You will notice that the layout of the newsletter is somewhat different from the past. That is because Susian Lambert has retired from her voluntary position as typist and organizer. When Susian was at the Business Centre, she took over the arrangement of the newsletter as a "labour of love", and was instrumental in its development, from a twosided version, to a multi-page black and white letter. Then, when the Business Centre closed, she continued to volunteer her time, and the newsletter progressed to its present colour format. Each year, Susian said that that would be her final year, but each late summer, she would relent and help us out once more. Unfortunately for us, she meant it this time. We owe Susian a large thank you and words of appreciation for all she has contributed to the trails and the newsletters.

Anne and Jessie completed their usual thorough job last spring in bringing the trails back to life, despite lots of wind and ice activity over the winter, and a very rainy spring. We are indeed fortunate to have such dedicated trailblazers. We also have added a number of new trails adopters, which has helped us keep the trails in quite good condition during the summer. Their work is greatly appreciated.

shown by those attending. You will read more about this further on in the newsletter.

The Friends of Grand Manan Trails is supported financially in a number of ways: the sale of the trails booklets, from which we make a profit of $2 per book, the sale of pins, the fundraising dinner which Laura Buckley holds at Whale Cove Inn, of which the entire proceeds come back to our group, and donations by people such as yourselves. Our major expenses are the spring maintenance of the trails (about 120 hours of work), the production of the trails booklet, and this newsletter. We receive no funding from any government source at any level, so are dependent on the sources mentioned. We greatly appreciate the donations we receive, and you can be sure that they all go to good use.

A couple of weeks ago I went to Toronto on the train from Ottawa, and the conductor on the train was most polite and attentive, and completely overlooked the fact that my ticket was actually for the later train. He kept on calling me Sir, and wondering how I was. I realized that I was wearing a jacket with my Grand Manan Trails Pin attached. I can only imagine that he mistook it for the Order of Canada.

There was a full house in the Lecture Hall of the Grand Manan Museum on the evening of July 28. The audience was made up of hikers, interested summer visitors and a large contingent of trails adopters both recent and of long standing. Bob Stone introduced the programme with a DVD featuring especially gorgeous views from various trails, as well as of Anne and Jessie at work clearing the Ross Island section. As each set of adopters then talked about the location of their trail and what they considered a highlight, some listeners may have sensed a spirit of competition!

When there were questions about the history of the footpaths which were the basis of the present trail system, Sheldon Cook and Carmen Roberts recalled some fascinating details from their own experiences and stories they had heard from the older generations. Sheldon, for example, talked about Walter B. McLaughlin's camp at Bradford's Cove in the early 1900's and the fact that he used a path from Southwest Head to reach it. Carmen, who likely knows the back of the island as well as anyone, admitted that she had, as a teenager, taken advantage of her parents' absence to do a solo hike from Eel Lake to the Whistle and then to Sloop Cove following the beaches and scrambling up the gullies. Although she had planned to spend the night en route, she took the cross-island trail from Sloop Cove to King Street in Seal Cove and hitchhiked home to Castalia by sunset. If you have tried to keep up with her, on foot, or on skis, you will not be surprised that she managed to do the trip in one day, despite the stride limitation of her tiny five-foot frame.

Anyone present who had not yet ventured beyond pavement would have been inspired to take advantage of this aspect of Grand Manan. A number of "old timers" said that they were now aware of some beautiful sections of trails that they had never hiked, and looked forward to new adventures. The picture you see is proof that tourists have been tackling the trails for at least a hundred years!

"The Cliffs at Grand Manan, New Brunswick", drawn by M.J. Burns. This drawing appeared in the Illustrated London News in the early 1900's. (We wouldn't recommend this kind of thing to Grand Manan hikers nowadays) From Linda L'Aventure's postcard collection.

We really enjoy the trail from Whale Cove to Eel Brook. It’s a long trail and a rugged one, not for those wary of heights. We don’t take our dog along – personally, I think it’s too dangerous, your choice. But after the brambles are cleared it is much easier to see the ground and the scenery is absolutely gorgeous! When we do our walk we usually go early in the day or after supper since it can be very warm in the afternoons, and no matter when we go we meet a hiker or two and we see the falcons, several hawks, an eagle, and the usual song birds and sea birds. The right time of day can also bring the ferries and sailboats. The trail can be a two-hour walk depending on the time of day and the scenery – so be prepared. Please come and enjoy a very lovely trail.

