Home Opinion Columns Looking North Bookmark and Share Jan 23,
2013  |  Vote 0    0  Looking North  Huntsville Forester  I’ve
been fortunate over the past few summers to have the opportunity
to travel to the far reaches of our diverse province. Twice I’ve
found myself on the shores of Carey Lake in Hearst, Ontario,
helping to load a Turbo Beaver with research and camping gear,
as the sun rises over the spruces and jack pines.  And as the
weather clears, my colleagues and I climb through the narrow
doors and head north over the boreal forest to the Hudson Bay
Lowlands (HBL). From the windows of the Turbo Beaver nearly four
years ago, I was amazed by how different the north appeared from
the forested regions to the south. The HBL is a vast area that
extends from the western shores of Hudson Bay to the southern
shores of James Bay, and represents the second largest
continuous peatland in the world. Water dominates the landscape,
forming intricate patterns and shapes. Occasionally, we’d cross
large, meandering riv