Many of the 750 students receiving school suspension order may have already received all required vaccinations, but their records with the health unit are are out of date
Hundreds of area students may face possible school suspension unless they can show they are up-to-date on their vaccinations.
Around 750 students in Haliburton County, Northumberland County and the City of Kawartha Lakes are being issued school suspension orders this week.
Families who receive these orders are encouraged to immediately contact the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit at 1-866-888-4577 ext. 1507, to update their child’s vaccination records. Parents can also visit the Health Unit website at www.hkpr.on.ca for more information.
“No one wants to see students missing classes unnecessarily, so we encourage families who receive these suspension orders to contact us immediately about their child’s vaccination records,” says Marianne Rock, Manager of Communicable Disease Control, Epidemiology and Evaluation with the HKPR District Health Unit.
“In many cases, students have received all the required vaccines from a health care provider, but the records for these vaccines have not been shared with the Health Unit.”
Under Ontario’s Immunization of School Pupils Act, the Health Unit must ensure all students attending school are immunized against diphtheria, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, pertussis (whooping cough), varicella (chickenpox) and meningococcal disease. If any of these vaccines are missing, students can be suspended from school.
Exemptions from vaccination are available for medical reasons and issues of conscience or religious beliefs.
“School suspension is a last resort for us, but by law we are required to ensure all students attending school are immunized against certain diseases,” Rock adds. “By checking that students are fully vaccinated, we can ensure everyone in our school communities is protected against common, vaccine-preventable diseases.”
In January, the Health Unit first contacted local families of students for whom it did not have up-to-date vaccination records or valid reasons for why they were not vaccinated. Since then, Health Unit staff have been in touch with many of these families to update the vaccination records or ensure any missing vaccines are provided to students.
“We have been able to clear up much of the backlog of student vaccination records that were out-of-date,” Rock notes. “Now we want to ensure that these last few hundred students are fully vaccinated and protected. We encourage parents and guardians to work with us so that no student has to miss a day of class.”
A 21-year-old Ajax man is facing charges including flight from police, dangerous driving and impaired driving following an incident in the area of King Street in downtown Peterborough in the early morning last Thursday (April 6).
At around 2:45 a.m., Peterborough police observed a vehicle driving the wrong way on George Street and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The vehicle failed to stop and a pursuit took place on Water Street.
The vehicle entered the parking garage on King Street parking garage, where the male driver and passengers abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot.
Several officers were dispatched to the area where they found the driver and passengers hiding inside the parking garage.
While speaking with the driver, officers noted an odour of an alcoholic beverage on his breath. A subsequent breath sample revealed the driver had more than the legal limit of alcohol in his system.
As a result of the investigation, Michael John McGuire, 21, of Exeter Road in Ajax, was arrested and charged with flight while pursued by police officer, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, operating a motor vehicle with more than 80, and impaired driving
The accused was released from custody and is scheduled to appear in court on April 27, 2017.
Martha Sullivan has opened her new law practice in Peterborough, specializing in real estate, family law and estate law (supplied photo)
Sullivan Law opens in Peterborough
Sullivan Law is Martha Sullivan’s new law practice.
Located at 223 Aylmer Street in Peterborough, Sullivan Law specializes in real estate, wills and estates, family law, and notarial services.
Martha returns to her deep family roots in Peterborough after articling and working with Ottawa-based firms in family law, child protection, real estate and wills and estates. She is just completing her training to be a certified collaborative family lawyer and mediator.
Kawartha Vaccum specialized in central vacuum systems (supplied photo)
Andrew Wright is the new owner of Kawartha Vacuum.
Based in Peterborough, Kawartha Vacuum provides a wide range of services to the Kawartha Lakes area, including sales, service, and installation of central vacuum systems. They carry the Canadian-made Cana-Vac line of central vacuum systems. Their technicians can install your central vacuum system or supply a do-it-yourself installation kit. They can also provide service at your home or their facility.
Bobcaygeon lawyer Robert Walker with his two staff Adriana and Cheryl have joined LLF Lawyers and will continue practicing law at their current location under the name LLF Lawyers Bobcaygeon (supplied photo)
The Bobcaygeon law firm of Robert J. Walker is now associated with LLF Lawyers of Peterborough.
Bob Walker has practiced law in the Bobcaygeon area for 40 years, providing legal counsel to hundreds of local businesses, community groups and individuals. LLF Lawyers will continue to provide full service to the Bobcaygeon area from the corner of King Street West and Bolton Street in Bobcaygeon.
LLF Lawyers has 18 lawyers and 36 support staff at 332 Aylmer Street in Peterborough. Visit www.llf.ca for more information.
Luxe Sugaring & Beauty Bar opens in Millbrook
Jessica Grieve has opened Luxe Sugaring & Beauty Bar in Oasis Boutique in Millbrook (photo: Jessica Grieve / Twitter)
Luxe Sugaring & Beauty Bar recently opened in Millbrook.
Located in the Oasis Boutique location on King Street in Millbrook, owner Jessica Grieve also offers eyelash and eyebrow tinting on evenings and Saturdays.
You can find Luxe Sugaring & Beauty Bar on Facebook.
The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer are Shawn Hall (harmonica, lead vocals) and Matthew Rogers (guitar, foot percussion). They'll be performing at the Market Hall in Peterborough on April 14 with blues Ryan McNally. (Photo: Jodie Ponto)
“I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna.”
Market Hall presents
The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
When: Saturday, April 14, 2017, at 8 p.m. Where: Market Hall Performing Arts Centre (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough) How much: $25 ($20 for students), $30 assigned table seating
With opener Ryan McNally. Tickets available at the box office, by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at markethall.org. Tickets are also available (cash only) at Moondance (425 George Street North, 705-742-9425)
For those who have wondered what the harpoon reference in the opening line of the second verse of “Me And Bobby McGee” is all about, allow Shawn Hall to chime in.