The yellow trail begins at Tatton's Corner in North Head and terminates at Money Cove on the western side of the island. It has undergone several alterations over the past thirty years. First came the cutting of the hydro line in 1977 followed by timber harvesting that continues today. With the advent of the ATV one can easily see how the unfamiliar hiker might get "turned around".

The trail does offer several points of interest as it follows its course across the northern end of the island. At the top of Mill Hill, the old trail splits into two branches, a southern trail no longer used and another heading north. Approximately 100 feet along the north trail is an area called "The MacIntosh". Remnants of a habitation are visible just off the trail on the right and old apple trees grow on either side. Just another five minutes walk further, one comes to the the hydro line. After crossing this, the trail becomes solid rock under foot. This area has always been referred to as the "Flat Ledges". The patterns in the rock here are quite unusual and very striking, as if lava had flowed and cooled. Another ten minutes along the trail, one comes to the back side of the Lake Hill, (south of Eel Lake). The Lake Hill is the highest point on the island. A short distance east of the trail is an area known as the Lake Valley. Here are the remains of another homestead thought to be from the early 1800s, possibly that of Job Stanley. The trail continues, descending into "Deadman's Hollow". The origin of this name is unknown but it is rather dark and foreboding. Further along one can catch glimpses of Little Lake on the right. Then the trail heads south and runs a gauntlet of ATV trails and wood roads until it reaches Money Cove. Because of its inland position, the trail doesn't have the blowdowns like the coastal trails do. On the other hand, inland trails are subject to much more indiscriminate use by motorized vehicles, ATVs in particular. Signage is imperative when navigating these trails. The yellow markers are a little more difficult to see in the fall as they blend with the coloured leaves. It is an interesting trail with a wide variety of habitats. Happy hiking.

Need to find something different on Grand Manan this Christmas? Then consider taking part in the Grand Manan Christmas Bird Count. Not only do you get a day outdoors but you contribute a little more to our knowledge of nature in winter here on the archipelago.

So what is the Christmas Bird Count? It’s a tried-and-trusted means of measuring changes in winter bird life over the years and it has been in existence for more than 100 years. The first censuses took place in 1900, including a one-hour count by William H. Moore at Scotch Lake, York County, with 36 birds of 9 species tallied. The next NB count was not until 1937, when Kent Island provided the location. A few more counts took place in the late 1940s and early 1950s, but the real impetus in the province was when William A. Squires at the NB Museum encouraged participation in an article for the 1956 Nature News. By then Christmas Bird Counts were being undertaken all across North America. Peter Pearce traveled from Fredericton to conduct one-man counts on Grand Manan in the 1960s and 1970s and Brian Dalzell took on the responsibility of compiler in 1978. The highest count in the 20 following years was in 1983 when 55 species were tallied, along with 10 more in count week.

Fast-forward to 2008, when Brian and Durlan Ingersoll compiled the Grand Manan count and oversaw a record 82 species, plus 10 in count week. The most common species were all waterbirds: 3,219 Herring Gulls, 1,734 Common Eiders and 1,113 American Black Ducks, and there were also three-figure counts of Blacklegged Kittiwake, Great Black-backed Gull, Red-necked Grebe, Red-breasted Merganser and Long-tailed Duck, The only land birds to top three figures were White-winged Crossbill, Black-capped Chickadee and Mourning Dove. More unusual species tallied by the 10 participants in a total of 48 party-hours were Northern Pintail, Spotted Sandpiper, Long-eared Owl, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Winter Wren, Hermit Thrush, Orangecrowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat and, last but certainly not least, a male Painted Bunting. The count-week birds included Merlin, three alcids, Snowy Owl, Northern Flicker, Baltimore Oriole, Purple Finch and Pine Siskin. This was the highest count for New Brunswick, beating Saint John, and its dozens of participants, by 15 species.

