In August, Erin and Graeme from Four Rivers had the great pleasure of spending 10 days paddling from Miminiska Lake to Eabamet Lake. Along the way they completed a variety of baseline data collection surveys for birds, bats, bees, water quality and fish health. Data collected will be added to Four Rivers’ baseline data inventory for safe storage and future use.
The Four Rivers drone was incredibly useful for scouting out rapids and possible hazards that the crew may encounter on the river! The crew were also able to get some beautiful photos and videos of the remote landscape along the way.
Erin collecting weight, length, age, sex and tissue samples on a Walleye caught in Petawanga Lake.
Erin and Graeme aboard the Turbo Beaver float plane on their way to get dropped off at Miminiska Lake Lodge.
Most nights, they cooked dinner over a fire, including this fresh walleye and Bannock dogs’ dinner!
Erin and Graeme taking a much-needed break before running Split Rapids. All their camping, field work and personal gear had to fit in the 16 ft canoe they used for the 10-day trip.
Graeme working to identify a flowering plant while completing one of many detailed vegetation inventories (DVI) of the trip. Plant observations like these will go into the Four Rivers’ catalog of baseline data collected for the Matawa communities to inform monitoring and management decisions.