“It was Matt’s idea; he had never heard a harmonica referred to as a harpoon, so that’s what gave him the idea,” notes Hall, referencing The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer, the Vancouver-based blues/roots music duo he formed 11 years ago with guitarist Matthew Rogers.
“It’s an incredibly literal name; a difficult name to cross borders with and get into kids’ festivals. At least we know that our band name means something and that it takes up a shitload of letters on a marquee.
“When ‘murderer’ is in your band name … well, we’ve been asked ‘Why do you guys have murderer in your band name?’ by so many border officials.”
With a Juno Award nomination and five albums to its credit — the latest, Apocalipstick, released just a few weeks ago — The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer is touring Canada this month; a trek that will bring the pair to the Market Hall Performance Centre (140 Charlotte St, Peterborough) on Friday, April 14th
“They (audience members) are not really going to believe what they’re hearing,” assures Hall, the harpoonist in the equation alongside Rogers’ axe (electric guitar), with a more than generous helping of foot percussion in the mix.
VIDEO: “Forever Fool” – The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
“Supporting this record we’ve got two drummers (himself and Whitehorse-based Patrick Hamilton). We’ve got like a double thumping going on and we’re singing through a whole array of things that sort of thicken the stew and add textures … a whole bunch of psychedelic sorcery.”
“We’re not your mom and dad’s blues band. We certainly don’t shy away from blues festivals, and we get invited to a good chunk of them, and we love our relationships with blues communities across the country, but we realize how conservative this genre is.
“We’re not everybody’s bag. For us, it’s just really honest music that comes from pretty raw emotional places and blues music is one of the best genres for that traditionally.”
It was at a music jingle recording session in 2006 that Hall and Rogers first met and, according to Hall, came to the realization “that neither of us were that flaky, a miracle in the world of the arts.”
That said, there was something present that was well worth building on.
Rogers and Hall met at a music jingle recording session in 2006 and decided to form The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer. (Publicity photo)
“We had a significant amount of follow through, stubbornness, determination, drive — whatever you want to call it — and we really admired a strong work ethic. Matt went out in Montreal and saw a show that really turned him on to finger picking. It was Michael Jerome Brown, just an incredible guitarist.
“That was kind of a turning point for him. He said, ‘Hey, what do you think of going back to the harmonica?’ I wasn’t relying on the harmonica to make money; it’s a difficult instrument to make a living off of.”
The union formed, The Blues Can Kill marked their album debut in 2007, followed by the release of a self-titled album the following year. Along the way, both quickly came to the realization that their musical bond could reap bigger dividends.
VIDEO: “Shake It ” – The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
“I think we jumped on at the right time,” says Hall.
“Duos have been around forever. However, the economics of big bands … well, you see large bands that have been around for decades doing stripped down tours of two or three people. That’s not easy for the old cats who have been doing it forever. They didn’t design their songs as duos. It’s pretty clear the younger generation, 10 years, 20 years younger than me, are chomping at the bit to figure out if they can cut it in the duo world.”
“When it works on stage, which it does 90 percent of the time, it feels great — but there’s nothing to hide behind. Holy crap, do you know how many nights I wanted to not be the lead singer and the harmonica player and take it back and roll with that? We tried a few songs that were on commercial radio, tried them live, and they just didn’t quite feel right, so we reinterpret them and do them duo style.
“For this record, that’s why we went to The Yukon and got a really original interesting character (Hamilton) to bring to the band so that we can flesh things out and we could transform in front of people’s eyes, still keeping the nucleus of the duo but bring things into a larger world for us.”
VIDEO: “Roll With The Punches” – The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
While more than one artist has downplayed the significance of award recognition, Hall makes no secret of the positive impact the Juno Award nomination for 2014 album A Real Fine Mess had, and still has, on their success.
“It threw us into the world of Sam Roberts, Rush and Barenaked Ladies,” says Hall. “It threw us into the Ontario world.
“The Juno nomination definitely helped us east of Winnipeg. It really helped bridge a gap. We got to hang out with (acclaimed producer) Daniel Lanois. That’s pretty cool. We got to perform on the non-televised night of the awards and it was very significant for us. We realized that awards have nothing to do with who wins. They have everything to do with the immense amount of passion and hard work that many of the nominated people put together to get there.
“We walked away from that weekend realizing that everybody is a winner who actually shows up. If you win (a Juno Award), you get a few more festivals and a hell of a lot more pictures but when the smoke clears, you’re back down in the trenches where you were.”
Rogers and Hall in performance. “We’re not your mom and dad’s blues band.” (Photo: The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer)
Hall’s musical weapon of choice is one he’s being familiar since age 14 when his grandmother gifted him a harmonica for Christmas along with, he laughs, a book titled How To Play Harmonica For the Musically Hopeless.
“My parents had a pretty awesome record collection. Bob Dylan was probably the very first record I tried to play along to, but Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee’s self-titled album was the one I learned everything from. It was the greatest teacher I possibly could have had. If my parents didn’t have that record, I don’t know to what extent I would have gotten into harmonica.
“That record is still my favourite all-time blues record. I’ve got an autographed copy of it at home from the original producer. He had three copies left of the record in L.A. and he sent me one of them. That’s my Stanley Cup.”
AUDIO: “Get Ready” – The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
With Apocalipstick being very well-received — the first single “Get Ready” is charting high with “Forever Fool” on the cusp of release — The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer will arrive in Peterborough at the top of their game.
“I’m 41 (years old) and I’ve been playing in bars since I was 16 but this is different; this record is different,” assesses Hall.