Now that Grand Manan has set the standard, those of us on the island need to maintain the tradition by taking part on count day and by keeping winter feeders well-stocked with seed and suet. Weather and food supply determine how well birds do during the winter period and feeders play an important role in getting small songbirds through severe weather conditions. It is, therefore, very discouraging to find empty feeders that could have provided a lifeline for half-hardy waifs blown here in winter storms. This is a wake-up call for those spending the winter here and having feeders and an invitation to others to take part in the count. Birdwatchers of all levels of expertise are encouraged to sign up for a day of enjoying nature and sharing it with others. Those with little field experience can be paired with more seasoned veterans and you don’t have to put in a full 8 hours of counting. Even an hour or so can add a species and several dozen birds to the total. Durlan Ingersoll will again be the local compiler and can be contacted by phone at 662-8399.

Roger Burrows, since his emigration from England in 1970, has worked as a Parks Canada Naturalist and interpretative planner, avifaunal consultant and Elderhostel leader in Atlantic Canada, and as an onboard naturalist on Alaska cruise-ships. He has authored and co-authored nine bird books for Atlantic Canada, and a tenth book is in the process of publication next spring.

Collecting minerals is a great hobby, and not just for geologists. Minerals are the natural chemical compounds that make up rocks. With a bit of luck and some careful looking, you can find beautiful mineral crystals worthy of display in your home. You might need a pocket-sized field guide book for identifying rocks and minerals, available at good bookstores. Also bring a few tools on your field trip, such as a rock or brick (mason) hammer; eye protection; sample bags; notebook; camera; and a map or the Grand Manan trail guide. Many rock hounds now use a GPS receiver to make an accurate record of locations. Picking up loose beach stones is OK, otherwise you should have the landowner’s permission. Beautiful zeolite crystals can be found where they have fallen from the cliffs of Seven Days Work near Eel Brook Beach, and along a few other beaches near Whale Cove and Indian Beach. Zeolites are compounds of calcium, alkalis, silicate, and water molecules. They tend to fill cracks and bubbles left by gases that boiled out of lava flows of the Early Jurassic age, or about 201 million years ago, which form the layers of these cliffs.

Agate.
Chabazite.
Chrysocolla.
Heulandite.
Jasper.
Mesolite.
Stilbite.

This very nice specimen was picked up south of Eel Brook Beach by Nancy McHone. It must have fallen from the cliff soon before, as it is too fragile to withstand much wave action. The fleshy pink rhombohedra or tooth-like crystals are chabazite, which you will also find lining gas vesicles. The clear book-shaped laths are heulandite, and the small white clumps, shaped like sheaves of wheat tied in the middle, are stilbite. Greenishgrey vesicular basalt (the host rock) is also present.

planes dividing it from white zeolite (mesolite), both filling old vesicles and gas bubbles. Perhaps they crystallized together from fluids that could not mix, with the heavier fluid under the lighter.

Many pebbles made of mesolite are also present on the beach. Notice how they are relatively light weight: zeolites are less dense than other white minerals such as quartz.

Mesolite is a zeolite that forms white to pinkish fans and cones, made of needleshaped crystals that radiate from a point. It often fills gas bubbles in the Seven Days Work member of the Grand Manan basalt, and also fractures and broken surfaces of the basalt. Zeolites crystallize from hot gaseous fluids that circulated through the solidified lava.

Small pieces of bright metallic copper have been found along the cliffs west of Whale Cove, but more commonly you will see signs of copper in these bright bluish green mineral crusts, which coat fractures and veins in the basalt. This is probably chrysocolla, a copper silicate associated with zeolites and quartz; I say “probably” because it can be hard to identify minerals that do not form good crystals, only amorphous layers in thin veins.

This is taken from Greg McHone's booklet "Grand Manan Geology", about how Grand Manan was formed and the rocks and minerals one can find here. Greg McHone has been an exploration geologist, a university professor, college administrator and independent consultant. He and his geologist wife Nancy now live and work on Grand Manan. Their website is: http://earth2geologists.net

TRIALS DINNER, 2009.  Judy Stone
The annual Trails Dinner on October 14 was, as usual, a huge success with some added features to complement the superb meal. Laura Buckley and her staff prepared an outstanding grilled salmon dinner and the dessert table was irresistible, even to those who had resolved to cut down after the Thanksgiving feast. Once we had demolished the fabulous food, we were treated to Jessie James’ Whale Cove Inn guitar debut. That man not only swings a mean machete when he and Anne are clearing trails, he plays and sings with equal enthusiasm and expertise.

