A ship in harbor is safe--- but that is not what ships are for -- John A. Shedd
Harbours (harbors to my American friends) are interfaces. During the great sailing ages they were the key portal to the outside world -- the world beyond the local village or city. Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Vikings, Angles, Saxons, Portuguese, historical peoples the world over used harbours to begin and end their watery journeys.
Harbour, Port Credit, Ontario
(click on image for a larger, clearer view)My local harbour is nothing so grand. A mere estuary where the Credit River flows into Lake Ontario, it is largely a "recreational facility," to use the jargon of city planners. To a photographer, however, it presents opportunities for images both natural and man-made. I visit the harbour most weekends and it never looks the same. Changes in weather, cloud cover, lighting, seasons, and wildlife behaviour keep it fresh to the discerning eye.
Red-necked Grebe with Catch
(click on image for a larger, clearer view)As with most Ontario harbours, it hosts the more citified of wildlife: mallard and black ducks, Canada geese, mute swans, and, of course, the ubiquitous gulls. But occasionally something a bit wilder appears, such as this Red-necked Grebe (winter plumage) surfacing with a catch. At the right time of year it is also possible to see buffleheads, goldeneyes, canvasbacks, and the occasional harlequin duck.
Rower in the Harbour
(click on image for a larger, clearer view)The harbour attracts people who love water. Boaters, fishermen, sunrise watchers, photographers, and rowers. Just upstream from the Port Credit harbour is the Don Rowing Club (which may have been renamed as the Mississauga Rowing Club). It is common to see rowers plying up and down the river and, during calm weather, venturing out of the harbour mouth into the lake.
The harbour is an interface where civilization and nature meet, where there is room for both. The Rockies are more spectacular and the ocean more powerful, and bears and elk are wilder than grebes, but a freshwater harbour is a resonant, vibrant environment for observation, thought, and, yes, recreation.
(28-Nov-2003, Revised 17-June-2004)
www.NorthernJourney.com -- gene@wilburn.ca