green And if supporting your local economy isn’t enough to bring you to market, there’s always the environment. In this era of pipeline protests and residential oil spills, doesn’t ecologically sensitive shopping just make sense? Reducing one’s fossil fuel footprint has such a nice “pay it forward” ring to it.

Google key phrases such as “farmers’ markets and the environment” and you’ll come across a wealth of wisdom advising how best to save the planet by shopping local. According to information published by the David Suzuki Foundation, transportation accounts for more than a third of greenhouse gas emissions. An average meal travels over 1200km before it even gets close to our mouths and bellies. Score a point for visiting your nearest marSummer 2013 • Country Roads

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613 966 3352

“Consignments From The Very Best Closets In Town”

20%t discoun maximum On one item to lue $10 coupon va

Sommerville Centre Highway 62 North, Belleville 613.966.3352 dejavuboutique@hotmail.com

All your looks - just one place!

• Special Occasion Dresses/Bridal • Casual/Cruise wear • Jewellery/Accessories • Sizes 4-24 • Special orders are always welcome

the Frock Shop Ltd. Dressing you in style

Sommerville center 6835 hwy. #62N., Belleville 613.967.1817 Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

Donna Russett of Russett Farms sells baked goods, beef, quilts and cloth baby books at the Stirling Farmer’s Market Photo: Angela Hawn

ket and buying something from a local farmer.

Score two if you bicycled or walked to get there!

“The closer it is, the fresher it is,” notes Tapp, adding the Belleville market operates according to a bylaw which requests market items originate no more than 100km away.

That said, expect the odd exception to the rule, notably Beamsville fruit grower John Clayson.

The Clayson family’s claim to a market stall three hours drive from home literally “grandfathered” itself into place around 70 years ago.

That’s when John’s grandfather first started selling Niagara region bounty in Belleville.

“He sells everything: cherries, nectarines, peaches,” Tapp ticks off a tasty-sounding list.

“When the peaches are done, you know he’s just about done, too.”

Delve deeper into Hastings County and you’ll find not all of the smaller markets abide by the 100km guideline. Haas says she doesn’t like to get bogged down under too many rules, claiming they can be a market’s downfall.

“If they’re willing to come and we’ve got room, we’ll take them,” she says, adding long weekends and special events such as Maynooth’s upcoming Highland Games often bring out 40 or more vendors.

Practical Jocelyn Reilly, busy mom to four children under the age of six and farmers’ market contact for Stirling chimes in with a realist’s perspective. Although Reilly likes to support food grown and raised locally, she knows market shopping doesn’t work for everyone.

“Often there are seasonal limitations,” she notes.

“And some people just find it cheaper to buy their produce at grocery stores. At some point the bottom line comes in, but with a market it’s travelled less and it’s probably had less pesticide.”

“Excuse me, what did you spray on this?”

Eating locally often goes hand in hand with eating healthy. Many stalls at today’s markets proudly describe their wares with adjectives such as “organic” or “hormone-free.” And buying your food from a local grower/producer automatically earns the shopper questioning privileges.

“If you’re buying produce from the farmer,” notes Tapp, “you can ask them ‘did you spray that or how did you grow this?’”

Tapp paints a picture of market shoppers as often highly-educated and always curious. Anxious to know what they’re putting into their bodies before they open their pocketbooks, they like to keep informed.

Up in Madoc, Blakely acknowledges the vital role conversation between shopper and veggie seller plays in the whole marketing experience.

Chatting about the goods is all part of the fun.

“We don’t have too many gardens in this area that produce enough vegetables in the quantity needed to support a regular market,” she admits, “but whenever we’ve had organic products, they’ve always sold well.”

Looking for something a little out of the ordinary?

Not hungry? Maybe it’s not food you’re after.

Don’t let that stop you from making the market your shopping destination of choice. If you’re seeking that one-of-kind, nobody-else-has-anything-like-it gift, this is the place to go.

Organic veggies are available at the Maynooth Farmer’s Market Photo: Christine Hass

Clifford Foster with his maple syrup at Belleville Market.

Photo: Angela Hawn

Shannon Merrill shows off her beautiful jewellery and candles on an exceptionally windy day at the Stirling Farmer’s Market Photo: Angela Hawn

Belleville artist/vendor Lisa Morris denounces goods bought at the mall as “cookie-cutter.” Far better to go local and unique, she advises. Art and jewellery at the stall she shares with partner Peter Paylor utilize recycled items, as well as reclaimed wood.

“It’s all local, all ecological,” she insists, adding one of the pluses she offers includes the ability to create a made-to-order twin for that solo earring whose mate has gone missing.

Whether it’s some woodworking treasure in Marmora or framed photos of local wildlife from Madoc’s cottage country, stained glass or beautiful bracelets crafted from old silver spoons ‘North of 7,’ the list of unique items available goes on and on. Perhaps that cute birdhouse at

Trenton’s market caught your eye. Looking for a special baby gift? Go to Stirling to find handmade training pants and bibs.

All that shopping can work up an appetite but, fortunately, unusual market items are often edible, too. Try some omega-3-rich hemp treats, available in versions for both human and dog consumption. Or perhaps a full Scottish Haggis is more your cup of tea (and for the faint of heart, maybe just some Haggis links!) Discerning shoppers can find both at Belleville’s farmers’ market.

Take a slight detour off Highway 62 to find mouth-watering Coe Hill baked goods, all made from Red Fife flour, grown and milled just south of Madoc. Further north, Chris Drost claims her

farmer step-son frequently wows urban tourists at the Bancroft market with his home-grown produce. Something extraordinary can translate into something as simple as brussels sprouts still attached to their stalk, presented as Mother Nature intended them.

Eating locally often goes hand in hand with eating healthy.

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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Get a taste of Summer at The Apple Store Visit this charming, old fashioned, best smelling store in the world!

- Featuring “The Village Kitchen” totally prepared entrées to make meal planning easy.

- 12 flavours of Kawartha Ice Cream - Cooney Farms - Steaks and Burgers . . . and a whole lot more!

A harvest of apples…

A harvest of gifts…

All hand-picked for you!

Celebrating

30th

Anniversary

Follow us on Facebook

10 am - 5 pm 7 days a week Daily May 24 to Dec 31

newly

renoVATeD

Family owned and operated 613 395-2395 • www.cooneyfarms.com

5 miles north of Stirling on Hwy. 14

Celebrating Elvis® Concert Years in Las Vegas

Are these the only farmers’ markets in Hastings County? Hmm, difficult question. While we’ve tried to find them all, there always exists the worry some great market out there eluded the search.

Worse, a phone call to Ed Zak (former contact person for Tweed’s farmers’ market) brought some bad news: Tweed’s market closed up altogether last season due to lack of interest. Here’s the good news: Ed still sells produce and eggs from a market stand on his Marlbank Road farm.

Your best bet? Walk or bike to your local market. For those farther afield, choose a sunny day, get in your car and explore the countryside. Perhaps you’ll find some market gem the rest of us have yet to discover!

In the meantime, here are some “where and when” details for all of the markets mentioned in the article.

Belleville Farmers’ Market Pinnacle and Dundas Streets Year-Round Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays - 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Tribute Artist Contests Local Attractions Classic Cars Vegas Showcase Youth Competition

Quinte West / Trenton

Tweed’s 3rd Annual Elvis® Tribute Artist Preliminary Competition for the Ultimate Elvis® Contest

Tickets & Camping on sale now Visit our website for tickets, camping & information

www.tweedelvisfestival.ca Aug. 23, 24 & 25, 2013 Tweed, Ontario, Canada ©Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. ELVIS, ULTIMATE ELVIS TRIBUTE ARTIST CONTEST and LOGO are trademarks of Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Farmers’ Markets - Where and When

Country Roads • Summer 2013

Front Street Farmers’ Market (riverside) First weekend of May until November Thursdays and Saturdays – 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Stirling

Madoc

The Village Square Seasonal (beginning May 11th) Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Coe Hill

By the Coe Hill Farmers’ Market Bakery and Café Seasonal (beginning May Long Weekend) Fridays 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Saturdays 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Outside the Public Works Building (East Front Street) First weekend of May to last weekend in October Saturdays 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Wednesday evenings 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Bancroft

Marmora

Hwy 62 (in old community centre parking lot) May 25th to Thanksgiving Weekend Saturdays - 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

(Maynooth’s Winter Market is a once-amonth event held in Maynooth’s new gym)

Memorial Park Seasonal (beginning Mother’s Day weekend) Saturdays 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Hastings St. and Flint Ave. (May Long Weekend to October 31st) Daily, Monday through Saturday (Sunday vendors are welcome, too!)

Maynooth

It’s hard not to ­embrace the ­community spirit farmers’ markets foster.

Enjoy shopping in our relaxed atmosphere... where personalized service still exists.

women’s fashion

(Left) There’s more to Hastings County markets than just food – handcrafted products like these at Maynooth are popular. Photo: Christine Hass

GaRden decoR

(Right) Jocelyn Reilly is not only the contact for the Stirling Market, but the busy mother of four can also be found there selling a variety of sewing crafts, including bibs and juvenile print pillow cases, as well as preserves. Photo: Angela Hawn The BaBy’s Room

Jewelry, Handbags, Footwear, Personal Items, Beautiful Gift Ideas and much more for you to discover.

Meet you at the Market Square

•

Catalogue Merchant

home decoR

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Thank you Quinte, Thank youBelleville, Belleville, Quinte “TheCountry” County” & & Eastern Ontario “The Eastern Ontario

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a member of the local constabulary shoot out the winning number! Missed Trenton’s May 11 Shimmy Mob featuring local belly dancers? You can still catch the August Arts Up Front event, showcasing the work of Arts Quinte West members.

It’s hard not to embrace the community spirit farmers’ markets foster. You’ll likely encounter the town’s cub scouts or the local soccer league registering new members on the spot. Maybe a church bakesale raising money for a worthy cause has just what you want. Markets often waive the usual vendor table fee to encourage community groups’ attendance en masse.

Market day in Madoc turned into a big party last summer when the town showed up to support one of their own. The goal? Help local athlete Nicole Flynn finance her way to the World Down Syndrome Swimming Championship in Loano, Italy. Pancakes, hotdogs, children’s activities and raffle tickets for Nicole’s beautiful photographs all contributed to the festive atmosphere. And guess who came home with gold?

Whichever market you visit, you’re sure to meet some interesting people. Maybe you’ll run into the young customer who brought Belleville’s Jackie Tapp a cup of coffee one frigid winter day because he thought she looked cold. Perhaps you’ll sample perogies made by the Maynooth widow who calls Chris Haas her “guardian angel.” When the market started, she gratefully welcomed an opportunity to top up a senior’s limited income.

And just like that, we’ve come full circle to the economy, that giant machine that makes the world go ‘round, no matter what part of the world we call our own. Yet, the economy at a farmers’ market seems to work on a much finer, far more intimate scale. When you buy something at the local market, you’re helping out your neighbour.

And the bonus? Don’t those luscious red tomatoes you just purchased taste delicious?

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All that bounty, whether natural or hand-made, tends to get people talking. Rubbing elbows with your fellow shoppers might just be the best part of market day. According to Coe Hill’s Raz Fahman, a market’s primary function revolves around providing a venue for social contact.

