Northern WI wolf attack

memaquay said:

Summary of canoetripping.net's latest fascination:
Marauding moose
Killer coyotes
Wicked wolves
Paranoid primates of the Homo Sapiens species

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By far, bears have been the hottest animal topic—even when not described with adroit alliteration—for the entire 13 years of this forum and its predecessor, Solotripping.com.

But let's not forget our perhaps most prevalent and practical puny peril: TICKS!!! . . . in chronological order:




The 2016 Tick-Tick-Tick thread unfortunately illustrates the increasingly disappearing fate of photos that are linked to transitory third party photo sites instead of being uploaded to this site's servers.

Oh, ticks......what - no blackfly thread?

...what - no blackfly thread?

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shh... that's shortly after ice-out.

"I could tell it was our neighbour from up the block by the conspiracy paranoid stickers all over their bumper. And tailgate" there WAS one of those on the way to my daughter's house, then all of a sudden his pickup was gone, the lights were out and the grass was uncut- apparently putting a picture of your favourite politician's name in a noose or hanging from a gallows, is considered by the local popo and court to be a "credible threat of death", even if it is misspelled....

Martin Litton, Jacque Cousteau, Edward Abbey, Richard Atonborough and others, all lamented on the inevitable encroachment humanity and our fascination with monetizing resources. Wolves will be a growing “problem” until they are eventually removed to make way for people. While we talk about preservation now, if population growth is not curbed, no amount of earth-friendly intentions will prevail. Ultimately, there’s really only room for one species.

And Canadians shouldn’t think they’re
immune, which is what I hear a lot of on the topic. We are fortunate to live in a shoulder era, when many species still exist outside of zoos or preserves. Even the great herds of the Serengeti have declined precipitously in my lifetime. Every park in Africa is precariously clinging to its role these days. My granddaughter is working on a sanctuary in South Africa right now. It’s all just industrial tourism for the masses, really, although I’d never tell her that. Let the illusion last a while longer for her.

Black_Fly said:

Ultimately, there’s really only room for one species.

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I assume you mean cockroaches.

In North America, ecosystems are becoming more complete all the time. Wilderness areas are growing not diminishing.

ppine said:

In North America, ecosystems are becoming more complete all the time. Wilderness areas are growing not diminishing.

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I think that is correct for the US lower 48 over the last four decades, but I'm not sure about Canada or Alaska.

I suppose it depends on your definition of wilderness. Is a vast area in the middle of nowhere that has been clear-cut but sees very little human activity afterwards still counted as wilderness? That describes huge tracts of Northern Ontario. It does grow back, but if close to transportation corridors, it can be cut again in as little as 30 years. In my opinion, wilderness in Northern Ontario is shrinking at a steady rate.

memaquay said:

I suppose it depends on your definition of wilderness. Is a vast area in the middle of nowhere that has been clear-cut but sees very little human activity afterwards still counted as wilderness? That describes huge tracts of Northern Ontario. It does grow back, but if close to transportation corridors, it can be cut again in as little as 30 years. In my opinion, wilderness in Northern Ontario is shrinking at a steady rate.

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That explains where most our lumber has been coming from the last few decades since most of our mills shut down. Gotta rebuild after all these earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods.

It's not a happy thought.

I’m a lifelong wilderness buff. From New Mexico, Arizona, Minnesota, Florida, Wyoming, Wisconsin, there’s a wide variation in what is considered “wilderness.” Furthermore, designated wilderness areas are more crowded, more surrounded by development, more impacted by human activity. With population doubling every 50 years, protecting more wild land is crucial, but those areas can’t be considered wilderness, including that outside my back door in WI, which is logged, hunted, ATV’d (illegally) and is surrounded by roads and cabins. Furthermore, many areas considered wilderness are so developed for industrial tourism that their inclusion in the wilderness category, while once valid, is now laughable. Ed Abbey complained that preservation takes a back seat to making national parks and forests accessible, for human visitors AND their machines. It’s a business, just like building dams was a century ago.

I think we may be confusing what is thought of unofficially as wilderness with designated wilderness. It is true that designated wilderness - in which no development, logging , nor motorized use is allowed - has been expanding in the US over the last few decades. It is also true that during the same time, unprotected "wild" places have been shrinking. I'm unsure of what the net effect is.

We have an interesting project in the works up here. It's called "The Ring Of Fire", it's not a seismic earthquake area, but an area where extensive mineral development has been identified. One off the biggest in the world apparently. Negotiations are ongoing about building a road north of Nakina all the way past Martin Falls and beyond.
I have sat on the Forestry advisory committees for years, and although old style robber baron capitalism rules the day with those fellas, there is at least a process where one can attempt to save canoe routes.
Not so with the Mining Act. They have Carte Blanche to do whatever they want, and destruction of the environment is a given.
Martin Falls reserve has hired a consultation firm to handle the road building, and they have contacted me twice for input on the effects the road will have on canoe routes. The very nice lady wrote down my suggestions, but there are no requirements that they have to follow them.
I expect this to get much worse inn the near future. If you ever had a bucket list to paddle the Albany River, I suggest you do it soon.

memaquay said:

I expect this to get much worse inn the near future. If you ever had a bucket list to paddle the Albany River, I suggest you do it soon.

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Sorry to hear this. I really enjoyed my time on the Albany. We paddled it for 3-4 years starting in 2009 with Wabakimi Project. I have always thought it would nice to go back for another trip.