An Omemee woman hopes her efforts to clean up the environment from her kayak become a source of inspiration and education for others.

During her regular paddles, Christine Hoogkamer finds and removes trash from Pigeon River near Emily Provincial Park.

She shares photos of her garbage hauls, along with photos of the wildlife she encounters, on an Instagram account where she’s coined herself as the ‘Emily Garbage Shark’.

“I just love being in the country, and I want to preserve that nature as much as I can,” Hoogkamer explains.

Hoogkamer moved to a home near Emily Provincial Park about four years ago. When she began taking leisurely paddles on Pigeon River adjacent to the park, she was dismayed to find garbage in the water.

“I love being on the water,” she says. “I would go out there to cruise and chill and look for turtles. I would do that, and I just kept finding garbage and picking it up, because how could you not.”

As she continued collecting massive hauls of garbage, Hoogkamer felt the urge to share what she was finding with the public — so she created an Instagram account.

“I was like, ‘People need to see this,'” Hoogkamer recalls. “It’s important for people coming from out of town to see too. Say they’re on Instagram and looking for #explorekawarthalakes or #exploreontario — that’s where I wanted it to reach them. I didn’t know how else to reach a broad audience.”

Hoogkamer first started the Instagram account in 2019 and still updates it regularly. With the account, she hopes to spread awareness about how garbage can so quickly end up in the water and what impact this could have on wildlife.

“I think awareness is the number one thing,” Hoogkamer says. “Sometimes it takes people seeing or hearing a story like this, and something clicks in people’s brains, and they’re like, ‘Maybe I should re-think the things that I bring with me when I go fishing.'”

Hoogkamer hopes her garbage photos garner a reaction of shock and disgust in those who see them — perhaps the necessary emotions to prompt meaningful change.

Whether the photos prompt people to make sure their own garbage does not end up in the water, or even to begin picking up litter themselves, any behaviour change is mission accomplished for Hoogkamer.

Since her Emily Garbage Shark Instagram account is meant to be educational, Hoogkamer recently used it to share a photo showing how long it takes for different types of garbage to break down in the environment.

“I know a lot of that stuff would never break down in my lifetime,” says Hoogkamer. “My message is to be more conscious of our impact on land and preserve it for future generations. I would hate for my kids to be doing the same thing as me and for it to keep getting worse if nothing changes.”

Photos of her kayak loaded with trash are not all that Hoogkamer shares on her Instagram. She also share photos of the wildlife she encounters during her paddles, including birds, frogs, turtles, beavers, and more.

“Often I’ll just be cruising along, and then sometimes something will feel like it’s erupting underneath me — like a snapping turtle or a massive fish,” says Hoogkamer.

The wildlife she spots motivate her to keep going with Emily Garbage Shark, Hoogkamer says, adding she shares pictures of these sightings to show her followers what the litter is harming.

“Especially the turtles,” she says. “I once saw one that was just the size of my palm. You think, ‘What is going to happen if this little guy gets caught in some fishing line?’. Fishing line is one of the main problems in Pigeon Lake.”

Hoogkamer’s efforts to keep the water free of garbage are their own reward. She not only helps protect the area’s wildlife by removing trash, but keeps the landscape and waterway pristine for her paddles and wildlife photos.

But it recently seemed like nature was also rewarding Hoogkamer more directly, when she found a $20 bill during one of her garbage shark paddles.

“I have a lot of good karma coming my way, and that was just the beginning,” Hoogkamer laughs. “That was amazing to find.”

As well as paddling, Hoogkamer also enjoys camping along with her partner Gregory. Both adhere to the “leave no trace” principle, and Hoogkamer is asking others to do the same when enjoying outdoor recreational activities such as fishing, camping, boating, and more.

“Try to keep Kawartha Lakes beautiful or just stay home if you can’t be respectful of the water that you are enjoying,” Hoogkamer urges. “Think twice before you discard something. Be respectful of the land we live on and the waters we enjoy in the summertime.”