“It fills a sort of community need, a place to meet and talk,” claims the Farmers’ Market Bakery and Café owner. “That’s the way it’s done in Coe Hill.”

Make sure you find time to chat with Belleville market enthusiast Robert Kleinsteuber, who puts as much effort into promoting his neighbours’ goods as his own family farm’s prize-winning melons. Looking to do a June wedding on the cheap? Kleinsteuber recommends buying some fresh cut gladiolas from a nearby stall. Need a snack? Robert tells you which vendor sells authentic Dim Sum. Interested in a little history?

Make sure you take time to talk with maple syrup producer and Black River Cheese shareholder Clifford Foster. A youngish octogenarian, Foster’s memories certainly don’t go all the way back to the beginning of Belleville’s nearly 200-year-old market, but he still has some interesting stories to tell.

“I remember coming with my parents to the market in a ‘29 Chev truck with a tarp over the back,” he muses, before slyly daring me to guess his age.

Once you’re talked out, how about a little entertainment? By the time this issue of Country Roads goes to press, most of the markets’ “kickoff” events will be a thing of the past, Marmora’s bouncy castle deflated and Stirling’s free coffee long gone. But live music and various attractions feature at several markets throughout the season.

Head to Bancroft in early June for a communitywide tail-gate yard sale. Buy a raffle square in Stirling’s turkey shoot and then clear your calendar the weekend before Thanksgiving to watch

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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Music to their ears Summer events make North Hastings hum

BY SARAH VANCE

I (Top) Canadian musician Jane Bunnett wowed the audience at the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival. A local cottager, Bunnett and husband Larry Kramer organize the annual event (Bottom) The Heavy Weights Brass Band performed at Club 580

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

t was well past “last call” at the historic Arlington Hotel when Canadian soprano saxophonist, flautist and bandleader Jane Bunnett strolled off the stage through a still-packed crowd and out into the middle of Maynooth’s main drag. The building had been at capacity and, as it closed its doors in the wee hours of the morning, its guests followed Bunnett onto the street to the intersection of Highways 62 and 127, where the dancing and music continued.

Bunnett, a local cottager, was in town celebrating the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival, an annual event now entering its fourth year, which she organizes with husband, Larry Kramer and a committee of local supporters.

The Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival is quickly becoming a favourite four-day August event, which combines a variety of prominent performers with North Hastings’ celebrated talent on local stages throughout Bancroft and Hastings Highlands. This professionally-established festival brings high quality talent to the region, but also fosters an educational component.

Guests to last year’s festival will remember an evening of “idol style” talent competitions where musicians like Lisa Particelli, Njacko Backo and Laura Hubert assessed local performers as they delivered original tunes, and then offered professional feedback and tips for improvement.

Educating others in the subtleties of her craft is interwoven into Bunnett’s philosophy and the respect from the musicians that she brings to the Highlands is evident as they perform with her on the stage. This commitment towards furthering the success of up-and-coming talent is just one of the qualities cited when Bunnett was awarded an honorary doctorate from Queen’s University in Kingston.

But it was Bunnett strolling with her fans out into the starry night, accompanied by Kramer on the trumpet and the Spirits of Havana Band, which won her a place in the hearts of the locals and solidified this jazz and blues festival’s importance to the region.

The following morning, Facebook and Twitter feeds were clogged with videos showing dancers in the street and boasts about the success of the event that Bunnett has made legendary.

And the Jazz and Blues festival was just getting started.

From the Town of Bancroft’s Club 580 near the Millennium Park band shell Barbara Shaw, then editor of Bancroft This Week, reported, “Swooning is not often seen in Bancroft but as Israeli-born Ori Dagan sang (and) men and women started fanning themselves. It was fiery.”

Shaw wasn’t exaggerating. In 2012, the stage at the Club 580 offered a high energy evening of hot performances from musicians like Dagan, who

The Clown Band in front of the historic hotel on the corner of Hastings and Bridge in Bancroft, under new ownership and now called the New South Algonquin Eatery and Pub. Photo courtesy: North Hastings Heritage Museum

shared the stage with Noah Zacharin, Laura Fernandez, The Kirk Losell Quartet and The Heavy Weights Brass Band.

In North Hastings, summertime events like the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival only confirm to visitors what is already well known by locals — there’s a thriving night life hidden in the rural hills, and it is one which gains its momentum from an active live music scene. And while this scene is equally vibrant during the winter months, it is the onset of summer festivals and the opening of restaurant patios that really heat things up.

In its second year, in 2011 the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival kicked off at Millennium Park, in partnership with Mineral Capital Concerts, a free 10-week summer series that took place on Wednesday nights.

Committee Chair Kim Crawford describes Mineral Capital Concerts as “an opportunity to showcase local talent while also bringing two big-ticket Canadian music names to the local band shell every season.”

Some 80 percent of the performers at the Mineral Capital Concert either live in Bancroft and its surrounding communities or they grew up here.

These are the prerequisites for finding a way onto the Mineral Capital stage and this local connection is especially vital to a region that has been honoured by TV Ontario as Ontario’s Most Talented Town.

Photo: Sarah Vance

Israeli-born singer Ori ­Dagan treated audiences to an ­evening of high energy music at Club 580 in Bancroft.

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 17

Musician Noah Zacharin was one of the performers on stage at the 2012 Club 580 shows near the Millennium Park band shell.

Situated 2.5 hours equidistant between Toronto and Ottawa, Bancroft’s location, and the mid-week date, has also made Mineral Capital Concerts an attractive stage for performers like Jimmy Bowskill, The Arrogant Worms, Leela Guilday, Rick Fines and Paul Reddick, who find themselves travelling along Highway 28 en route to big-city festivals.

For locals, Mineral Capital Concerts is the place to be on Wednesday nights — from 7 p.m. onwards from July through to August — and tourists from Apsley, Belleville, Madoc, Barry’s Bay and Haliburton flock to the Millennium Park venue along the shore of the York River, with their families and lawn chairs in tow.

Situated just steps north of Bancroft’s downtown core, adjacent to the Best Western Motel, Millennium Park became a music venue in 2001 when the band shell was built. The band shell is a traditional dovetail log building with a covered roof, drafted by Compudraft Design Services.

Local musician and storyteller, John Foreman cut and installed hand-hewn shingles that form a roof for the stage area, which is approximately 34’ wide by 17’ deep, with two change rooms and a lounge area in the wings. The stage faces west into Millennium Park, which has a capacity of approximately 2,000 spectators. A recreational, multi-purpose pedestrian bridge is in place across the York River at the west edge of the park and meets up with Bancroft’s Heritage trail.

But North Hastings is also a territory of sprawling, densely-populated lakes, most notably Bap-

tiste, which is situated upstream from where the York River continues on from the High Falls Dam. Baptiste Lake also delivers its own public music festival, on July 20, from the village’s Country Fare Restaurant on South Baptiste Road. Guests to this event arrive by boats which “tie-up” in clusters to watch performers from the lake. Country Fare’s patio sits beside the stage offering a behindthe-scenes view of the performers and easy access to the vendors’ area.

In 2012, indie composer and singer Mary Milne lit up the Baptiste Lake Festival stage in a fete that included a line-up of eight local bands. Milne engaged the crowd with interactive compositions, including Already Gone, which she performed in the movie The Trotsky, which won her a Genie Award for Best Achievement in Music in 2011.

Bunnett refers to Bancroft and its surrounding communities “as a hidden gem of artists and musicians” and, for the colleagues she brings to the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival, the “lakes and vistas make Bancroft an attractive destination for musicians who treat their festival time as a summer vacation.”

Particelli tweeted, “Only 2 more sleeps! Can’t wait to breathe the country air and hang with a talented lot of friends.”

Bancroft and its surrounding communities are sought-after venues for musicians because they come with a built-in clientele of live music fans who bring it to the dance floor and can be counted on to turn out in full force when a musician hits the stage. This support for local music is ev-

Leila Guilday – one the Mineral Capital Concerts performers.

“Only 2 more sleeps!

Can’t wait to breathe the country air and hang with a talented lot of friends.”

Indie composer and singer Mary Milne lit up the Baptiste Lake Festival in 2012. The public music festival will be held July 20 this year. Photo: Michael Moxam

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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The Mineral Capital Concerts outdoor Band Shell draws attendees from neighbouring ­communities to the Millennium Park venue along the shore of the York River.

Photo: Drew Hosick

With 10 weeks of free ­outdoor concerts and two music festivals in July and August, North Hastings ­offers a rich experience • Pontoon Lifts • Personal Watercraft Lifts • Cantilever Lifts • Hydraulic Lifts • Vertical Lifts • Canopies

for both performers and ­appreciators of live music. ident in the followers of Bancroft’s band Salty Dog, who collectively rent buses for the occasion of their annual January gig at the Wilno Tavern. There is typically upwards of 70 people who pack into buses that leave from Bancroft, making pick-ups along the way, to support Ron Kapitain, Adam Palmer, Paul Sargent and Tony Donkers as they hit the Wilno stage.

The Wilno Tavern is similar to Maynooth’s Arlington Hotel in that it is the go-to venue and connective fibre in a town where the main street IS the town in a settlement of fewer than 20 businesses. Over the years the Arlington has thrived as a true out-post facility, which historically served as the last stop for labourers travelling to shifts in

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

Suzie Vinnick and Rick Fines performed at the Band Shell on a Wednesday night as part of the Mineral Capital Concerts series.

the lumber camps, and their first stop after they emerged.

The Arlington has now left a mark on the hostel scene, boasting a self-catering kitchen and outdoor BBQ, pool table, darts, book exchanges, fire pits, a volleyball court, hammocks and a secondfloor sundeck. Its presence, which has gained international appeal, was established by the Neuman family, who ran the Arlington from August 1995 until November 2012. With the active support of locals, the Neumans established the Arlington as a distinct community space hosting a wide variety of cultural events — such as live theatre, movie screenings, poetry readings and events that push the traditional demarcations of gender, politics

and governance. This legacy is continued by current owners Bernie, Connor and Aleisha, who are also continuing the Arlington’s role as one of the primary venues for the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz and Blues Festival.

In Bancroft, the historic hotel on the corner of Hastings and Bridge, which is also under new ownership and now called the New South Algonquin Eatery and Pub, is as old as the town itself.

In the 1970’s and 80’s, when the Madawska Mine was booming with a payroll of more than a million dollars each month, Speedy Marshall, then proprietor, would host musical line-ups beginning at noon, with weary musicians performing all day and night, and well into the morning’s early

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On stage at the Arlington Hotel in Maynooth. Photo: Sarah Vance

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 21

The historic Arlington Hotel in Maynooth is one of the primary venues for the Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz & Blues Festival Photo courtesy: North Hastings Heritage Museum

hours. This was necessary to accommodate the two double-shift changes of miners looking for entertainment and a place to spend their hardearned money.

Arts and entertainment have always been at the heart of North Hastings and, with much of the mining and lumber industries either already left or just holding on, it’s the arts and entertainment industry that has become an economic catalyst in the region. The Hastings County Economic Development office’s sector profile for the Creative Economy confirms Hastings County as an arts capital, which has a concentration of artists double the national average. And this is a growing sector that increased 57 percent between 2001-2006, with a growth that is continuing today and fuel-

ling notable economic returns.

