September 18 - Coast to Coast

Cape Spear – the most easterly point of Canada, and yes, this did feel like the final point of the White Cane Connections journey. I tied the red ribbon to the end of my cane and with the long strand draped around my shoulders, Lyle and I set off along the path overlooking the cliff.   When Lyle exclaimed, “We made it!” I felt  my eyes sting. Perhaps it was only the wind, but truthfully I think I might have been a little overcome with the emotion of the moment. So, I am going to finish today with a flurry of pictures. I can’t see the pictures clearly myself, but for those of you who also have sight challenges and who are following this blog, I will describe them. I know that you were all there with us in spirit and so although the pictures only show Lyle and me, in my mind, I can see hundreds of you there with us.

 

Picture 1 – I am standing holding the red ribbon which is blowing in the wind. The cliff and Atlantic Ocean are in the background.

 

Picture 2 - Same thing, but a different aspect. I am wearing a bright yellow raincoat which is more of a protection against the wind than against any shower of rain.

Picture 3 – This is a close up as I stand in front of the Canadian flag on a sign which designates this as the beginning or end of Canada.

Picture 4 – This is possibly my favourite because it shows Lyle and me with the red ribbon stretched out between us.  It is my favourite because I know that Lyle and I have completed this journey together. It is something that I would not have been able to complete without him.

Picture 5 – We took this picture on the day of our harbour cruise. The captain of the little boat we were on took us out onto the ocean and the picture is of the lighthouse at the entrance to the harbour.

Thanks to everyone for following along with White Cane Connections. Lyle and I are now going to be making our way home, but if you check in again at the beginning of October, I hope to have one more post as a wrap up of our experiences.

September 17 - St. John’s, NL

Monday morning dawned with blue skies and sunshine. It was a beautiful day for the final walk – yes, the final walk. Number 80!  I must admit to a slightly odd feeling about this. In some ways, the walk of this morning felt no different than others we had done. The people were lovely, the conversation focused on the same issues surrounding sight challenges and the walk itself was pleasant. Yet, here it was – six months minus six days and the end was here.

First, I must thank Duane Morgan from cnib for his hospitality at the St. John’s cnib office. It was good to meet some of the cnib staff. I enjoyed chatting with Jason, and hearing Debbie talk about the beginnings of Vision Health month in Newfoundland and St. John’s. She made some very good points when she explained her vision of this month, when the focus should be on an awareness of the services provided by cnib. Setting aside the month of May is an excellent opportunity to do this. 

I also had a chance to walk and talk with Elizabeth, Bill and Don, each of whom are CNIB clients but who are also members of the St. John’s CCB Chapter.  Elizabeth was especially excited that she had recently competed in the blind/visually impaired lawn bowling event at a national level, had won a gold medal in her category, and is now qualified to go to the international competition in Worthing, England next summer. She and Bill had both travelled to Australia for an international competition in 2009.

Don was also an advocate for blind sports. In fact, he is the coordinator of VIS/SUAL. The full name of this group quite adequately explains its goals - Visually Impaired Seniors/Students Undertaking Active Lifestyles. 

The walk today did present a few challenges. Light posts on narrow sidewalks made for challenging passage. Damp leaves left over from Hurricane Leslie and further rain interfered with the sweep of my cane, as did older and uneven sidewalks. One of the neat things was an audible traffic signal, unlike any I have heard before.  We crossed a busy street just down from the cnib office at a pedestrian crosswalk. When the button was pressed, there was a very loud buzz, almost like a loud alarm clock, which signalled that it was safe to cross. 

So, although the walk this morning was the last one, in many ways, it was similar to many others. We did have a photo opportunity with the red ribbon I have carried with me since Bill Conway presented it to me in Sechelt, BC last March, but I have decided that this red ribbon needs one more final celebration. I hope that you can wait until the next post to read about this! The picture below shows the St. John’s group at the beginning of the final walk. Elizabeth, president of St. John’s CCB is on my left, and Duane, director of the St. John’s cnib office is on my right. 

September 16 - St. John’s, NL

This weekend in St. John’s has been a good one for Lyle and me.  As you now know, Hurricane Leslie meant the cancellation of our ferry sailing from Sydney, and in order to complete our walks in Newfoundland, Lyle and I drove back to Halifax and flew to St. John’s. We also postponed the St. John’s walk from this past Friday until Monday – tomorrow. This left us with the whole weekend to explore. We had a wonderful time!