“We’re getting much more attention with blues societies and commercial radio and CBC, and with folk communities. We’re getting a really, really wide range of attention this tour. We’re learning how to communicate, learning what the nuances of each community are and how to get people to feel more comfortable and let loose and enjoy themselves. What does enjoyment look like in different communities? Every crowd is different.
“It’s very much a challenge. You need to be pretty intuitive. Keeping wonder alive is a real day-to-day chore.”
Despite their success, don’t think for a minute that Hall or Rogers are taking anything for granted.
“Whenever we sell out gigs, we don’t go, ‘Yeah, this is what we do.’ That’s pretty pinch-me, pretty amazing, given how many bands are touring, given how fickle the climate is with people’s attention span to music. We feel incredibly fortunate.”
VIDEO: “Don’t Make ‘Em Like They Used To” – The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
While the tour for Apocalipstick is the current focus, there is, Hall says, “a greater plan” to perform more in Europe.
“We’ve really carved Canada fairly decently. We’re very grateful for the fans we have here — we haven’t taken anything for granted — but we’ve been over there (Europe) a couple of times and had immense success, so we’d like to go there and dig into the festival scene and explore that some more. Then maybe take a break next winter because we both have very young families.”
As for the Market Hall show, it will mark a homecoming of sorts for Hall, who attended Trent University for two years.
“I remember going to see Big Sugar there,” notes Hall.
“I know they did a big reno there, right? I hope people can dance.”
Presented by the Market Hall Performing Arts Centre, general admission tickets for The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer cost $25 ($20 for students and $30 for assigned cabaret table seating) at the box office, by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at markethall.org. Tickets are also available (cash only) at Moondance (425 George Street North, 705-742-9425).
Ryan McNally
Roots musician Ryan McNally from Whitehorse opens the show with acoustic blues and old-timey jug band jazz (photo: Ryan McNally / Facebook)
Blues/roots artist Ryan McNally from Whitehorse is opening.
McNally was raised in rural Quebec, south of Montreal along the U.S. border. He began pursuing music at the age of 10 when he first picked up the guitar. In his late teens and early twenties, he sought out the musicians he heard at cafes and bars for lessons in fingerstyle blues. His first release, Down Home, is a distillation of the genre.
McNally has a passion for studying acoustic traditional blues, jazz, and old-time music. This passion led him to spend a winter in New Orleans, where he wrote the majority of the material featured on his latest release, Steppin’ Down South.
Inspired by hillbilly blues and 1920s jug band jazz, with instruments like washboards and washtub basses, Steppin’ Down South is saturated with the sounds and rhythm of New Orleans streets.
McNally is currently touring with The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer as the opening act.
After an extensive search over the past week, police have found Majorie Lucas's body washed up on the shores of Lake Ontario
The Quinte West Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) has called off their search for 70-year-old Marjorie Lucas after finding a woman’s body matching her description on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Grafton area.
Lucas of Quinte West went missing on Saturday, March 25th, along with her Springer Spaniel dog. She was last seen driving a 2010 brown Chevrolet Malibu with Ontario licence plate MARJ68.
Several days after Lucas went missing, the search took a tragic turn when her dog Casey was found deceased on a shoreline at Presqu’ile Provincial Park in Brighton
On Tuesday, March 28th, Lucas’s empty car was located in the parking lot of a business on Harbour Street in Brighton.
On Sunday, April 2nd, police located Lucas’s dog deceased on a shoreline at Presqu’ile Provincial Park in Brighton.
On Thursday, April 6th, the Northumberland detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) responded to a report of a deceased person washed up on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Grafton area.
Officers located a deceased female matching the description of Lucas.
On Saturday, April 8th, a post mortem examination was conducted at the Office of the Chief Coroner and Forensic Pathology Service and confirmed the identity of the deceased woman as Marjorie Lucas.
Police say foul play is not suspected.
Drawn Away by Peterborough's Holly Bennett is a young adult novel about a modern-day teenager named Jack who is transported into the world of Hans Christian Andersen where he meets the Match Girl
Peterborough writer Holly Bennett recently launched Drawn Away, her seventh young adult novel, about a teenaged boy who finds himself transported from the modern day into the world described by Hans Christian Andersen in his grim short story “The Little Match Girl.” Kirkus Reviews describes it as “a definite crowd-pleaser for fairy-tale enthusiasts and fantasy lovers.”
Holly Bennett (supplied photo)
Holly is the author of six other young adult titles: The Bonemender teen fantasy series (The Bonemender, The Bonemender’s Oath, and The Bonemender’s Choice), Redwing, and two books inspired by Irish mythology: The Warrior’s Daughter and Shapeshifter. All are published by Orca Book Publishers.
Her books have been nominated and shortlisted for numerous awards and honours, including the OLA Forest of Reading Awards, the Sunburst Award, the Stellar Teen Book Award, Resource Links “Year’s Best”, and The New York Public Library’s “Books for the Teen Age” list.
Holly is a freelance editor and writer who worked for many years as editor-in-chief of the Today’s Parent Special Editions, heading up the “birth and babies” beat. She is now editor of Education Canada, a magazine published by the Canadian Education Association. Born in Montreal, she is a long-time resident of Peterborough, where she and her husband John Hoffman have raised three sons, three dogs, and many small critters.
An excerpt from Drawn Away
Published by Orca Book Publishers, 2017, and available in print and ebook versions on Chapters/Indigo and Amazon in print and ebook versions and in selected bookstores.
The cover of Drawn Away
JACK
I don’t believe it. I’m here again.
I’m here again, and it’s just the same: the long street, the grimy, looming buildings, the mist. More mist, even.
And the girl.
I’m still not scared, not exactly, but I don’t have the calm dreaminess of last time. This time there’s no pretending it’s just a dream. This is something really freaky, and not in a good way.