These returns are most recognizable in the area of tourism. The Ontario Arts and Culture Tourism profile prepared

by Research Resolutions & Consulting Ltd., for the Ontario Arts Council, reports that two-fifths of the 2.2 million foreign tourists to Ontario arrive with the intention of participating in arts and culture activities. Tourists who pursue arts and culture tend to spend more money than the average traveller, with their visits contributing more than $3.7 billion annually towards the province’s gross

domestic product. In fact, 31 percent of the respondents to this survey specifically identified music festivals as their reason for visiting a region.

With 10 weeks of free outdoor concerts and two music festivals in July and August, North Hastings offers a rich experience for both performers and appreciators of live music. These summer festivals and the rich talent of professional musicians being showcased make Bancroft “worth the drive” for cultural travellers, with the bonus that they are also driving an economy which is as much fiscal as it is cultural.

•

Baptiste Lake Festival guests arrive by boat to watch the performances in this North Hastings annual summer musical event. Photo: Michael Moxam

MAYNOOTH Experience Maynooth

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Visit www.maynooth.on.ca

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

JUST SAYING

BY SHELLEY WILDGEN

Where does your community live?

The Greek philosopher, Aristotle once defined community as a group established by men having shared values. Still true, but we’ve evolved, and we aren’t all men, and much of our ‘sharing’ is done online.

Back in the 1980s, futurist Faith Popcorn predicted ‘cocooning’ from home would replace daily face-to-face interaction. Smart and scary lady.

Hello Facebook.

A few decades ago, all things were simple. We lived, worked, loved and created in one neighbourhood. Time moved along and our communities broadened but the feeling was the same.

Everyone living their own version of ‘It’s a Wonderful Life,’ buzzing about in a comfortable state of flux.

Growing up in Belleville, community was palpable and always read. Every day began and ended on the last word of the daily newspaper. It was on everyone’s coffee table, every night. Kids read the funnies, adults read the rest. Weddings, Births, Deaths never seemed real till you read them in the paper, so it got read daily. The local Science Fair, the largest pumpkin grown in Hastings County, the ribbon cutting at the newest appliance store.

Better, worse, or banal, the power of the printed word bonded us together every day.

The mighty newspaper and its ready accomplice, the local radio station, shared a building perched at the edge of the Market Square. They had to. That’s where everything happened.

The Belleville Market Square once hosted the crowd-pleasing frog races. No, really, frogs entered from every city or town named ‘Belleville’ across North America and people, many people, watched. Now, we probably wouldn’t shut our iPads long enough to watch the same frogs do the Harlem Shuffle past our front window.

When cyclist/activist Rick Hansen rolled through our town, the Market Square was filled to capacity, all the ‘Whos’ from ‘Whoville’ stretching for a look. Belleville Intelligencer newspaper photographer Harry Mulhall was crouched at the best vantage point for the perfect shot and Mayor George Zegouras adjusted his tie as he readied for the expected shot of His Worship gracing Hansen with a cheque from the city.

Alas, cheques and daily papers have sort of met with the same fate. The great electronic interloper

has left both barely needed and sorely missed. Not just for the wistful, ‘remember when…’ reasons, but because with our reading and revenues all being dumped into the internet’s all-consuming vastness, we simply don’t have a reason to stroll to the teller with a cheque or read the paper on the coffee table.

Do we even have coffee tables? We have coffee and we have tables found in intimate gathering places where we sit with our friends perusing email from other people, surrounded by books. A community of sorts.

The newspapers, bless them, are rallying to be read for profit. There’s not much money to be made from us reading bits and bytes from various websites, so not to go down without a fight,

As a result, we are ­better informed globally and we can play Scrabble with strangers from other countries, but our ­neighbourhoods have taken on a different feel.

The market square is no longer our centre. newspapers have built online ‘paywalls’ so readers pay (never by cheque) for the content they wish to read. Some publications give us a few free hits before charging, but you get the idea. AllNovaScotia.com has done such a great job of appealing to the ‘business elite’ that they’ve been able to profitably charge their readers for over a decade.

They did it the good new fashioned way – make people feel like their place is the only place you can really get smart conversation information.

What’s trending? What do I need to know next week and next year?

That’s fine for the sophisticated, smarty pants publications but the local paper that gave us just what we needed today is losing traction. In our information age, non-frequent, non-loyal, nonpaying readers are flitting about the world of the internet like crazed, random pollinating reading bees.

As a result, we are better informed globally and we can play Scrabble with strangers from other countries, but our neighbourhoods have taken on a different feel. The market square is no longer our centre. The paper doesn’t end our day. Our communities are different, faster, easier, smaller, multiple and virtual. We fill our brains with oodles of information all day. In the evenings, tired from collecting data, we put up our feet and watch some form of TV – chefs, musicians, celebrities and housewives competing for cash and prizes, mostly.

Complicated times.

Recently, my husband and I watched a Carol Burnett TV special. Clips from her old variety show made us LOL. Struck by the creativity, imagination and smart writing that still holds up, it felt good to laugh like that. When it was over, we settled back into Dancing With The Stars, and resented it just a little bit.

A mere blip in modern life, or so I thought.

What followed soon after was an ice storm and three day power outage. Bad TV was a good memory and our reliance on electronics over people hit like a zillion giga-bitten delete button. Scary at first, it became a pretty good experience. Neighbours checked on each other and we all learned about generators. Some even played board games. Yup. People were needing people.

Near the end of the outage, with a renewed faith in human resourcefulness, what was real, what made sense and how the very basic things in life truly are what we all want, I drove into our now apocalyptic-looking town for a big bottle of water.

The only store open was the 24-hour convenience store. When I asked for a big bottle of water, the girl at the counter looked at me, confused, and said, “Go to the hardware store. We’re a conveeeeeenience store.”

Indeed.

•

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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36

1

2

3

4

6

Killarney Lodge ...................................... 30

Karen Brown Antiques & Collectibles..... 29

Johnstons Pharmacy & Gift Shoppe ....... 28

at Tompkins by the Bay .......................... 27

John O’Neills Place

Hearts to God ......................................... 26

Glanmore Historic Site............................ 25

Gilmour Meat Shop and Deli.................. 24

Farmtown Park........................................ 23

Farmgate Gardens.................................. 22

Explorers Market .................................... 21

Empire Cheese ....................................... 20

Elizabeth Crombie, Royal LePage .......... 19

Dr. Doug Smith & Associates ................. 18

Dr. Brett’s Family Dentistry ..................... 17

Don Koppin General Contractor ............ 16

Desmond Technology/Xplornet ............. 15

Dancing Moon Gallery ........................... 14

46

Wells Ford .............................................. 71

Country Treasures ................................... 12

13

Welcome Wagon .................................... 70

Cottage Docks.com ................................ 11

32

Weeds B’ Gone ...................................... 69

Cooney Auto Sales ................................. 10

43

47

49

50 57 75

11 16 40 44 45

Warren & Co. Contracting ...................... 68

CleanRite ................................................ 9

Joe VanVeenen Map

Zihua Clothing Boutique ........................ 75

Your Pet’s Personal Carpenter ................ 74

Wilton Cheese Factory ........................... 73

Wilson’s of Madoc .................................. 72

United Restaurant ................................... 67

Boutique Inspiration BMR ...................... 8

Craftsman Restaurant ............................. 13

Tweed Elvis Festival ................................ 66

Boretski Gallery ...................................... 7

35 37 41

Trent Hills ................................................ 65

Town of Deseronto ................................. 64

30

Barley Pub & Eatery ................................ 5

Blue Roof Bistro ...................................... 6

Touch of Class Fashion Boutique ........... 63

Tikit-Visuals ............................................. 62

Bancroft Chamber of Commerce ........... 3 ALGONqUIN PARK

the FROCK SHOP Ltd............................. 61

Bancroft Bed & Breakfast ....................... 2

Bancroft Summer Theatre....................... 4

The Apple Store - Cooney Farms ........... 60

Advertiser Index

Country Roads - Celebrating Life in Hastings County wallmap

Ashlie’s Books ......................................... 1

Country Roads • Summer 2013

Steinberg Dental Centres ....................... 55

Stephen Licence ..................................... 54

Conference Centre/Café/Catering ......... 53

Sans Souci Banquet,

Sand ‘n Sea Swim & Cruise Boutique ..... 52

Ruttle Brothers Furniture ........................ 51

Rural Roots Café ..................................... 50

Revival Store ........................................... 49

Renshaw Power Products ....................... 48

Red Steer Butcher Shop ......................... 47

Red Church Gallery ................................ 46

Posies Flowers & Gifts ............................ 45

Old Tin Shed .......................................... 44

Old Hastings Mercantile & Gallery ......... 43

O’Connor House English Tea Room ....... 42

North Hastings.com ............................... 41

Mystical Creations New Age Shop ......... 40

Miss Priss ................................................ 39

McKeown Motor Sales ........................... 38

Maynooth General Store ........................ 37

Makin’ Waves Marine ............................. 36

Madawaska Art Shop.............................. 35

Green Again ........................................... 34

LULLIDAZA - Everything Old is

& Repairs Ltd. ......................................... 33

Leon James Home Renovations

Lakeside Gems/Nature Shop & Studio... 32

Kimberly’s DeJaVu Boutique .................. 31

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70 74

15 69

HASTINGS COUNTY SERVICES

20

BRIGHTON

65

CAMPBELLFORD

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17 68

56 60 71

23 26 34

38

8

24

PICTON

22

48

9

42 55 64 67

14 27 29

10 18 25 31 33

58 66

39 51 53 54 61 62

7

55 72

5 12 28

Country Roads • Summer 2013

59

19

73

ODESSA

21 52 63

NAPANEE

hastings county

Table-Craft .............................................. 59

Sweet Temptations ................................. 58

Stone Kitchen ......................................... 57

Stirling Rawdon ...................................... 56

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 25

TELLING TALES

The Matthews Brothers

The Stanley Cup playoffs had just begun, and like thousands of others around the country, I found myself planted in front of a television screen. As the game opened, views of Ottawa Senator and Montreal Canadien players started to flood the screen before me. I stared intently, and quickly my ears were in tune with a very familiar sound, a sound that was thick on instrumentation coupled with voices that did not conform to standards but instead exceeded parameters of any musical genre.

“Hungry Heart” by Hastings County’s The Matthews Brothers quickly invaded the ears and hearts of all those listening.

This was not my first time hearing their work, but certainly one that will resonate with me as an example of the immense talent that this group possesses. A few years ago two young men walked into my place of employment, Sam the Record Man, one sporting a very unique mustache and the other exuding a cool and calm demeanor. Who were these young gentlemen? None other than the Matthews Brothers, Cole and Mike.

I have often watched them wander throughout the store with sincere curiosity; part of a never-ending mission to discover new and exciting sources of musical inspiration. Sam the Record Man has been carrying their albums since the first release, and in my capacity as store manager, I have watched the group develop and find an ever-growing audience along the way.