Over the two days we drove around the various sights and spent much time wandering around the downtown area. Lyle was fascinated with the brightly coloured shoebox homes and we were both impressed with the Basillica, the huge Roman Catholic Cathedral at the top of the hill.  Today, we were fortunate enough to meet one of St. John’s Ambassadors – a seven year old Newfoundland dog called Schooner and his owner, Colin.  I loved Schooner. He was definitely the biggest and most gentle dog that I have ever encountered. Thanks Colin for bringing him up to me so that I could give him a pat and have the following picture taken.

On our wandering around town we also came across the end, or perhaps the beginning, of the Trans-Canada Highway. I was reminded of the sunny day in March when we began the Victoria walk at Mile 0. Could that really be nearly six months ago now!  I know that some of my friends from that day are still following this blog, so a special hello to you!

Following is a picture of me beside the Mile 0 sign. Unlike the sign in Victoria which was the beginning of a walk with nine of us, yesterday Lyle and I came across the sign in St. John’s when we were the only two and so Lyle was again the photographer.

Tomorrow we will walk in St. John’s but it may be a day or two before I am able to have Internet access and do the next posting, so do keep checking!

September 12 - Stellarton, NS

Lyle and I are still in Nova Scotia and Stellarton was an unscheduled walk today. Our plans to head over to Newfoundland two days ago were thwarted by Hurricane Leslie. The ferries between Sydney and Newfoundland were all cancelled due to crazy winds, heavy rain and high seas. Although I was disappointed with the cancellations, I was also glad that we didn’t need to experience the four meter waves that were forecast.  But, what to do next? I didn’t want to be outdone by a little weather when we were so close to going “all the way”!

Our fares with Marine Atlantic were refunded without question, and after several phone calls we were able to move our hotel stay in St. John’s forward without penalty. The end result is that we have decided to backtrack to Halifax and we will fly from there to St. John’s. As you check the blog, you will see that the walk for there is posted for Monday, September 17.

Now for Stellarton! Lyle and I walked in New Glasgow a few days ago and really enjoyed the Samson River Trail. Today, we started our walk in the neighbouring town of Stellarton and walked towards New Glasgow, a round trip walk of eight kilometres. It was a beautiful day with warm sunshine and blue skies. The first part of the walk was on a smooth sidewalk. The second part was on a gravel path which was firmly packed and was a relatively easy surface for my cane. Today, I didn’t wear my green vest but of course I did use my white cane. I am not sure if it was the cane or if the people of this area are just naturally friendly but nearly everyone we passed had a cheery greeting for us.

We walked along the pathway to the same downtown spot we had walked to before and to the Sea Shack at Crabbies Fish Market where we sat at a picnic table and enjoyed tasty fish and chips. I highly recommend New Glasgow and Stellarton as a tourist stop!

Tonight I am packing our suitcase, ready for our flight to St. John’s tomorrow morning. Although the people there are still mopping up, Hurricane Leslie has moved out over the Atlantic and I am looking forward to our walk on Monday.

September 10 - Sydney, NS

Walking on the edge – that’s what it felt like today in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Truly I felt as if I was on the edge of the continent and the moist salt air only added to the sensation. Today there was also a drizzle of rain because this part of Cape Breton Island is on the edge of Hurricane Leslie.  Miraculously, for the duration of the White Cane Connections walk here, there was no rain and no wind. 

I walked with Louise Gillis and other members of the Sydney CCB.  CCB stands for the Canadian Council for the Blind.  This isn’t the first time that I have come into contact with the organization during my various walks. In fact, on my first walk in Sechelt, I met Bill, who is a member of the CCB Chapter there. Then in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island I walked with Carolyn and other members of NOVI, Nanaimo Organization for the Visually Impaired, another chapter of CCB.

I had a great time walking and chatting with the Sydney CCB group today. They are such an enthusiastic group and they gave Lyle and I such a warm welcome.  For some of the time we talked about our white canes.  We each seemed to be using a slightly different cane and this in itself was a topic for conversation. Many people think of a white cane as a single entity – only one style, length, etc. and that the person using it is blind, totally without sight. Today, seven of us used canes and I am sure that none of us had exactly the same sight as any other.

We also talked about blind sports. Sydney CCB has the only all female visually impaired Canadian curling team and today I met four members of that team. This past season they managed to attain a bronze in the CCB National Curling competition held in Ottawa. I could tell that they were itching to get started again for this next season. I hear that the ice goes in on October 1. Good luck, ladies!