I walk toward the skinny girl, because what else is there to do? She sees me right away this time, and when she does her face lights up like it’s Christmas Day.
“Jack! You came back!” she says, and for some reason her smile and warm welcome creep me out.
“Yeah,” I say. “I’m back, but I don’t know why I’m here. I don’t even know how I got here.”
“Oh.” I’m up close now, so I get a good look at the strange expression that flits across her narrow face. It looks like … disappointment? Maybe even a bit hurt. Then she gives a little shrug, fastens those big blue eyes on me and smiles again.
“Well, no matter. You’re here now, and that’s lovely. I’ve been hoping you’d come.”
I shuffle uncomfortably, with no idea how to respond. Then I have the really uncomfortable thought that I am worrying about my manners with a hallucination.
The match girl gazes up at me, and it strikes me that her eyes are a lot like Lucy’s, and that the look in them right now is not so different from how Lucy looked at me right after we — no, no, no, I don’t want to have this thought, but I’m having it anyway.
“Jack,” she says — and suddenly I don’t like her using my name, wish I’d never offered it — “you’re the first person to ever visit me. I never knew how lonely it was here until you came. So of course I’m happy to see you. Will you stay and talk longer this time?”
“Well.” I clear my throat, stalling. For the first time, it occurs to me that I have no idea how to go home, or wake up, or whatever. And now I am scared. “The thing is, um — look, won’t you tell me your name? I can’t very well call you Match Girl.”
Her face shuts down and hardens for a second. “Other people do.”
I backpedal. Somehow it doesn’t seem like a good idea to make her mad. “Okay, that’s cool.” Her expression changes to confusion, and I realize cool is probably not part of her vocabulary. “No problem, Match Girl. See, I don’t seem to have any control over this, coming or going. I just … find myself here.”
I’m actually trying not to think about this fact-that way lies panic. And in groping for a different thought, I get a great idea. I’ll take a pic, and then when I get home — if I get home, my mind corrects, and I shove that word away, hard — when I get home, if the photo’s there I’ll know I didn’t imagine her.
I reach into my jeans pocket, but there’s no phone. I pat down my other pockets, come up blank and think it’s probably in my jacket or backpack. Then I realize I don’t have my meter either. It’s almost always in my front right pocket. I grope at my beltline — no pump. What the hell?
“What’s wrong?” asks the Match Girl. She’s watching my performance with bright interest.
“I’m missing some things — some important things.” I do feel the familiar lump from my glucose tabs, but there’s something odd about it, and when I pull them out the tablets are in a little cloth bag instead of a plastic tube.
The girl nods knowingly. “Pickpockets. They’re thick on this street.” Then, puzzled, she corrects herself. “Were thick. There’s nobody now. What have you lost?”
I open my mouth and then realize she won’t have the slightest idea what I’m talking about. Instead I ask, “What year is this, and what city?”
She rolls her eyes. “Copenhagen, of course. And it was 1823 when I died, but that was some time ago.”
She says it so casually — when I died — and now my floaty little don’t-worry-this-can’t-really-be-happening bubble bursts, and I’m so scared I’m afraid my legs might buckle. I’m in a time warp with a dead girl and none of the technology that keeps me alive came with me, maybe because it doesn’t actually exist here. I start to shake, and I’m shaking so hard my head’s nodding back and forth and —
“JACK!”
— and I’m staring up into wide blue eyes, but they’re Lucy’s eyes. She’s standing over me, shaking my shoulders and shouting my name and looking terrified.
If you’re a published author in the Kawarthas area and want to have your work featured on our website, please email publisher@kawarthanow.com.
Three of the original members of The Ireland Brothers (Daniel Ireland, Dylan Ireland, and Liam Wilson) will be joined by Matt Greco and Chris Altman for a reunion show at the soon-to-be-closed Pig's Ear Tavern in Peterborough on Saturday, April 8, with special guest opener Kate LaDeuce (photo: The Ireland Brothers / Facebook)
Every Thursday, we publish live music and performance events at pubs and clubs in Peterborough and The Kawarthas based on information that venues provide to us directly or post on their website or social media channels. Here are the listings for the week of Thursday, April 6 to Wednesday, April 12.
If you’re a pub or club owner and want to be included in our weekly listings, please email our Nightlife Editor at nightlife@kawarthanow.com.
Closed temporarily for renovations, reopening by Saturday, April 8
The Lounge by Lignum
442 George St. N., Peterborough
(705) 775-9463
Friday, April 7
7pm - Robert Atyeo
Coming Soon
Saturday, April 29 6-8pm - International Jazz Day "Dine with Jazz" ft Steve Holt (piano) and Dave Young (bass)
McThirsty's Pint
166 Charlotte St., Peterborough
(705) 743-2220
Thursdays
10pm - Jan Schoute
Fridays
10pm - Brian Haddlesey
Saturdays
10pm - Brian Haddlesey
Mondays
10pm - Trivia Night
Tuesdays
9pm - Topper Tuesdays w/ DJ Jake Topper
Wednesdays
9pm - Cody Watkins
The Mill Restaurant and Pub
990 Ontario St., Cobourg
(905) 377-8177
Thursday, April 6
7pm - Don Owen Band
Coming Soon
Thursday, April 13 7pm - Steve Fisher
Murphy's Lockside Pub & Patio
3 May St., Fenelon Falls
(705) 887-1100
Coming Soon
Thursday, April 13 8pm - Jesse Slack
Oasis Bar & Grill
31 King St. E., Cobourg
(905) 372-6634
Thursdays
6:30pm - Live music
Sundays
5:30pm - PHLO
Wednesdays
6:30pm - Live music
Pig's Ear Tavern
144 Brock St., Peterborough
(705) 745-7255
Thursdays
9pm - Open stage (cancelled for April 6)
Saturday, April 8
9pm - The Ireland Brothers (Daniel Ireland, Dylan Ireland, Liam Wilson, Matt Greco, and Chris Altman) w/ Kate LeDeuce
VIDEO: "Guitar Boogie" - The Ireland Brothers
Mondays
Pool Night
Tuesdays
Music night w/ DJ Johnny Punter
Wednesdays
Humpday Karaoinke
Coming Soon
Saturday, April 15 1:30-5:30pm - Final PMBA Deluxe Blues Jam at The Piggy hosted by Rezonator (by donation) ; 9pm - Mokomokai, Little Foot Long Foot, Hellbros, Garbageface ($3)
Friday, May 12 5:30pm - Peterborough Live Music Festival Acoustic Jam w/ Nathan Bottomley, The Templars (all ages, $5 or $15 for weekend pass, in advance at www.ticketscene.ca/events/17190/)
April showers bring May flowers, but when combined with spring snowmelt they also increase the risk of flooding. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry along with local conservation authorities have issued flood warnings, watches, and watershed condition statements for the Kawarthas region.
