62- Summer Is Shaping Up
My trip with Dee to North Bay to meet the new twins was both exciting and tiring. Exciting to see my growing North Bay family after a long period of months but tiring watching (and taking part as much as I could) as the hours were filled with feedings, walking crying babies, changing diapers plus paying attention to three-year-old big sister, Maddie, who, until 3 months ago, had the benefit of being played with, read to and made to feel she was the centre of the universe - which she now has to share with her brothers. It was a little difficult for her at the beginning but she is adapting well.
Half way to North Bay from Ottawa on the Ottawa River is the town of Deep River. home of the first Canadian nuclear power plant. About a mile north of the town is Da Swisha, a tiny village of 156 people, that no one has heard of - well, almost no one. This is where Ontario Hydro built the dam, connecting Ontario to Quebec. Before I met him, Don actually worked for awhile at that dam when he was an electrical engineer with Ontario Hydro. Yvonne, the wife of the first couple we met and became fast friends with in Manzanillo, was born in that village. She said Don was the first person she met that even heard of it, knew where it was, let alone had worked there.
Fast forward again to last weekend. I, of course, had heard of Da Swisha for years but had never been there. On the return trip from our family visit, Dee and I stopped on the highway at a lookout to view the dam. I was amazed that it's size was far bigger than I had imagined.
Why is it that those of us who live close to interesting places take them for granted and really know little about them? Until last week, I hadn't thought much about the Ottawa River - it was simply 'there'. Sitting down to write this week's blog I did some research about the dam, the village, the nuclear power plant and the river. I was surprised to learn that the Ottawa River is 1271 kilometers (790 miles) in length, the eighth longest river in Canada, and is the chief tributary of the mighty St. Lawrence River. It is 7,400 meters (24,300 ft) wide at its widest point. Its deepest point is in Moose Bay where it is 172 meters (565 ft) deep. A very impressive and stunningly beautiful river.
The dam at Da Swisha.
This week I booked my flight to Mexico on November 4th and am renting the same villa I had last winter.
Where I am going when I return to Ontario April 29, 2025, I have no idea right now but I don't fear the unknown, rather, it excites me wondering where I might end up.
Early this August I'm planning a trip to Denver, Colorado, followed by a possible trip to London, England, later that month. Summer is shaping up to be interesting indeed.