Thanks again to the CCB group for being part of the White Cane Connections walk today. Lyle said that when seven of us walked along using our canes, we had a lot of heads turning for a second look. That’s what it’s all about - promoting awareness. I count today’s walk as a success.

The picture below shows our group. Louise Gillis, National president for CCB is standing at the front center, next to me.  

September 8 - Port Hawkesbury, NS

This morning when we got up, the sky was grey and there was a drizzle of rain. However, by the time Lyle and I crossed the causeway to Cape Breton Island, the sky was blue and the sun was shining. It was another beautiful day!

We met Bridget and her mother Marie at the entrance to the Civic Centre at Port Hawkesbury. We chatted for a bit and I showed Bridget my green White Cane Connections vest and turned on the Trekker Breeze.  Bridget doesn’t see out of her right eye, so I walked on her left side. We walked arm in arm and so I used my cane in my left hand – something a little unusual for me, but it all worked out very well. 

I had met Bridget and Marie in Edmonton a few years ago, but once we started talking, those years seemed to disappear in a flash. Bridget and I talked about the importance of using our canes so that other people would recognize that we had problems with our sight. This way it would be much easier to ask for assistance if we needed it.  We talked about some of the ways other people could make life easier for us. We especially mentioned how nice it was when people identified themselves when they came up to speak with us.

We didn’t walk all that far today, but we spent an hour and a half doing it!  Bridget and Marie, many thanks for meeting us for the walk today. I enjoyed the time we spent together.

The pictures below are of Bridget, myself and Marie outside the Civic Centre, and then one of Bridget and me on our walk.

September 7 - New Glasgow, NS

One of the interesting things about the way the White Cane Connections project has evolved is the way in which Lyle and I have travelled. Many times we have found ourselves off the regular tourist track and this has certainly been the case in Nova Scotia. Had this been an average “holiday” for us, I don’t think that we would have found ourselves listening to church bells in Amherst, eating peanut butter pie in Windsor, or strolling through the Hydrostone section of the city in Halifax.  (Hydrostone was a kind of cement mixture used to rebuild structures that were wiped out in the Halifax Harbour explosion. The mixture was used because it was thought that the buildings constructed from it would be resistant to any future fires.)

But back to my point...

I very much doubt if we would have found ourselves strolling down the Samson River Trail in New Glasgow either, the site of today’s walk.  What a wonderful excursion! The trail was a concept of the Sobey's family – yes, the same Sobey's whose name is now synonymous with one of Canada’s largest food distributors – and is still maintained by them. The trail runs along an old railway track between the towns of New Glasgow and Stellarton. I wore my White Cane Connections vest for the walk and we were greeted many times by others who were also using the trail.

Lyle and I finished our walk at the Duff Pioneer Cemetery. This is also worth a stop just for the history that is engraved on the headstones. The early Scottish pioneers of the mid-1770’s must have been a very hardy crew and their legacy is told here.

As I write this tonight I am wondering what new discoveries we will make in Port Hawkesbury tomorrow.

September 6 - Halifax, NS

Yesterday, when the wind began to howl and the rain pelted down, I was a little concerned about the Halifax walk. Was this Hurricane Leslie making inroads? Even the sky had a yellow tinge to it. As it turned out, I need not have worried.  Today dawned with an overcast sky, but no rain and a mild enough temperature. We were good for the walk.

Lyle and I arrived at the Halifax CNIB office a little early and Peter, Program Director, took us on a tour of the brand new building. In fact, parts of the facility were still undergoing the final finishing touches. I was especially impressed to learn an independent optometry office was planned in the space right next door to the CNIB low vision area. Excellent design and planning!

I am nearing the final leg of the White Cane Connections project, and perhaps it is this thought that caused me to be somewhat nostalgic today. Perhaps also, it may have been the events of the day. After the morning walk, I was privileged to speak with a support group facilitated by Robert, a CNIB staff person, and Pat, a loyal CNIB volunteer. It was the first support meeting to be held in the new building, and for those present, it was also their first support group meeting with other CNIB clients. Robert’s introduction took my thoughts back to my own first encounter with CNIB after my sight changed. It also made me think of the many services offered by CNIB and of course, I thought of my own support group back in Ponoka. I am looking forward to being with everyone again when Lyle and I return in October.