A flood warning means flooding is imminent or already occurring, a flood watch means there is potential for flooding, and a watershed conditions statement includes a flood outlook (early notice of conditions that may lead to flooding) or water safety information.
Here are the flood conditions as of Tuesday, April 25, 2017 across the Kawarthas region:
Flood Warning for York and Madawaska River Watersheds, Flood Watch for Gull River Watershed
Last update: April 18, 2017
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry – Bancroft District is advising area residents that a Flood Warning is in effect for the York River and Madawaska River Watersheds, and a Flood Watch is in effect for the Gull River Watershed.
A Watershed Conditions Statement – Flood Outlook remains in effect for the rest of Bancroft District.
Total rainfall over Bancroft District through Friday is expected to be in the range of 15-30mm. Seasonal spring temperatures are expected.
While recent temperatures and precipitation have been causing the snow to disappear in parts of Bancroft District, a substantial snow pack with average to above-average water content remains across the northern half of the District, encompassing many headwater areas. With the forecast warmer temperatures and precipitation, continued and accelerated snowmelt is expected.
The York River and Madawaska River watersheds are already saturated and the additional rain and snowmelt will cause water levels and flows in the York and Madawaska Rivers to either rise or remain elevated. Flooding is expected in low-lying areas adjacent to the York and Madawaska Rivers.
As storage on the reservoir lakes in the Gull River watershed is nearing capacity, Parks Canada is continuing to move water through the system. Nuisance flooding is expected in this system, particularly in low-lying flood prone areas on the Gull River through the Village of Minden.
With the recent rain and snow melt, reservoirs across the remainder of the district are elevated. Smaller streams and creeks will respond quickly to the additional runoff. Larger water bodies, including the reservoir lakes, will take longer to react. Additional water accumulation in areas adjacent to watercourses, road ditches and areas with poor drainage may occur.
Residents of the Bancroft District should keep a close watch on conditions, regularly check for updated messages and exercise caution near fast-moving rivers and streams. Residents who have a historic susceptibility to flooding should take appropriate precautions to protect their property, such as ensuring sump pumps are functioning and securing items that may float away as water levels rise.
MNRF advises extreme caution when using forest access roads for outdoor activities. Many are seasonally inundated with water, prone to washouts, and may be impassable due to current water levels. The public should avoid crossing any submerged roads as there may be a risk to traveler safety. Barricades have been placed in locations where known washouts or dangerous driving conditions have been observed.
Flood Warning cancelled for Kawartha Lakes and Otonabee River
The Otonabee Region Conservation Authority (ORCA) has cancelled the Flood Warning (first issued on April 7th) for the Otonabee Region Watershed (Kawartha Lakes in the north including Buckhorn and Stoney Lake to Rice Lake in the south). A Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety is now in effect.
Inflows to the Kawartha Lakes from areas to the north have continued to decline over the past week. As a result, the water levels on the Kawartha Lakes and flows on the Otonabee River have subsided to the point that previously experienced flooding no longer exists.
What’s more, the disappearance of all traces of snow in the areas north of Kawartha Lakes combined with fair weather forecasts means that the spring freshet along the Kawartha Lakes and Otonabee River is now past. Therefore, the flood warning for the Kawartha Lakes and Otonabee River is now cancelled.
A Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety is now in effect for all of the watercourses and waterbodies in the geographical jurisdiction of ORCA. Despite the cancellation of the flood warning for the Kawartha Lakes and Otonabee River, area residents and visitors to the area should nonetheless observe caution around all waterbodies and watercourses because area lakes, rivers, streams and creeks continue to pose a serious danger due to extremely cold water temperatures. Dams, culverts and other water control and water conveyance structures are to be avoided at all times.
Flood Watch cancelled for the Lower Trent Watershed
LLower Trent Conservation advises municipalities and the public that the Flood Watch issued on April 7th for the Trent River from Hastings to Trenton is cancelled. A Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety is now in effect.
Water levels and flows along the Trent River from Hastings to Trenton will continue a steady drop this week as the spring runoff moves through the lower section of the river system.
The Trent-Severn Waterway will be continuing dam operations over the next several weeks in order to reduce water levels and flows to summer navigation ranges.
The long-range forecast currently indicates that a Colorado low system will move through the region this weekend bringing the potential of 30 to 45 mm of rain. This amount of precipitation could sustain the period of springtime water conditions.
Everyone is advised to exercise extreme caution around all waterways. Strong currents pose a safety hazard to anyone. Areas around water control structures should be avoided at all times. This Water Safety Statement will remain in effect for the next several weeks.
Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety for Ganaraska Region Watershed
Last update: April 7, 2017
The Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority has issued a Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety for the Ganaraska Region Watershed (the area from Wilmot Creek in Clarington to east of Cobourg from the south shore of Rice Lake down to Lake Ontario).
The Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority advises that a low pressure system is moving into Southern Ontario this evening ahead of a second storm later this week. Rain is expected to start overnight with total rainfall amounts of 20 to 30mm by noon tomorrow, when the system is expected to taper off and move out of the region. A second storm event is expected to begin on Wednesday night with possibly 30mm or more rainfall.
Most of the runoff associated with last Friday’s storm event has passed through the watersheds, however soil conditions remain wet and storage areas such as wetlands and ponds have reduced capacity to absorb more runoff.
The forecasted rainfall combined with wet watershed conditions will result in higher than normal water levels and flows in all our local streams. With the next storm arriving shortly after, a second round of runoff is expected to follow on Thursday and into Friday. No flooding is anticipated at this time.
Additionally, slippery stream banks, and fast flowing, cold water will create hazardous conditions around bodies of water, especially in the vicinity of culverts and bridges. Children should be warned to stay away from all watercourses.
This Watershed Conditions Statement will be in effect through Friday, April 7th, 2017. Conservation Authority staff will continue to monitor watershed conditions and provide updates as necessary. Should you have any questions or wish to report flooding, please contact the following GRCA staff at 905-885-8173.
Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety for Kawartha Watershed
Last update: April 13, 2017
Kawartha Conservation is advising local residents that the large Kawartha Lakes, specifically Cameron, Balsam, Sturgeon lakes and Pigeon Lake continue experiencing elevated water levels as a large amount of water moves through the Trent River system.
Water levels in the Kawartha Lakes have been elevated over the last several days in response to high water flows in rivers, including the Burnt and Gull rivers, which flow into the Kawartha Lakes from the north. Substantial runoff from recent precipitation as well as the melting of remnant snow cover in the headwaters of these northern tributaries, had been contributing to the higher flows.
Partner agencies report that the snow cover at the upper reaches of the Burnt and Gull rivers has now melted. As a result, flows in northern tributaries are decreasing. No significant precipitation is forecast for the next 5 days. Under these circumstances it is expected that water levels in Kawartha Lakes within Kawartha Conservation watershed will start declining in next few days.
While lake water levels are elevated, no flooding is anticipated at this time within the Kawartha Conservation jurisdiction at this time. However, shorelines and banks are saturated, and may be slippery and undercut. Kawartha Conservation is asking all residents, especially children, to use caution around the lakes and other water courses.
Trent-Severn Waterway officials are assessing the situation on an ongoing basis and are adjusting flows through water control structures accordingly. Dams in Fenelon Falls and Bobcaygeon are open to accommodate increased flows of the Burnt River and the other northern tributaries.
The story will be updated as flood conditions change.
The new Bike Night program on Thursdays offers tune-ups, workshops, and group rides to get you on your bike this spring. And check out the SPARK Spin bicycle routes offered during the SPARK Photo Festival in April.
It is officially spring! The snow we saw last week sent many of us back into hiding for a few days, but despite this brief return of winter, you may have already hauled your bicycle out of the garage, checked the tires, and taken it for a spin.
Each week, GreenUP provides a story related to the environment. This week’s story is by Karen Halley, GreenUP Communications and Marketing Specialist.
As a fair-weather cyclist, I am always eager to get on my bikes each spring. Again this year, at the first sign of warm sunshine and dry roads clear of snow, I was digging through the shed past the snow shovels and toboggans, to clear the way for my bikes.
I have two bikes: one for going fast and travelling longer distances, and a step-through cruiser bike for going at a nice, leisurely pace to nearby destinations. For years I have gotten by with minor maintenance and quick fixes to small mechanical issues. This year, I am faced with a new dilemma: both of my bikes require some TLC.
That is why I am excited about Bike Night, a new program offered by GreenUP and B!KE, with help from the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the City of Peterborough. Bike Night is a free community program running every Thursday evening from April to September. Each Thursday focuses on a different theme to help make riding your bike easy, convenient, and fun.
The first Bike Night on Thursday, April 6 is a two-hour workshop to help get your bike raedy for spring and to learn about seasonal bike maintenance.
Thank goodness each Thursday in April is planned to help us all get tuned up and geared up for hopping on our bikes. Starting on April 6th, the very first Bike Night is a two-hour workshop to help you (and me) get our bikes ready for spring, while teaching us about the basics of maintaining our bikes throughout the season.
Bike Nights falling on the first Thursday of each month are dedicated to bike mechanics including repair, maintenance, and building.
If your kids are eager to begin biking to school and the playground, bring the kids to the second Bike Night on Thursday, April 13th for a special Family Bike Tune-up. The workshop will cover the ABC’s of bike maintenance in a playful and accessible way. Be prepared to work as a family on each bicycle, in turn. Kids aged 8 to 12 often demonstrate the most interest and ability to work on bicycles.
In fact, Bike Nights falling on the second Thursday of each month will be family-friendly and fun for kids of all ages. Family Bike Nights being offered throughout the season include family bike games to practice maneuverability, visibility, and control, and a family group ride, or Kiddical Mass in June.
A special Family Bike Tune-up workshop covering the basics of bike maintenance in a playful and accessible way takes place on Thursday, April 13. Bike Nights falling on the second Thursday of each month will be family-friendly and fun for kids of all ages.
Once my bikes are ready to roll, I mostly use them for commuting to work or to run errands. I find that cycling lanes and paved trails make getting around Peterborough more convenient than getting in the car. Riding also gives me the opportunity to choose routes that are tucked away on trails along green spaces or that allow me to take in picturesque views Jackson Creek, Little Lake, or the Otonabee River along my way.
