From West to East

Behold: the skyline of Doha, Qatar. In the foreground, a traditional dhow plods the warm, shallow waters of the Arabian Gulf. 

Doha is a spanking new city; a smaller, quieter, more conservative version of its coastal neighbour, Dubai. It’s also perpetually under construction. Condo-style offices and residences rise up from the desert like weeds. 

There’s said to be a gritty South Asian neighbourhood here that’s relatively free of the plasticity and futurism shine that robs much of this town of charm. Off to investigate. 



Wade Davis on the Sacred Headwaters

The <a href=”https://lareviewofbooks.org/interview/sacred-headwaters” data-link-type=”external” data-link-value=”https://lareviewofbooks.org/interview/sacred-headwaters” target=”_blank”>Los Angeles Review of Books</a> is running an interview I did with Canadian anthropologist Wade Davis.

Davis, who’s a prolific author and a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, spoke with me about ‘The Sacred Headwaters’ - a wilderness region in northern B.C. revered by the province’s First Nations as an area of cosmological genesis.

A travel feature about the area will also run in the spring issue of Explore magazine.


Kluane in ‘Away’ magazine

The publishers of Toronto Life and Pearson International Airport (YYZ) have teamed up to create a new travel magazine called Away. It’s available in the departure lounges at all of Pearson’s terminals.

The first issue has just gone to print and includes a short piece I wrote about Yukon’s St. Elias Mountains and Kluane National Park. Photos included.


The Snowforest

Last week we experienced what people around here call an “outflow” - a blast of Arctic air “flowing out” from the B.C. interior. An overnight snowfall brought a light dusting of white to a landscape which I’d only ever seen green.

I took this shot of nearby Cunningham Island. It looks a bit like a painting.


Wilderness of Arches

If you spend any time in the Great Bear Rainforest, you’ll get to see a lot of rainbows. In close to three months, I think I’ve observed more of them here than in all of my life prior to visiting.

They’re highly ubiquitous.

Here’s one of my favourites. You can’t see it, but the full arc occupied half the sky.


Kurdistan photos in ‘Maisonneuve’ magazine

I have a photo essay running in the Fall 2014 issue of Maisonneuve. Here’s a <a href=”http://maisonneuve.org/article/2014/09/11/kurdistan/” data-link-type=”external” data-link-value=”http://maisonneuve.org/article/2014/09/11/kurdistan/” target=”_blank”>link</a> to their webpage, plugging the spread.


Ovoids

I was out on the ocean the other day, fishing with friends. The sky was overcast and the water was calm.

Looking down I noticed some amazing patterns created by the light refracting in the water. Those circular, bulls-eye-looking patterns, sometimes called ‘ovoids’, appear identical to certain motifs prevalent in Coastal First Nations art. In fact, I’m almost certain they’re the original inspiration.


Great Bear Cabin

I’m staying at a cabin in the ‘Great Bear Rainforest’ region of British Columbia. I’ve come to work on a writing project that requires a bit more quiet and focus than I can garner back in the city.

This is one view from the cabin, taken on a typical fog-filled morning. I’m located on a cove within a protected harbour along the Inside Passage route to and from Alaska.

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