Now for another surprise for all of my Alberta CNIB friends. Guess who walked with us today in Halifax? The picture below tells the story. It shows Lyle and I with Leona Burkey!

Leona was the Peer Support Facilitator in the Edmonton CNIB office for ten years. During that time she made a strong impact on staff and clients alike. Leona hasn’t changed a bit. She still has the same warm and generous nature and bubbly personality. It was great to see Leona again and to share some time with her and Chris and their two delightful children, Maggie and Zachary. Thanks for walking with me today, Leona!

Only four walks to go now, but who’s counting! It will be New Glasgow tomorrow.

September 4 - Windsor again!

What a wonderful day it has been in Windsor, Nova Scotia. Our walk today took place in the downtown core with Mayor Paul Beazley, MLA Chuck Porter, Lion President Sue MacDonald, and numerous other members from the Windsor Lions club. The local newspaper was also there to report on the event. Our group walked down the main street of town and along to the Windsor Library where the Lions presented copies of my books to the library.

Following is a picture of some of today’s walkers posing in the library.

Tonight, Lyle and I were invited to address a special meeting of the Lions in their Den in the Community Hall. I am very impressed by this particular group and the work they do both within the community and on behalf of people who are either blind or partially sighted. Many of the dollars they raise have gone towards the gifting of guide dogs for the blind, but tonight a special donation of $2,500 was made to CNIB. Congratulations to the Windsor and area Lions for your enthusiasm and the work you do.

Now for a brief sightseeing trip also in the town of Windsor.  In between the walk and the meeting tonight, Lyle and I visited the Pumpkin Patch:  www.howarddill.com

Windsor is the Giant Pumpkin Capital of the universe! In the 1960’s, Howard Dill began growing pumpkins – and the bigger the better. His first entry into a pumpkin competition was in the United Sates when he loaded up his prize pumpkin and drove south.  He won the blue ribbon for the largest pumpkin easily and came home to Windsor to grow in earnest.

Howard has now passed away but his work has been taken over by his son and daughter. We were shown around by daughter, Diana. We were amazed at the large pumpkin which you can see in the picture below. It weighs close to eight hundred pounds and is still growing – about twenty pounds per day.

One of the really good things that Diana told us about was a day that is held in the fall. Pumpkins are set out on display and visitors can touch them, hold them and pose beside them. Diana explained that this day was especially good for people with sight challenges because they can get close to the pumpkins.

All in all, I want to thank the town of Windsor, especially the Lions and President Lion Sue, and our friend, Connie, for your hospitality, warm reception and a lovely day.

September 2 & 4 - Truro & Windsor, NS

On Sunday morning Lyle and I attended the service at St. John’s Anglican Church in Truro. There is such a long history around this area of Canada. The parish was started in 1835 and the present church was built in 1881. Our friends, Corrine and Brian live in Truro, so following the service they had invited us to lunch. It was great to see them again in their home in the heritage section of the city. In fact, this was the same area where we walked in the afternoon.

Lyle and I are now in Windsor. Our start to the day was coffee with Connie. I have been keen to write about Connie ever since I met her back in Alberta last July. Connie is colour blind.

I say that I am keen to write more about Connie simply because by doing so I can emphasis that there are many forms of vision loss or impairment. Connie has been colour blind since birth. She sees her world in tones of black, white and grey and various shades of those three colours. Actually, Connie told me this morning that she can also see one particular shade of blue and one particular shade of yellow. We put this to the test by spreading out the yellow bag of a McDonalds Egg McMuffin. Yes, Connie could distinguish this, but she certainly has no luck in identifying patterns of dots in any optometry clinic.

Connie says that she is able to live with her colour blindness because she has never known anything different. One of her hobbies is to do stained glass patterns and pictures. I thought it was an unusual hobby for someone who is unable to see colour and I asked her how she managed. Apparently, when she buys her glass, the store assistant labels the colours for her and then she has separate labelled shelves when she puts the glass away at home.

It is September as I am writing this and Lyle and I have been talking about the changing colours of the fall leaves. We are looking forward to this, but for Connie there will be no discernible change in the colour. Connie told me that one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen was in winter.  Snow was on the ground and there had been a frost so that the icicles were hanging from the branches. It was an amazingly sunny day and the light shone brilliantly on the hanging icicles. The whole scene was one of black, white, and grey and was one of the most beautiful sights that Connie has ever seen.

This afternoon we will walk in Windsor and then there is the meeting with the members of the local Lions Club tonight.