I have only been commuting on bike for about three years. It took some time to learn the routes that worked best for my most common destinations (while avoiding the hills), but getting to know the routes have been fun and rewarding. If you and your family are thinking about making the switch to bicycle commuting, check out Bike Night on the third Thursday of each month for workshops specifically focused on commuter skills, route planning, and gear talks that will build your confidence to get you on your bike.
For breathtaking views, take a family ride on the Trans Canada Trail through Jackson Park to the Orange Corners trestle bridge.
Cycling is great for getting around, but on sunny weekends, I also enjoy taking the Trans Canada Trail through Jackson Park to the Orange Corners trestle bridge to take in the breathtaking views.
Peterborough also has many mapped road routes for those who love tackling hills and drumlins. What a great way to get fit and to also visit restaurants, pubs, and bakeries in the surrounding townships.
I was once told that you are not truly a “Peterborian” until you ride your bike to Lakefield for ice cream. After living in Peterborough for 15 years, I finally made the trip last spring — I’ve never tasted ice cream so delicious.
Never tried a longer, more scenic trip on your bike? Now is your chance.
Bike Night on the fourth Thursday of each month will focus on discovery rides. Group rides will visit parks, galleries, new trails, and gardens — and rumour has it, there is a buttertarts-by-bike trip being planned.
You can also check out five SPARK Spin routes offered this year as part of SPARK Photo Festival. Self-guided routes are available on-line, each with photo exhibit stops along the way. Routes travel through Peterborough, Lakefield, Bridgenorth, Douro, Campbellford, and Warkworth! Two guided tours will be led by GreenUP and SPARK, on April 8th and April 22nd.
Bike Night on the fourth Thursday of each month will be a group ride, visiting parks, galleries, new trails, and gardens (and possibly butter tarts)
No matter what type of cycling you enjoy, Peterborough is flush with options for every type of cyclist. Join Bike Night staring April 6th through to the end of September to build skills, gain confidence, learn the rules of the road, explore new routes, and have fun with your family.
Be sure to check out peterboroughmoves.com for registration details as some workshops have limited participant numbers. For more information contact Lindsay Stroud, GreenUP Manager of Transportation and Urban Design Programs at lindsay.stroud@greenup.on.ca or 705-745-3238 x209.
Folk Under The Clock presents singer-songwriter and guitarist Bruce Cockburn at the Showplace Performance Centre in Peterborough on September 25, 2017. Hamilton's Terra Lightfoot will be opening. (Photo: Denna Bendall)
Bruce Cockburn, one of Canada’s most revered and respected songwriters and musicians, is returning to Peterborough this fall as part of a North American tour supporting his new record.
The September 25th concert at Showplace Performance Centre (290 George St. N., Peterborough, 705-742-7469) also features Hamilton’s Terra Lightfoot, who will be opening with a solo performance.
Tickets for the show, the debut concert in Folk Under The Clock’s 31st season, are $58 (includes HST and a $3 service fee) and go on sale Friday, April 7th, at the Showplace Box Office or online at www.showplace.org.
The 71-year-old Cockburn is releasing his new record, Bone On Bone, on September 8th. His first release since 2011’s Small Source of Comfort, Cockburn says “there’s a lot of rhythm on this album”, with blues, Latin folk, and a “touch of jazz”.
Bruce Cockburn in 1969 performing at the Riverboat Coffee House in Toronto’s Yorkville. Other notable musicians who played the Riverboat include Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Murray Mclaughlan, James Taylor, and Simon and Garfunkel. (Photo: York University Archives)
Produced by Colin Linden, Bone On Bone also features bassist John Dymond (Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, k.d. lang, Wilkinsons), drummer Gary Craig (Blackie and the Rodeo Kings), and Cockburn’s nephew and accordionist John Aaron Cockburn. All three musicians will be backing Cockburn during his tour.
Born in 1945 in Ottawa, Cockburn started playing guitar as a child, playing along to the music of Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry. After leaving high school, he travelled around Europe busking (he was arrested in Paris for performing without a license). When he returned to Canada, he attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston for two years before dropping out. Back in Ottawa, he met local poet and musician Bill Hawkins, who encouraged Cockburn to write his own songs.
In 1969, after years of playing in area bands and honing his chops, Cockburn decided to pursue a solo career.
Then living in Toronto, he met Bernie Finkelstein. who helped Cockburn create his first solo record in 1970 — the self-titled Bruce Cockburn. Finkelstein eventually became his manager and Cockburn was the first artist he signed to his True North record label (where Cockburn remains to this day, although Finkelstein sold the label in 2007).
The year 1969 was also when Cockburn encountered musician David “Fox” Watson, who would become a major influence on Cockburn’s guitar-playing style. Cockburn was performing with Colleen Peterson at a coffeehouse at the University of North Carolina where he met Watson, who performed fiddle tunes on guitar using a fingerstyle technique. Cockburn was already playing fingerstyle, but he also absorbed Watson’s technique; he named “Foxglove”, his most well-known fingerstyle tune, after Watson.
Over the next four years, Cockburn released an additional four records: High Winds White Sky, Sunwheel Dance, Night Vision, and Salt, Sun And Time. He also scored music for the iconic Canadian film Goin’ Down the Road .
In 1974, Cockburn converted to Christianity — although he was more spiritual than evangelical, his religious beliefs would prove to be a major influence on his future lyrics as well as his social conscience.
VIDEO: “Wondering Where The Lions Are” – Bruce Cockburn
In 1979, Cockburn had his first hit with “Wondering Where The Lions Are” from Dancing in the Dragon’s Jaws. When he performed the song on Saturday Night Live in 1980, he found a wide U.S. audience.
This was also when he divorced from his wife of 21 years, and Cockburn’s sound moved away from folk towards electrified rock.