In a small cabin in the woods, these two classically trained brothers found their place, one that quickly was brought to life by the impeccable singer-songwriter abilities that these two house within themselves. Deeply rooted in the country where

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life was once simple, you are taken back to a time when music was equally simplistic. The music is one that finds a sense of style and integrity with the use of a variety of instruments and sounds.

The core of this band is composed of two brothers, backed by a bass, mandolin and drums, with the occasional banjo or trumpet riff. That along with the clever lyrics of the Matthews Brothers makes you soon realize that this music is completely raw and unspoiled by the pressures of the modern music scene.

Although many different musicians have played in the group over the years, one thing has remained constant: the unique aura that is expressed through their music. Cole and Mike have not allowed their growing fame to alter themselves, and I honestly feel that these two young men are embodied by old souls.

In the past few years the brothers have released a couple of albums and performed at various taverns and festivals throughout the province. Their music has hit the international spotlight with features in television, radio and film. The band plans to finish its current recordings and reach a broader audience via television and film spotlights, with hopes to take the show on the road.

As for the moment? “It’s all about writing and recording,” says Cole.

For more information please check out: www.TheMatthewsBrothers.com, www.facebook.com/The MatthewsBrothers, www.twitter.com/TheMatthewsBrothers To pick up your copy today please visit: Sam the Record Man, Belleville iTunes ~ Sheena Rowney

Mary Aylward

By Paul Kirby $18.00 Published by Kirby Books Available at Ashlie’s Books, Bancroft On Dec 9, 1862 Richard and Mary Aylward were hanged publicly in downtown Belleville for the murder of their neighbour earlier that year in North Hastings. In our Spring 2010 issue, with the assistance of noted Hastings County historian Gerry Boyce, Country Roads attended a re-enactment of the trial by the Renaissance Society at Belleville’s St, Theresa’s Catholic School, using actual court transcripts from 1862. The exercise confirmed inconsistencies that existed and the differences between justice in the mid-19th century compared to current practices.

Bancroft writer Paul Kirby researched the case of the Aylward murder and execution extensively, resulting in this book.

Paudash Poems

By Kathy Figueroa $19.95 Published by Brian Wrixon Books Available at Ashlie’s Books, Bancroft Hastings County poet, Kathy Figueroa resides near Paudash Lake, south of Bancroft. Her poetry has appeared in numerous print and online publications locally, as well as nationally and internationally.

In 2012, she began producing small collections of her work. These booklets contain many of her poems that were first published in the local newspapers, ‘The Bancroft Times’ and ‘Bancroft This Week.’ Currently, nine different poetry compilations and one short play are available.

Paudash Poems is thoroughly illustrated with wood engravings by Thomas Bewick.

Springtime in Paudash

By Kathy Figueroa

Spring bath graced the land With a golden hue Winter’s ice and snow bath given way To gentle dew Bright flowers unfurl and bees do hum As I roam about in delirium Oh, mighty God Oh, Mother Earth Your creation is esteemed above all worth You are so infinitely wondrous, Magnificent and wise But tell me: Why black flies?

Two billion wings doth beat as one As a ghastly shadow darkens the sun The spectre of frogs and locusts Falling from the skies Would be a relief Compared to a billion black flies.

Bubonic plague infected rats Swarms of hungry, rabid bats Hornets, slugs and buzzing gnats Won’t suck your blood until you die Like the flying piranha known As, “Black Fly.” Oh, woe to you, foolish mortal Who would venture through An open portal To mow the lawn Or walk the dog ‘Tis better, right now, to be a frog.

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ARTISANS AT HAND

Living her dream Cheryl Ellenberger finally makes art a career STORY AND PHOTOS BY SHARON HENDERSON

Maynooth native Cheryl Ellenberger always wanted to be an artist but was dissuaded from pursuing it as a career, being warned she would “starve.” But finally Ellenberger took the plunge and her paintings have won her admiration and awards.

Would you describe your art for those unacquainted with your work?

My art has been a journey, all my life, and is always evolving. I have a love of colour and paint.

It is a desire and challenge to make a mark, to share a colourful landscape, a musical moment, or the light in a foreign country and to engage a viewer in my unique way. It keeps me painting the next and the next and the next in any medium, in any size.

Did you always know that you would be an artist?

Since childhood I knew that I loved to draw.

When I graduated from high school I wanted to be an artist but I was told that I would starve and I listened. As I became an adult I pursued the things that would bring financial security. For a while I was sidetracked but things were always simmering and being filed away. Now that I have embraced art as a career, I am living my dream.

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What made you want to be an artist?

What gives you inspiration for your art?

I grew up on a farm in Maynooth, way up on a hill. There I was close to nature and could see the ever-changing colours and light of the seasons at all the times of day and I wanted to capture them somehow. Animals, life cycles, textures, smells, big open spaces, big skies and always the weather controlling when and how things happen are the life experiences I “draw” from.

Everything, everywhere is inspiration. A row of chairs, a pile of rusty metal, my brother’s team of horses, the sparkling light through the leaves, travelling to other countries, my photographs, seeing a new technique in painting, a musician on stage with dramatic lighting, and even a favourite movie and a scene that I can get lost in.

Another inspiring aspect of this art journey is teaching it. I was told it would make me a better painter and I hope this is true.

How did you learn your craft? Do you have any formal training?

After trying a few post secondary options I discovered Sheridan College School of Design and Crafts and majored in Furniture and Wood. I recently returned to school pursuing my dream and graduated with a diploma in Fine Arts from St. Lawrence College. It was the best thing I ever did.

How has your work evolved over the years?

My art and pursuing it began with pencil, crayons, watercolour. Then markers, ink, design, sculpture, wood, fabric, ceramics, photography, stained glass, demolition and renovation, landscaping, paint, mixed media, murals, found objects, and upcycled and recycled works.

Somehow all these things work together. After attending art college, I gained knowledge and understanding and with that came more confidence.

Would you explain the process of creating a piece of art?

Do you plan every detail of the final pieces ahead of time?

Creating a piece of art is a blend of using what I know and sometimes what begins to happen by accident or choice. Sometimes it’s intuitive and sometimes it’s not. As a painter, I get to be the magician changing the scene to make it brighter or bigger, or the opposite colour, or to leave something out, or put something in....ta da!

If I planned every detail of a work I might get bored with it. I like ‘going with it’, it’s more of an adventure.

What do you enjoy most about what you do?

I recently won the Best 2-Dimensional Mixed Media award for ‘Shopping in Avignon’ at the Art Gallery of Bancroft. When I graduated from St. Lawrence College, I received the Academic Council Medal Award and the Brockville Fine Arts Alumni Award. In some strange way the reward is not in the recognition but in doing and realizing the growth and improvement.

I create or paint for my pleasure mostly. That inner fire and passion and my brain so full of ideas can only be satisfied by doing it. There is the joy and what it gives back to me, but also the challenge. I get lost a little, I go to a place and I come back a little drained but in a good way.

Have you received any awards or distinctions for your work in this field?

What wisdom do you possess that might be useful for those interested in pursuing a vocation in quality craftsmanship?

Don’t give up. The more you do, the more you want to do. If you make mistakes it just pushes you to do the next one and the next one and the next one, and do it better. Learn to see. Be original, genuine and unique.

How can people access the fruits of your labour?

You can view some of my work at my boutique/ gallery, Clique 57, in the heart of downtown Bancroft or my home studio, Red Dog Studio, when I am at home. Clique 57 is on Facebook at www. facebook.com/Clique57 and you can see some of my work at www.reddogstudio.blogspot.com.

I have a show coming up in September called “Fresh Paint” at the Art Gallery of Bancroft.

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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BY MICHELLE ANNETTE TREMBLAY

Hornblende (black) and feldspar ( light brown), Bear Lake Diggings, Tory Hill. Photo courtesy: Chris Fouts

WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD The life of a modern day prospector

T

here are a few rare moments in life when you feel like you’ve walked into some sort of epic feature film. Like everything is just a bit too fantastic to be real. That’s how I felt when, after a long winding drive down dusty dirt roads, I stepped into Chris Fouts’ home for the first time.

Fouts is a prospector, and a geologist, though not always in that order. He divides his time between contract prospecting work for large development companies such as First Nickel, traveling to mineral shows across the country, selling specimens from his extensive collection, and occasionally leading field tours, or consulting. As he leads me to the front room of his sprawling

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Want to go out prospecting? Get yourself a buddy, and a strong knapsack filled with: a hammer and chisel, satellite GPS (with extra batteries), compass, cell phone, notepad, and a bottle of water.

Don’t forget good shoes, a hat, and protective eyewear.

Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

home, overlooking a large unspoiled bay, I am struck first by the view, then by the floor-to-ceiling bookcases overflowing with history and geology tomes, then the display-shelves full of exquisite mineral specimens and finally by the grand antique desk. Fouts, rugged in his expedition clothes, starts talking about tectonic plates and the molecular structure of various minerals with the charisma and authority of a university professor.

“Is this guy for real?” I think. “Have I just wandered into Indiana Jones’ study?”

You don’t meet prospectors every day, not in the age of teleconferences and software development expos. No, you’re quite lucky if you chance across a true prospector. They’re still around but they’ve changed since the days of the old west. You won’t find a lone wanderer panning for gold in a floppy brimmed hat, driven bush-mad by his solitude. You won’t hear him exclaim, “There’s gold up in them hills,” as he spits tobacco juice at a rattlesnake.

Well, actually, you might.

“A prospector will tell you all the reasons why there’s gold up in those hills,” says Fouts. “A geologist will tell you why there’s not.”

It comes down to a difference in perspective. Fouts explains that by the time a geologist is finished their post secondary education, they are so hyperaware of all the various conditions that need to come together to create a large viable deposit of ore, that unless there’s glaring evidence of its existence, they’re not easily convinced it’s there. Today’s geologists know that most areas in North America have already been examined. Today’s geologists have high tech equipment - that Batman and Bond would be envious of - to tell them what’s under the layers of vegetation, soil and rock over which they stand.

Geologists like Fouts know better. But he isn’t your typical geologist. Sure, he’s got the degrees and experience behind him; he’s bona fide. But there’s another side to him. In his heart, he’s a prospector. And while geologists have their schooling, and funding, and tools and gadgets, prospectors have something even more rare and valuable. Faith.

“You’ll never meet a pessimistic prospector,” says Chris. There’s no accreditation for being a prospector. No doctorate degree. Prospectors learn what they know in the field, through experience. Without all that schooling, without learning the details of how rare and unlikely it is that conditions will come together ‘just so’ to create the right environment for crystals to grow, prospectors are unburdened and romantic.

“They’re gamblers,” says Fouts, explaining that prospectors always believe the next big find is right around the corner.

Before meeting Chris, I honestly wasn’t sure exactly what a modern day prospector is. He tells me that at its core, prospecting is just the action of seeking ore, which is any valuable mineral, so they can stake a claim and sell it to a developer.

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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Modern day prospector ,Chris Fouts, is the Vice President of the Bancroft Gem and Mineral Club, and the owner of Mad River Minerals. Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

I’ve always ­wondered why gold is so sought after in the first place. You can’t eat it or use it for fuel, so what’s the big deal?

This is usually begun by examining an outcrop - that is, a large exposed area of bedrock - for signs of valuable deposits.