Hoogkamer also hopes to inspire others to start cleaning up garbage as well, whether that means picking up litter when you come across it or heading out on your own garbage clean-up hunts.

“If you see something and you’re walking along, just pick it up,” says Hoogkamer. “Roadways are getting worse up here, and the fishing spots on either side of the Emily Park bridge are absolutely brutal on land.”

“I just cover the water, and it would be amazing if someone would come to look at the land out here,” she adds.

To support and follow along with Christine as the Emily Garbage Shark, you can follow her on Instagram @emily_garbage_shark.

A woman and her son — along with a cocker spaniel mom and her puppies — are lucky to be alive after a tornado hit a Kawartha Lakes farm house on Thursday afternoon (July 15).

Carey Stacey and her son Owen were in the basement of the house, located on Royal Oak Road near Manilla, when the severe weather hit.

According to a public Facebook post from Carey’s mother Lynn, who founded the cocker spaniel breeding business Double L. Spaniels with her husband Len, Carey and Owen were in the basement tending to a cocker spaniel who was having a litter of puppies.

“A wall or part of the ceiling came down and hit Carey hard on the head and covered her in the rubble,” Lynn writes on the Double L. Spaniels Facebook page. “Luckily Owen wasn’t hurt. He dug her out.”

Kawartha Lakes OPP were called to the farm just after 4 p.m., but downed trees made the road impassable for emergency vehicles, according to a police media release.

Police officers proceeded on foot to check on the “trapped individuals”, the media release reads, while emergency crews cleared the roadway of debris to allow access to the scene.

Carey was treated at the scene and then transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

According to Lynn’s Facebook post, the storm spared the lives of all the cocker spaniels on the farm, including the mom and her litter of puppies.

Carey’s husband Steve arrived home from work to find the dogs running around in the fields around the house.

“He loaded them all in his cattle trailer tonight and they are all back at Balsam Lake with Len and I,” Lynn writes.

Lynn is asking clients of Double L. Spaniels who have reserved a puppy to email her at doublelspaniels@gmail.com as Carey’s laptop, camera, and paperwork have been lost in the rubble.

Royal Oak Road remains closed from Simcoe Street to White Rock Road while the Kawartha Lakes Roads Department cleans up the fallen trees, according to police.

Worse as you go east. This is a neighbour’s house. Lost there barn too. 🤞hope everyone’s allright. We couldn’t get down the road for trees pic.twitter.com/WUif1lZd6d

— tim webster (@timspringdale14) July 15, 2021

With Ontario set to move into step three of the province’s reopening plan on Friday (July 16) at 12:01 a.m., Peterborough’s medical officer of health is appealing to residents to remain vigilant as the province enters this milestone of the pandemic.

During a Peterborough Public Health media briefing held Thursday (July 15), Dr. Rosana Salvaterra said susceptible children and unvaccinated adults in the community “could continue to fuel clusters and outbreaks — especially as we enter step three.”

As additional indoor settings reopen and gathering limits increase, Dr.Salvaterra said following public health measures will be critical for Peterborough’s case numbers to remain under control.

At the media briefing, Peterborough Public Health’s manager of environmental services Julie Ingram spoke to the precautions residents should be taking in step three.

“Individuals need to make sure that they’re following the rules and complying with the regulatory requirements that businesses are required to put in place,” said Ingram. “This means that all individuals are going to be expected to follow physical distancing requirements, wearing a mask or face covering in an indoor setting, and staying home when you’re not feeling well. If you even have a runny nose, do not go out.”

Contact tracing will be more critical and more complex during this next stage in the pandemic, Dr. Salvaterra added.

“I urge you, if you haven’t already downloaded your COVID contact tracing app, please do so and please activate it,” said Dr. Salvaterra.

Peterborough enters step three at a far better case rate than the previous week. As of July 15 at 4:10 p.m., the health unit reported 13 active cases — a significant drop from last week’s 29 cases.

Nevertheless, Peterborough’s weekly case incidence is still higher than the provincial average, with both the highly transmissible alpha and delta variants responsible for the latest cases.