Jessie had volunteered to warm up the audience for the main feature, Eric Hadley, a major participant in the 1991 meeting which led to the founding of Friends of Grand Manan Trails. Eric and his wife, Jane, have been involved with hiking trails in New Brunswick since the ‘70’s. They have a special love for Grand Manan and have often made suggestions and helped with flagging when sections needed some rerouting. He gave us a fascinating account of the original efforts to raise funds and organize crews to reopen trails blocked by serious blowdowns during winter storms. Another newsletter will offer a more detailed report on Eric’s talk, which was much appreciated by everyone present, many of whom are directly involved in some aspect of trails maintenance.

This event is our main fund raiser and Laura provides the Inn and the meal as her contribution to our efforts. Thanks to her generosity and that of her crew, (who donate their time and also pay for the meal) we can afford to equip the volunteer trail adopters and cover cost of the initial clearance and maintenance at the beginning of the season.

This year has been a busy one for the Swallowtail Keepers Society (SKS) in its efforts to preserve and maintain the keepers house and other outbuildings. While some of their work revolved around further clarification of the property status, much of their time was spent in visible projects that began in April and are ongoing.

For the second year in a row, a flag-raising ceremony took place on a foggy July 1, 2009, with several community members and the RCMP in attendance. The ceremony recognized the Foster family for its contribution to Swallowtail's history and memorialized the tragic death in 1936 of Elodie Foster , wife of Thomas Foster, while she was lighting the alcohol lamp in the lighthouse.

Perhaps the most visible improvement has been the erection of a sturdy deck and replacement of the roof shingles at the former Ross Island boathouse at the head of the stairs by the parking lot. Many, many hours of volunteer labour went into this project and it is part of our goal to make at least part of the property accessible to everyone. This area will become the greeting centre for anyone visiting the light station in years to come.Thanks to donated paint and the local Rotary Club and members of the Rotary Club from Seminole Lake, Florida, the buildings at the top of the hill and the keepers house have been painted in a joint project. A bit more work is needed on the keepers house but the buildings now glow as they did when there were fulltime keepers who did the maintenance. SKS is grateful for all such help, and recognizes the great cooperation and assistance from such community groups as Rotary as well as local businesses and individuals.

You may have also noticed that the southern wall of the boathouse beside the keepers house is being rebuilt. Many years of neglect had taken its toll and through volunteer effort and donated lumber, the building is in much better shape for the upcoming winter. This work will continue next spring.

Together this work has helped to have the property shining for the 150th anniversary on July 7, 2010. Various plans for that celebration include the unveiling of a plaque commemorating the event, installing a time capsule, and possibly returning the fog bell to the property. A gala public reception and slide show of people's favourite Swallowtail photos are in the planning stages. A boat parade-sail past and a Fishermen's Ball are planned for the weekend following. Please let us know if there are special events you would like included or would like to help with any of the planning or events to make this a fun time for all.

While not directly related to SKS’ mandate, many of you have likely noted the large-scale clean-up of lead paint at the Swallowtail property which started in the fall of 2008. This was part of a Federal Government programme to remedy properties that are contaminated. The clean-up was necessary if the lighthouse is ever to be transferred from federal hands.

The federal Historic Lighthouse bill is to come into effect next year and the community will need to petition to have the lighthouse deemed “historic”. It is already recognized as “significant”. Lack of funding from the Coast Guard remains an issue regarding maintenance of the lighthouse. Additionally, the Village is in the process of setting up an historic places registry of non-federal properties, and has selected the keepers property as one of the possible sites.

None of this could be accomplished without the dedication of volunteers and interested individuals. If you are interested, donations can be sent to Swallowtail Keepers Society, 50 Lighthouse Road, Grand Manan, NB E5G 2A2.

We also have a blog, www.SwallowtailKeepers.blogspot.com, a Facebook group, Save our Swallowtail, and always welcome anyone interested in helping out with work or organizational meetings. Contact: Laurie Murison (506 662 8316 or gmwhale@nbnet.nb.ca)

FRIENDS OF GRAND MANAN TRAILS
c/o Bob Stone
51 Red Point Road, Grand Manan, NB E5G 4J1
rstone@nb.sympatico.ca
Web: www.grandmananNB.com

Note: Laurie Murison prepared the newsletter for the web site version.