What constitutes as valuable changes with the times though. For example, Fouts explains to me that silver was once just as precious as gold. I’ve always wondered why gold is so sought after in the first place. You can’t eat it or use it for fuel, so what’s the big deal? Chris laughs a little when I ask him about this, but answers my elementary question happily.

Gold doesn’t corrode, and it’s malleable. In days gone by, these qualities made it incredibly desirable. You could make a nice golden cup without too much effort, and not worry about it breaking

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or rusting. And yes, it’s pretty and shiny. Silver, on the other hand will tarnish, which is why it’s not as valuable as gold today. But, Chris tells me, that wasn’t always the case.

“Silver didn’t start tarnishing until the industrial revolution, when we put all kinds of sulphur in the air,” he says.

Wow. This guy is a wealth of information. Having never studied science beyond Grade 10, in favour of an arts education, I take the opportunity to fire a bunch of earth sciences questions at Fouts, one after another. He answers them all with ease and clarity. Then he gets on a roll and starts talking about the composition of magma, the difference between continental and seabed crust, and the presence of various elements throughout the universe. He has detailed answers to incredibly complex questions; some questions I didn’t even know existed.

Chris makes Bancroft his home, which makes perfect sense since it’s the mineral capital of Canada, and has vast forests perfect for a long prospecting hike. Every August, thousands of mineral collectors from around the world gather in Bancroft for the Rockhound Gemboree. Indeed, this year, Fouts will showcase his collection at the Gemboree’s 50th anniversary.

“One of the things that makes the Bancroft area so special is a rock type up here called skarn,” explains Chris. “It’s a metamorphic rock that’s formed from the mixture of hot igneous rock intruding into pre-existing sedimentary rock. Some of that sedimentary rock melts, and the two elements come together. This, especially in the Bancroft area, is very important for mineral collecting, because we find a lot of new minerals in skarn that we don’t find otherwise.”

Fouts tells me that he originally became interested in geology as a teenager. He was watching a show on TV about the US military’s experi-

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Chris points out how the head of his chisel has ‘mushroomed’ after years of use, and emphasizes the importance of protective eyewear to deflect bits of flying rock. Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

ments with earthquakes. They discovered that if they injected large quantities of water into the earth’s crust, they could cause an earthquake in an area with low seismic activity. Chris thought this was fascinating and couldn’t stop thinking about it. He explains to me that the earth’s tectonic plates are always in slight motion, moving at a rate of about 5cm per year.

“If the plates just slid past each other, that would be fine, but they rub, and they get stuck,” says Chris.

This is a problem in areas like the San Andreas Fault because it results in a build-up of pressure.

When the pressure mounts too much, suddenly you’ve got a catastrophic quake. But - and this is what young Chris found so interesting - if you introduce a lubricant, you can help the plates slide against each other, releasing pressure and resulting in a series of small quakes rather than one big destructive one. This idea of exerting some control over nature, for the common good, excited Chris, and ultimately drove him to pursue geophysics at Western University. Once he got there though, he ended up switching focus slightly and going into broad geology. There are just so many cool applications for a broad geology background.

“Geophysics is what lured me to university,” Fouts says. “Geology is what kept me there.”

He tells me a story of a DEA agent that went missing in Mexico some years ago. After the US Government put pressure on the Mexican Government to find the agent, he suddenly turned up. Or, rather, was dug up. It was big news at the time, so the exhumation of the body was broadcast on CNN. Chris’ eyes sparkle as he tells me the next bit.

“A geologist watching it on TV noticed that the soil on the body didn’t match the dirt at the site,” says Chris. “So he phoned the FBI and

said, ‘Hey, you guys probably already know this, but just in case...’” Chris chuckles. “They called him in for an interview and hired him as a forensic geology consultant.”

This is what Chris really loves about prospecting. He says he feels like a detective. No, he doesn’t solve crimes, but he uses a lot of deductive reasoning. The outcrops he studies give him all kinds of clues about what’s underneath.

“I read the history of every rock I pass by like it’s a book,” he says. “And the more I look at it, the more it tells me.”

With his prospector’s heart, and his geologist’s mind, Chris can look at a mineral specimen and tell you what it is and where it came from. He examines the shapes of the crystals, and the other trace minerals present. With his trusty tools he can pick into an outcrop and tell you whether you’re likely to find copper deposits underneath.

He knows which minerals like to “hang out together.” That’s because he has a deep understanding of how elements on the earth come together to form minerals, and how, over time, heavier elements sink deep into the earth.

Don’t worry though, you don’t need all of Chris’ insight or experience to go prospecting.

You may not discover the next big iron deposit but you could probably find yourself a pretty chunk of sodalite or quartz.

“You’ll need a buddy, first of all, in case you get sick or injured. That and good footwear, a hat, and a chisel,” Fouts says, as he pulls out his knapsack to show me. It’s a Swiss Army one,

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Mica specimens like this one are referred to in geology circles as ‘books of mica,’ because of their thin stacked layers that resemble pages. Photo courtesy: Chris Fouts

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made with real canvas and leather. Rightly so, because his tools are seriously heavy. Along with his chisel, he carries a hammer. It’s a big hammer – twice as heavy as the standard issue mineral collecting hammer - because he uses it to jam his chisel into rock, which requires a lot of force.

“You should always have protective eyewear, too, because whatever force you exert, is going to come back at you,” he says, covering a bit more of the science theory I missed back in high school.

“Look here,” he calls me over. “The end of my chisel is all mushroomed, and bits of it have come flying off. You don’t want that, or bits of rock, in your eye.”

Chris also carries a satellite GPS, a traditional compass (in case the battery in his GPS dies) and a water bottle in his knapsack.

I ask if he runs into any hazards when he goes deep into the bush prospecting.

“Getting lost could be a serious problem, and very embarrassing for someone who works in the bush, so we always keep our compass handy and fresh batteries for our GPS,” says Chris.

‘Wearing sturdy boots to avoid tripping or turning an ankle is also very important. Watching for bushes or branches in the eye, dehydration,

sunstroke and hornet’s nests are probably my biggest problems.”

When I ask about bears, Chris tells me the black bears that hang around the forests of North Hastings are usually docile and don’t pose much of a problem, but that in other parts of Canada Grizzly and Polar bears can be aggressive so it’s a good idea to carry either a noise maker or a gun, just in case.

“Moose go into a rutting season late in the fall and can be very aggressive, but generally are not a problem.” He pauses, and adds, “We don’t do field work during hunting season for obvious reasons.”

We share a laugh at this point, because we are both well aware of the magnitude of hunting season in Bancroft. New residents to the area are almost always flabbergasted, when, each November, everything goes on hold for hunting season. Don’t expect your maintenance or repair provider to be available – they’re all out in the bush. And what a bush it is. Chris wouldn’t prefer to be anywhere else.

“I suppose the best part is working for yourself. You’re doing a job but you’re also looking after yourself, and enjoying the connection with the living world. You notice the sky and

With his prospector’s heart, and his geologist’s mind, Chris can look at a mineral specimen and tell you what it is and where it came from.

Pyroxene crystals, Bancroft. Photo courtesy: Chris Fouts

the weather; the shift of the wind blowing the leaves backwards, indicating bad weather; the sudden drop in the temperature of a cold front moving in; the smell of the awakening earth in the spring; rotting leaves in the fall; the trees coming into pollination, each species with its own smell. The warmth of the rock outcrops in the sun, the cool of a shaded swale. Identifying the different rock types as you pass through the forest; building a map in your mind and on paper. Finding something that no one has seen, or noticed, before.”

As we finish up our interview, the sun slowly sets over the lake, its reflection dancing on the

This display is just a taste of the huge selection of mineral specimens available for purchase each year at Bancroft’s annual Rockhound Gemboree.

Photo courtesy: Chris Fouts

water below and on the mica and quartz crystals displayed on the deck. Chris’ lovely wife invites me to stay for dinner. We talk and laugh over a long decadent meal, complete with Chris’ homemade strawberry crumble. This is the life, I think. There’s gold up in these hills after all.

•

(Editor’s note: If you do go prospecting, in addition to the precautions mentioned in this article, please also be mindful that you don’t intrude on private property.)

Morganite (or pink beryl), Brazil.

Photo courtesy: Chris Fouts

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Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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The best summer ever

Cou

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celebr

You’ve dreamed about it all winter, counted down the days, waited with growing anticipation, and now (drumroll, please...) summer is finally here - Hooray! You’d better hold on tight to your hat and sunscreen, because it’s going to be the best summer yet!

Ready to enjoy the lake on the pontoon boat? Explore Ontario’s best trails on the ATV? Spend the day tubing and waterskiing at the cottage? Are you dreaming about nights spent relaxing under a symphony of stars in the hot tub? That’s what the best summer ever is all about – and Makin’ Waves Marine in Bancroft has everything you need to start it right now.

With a wide selection of Canada’s top selling boats, ATVs, and hot tubs, Makin’ Waves’ friendly and knowledgeable staff are ready to turn your dream summer into reality. Offering in-house financing and unbeatable service, Makin’ Waves is your one stop summer shop, with everything you need from new boats, to life jackets, to bait. celebrating life in Makin’ Waves keeps a great selection of boats in stock, including Legend, Pinecraft and Sting Ray models, so you don’t have to spend weeks waiting for your new boat to be ordered. Just drop by, and pick out your new boat. The Makin’ Waves team will deliver it, easy, fast and free. Choose from new or used boat models, or trade in an older model. If you need servicing, no worries, Makin’ Waves Marine provides parts and accessories, storage, and no-stress servicing and repairs.

For the trailblazers out there, Makin’ Waves Marine is proud to offer top-selling Honda ATVs. What better way to explore the wilds of Ontario’s Highlands, than taking off for the afternoon, going off-road and choosing celebrating life in your own adventure? With tough transmissions, smart engine orientations, and cleaner braking, Honda ATVs offer the finest in all terrain exploration.

At the end of a perfect summer day, sit back. Listen to the frogs and crickets, and gaze at the incredible starry sky in the bliss of a relaxing hot tub. Ahh...heavenly. Makin’ Waves is proud to offer a line up of Hydropool hot tubs, which are energy efficient, self cleaning and manufactured right here in Canada.

This is the summer you’ve been waiting for, and it all starts today. Visit Makin’ Waves Marine at 29720 Highway 62 North, in Bancroft, to check out the awesome selection of boats, ATVs, hot tubs, and everything else you need for a fabulous summer, including kayaks, wakeboards, paddle boats, fishing gear, outdoor toys for the kids, and more. Or visit online at www.MakinWavesMarine.com to start the adventure!

Coun Roa

Makin’ Waves Marine owners Doug Putman and Jamie Busby

This is the summer you’ve been waiting for, and it all starts today.

Visit Makin’ Waves Marine at 29720 Highway 62 North, in Bancroft, to check out the awesome selection of boats, ATVs, hot tubs, and everything else you need for a fabulous summer, including kayaks, wakeboards, paddle boats, fishing gear, outdoor toys for the kids, and more. Or visit online at www.MakinWavesMarine.com to start the adventure!