“As we head into step three tomorrow along with the rest of the province, I do remain concerned that our higher case incidence rate locally, combined with the increased access to settings — especially indoor settings — can put us at risk for increased transmission, especially since we have both variants circulating here,” Dr. Salvaterra said.

There are currently two active COVID-19 outbreaks in the region, an increase of one since last week. The first outbreak, which was initially reported last week, is in an outdoor workplace setting. The new outbreak is at a congregate living setting. Both outbreaks are in the City of Peterborough.

Dr. Salvaterra noted that Peterborough Public Health staff are addressing the latest outbreak by supporting infection prevention measures.

“All residents have been offered testing,” she noted. “The staff identified as high-risk contacts are self-isolating.”

Ontario enters the third and final step of reopening after meeting the required vaccination threshold of 70 to 80 per cent of the adult population vaccinated with a single dose and 25 per cent with both doses.

In Peterborough, Dr. Salvaterra noted that vaccination rates continue to climb. Seventy-eight per cent of local adults over the age of 18 and 63.7 per cent of local youth aged 12 to 17 have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Over 56 per cent of local adults aged 18 and older and 13.2 per cent of local youth aged 12 to 17 are now fully immunized.

About 1,500 first doses and 15,000 second doses have been administered to Peterborough residents in the past week.

“Although the numbers and the percentages of fully immunized youth still have room to grow, I think it is really encouraging to see the pace of that growth just in the last week,” said Dr. Salvaterra, noting that there has been a nine per cent increase in vaccinated youth this week.

Dr. Salvaterra is urging residents to go and get their COVID-19 vaccine if they have not yet done so and, for those with second dose appointments in August, to move their appointments to an earlier date.

“We have lots of vaccine coming to Peterborough, and we have a great number of appointments still available at our immunization clinics,” said Dr. Salvaterra. “Currently, there are 14,000 open appointments available for anyone wanting to book their first or second dose before the end of July.”

The mass immunization clinic in the Evinrude Centre is accepting walk-ins for first doses every night between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Youth aged 12 to 17 can attend te walk-in clinic at Peterborough Regional Health Centre for their first dose of vaccine any day between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m.

To move up your second dose appointment to a sooner date, visit the Ontario COVID-19 vaccine booking website at ontario.ca/bookvaccine, or call the vaccine booking line at 1-833-943-3900.

“I strongly encourage local residents to accelerate their second dose appointments and get vaccinated as soon as possible,” said Dr. Salvaterra. “Please remember that there may be a pharmacy near you that can provide you with easy access to either Moderna or Pfizer vaccine.”

In step three, Ontario still has vaccination targets to exit into a new sense of normalcy. In order to exit step three, 80 per cent of the eligible population are to have received one dose of vaccine and 75 per cent with both doses, with no health unit less than 70 per cent fully vaccinated.

As of July 15 at 4:10 p.m., there are 13 active cases of COVID-19 in the Peterborough region — a decrease of 16 active cases since last week. There have been 22 COVID-related deaths in the region to date.

Environment Canada has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the greater Kawarthas region for Thursday afternoon and evening (July 15).

The severe thunderstorm watch is currently in effect for Peterborough County, the City of Kawartha Lakes, and Haliburton County.

Conditions are favourable for severe thunderstorms on Thursday afternoon into the evening as a cold front sweeps across southern Ontario from the west.

Ahead of and along the front, scattered thunderstorms are expected to develop.

Some of these storms could become severe, with damaging wind gusts of 80 to 110 km/h, nickel-sized hail, and heavy downpours. A few isolated tornadoes are also possible.

Strong wind gusts can toss loose objects, damage weak buildings, break branches off trees and overturn large vehicles. Remember, severe thunderstorms can produce tornadoes. Heavy downpours can cause flash floods and water pooling on roads. Be prepared for severe weather. Take cover immediately, if threatening weather approaches.

Lightning kills and injures Canadians every year. Remember, when thunder roars, go indoors!