TheWall
An Ode to Thunder Bay in the Summer Story and photo by Marlene Wandel
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chool’s out for the summer, and while most us aren’t on that schedule anymore, there is something about the beginning of July that gives us itchy feet. Anything seems possible in 18 hours of daylight. It’s tempting to want to pack the car for an epic summer road trip—until you fuel up the vehicle. Watching the numbers on the gas pump click by, maybe you have second thoughts about filling that tank every day. Regardless of election promises on the distant horizon, if the price of fuel keeps you from an epic road trip this summer, be thankful. There’s no need to go anywhere farther away than the reach of that tank. In the summer, Northwestern Ontario is the best place on earth. Why go anywhere else? Sometimes it’s a tough sell; there’s a tendency to see our neck of the woods as a place locked in winter eight months of the year. It’s difficult to argue with that, and I know many a northern camper who brings a toque on summer camping trips. On the flip side, for those of us lucky enough to be here, the remaining four months are spectacular. We live our non-winter months in a fast forward of spring, summer, and fall. All the flowers, food, and summer adventure wash over us, fast and furious, and it’s unbearable
88 The Walleye
to miss a second of it. From the first tentative unfurling of shoots and leaves in May, it’s a riot of growth. Rhubarb and tulips lead the charge, followed closely by lilacs and apple trees in June, and gardeners finally dare plant tender young plants outside. Five minutes later the strawberries are ripe, and just as you finish picking the last basket of those succulent jewels, it’s time for raspberries and Saskatoon berries. Suddenly it’s August and time to go to your secret patch and pick blueberries with the bears. At the end of the day, it’s still light enough to sit on your front stoop with a refreshing drink and chat with your neighbours. You might even have time to bike to Centennial Park and stick your feet (or more) in the river. It may seem boring to stick around in the summer, because you think you know all there is to do in Thunder Bay, but what if you don’t? Between the barn dances, hints of a new patio at an old haunt, and a trails app ready to launch soon, new adventures are on the horizon all the time. Some call it a staycation, some call it playing tourist in your own hometown. Don’t know where to start? Ask an expert—tourism operators aren’t just here to show strangers around our beautiful area. Take the time to see the city from a different vantage by taking a sailboat tour,
or by hiking up Mount McKay just makes it all clear: even with 18 hours of daylight, there’s not enough time in the summer to do it all. That road trip? It will still be there in October,
when you’ll be happy to go somewhere it’s not snowing. If you’re anything like me though, you’ll still be talking about squeezing in one last trip to Quetico.
ALL NATURAL, RECYCLED
MULCH
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