After a 1983 trip to Central America as a representative for Oxfam, where he witnessed Guatemalan refugee camps in Mexico being attacked by Guatemalan military helicopters, he wrote “If I Had A Rocket Launcher” on Stealing Fire. It became his second hit, receiving heavy radio play throughout the U.S. and Canada. It has since become a staple of activist music.
In the 1990s, Cockburn returned to his folk roots, writing more introspective and roots-rock music, recording another hit with “Last Night of the World” from 1999’s Breakfast in New Orleans, Dinner in Timbuktu.
VIDEO: “If I Had A Rocket Launcher” – Bruce Cockburn
VIDEO: “Last Night of the World” – Bruce Cockburn
In all, Cockburn has written more than 310 songs on 31 albums, selling more than seven million records worldwide. He’s won 13 Juno Awards, the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award, nine honorary doctorates, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. He has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.
In 2011, Canada Post issued a Bruce Cockburn stamp. Pacing the Cage, a documentary film about his life, music, and politics was released in 2013. His memoir, Rumours of Glory, was published by Harper Collins in 2014.
Bruce Cockburn has earned numerous awards and honours during his career, including this stamp issued by Canada Post in 2011 (photo: Canada Post)
Cockburn has been an influence for many musicians, and his songs have been covered by artists such as Barenaked Ladies, Jimmy Buffett, Anne Murray, Ani DiFranco, k.d. lang, and many more.
Acoustic guitarists like the late Michael Hedges and Canada’s own Don Ross were inspired by Cockburn’s fingerstyle playing, particularly by instrumental tunes from earlier in his career like “Foxglove”, “Sunwheel Dance”, “Cader Idris”, and “Islands In A Black Sky.”
The Ottawa Folklore Centre even published a much-sought-after collection of Cockburn guitar tablature in 1986, called All The Diamonds – Selected Songs from 1967-1979, reprinting it again in 2013. Unfortunately, the book is out of print again as The Ottawa Folklore Centre went bankrupt and closed its doors in 2015.
VIDEO: Acoustic Guitar Sessions Presents Bruce Cockburn
Most recently, Cockburn hosted the 2017 Juno Songwriters’ Circle at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa on April 2nd — where the audience greeted him with a standing ovation — before joining Juno nominees Chantal Kreviazuk, Colin Linden, Daniel Caesar, Donovan Woods, Lisa LeBlanc, and Paul Murphy for a series of performances. The sets from this concert are being broadcast on CBC Radio this week.
Cockburn, who currently lives in San Francisco, is also well known as a social activist. He has visited Mozambique, Nepal, Vietnam, Baghdad, Nicaragua, and Guatemala to protest refugee camps, landmines, and Third World debt. He has been tirelessly vocal in support of native rights, the environment, the promotion of peace, and has highlighted the work of Oxfam, the UN Summit for Climate Control, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, and Friends of the Earth.
Bruce Cockburn receiving the inaugural Folk Alliance International People’s Voice Award in February 2017 from Kris Kristofferson (photo: Andrea Brookhart)
In February 2017, singer Kris Kristofferson presented Cockburn with the Folk Alliance International conference’s inaugural People’s Voice Award, in recognition of Cockburn’s role in social and political commentary. While accepting the honour, Cockburn took the opportunity to encourage other musicians to protect free speech under the Donald Trump administration.
“It seems evident that the current administration is not much interested in democracy … they are trying to stifle opposition across the board by a range of means. Looks to me like they’re just getting started. Who will end up being the last line in the defence of truth? Maybe you and me. It doesn’t mean we can’t sing love songs, but if you think you can keep your head down and ignore the political side of things, it’s liable to be waiting for you with a blackjack in the alley when you come out the stage door.”
“We could be in for a rough couple of years. We may get tired, but we have to keep singing, keep sharing.”
Terra Lightfoot
Hamilton singer-songwriter and rising star Terra Lightfoot will be opening for Bruce Cockburn with a solo performance (photo: Lisa MacIntosh)
Opening for Cockburn at the September 25th show in Peterborough is Hamilton singer-songwriter Terra Lightfoot (no relation to Gordon) in a solo performance.
Previously a member of the alt-country band Dinner Belles, Lightfoot’s solo career took off with the release of her acclaimed sophomore record Every Time My Mind Runs Wild in 2015. Her soulful roots-rock sound is evident in that record’s hit, “Never Will”, which was shortlisted for the 2016 SOCAN Songwriting Prize.
VIDEO: “Never Will” – Terra Lightfoot
Since the release of that album, Lightfoot has toured relentlessly across North America, the UK, and Europe, playing hundreds of live dates. She’s performed alongside Emmylou Harris, Gordon Lightfoot (again, no relation), Ron Sexsmith, Built to Spill, Guided by Voices, The Both, Albert Lee, James Burton, Grace Potter, Bettye Lavette, Blue Rodeo, Randy Bachman, The Sadies, The Wood Brothers. and Daniel Lanois.
She received a Road Gold certification from the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA), an honour reserved for artists who sell at least 25,000 concert tickets within a 12-month period.
VIDEO: “Lily’s Fair” – Terra Lightfoot
In February, Lightfoot released her new album Live In Concert, which features orchestral arrangements of her original songs, through collaborations with the National Academy Orchestra of Canada. Those collaborations were staged and recorded in two hour-long shows on one night at McMaster University’s LIVELab, where Lightfoot was joined by special guest John-Angus MacDonald of The Trews.
As for supporting Bruce Cockburn on his current tour, that opportunity likely arose from the Vancouver Folk Music Fest in July 2016, when she performed just before he did.
“Bruce is an incredible talent and an amazing force live,” Lightfoot writes on her Facebook page. “I’m thrilled to now be joining him on tour.”
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