5 YEARS OF COVERS

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Country Roads • Summer 2013

Coun Roa

•

CR Coun

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celebrating life in

C E L E B R AT I N G L I F E I N H A S T I N G S C O U N T Y

C r o s s r o a d s

Sending a strong message

Being a woman in a male-dominated sport has given Caley Weese firsthand experience of what it feels like to be an outsider.

Photo by Don Simpson / courtesy Weese Racing

Weese is only into her second summer with the anti-bullying campaign yet has seen a lot of interest from children and adults.

Photo by Don Simpson / courtesy Weese Racing

Caley Weese knows a thing or two about being an outsider. As a woman entering the male-dominated sport of car racing, and coming from a family with no motorsport background, the 26-year-old Belleville resident has always faced a bit of a struggle to be accepted by her peers.

So who better to be at the forefront of an anti-bullying campaign through Hastings County and the surrounding area? One of the top Pro Late Model drivers at Brighton Speedway, Weese is starting her second year of raising awareness about the threat and consequences of childhood bullying through her racing efforts. She is selling anti-bullying shirts for $10 apiece and the first 500 sold will get the buyers free admission to Brighton Speedway on the evening of Sunday, Sept. 1, when Weese is promoting an antibullying night at the track.

In her first year of the campaign last year Weese sold 570 shirts and she says this year’s goal is to top 1,000 sold. As part of this year’s program she is promoting Kids Help Phone (1-800-668-6868), a 24-hour hotline that gives children across Canada access to a professional counselor.

Ironically, Weese did not intend to spearhead an anti-bullying campaign when she took up the cause for the 2012 racing season.

“I talked to the Hastings Prince Edward District School Board and the Belleville Police, and they didn’t really have anything in place,” she explains.

“They thought it would be great if I could create a campaign and the support off the bat was overwhelming.”

In addition to selling t-shirts, Weese travels with her race car to a wide range of community events to spread the anti-bullying message. Funds from her tshirt sales help cover her travel costs.

“We go to a lot of community events, especially those involved with youth groups,” she explains. “It’s really great to see the interest from little kids right up

mentality that girls don’t belong in racing cars. But I think I’ve gained respect now. If I head to some bigger venues, where I’m a little fish in a big sea, I might notice it, but not at Brighton. The racing community is actually very tight, and it’s amazing how many people will come to your aid when you’ve got a problem at the track. That part of it is very cool.

“I like a challenge and I like to make things happen.

When people tell me I can’t do something I like to prove them wrong. You can do anything you want; it doesn’t matter if it’s not the perfect scenario.”

Weese maintains a busy schedule and her racing ambitions extend beyond Brighton Speedway or even southern Ontario. She is the team owner of Weese Racing and is actively involved in the maintenance and preparation of her race car.

“A lot of race drivers are just drivers, and I hate that,” she says. “It was just my Dad and I when we started, and I needed to know everything I could to be able to look after the car myself. These cars are very much set-up related and it falls on me to make sure everything is prepared properly.”

She also owns an advertising and promotions business, Fresh Thinking by Caley Weese, and is a full time marketing and event planner with McDougall Insurance & Financial.

“Every race driver would love to be a career driver,” she admits. “If I was offered a ride I’d be thrilled.

I was part of a race school in North Carolina last year and I gained a lot of knowledge. The people that were teaching us work with NASCAR. It’s tough on a local level but I’d love to continue doing what I’m doing.”

If Weese could take her career further it would certainly have an impact on those touched by her antibullying message. However, she has likely had an impact even making it to this stage in her racing career.

“I don’t think we’re saving the world,” she says, “but I hope we’re making a small difference.”

to adults. Even if people aren’t personally affected by bullying there’s still a lot of support for our program.

I’ve been thoroughly impressed.”

The impact of childhood bullying resonates with Weese, and she is keenly aware of its impact.

“Bullying hits home for me as a female race car driver, and as a child I was bullied as well,” she explains. “I was never physically bullied, but I experienced it verbally or by exclusion. I never liked sports at school. When we played baseball I would be the one who wanted to go way back into the outfield and have someone stand in front of me. It just wasn’t my thing.

“Racing changed my life. I went from being a super-quiet kid to being a racer. My message is that you don’t need to follow what everybody else does. You need to follow what you want to do, and there will be people there to support you.”

Weese caught the racing bug when she was 15 and saw an event at Brighton Speedway.

“No one in my family thought it was a good idea except me,” she recalls. “I started with endurance races and in my first one my car blew up, and I think my parents expected that would be the end of it. I’d be fed up with it. But two weeks later I was looking for another car. I was determined to make it work.”

Weese took auto shop classes in high school to help improve her mechanical knowledge, a distinct departure from most teenage girls, and she and her father pored over technical regulations as they prepared cars for Caley to race at Brighton Speedway.

In 2004, just her third year in the sport, Weese won the Comp 4 title at Brighton. In 2009 she competed in Pro Stock and claimed the Eastern Ontario Stock Challenge Series, and the following year moved up to the new Pro Late Model class. Along the way she has faced the same challenges of being an outsider that she experienced in school.

“I think there is still an attitude that no guy wants to get beat by a girl,” she explains. “There is that

•

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 37

Bee Fever Trying to aid in the plight of the bumblebee

BY MICHELLE ANNETTE TREMBLAY

38 I

Country Roads • Summer 2013

(Facing page) The common Eastern Bumble Bee on a sunflower Photo courtesy: Sue Chan

I

’m flying over vast grassy landscapes in my speedy little bee-mobile, focused on a giant Sunflower Supermarket ahead, beckoning me with neon lights flashing ‘Food, Food, Food.’

Almost out of gas and exhausted, I worry about my return flight. What if I don’t have enough power to make it home? What will my babies eat? I push on.

It is a fever-induced dream, inspired no doubt by the interview I had yesterday with pollination biologist, Susan Chan. She described this very scenario. Except, of course, in her version it was a real bee, not a strange human-bee-car hybrid. In both versions though, the ending is the same.

Just when I think I can’t possibly fly any further, I reach the Sunflower Supermarket, relieved, and anxious to stock up on pollen and nectar. But the lights are off. The doors are locked. The sign says closed. There is no indication of when it will reopen. I couldn’t have known it from a distance, but this is a genetically modified pollen-less sunflower.

It will last longer in a vase than a regular sunflower and won’t shed that yellow dust that stains table cloths. But it also won’t feed my children.

The plight of the bumblebee, and every other type of bee for that matter, is well documented.

The decline is undeniable, and the internet is full of petitions to ban neonicotinoid pesticides and genetically modified seeds. For good reason. In some parts of China, high profit yielding fruits, such as Asian pears, are now hand pollinated by people, because the bee population has been all but wiped out. In the United States, bee populations have decreased by 50 percent. Since fruits and berries rely on bees for pollination, this is a major food concern, not just for people but for birds and small critters. And the larger animals that prey on them. It affects the whole food chain.

When I wake up, groggy from sleep and fever, I sip some lemon ginger tea and let a large spoonful of organic honey sooth my swollen tonsils. Ah,

honey. I wonder if it is coincidence, irony, or perhaps fate that I am ill while preparing this article on the importance of bees. I am sick with tonsillitis and treating myself with one of nature’s oldest antibiotics. The ancient Egyptians used it; Chan explains that archaeologists have found vats of honey stashed in tombs and that, incredibly, it is still safe to eat today.

“The reason they pasteurize honey is not so it doesn’t spoil. It has such a high sugar content that things can’t grow in it. It’s the ultimate safe thing to eat,” Chan says. Rather, honey is pasteurized that is heated and filtered - so it will stay in its liquid form and not crystallize. It’s more attractive to consumers this way. Or at least it was. Gradually ideals are shifting. The demand for raw honey is increasing, as is the movement to protect diminishing bee populations.

Chan knows a lot about honey and bees. She first became interested in keeping bees as a child, inspired by her grandmother, who was also a beekeeper. Sue is the author of ‘A Landowner’s Guide to Conserving Native Pollinators in Ontario,’ a 40page handbook that is available in hardcover, or as an ebook. She also teaches Sustainable Agriculture at Fleming College in Lindsay, and travels across the province lecturing on wild pollinators. Last year alone she gave 25 guest lectures. On top of that, she’s an ecological bee-keeper, co-founder of the Lakefield Farmers’ Market, project manager of Farms at Work, and manager of the RustyPatched Bumble Bee Project. If ever I needed a bee expert, I certainly found one.

Although Chan and I try to focus our interview on ways to support native bee populations, we frequently wander off topic, discussing how fascinating it is that bees are really, in effect, an invisible work force that works for free, contributing more to our eco-system than we can ever really know.

There is still so much we don’t know about native

Bees travel from flower to flower, collecting nectar and pollen for their own purposes and at the same time ensuring the survival of many species of plants.

Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

Just when I think I can’t possibly fly any further, I reach the Sunflower Supermarket, relieved, and anxious to stock up on pollen and nectar.

But the lights are off. The doors are locked. The sign says closed.

Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 39

Pollination Biologist Sue Chan demonstrating how to make a bumble bee nest.

Photo courtesy: Sue Chan

(Top) Squash bees on female squash flower.

Photo courtesy: Sue Chan (Bottom) Growing wildflowers on your property is an excellent way to support bees.

Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

One of the easiest ways to support native bee ­populations is to provide an environment where they will thrive

40 I

Country Roads • Summer 2013

bees, because it’s difficult to study them without destroying their nests in the process. Sue and I also giggle, even though it’s a very serious matter, about how bees are sex workers.

“As far as we know, bees are being manipulated by flowers, and they have no idea that they play this much larger role,” Chan explains. “I love them because they’re the interface between the plant and animal kingdoms. There’s something about that.

The bees show up to get nectar for the adults and pollen for the babies. But the flower won’t give the bee everything it needs - not enough nectar - so the bee has to go to the next flower. Flowers have no need to produce nectar other than to attract bees to transport their pollen. It’s a sex trade – a flower sex trade. Sex that involves a third party.”

When you get down to it, bees are just incredibly interesting creatures. There are over 400 native species of bees in Ontario, all doing different things, pollinating different types of plants and ranging in size from a grain of rice to a plump grape. Do they have any idea the huge role they play? Do they

even realize, as they travel from flower to flower, collecting nectar and pollen for their own purposes that they are also responsible for the survival of all these many species of plants? Chan and I get sidetracked by three or four philosophical conversations about interconnectivity and purpose, before coming back to the big question: what can we, as ordinary people, do about the problem of bee decline?

“Twenty-two years ago, when I was doing my masters, no one was interested in pollinators, but now people are riveted,” says Sue. “We’ve made great strides.”

While the wellbeing of all pollinators, including domestic and commercial bees, is best protected by staying informed, sharing information, writing letters and signing petitions, there are plenty of things we can do to support our local wild pollinators, who are also at risk.

One of the easiest ways to support native bee populations is to provide an environment where they will thrive, by forgoing artificial fertilizers and instead improving soil quality with nitrogenrich compost. Worm castings are a good option and can be purchased at an increasing number of garden supply stores. Choosing heritage varieties of seeds that are not pollen-less and not modified helps, too. A bee can only travel about 100 metres at a time on its little wings, and if it uses up all its energy to reach a flower that yields no pollen, it means disaster for that particular bee as well as its potential offspring (wild bees do not live in large colonies with only one reproducing female like honey bees do). Growing wildflowers and letting clover and dandelions grow in your yard is also a good way to support bees. If you want to get even more active, Chan says there are lots of instructions online for building little bee habitats by placing reeds, straws or even bits of wood with drilled out tunnels in low-traffic areas for bees to nest inside.

“This is not a message of doom and gloom,” says Sue. “It’s a message of opportunity; a message of redemption. We’ve not gone so far that we can’t recover.”

Organic farmer Robert Snefjella agrees with her.

“I’m optimistic that the bees will be here for a long time,” says Snefjella. He has a close relationship with bees, both depending on them to pollinate his crops and doing what he can to protect them and provide an environment they can flourish in.

“There are a lot of little tricks you can use to create a summer of bounty for bees,” says Robert.

He talks about how soil quality affects how much nectar plants produce and recommends growing a variety of flowering plants, that bloom at different times, including basswood, which is plentiful in North Hastings, and makes exquisitely tasty honey.

Pussy Willow is also an important food for bees, because it is one of the earliest flowering plants that emerges in the spring and is often a first food for young bees.

“Another trick, if you’re planting an orchard and you want some fruit trees that flower late, is to plant them on the north slope,” says Robert. “Fruit trees on the north slope tend to flower a little bit

later than those on the south slope.” By carefully planning your garden, you can ensure food will be plentiful all summer long for native bees.

Robert and his wife bought their North Hastings’ farm in 1973, with the intent of living a more natural lifestyle.

“Back then when I told people I was going to farm organically, well...” he trails off, chuckling.

“At that time it was kind of lunatic fringe. But since then it’s become much more mainstream.”

Indeed, today in North Hastings you don’t have to ask around very much before you find several people who are farming organically, and keeping bees.

Robert isn’t bee-keeping on his farm currently, but fondly remembers keeping bees in the past, and hopes to again when the time is right. Because he has an orchard, bears are attracted to his property and they can wreak havoc on a hive.

“When you’re doing it for the first time, it’s a bit scary,” admits Robert, but says this shouldn’t stop people from considering bee-keeping because once you get the hang of it, it’s really rewarding.

“I hadn’t worked with a beekeeper before, so it was all new to me in the beginning. It was with some apprehension that I made my first moves.

Pussy Willow is an important food for bees as it is one of the earliest flowering plants in spring.

Photo: Michelle Annette Tremblay

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613.354.2799 2 DunDas st. W., napanee, On WWW.tOuchOfclassfashiOns.ca Summer 2013 • Country Roads

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The endangered Rusty-Patched Bumble Bee Photo courtesy: Sue Chan

SEM of pollen on a squash bee’s leg. Photo courtesy: Sue Chan

plains Robert. “But sometimes, even if the weather is poor you’ll have to go out there for some reason and might end up with some stings or have to use a little bit of smoke.”

As Robert mentions bee stings I am reminded at once of childhood fears and homeopathic remedies. It seems even the bee’s sting has a purpose.

Bee venom therapy can apparently be used to treat multiple ailments including arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, keloids and shingles.

While I continue to successfully treat my own ailment, acute tonsillitis, with honey, I feel a great gratitude toward these amazing little insects. And I’m not alone. Since I started researching bees, it seems everyone I run into has some sort of interest in pollination, or organic farming, or raw honey.

Exp

The bees were a little annoyed with me at first, but I learned a little bit of the art of how to treat them. It’s truly a fascinating art and science,” says Robert. “It feels really good to go in among your bees without having to smoke them. Going in and working among them, and escaping without crushing any or getting stung.”

One of the biggest things Snefjella learned about beekeeping was to understand that bees, like all creatures, have good days and bad days. They are content when it’s warm and sunny, grumpy when it’s cold, rainy or windy.

“A lot depends on handling the whole thing gently, and in good weather – if the bees are happy it’s easy to work with them, other times I think, ‘I’ll come back later; they’re not into this today,’” ex-

“Consumers have a huge role because they’re the ones buying the food,” says Chan. Yes. We vote with our dollars, and more and more people are voting for a healthy sustainable future.

“Throughout history we’ve always come to a place and then turned a corner. This insecticide stuff is old fashioned,” Sue explains. “It’s all about farmers saying, ‘enough already, we want to do it differently.’ It’s all about governments saying, ‘enough already, it’s too dangerous to put our pollinator workforce at jeopardy.’ It’s all about the insecticide companies listening to the increasing numbers of consumers that are asking for a change.

We need to move forward with a different agenda.

It’s already happening. My image is a huge ocean liner with this tiny rudder. We’re turning the ship very slowly.”

I want to help turn the ship faster. Now that I’ve regained my health, I have a new affliction. I’ve caught ‘Bee Fever.’ I’ve been infected by a desire to do whatever I can, in my own little corner of the world, to support bee populations. I can only hope it’s contagious.

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42 I

Country Roads • Summer 2013

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Celebrating Life in Hastings County

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For a more complete list visit www.countryroadshastings.ca A FEW PLACES YOU CAN FIND A COPY OF COUNTRY ROADS Bancroft – Chamber of Commerce/Visitor Centre, Old Tin Shed Belleville – (Downtown) – Sans Souci Restaurant, Miss Priss Boutique Belleville – (North) - Ruttle Bros. Furniture, Quinte Mall Information Kiosk Bloomfield – Visitor Information Centre Brighton – Chamber of Commerce/Visitor Centre

Coe Hill – Red Church Gallery Deseronto – Town Hall Municipal Offices, O’Connor House Tea Room Kingston – Visitor Information Centre L’Amable - Revival Madoc – Wilson’s of Madoc, Barley Pub & Eatery Marmora – Boutique Inspiration Maynooth – Maynooth General Store, Madawaska Art Shop

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C o u n t r y

C a l e n d a r

Things to see and do in and around Hastings County.

To submit your event listing email info@countryroadshastings.ca or call us at 613 395-0499.

ART GALLERIES/EXHIBITIONS Art Gallery of Bancroft, 10 Flint Avenue, Bancroft, 613-332-1542 www.agb.weebly. com June 5 - July 7 - The Presence of Nature; Works by Ingrid Monteith & Donna Caldwell July 10 - August 4 – Wild Women – Painters of the Wilderness; Joyce Burkholder, Kathy Haycock and Linda Sorensen August 7 - September 1 – New Directions; Gretel Boose, Multi Media Artist September 4 - 29 - Fresh Paint; Cheryl Ellenberger, Painter John M. Parrott Art Gallery, Belleville Public Library, 254 Pinnacle Street, Belleville, 613-968-6731, ext. 2240, www. bellevillelibrary.com June 6 – July 11 - Gallery One -The Artists of Algonquin; work in various media by a number of artists inspired

by Algonquin Park and Ontario’s near north. Opening reception June 6th; 6 – 7:30 pm June 4 – 14 - Gallery Two - The kindergarten students from Queen Victoria School return for their second annual exhibition. Opening reception June 5th; 2 – 4 pm June 20 – July 11 -Gallery Two Sweet Assorted; a variety of work in several media by local artist and author Jim Christy, to accompany his latest

book of the same name. Opening reception June 20th; 6 – 7:30 pm July 18 – August 29 - Gallery One -The Kingston Fibre Artists present “Stitch Happens”, an exhibition of hand crafted work in various fibre media. Opening reception July 18th; 6 – 7:30 pm July 18 – August 29 - Gallery Two - Bay of Quinte Interpreted II; a collection of works in various media by local artists who have interpreted the winners of the photography contest “Four Seasons of the Bay of Quinte”. Photos will be hung along with the interpretive pieces. Opening reception July 18th from 6 – 7:30 pm

THEATRE/LIVE ENTERTAINMENT Bancroft Village Playhouse, 613-3325918 www.bancroftvillageplayhouse.ca Blackfly Theatre 2013 Box Office Opens June 12. Hours – June; Wed to Sat. 2 -6 pm July/Aug - Tuesday to Sat. 2 – 8 pm. Order your tickets Toll-free 1-877-322-4682 July 2-6, 9-13, 16-20 - Matinee Sat. July 13, 2 pm - Too Many Cooks by Marcia Kash and Douglas E. Hughes July 30-Aug 3, Aug 6-10, Aug 13-17 Matinee Sat. Aug 10, 2 pm - Stepping Out by Richard Harris My Theatre Quinte, Historical Trenton Town Hall - 1861, 55 King Street, Trenton ON. info@mytheatrequinte.ca or tickets@ mytheatrequinte.ca - www.mytheatrequinte.ca. Tickets also at Quinte West Chamber of Commerce 800-930-3255 or 613-392-7635

Celebrating 130 Years

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June 6, 7, 8, 9*14, 15, 16* 21, 22 (*matinee) - Laughter: 4 One Act Comedies, Directed by Len Hirst with special permission from Samuel French. A Little Something For the Ducks by Jean Lenox Toddie; Last Exit Before Toll by Carrie Goldstein; Crossing The Bar by Don Nigro; Real to Reel

by Frank Gilroy

September 11 – 14 – Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks - A touching and human comedy about a formidable retired woman, who hires an acerbic dance instructor to give her private dance lessons in her Florida condo. Starring SFT Favourite J.P. Baldwin.

All Seats $29, Groups 20+ $26

The Regent Theatre, 224 Main St. Picton 613-476-8416 www.theregenttheatre.org July 13 – Elvis; “The Moments” Tribute July 27 – Beatlemania Revisited Aug 15 to 18 – PEC Jazz - www.pecjazz.org Sept 20 to 28 – PEC Music Festival www.pecmusicfestival.com May 24 to Sept 1 - WALKING TOURS IN PEC, 613-476-8416 ext 28

EVENTS

The Stirling Festival Theatre, West Front St., Stirling 613-395-2100 1-877-312-1162 www.stirlingfestivaltheatre.com tickets@ stirlingfestivaltheatre.com July 6, 2 & 8 pm – School’s Out for Summer - Teen Club All Stars will rock your world with tributes to Adele, Justin Bieber, Selena, Lady Gaga, Carly Rae and more! Adult $23, Youth $15, Family Pack $60 July 17 – 27 – The 39 Steps - Mix this classic Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have an intriguing, thrilling, and riotous comedy! All Seats $29, Groups 20+ $26 August 8 – 24 – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat -The SFT Young Co. bring you the Biblical saga of Joseph and his coat of many colours. The story comes to vibrant life in this delightful musical parable!

Adult $23, Youth $15, Family Pack $60

June 14 -16 - Prince Edward Curling Club 49th Antique Show & Sale.

Fairgrounds, 375 Main Street East, Picton.

Admission $4.00 /Two-Day Entry. Lunch Available, New Dealers Welcome. 613-4762078. Wheelchair Accessible June 23 - Strawberry Spectacular – Local strawberries, entertainment and more.

Farmtown Park, Stirling, Ontario. www. agmuseum.ca July 1 - Flowerama – an annual display of floral wonders and photography put on by the Tweed Horticultural Society. It is not a sale -- it is a show! Free raffle for a planter.

10am-4pm Tweed Memorial Park.

Free admission. tweedhort.blogspot.com July 3 - Fish Fry & Craft Sale. 4:30 - 7 pm, South Bay United Church, 2029 County Road 13, near Milford in Prince Edward County. Delicious local fish with all the trimmings. Adults $15; 10 and under $8. Takeout avail. Free admission to the craft sale in the heritage schoolhouse next door. Contact 613-476-5421.

July 3 to August 28 - TD Summer Reading Club - Summer Reading Club activities for kids includes games, crafts and stories.

Once a week in July and August. Tweed Public Library, 230 Metcalf Street. www. tweedlibrary.ca tweedlibrary@vianet.ca 613-478-1066

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44 I

Country Roads • Summer 2013

232 College St. West, Belleville, Ontario K8P 2H3 Tel: 613.967.1915 fax: 613.967.0646 ljreno@cogeco.ca

July 4-7 - Bancroft Wheels, Water & Wings! Downtown Bancroft -Hastings Street between Bridge and Station Streets.

Midway starts July 4, July 5th 2nd Annual “Wheels” classic car show featuring a street dance with Freddy Vette & the Flames (no charge), midway, food & beverage tents.

July 6 - “Back to the Future” Boat Show and Family Water Events in Millennium Park and the Airport Fly-in Pancake BreakfastJuly 7. Bancroft Business Improvement Area bancroftbia@gmail.com.

July 6 - Tweed Garden Tour -hosted by the Friends of the Tweed Library from 10-4.

8 outstanding gardens with artists, musicians and 3 Community Gardens! Rain or Shine! Passport $20.00 each/2 for $30.00 if purchased before June 15; available at the Tweed Public Library, Food Company (Tweed), Tweed News and online @ pgweber419@yahoo.ca. Info 613-478-1791.

July 7 – Fibre Fest - displays and demonstrations by Hastings County fibre artists.

Farmtown Park, Stirling, Ontario. www. agmuseum.ca July 13 - 14th Annual Town & Country Garden Tour hosted by the Canadian Federation of University Women, Belleville and District. 10 am – 4 pm (rain or shine) Gardens in and around Belleville. Price: $25 includes self-guided tour, box lunch (pick-up at St.Thomas Anglican Church, Belleville) and more. Proceeds support college and university scholarships for local students. Info gardentour@cfuwbelleville. ca or 613-966-5677.

C o u n t r y

C a l e n d a r

Things to see and do in and around Hastings County.

To submit your event listing email info@countryroadshastings.ca or call us at 613 395-0499.

July 26 – 28 – 1st Bancroft MetaSpiritual Gathering; Psychic Fair, Metaphysical Arts Trade Show, Drumming Circle, Workshops, Demos & more. Lakeside Gems, 29277 Hwy 28 S., Bancroft. Info gathering@lakesidegems.com July 14 – Belleville Doll & Teddy Bear Show & Sale – Fish & Game Club, Elmwood Drive, Belleville. 10 am – 4 pm. Proceeds to charity. Contact Bev 613-966-8095 July 19 - Rotary Loves Kids Golf Tournament and Party in the Square. Held in Belleville, come to one or both. A great community event with proceeds to benefit the kids of Quinte. www.rotaryloveskids. com and www.partyinthesquare.com July 20 - Baptiste Lake Music Festivalwww.bancroftdistrict.com July 20 - Trenton Horticultural Society and Garden Club Annual Flower Show and Tea Room. 1:-3:30pm. Trenton Lions Club, 77 Campbell St. Trenton. Horticultural and design exhibits, plus refreshments. $3 pp. Info call Joan at 613 392 2572 or trentonhorticulture@yahoo.ca

July 25 – 28 - Palmer Rapids Music Festival, Palmer Rapids www.palmerrapids.ca/

July 27 - Algonquins of Ontario Nation Gathering - North Hastings Community Centre Address: 103 Newkirk Blvd., Bancroft.

Hosted by: Algonquins of Kijicho Manito Madaoriskarina (Bancroft) and Algonquin of Whitney and Area.

Free admission. Vendors open 8am - 4pm.

Vendor info: contact Garry Fennel at gmfennell@hotmail.com, 905-456-1423 or 416-473-8856. Volunteers needed 613338-1197 or moore.karenann@yahoo.ca July 27 - Royal Garden Party Afternoon Tea and Entertainment at Moffatt Manor B&B, 253 Durham St S Madoc..

Sponsored by Madoc Trinity United Church and Heart of Hastings Hospice. Tickets available at Wilson’s of Madoc and Bush Furniture. Info call Ron at 613 473-2913 July 28 - Annual Gem and Mineral Show, Bancroft Legion Hall, Station Street.

Exhibits and displays. Lapidary Demos.

Mineral specimens. Rock and mineral identification service. 3 silent auctions. 3 door prizes. Grand live auction. Admission is Adults $3, children and students free. All proceeds go towards the Bancroft Mineral Museum August 1 – 4 - 50th Annual Rockhound Gemboree, Bancroft. Canada’s largest gem & mineral show. Shop all things rocks and mineral from around the globe.Raw materials to fine jewellery. www.bancroftdistrict.com

Aug 2 – 4 - Purdy Fest #7 – LivesayFest – People’s poetry festival honouring Dorothy Livesay. Info Chris Faiers zenriver@ sympatico.ca 613 472-6186 August 3-4 - 32nd Annual Bancroft Art & Craft Guild Summer Art & Craft Show & Sale. Millennium Park, 66 Hastings Street North, Bancroft. Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 10am-4pm. nancybrookes@yahoo.ca 613-338-5431 August 9 – 11- Ribfest - West Zwicks Park, Belleville. Fundraising event for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hastings & Prince Edward Counties. Fabulous Ribber Line Up, Live Entertainment, Kidz Zone, Raffle Draws, Licensed Event. quinteribfest.ca August 15 – 18 - Bancroft-Maynooth Jazz & Blues Festival. Check facebook page for details.

August 25 - Queensborough’s Annual Triathlon - Run/Walk, Swim, Bike Register 9:30 am at QCC 1853 Queensborough Road.

Do one component of the Triathlon or all three. Make it a family event. Info Lud & Elaine Kapusta 613 473-1458 August 31-September 1 -Maynooth - The 24th annual Madness is madder than ever the organizers promise.

Replacing the loggers games is the Highland Heavies on Saturday with a big parade, along with the Farmers Market and Horticultural Fall Fair. Sunday -Mud Dawgs and a turkey dinner at St. Ignatius. Info www.hastingshighlands.com

Just over the Bay Bridge in Rossmore

613 966 MEAT (6328) Quality and Excellence you can trust

September 28 & 29 – Tweed & Area Studio Tour. www.tweedstudiotour.org New location added -drop by Queensborough Community Centre at 1853 Queensborough to see great art. Chili and sweets available.

September 7 -Water Buffalo Food Festival - www.gobuff.ca - Taste samples will Mozzarella di Bufala, Scamorza and Ricotta cheeses produced from local water buffalo milk. Experience little Italy in Stirling and visit a family of water buffalo from the local farm.

COUNTRY ROADS magazine is searching for a new member to join our team. The individual will be responsible for print and online ­advertising sales in North Hastings County & surrounding communities.

August 15 – 18 – Stirling Agricultural Fair. www.stirlingfair.com Aug 23 – 25 – Tweed Elvis Festival – VIVA TWEED. Tribute Artists, Contests, Local Attractions, Classic Cars, Vegas Showcase, Youth Competition. For tickets, camping, info www.tweedelvisfestival.ca

GILMOURS MEAT SHOP AND DELI

September 21,22,28,29 - Bancroft & Area Autumn Studio Tour - 10am to 5 pm Bancroft and area. Pick up brochure/map at many local businesses and Bancroft Art Gallery www.bancroftstudiotour.org kistead0@gmail.com

Previous sales experience, particularly media would be a strong asset for this part time position.

If you enjoy meeting a variety of people, ­businesses and being part of a locally owned and operated magazine please contact us.

Nancy Hopkins, Publisher 613.395.0499 or nancy@countryroadshastings.ca

Since 1876

Naturally Aged Cheese •Fresh Curd • Local Jams & Syrups • Gift Baskets

• Creative Cakes • Fresh Bread • Pies & Tarts • Specialty • French Pastries Candy Homemade Baking brought to you by Guselle & Jodi info@sweettemptationsbakery.ca 329 Victoria St. N., Box 508, Tweed, ON K0K 3J0 613.478.2212

R.R. #5, 1120 COUNTY Rd. #8, CAMPBELLFORD, ON HOURS: Mon. to Sat. 8 am to 5 pm • Sun. 9 am to 5 pm

www.empirecheese.ca 705-653-3187 • 1-800-461-6480 Summer 2013 • Country Roads

I 45

Back Roads

Flying To The Finish Line Men in athletic attire arriving at the finish line of a race, likely during one of the sports days ­organized by the Royal Flying Corps for men of the Deseronto Wing.

The first two competitors have a skull and crossbone insignia on their shirts, the symbol used by 90 C.T.S. (Canadian Training Squadron), based at Camp Rathbun, one of the Royal Flying Corps’ pilot training camps near Deseronto. Spectators include men in uniform, women, and children. We know nothing about the creator of these photographs, but we can surmise that he was possibly a member of 90 C.T.S. who left his photographs behind when he left the area.

This is from a set of photographs taken in Deseronto during the First World War, which came into the possession of the Stapley family and were donated to the Deseronto Archives in February, 2013.

Photo courtesy Deseronto Archives

46 I

Country Roads • Summer 2013

Downtown Belleville SanS Souci Banquet & Conference Centre / Cafe • Special Occasions catering •

Accessories

with Attitude

Vintage Clothing hats, purses, costume & authentic jewelry

Art & Collectibles Antiques 300 Front Street, Belleville 613-967-0070 www.boretskigallery.com

Sans Souci will create any style of menu any size of function any where.

240 Front Street in Historic Downtown Belleville

613.968.2952 www.bestcateringchef.ca

215 Front Street, Belleville 613.969.9994 OPEN Mon. - Fri. 9:30AM-5:00PM • Saturday 10:00AM - 3:00PM Sunday Closed

Cooney auto sales belleville

Quality Cars Since 1979

Serving You Since 1918

Now available in belleville

Practice Safe Sun www.cooneyautosales.com 101 front st. belleville 613.966.4200 Family Owned & Operated

Proudly made in Canada

288 Front St. Belleville, on K8n 2Z8 613.966.6900 cuSToMer enTrAnce & Free PArKing AT reAr

Downtown Belleville - Fine Fashion, Exceptional Cuisine And Specialty Shops Galore!

Valerie Empey

Registered Dental Hygienist

Leanne Breen

Office Manager Madoc

Madoc

Dr. Kevin Nedamat Doctor Of Dental Surgery

Team Effort.

For the past six years, we’ve been striving tirelessly to raise your expectations of what a dental practice should be. The secret? It’s all in our “A”-Team of Dental Professionals.

From the enthusiasm of our Office Manager Leanne, to the thoroughness of hygienists like Valerie, and the serious passion of Dr. Kevin Nedamat - our Madoc team will make sure that you and your family are in good hands.

After all, you only have one set of teeth.

Isn’t it time you raised your expectations?

Choose Wisely.

Madoc Deseronto Web Twitter

613.473.2142 613.396.2974 steinbergdental.com @SDCDentalCentre