23rd July, Raven Camp, SK

Quiet day again. The weather was really nice and sunny. In fact, it is dusty here now as it is drying out from a run of warm days. Dan and I powered through logging again.

Sierd and some consultants from Golder arrived tonight for a review of some of the resources and projects. We ended up talking for a while and it was good to get a different insight into the Canadian mining industry.

Our footy copped a hammering today. Improvisation with a water bottle covered in foam makes for a nice ball. Horn and I were pulling hangers.

22nd July, Raven Camp, SK

Due to a minor mix up we have short of a few staples. No fruit, milk, eggs etc. Sultana bran and plain yoghurt didn’t really cut the mustard. Dave, our chef, was getting a little agitated as our food was supposed turn up about a week ago. To make things worse the truck driver took a wrong turn and ended up about 400km away from our camp. Lunch was the left overs of the left overs. We found out the truck driver was traveling overnight to drop off the food. When the truck arrived we all wanted to pitch in to fill our very empty fridges and freezers. Dave was overwhelmed with the presence of so much food. Secretly we all were very happy to have fresh fruit, milk and yoghurt!

Kept on logging today and dinner tonight was a touch of meat, salad and fresh cherries and pineapple.

Christine and Heather were keen on a boat trip, so we decided to stick the boat in at Hidden Bay on Lake Wollaston. We took a few obligatory boat inthe truck shots where I got bitten by a bug. I had a big blood spot on the back of neck and I didn't feel a thing. Nasty.

The Umpherville River flows into the lake nearby and it is a picturesque spot. We drove through the lake which was irregular in shape with long narrow connecting zones on a north-east strike. The steep sides and deep parts to the lake here form along drumlins, a glacial feature that is very common in these parts. The north-east direction dictates the last ice flow direction.
Anyway, we pulled up in a nice spot near a T-junction in the lake and first cast walleye!! We were surprised as hell. Leo got one and so did Heather. The girls enjoyed the fish. There were a couple of boats in the water, a surprise, including one with two American kids. As we drifted down the lake, we come across Wollaston Lodge, a fishing lodge tailored to the American big money market to fish in remote Saskatchewan. Can you imagine these people, when they see two Aussie blokes talking shit and being loud and obnoxious? Anyway the lodge is fitted out very well and the fishing was really good. The surprising thing was that we only caught walleye, no pike at all. A record and our new fishing spot. We kept a couple for eating at the very end. We will be back here for sure.

21st July, Raven Camp, SK

Quiet day catching up on laundry and blog. Took Sheila, the camp dog, for a walk around the camp and threw her stick into the water behind us. It did rain a bit today! The weather has been fantastic and I have been making the most it. Only 50m behind our tent is a small lake rimmed with pines. It’s a beautiful spot.

Here's some photos from the camp. Sunset, the lake, the tent - inside and out, and the office / first aid tent.

20th July, Raven Camp, SK

Got to talk to Tan today!! It made my day!! She will be here soon, fishing and stuff!!

19th July, Raven Camp, SK

Apart from work, Leo had another brilliant plan. We found a nearby track with a hill and we made a dirt jump and covered it with ply. We went dirtboarding! We had some awesome spills but we got some great air!! Leo tweaked out a few but mine was more cannonball style. Later we took the kite and board to the airstrip where Leo got a few kiteboard runs in. The kite gets some speed up and Leo was carving his way along the strip. I had a go of the kite and my first turn took the kite straight into the ground. I got the hang of it later. We drove into the wind with Leo flying from the back of the truck. A cool day! All in a days work I say.

18th July, Raven Camp, SK

Went probing this morning with Dan. Probing involves running a geophysical tool down a drill hole which measures the radiation from the mineralized rocks. Truthfully, once you got it set up it was really boring. Three hours later we finished.
Our plan this afternoon was to get the boat out at Kewen Lake. Our system for the rigging the boat up is really quick and it didn’t take us long to get to the lake. Steve, Leo and I can comfortably lift the boat onto the back of the truck. Brendo drove from Points and met us there. We bagged him for missing the turn off and having to back up.

We got the boat out on the lake and traveled to the south in the pursuit of walleye. Our intrepide explorer Brendo pointed out a huge beaver dam which turned out to be an uprooted tree. We traveled the length of the lake and only caught a few pike. We ended up fishing in our favourite spot casting back towards where we stand. Guess who nailed a big pike? Steve again. By the way my beard is going strong!!
Brendan and I convinced the guys the best spot to catch walleye was through the rapids and out the other side of the lake. The sun was low on the horizon but we all were keen. Taking the boat under the bridge through the rapids was good fun. We hit bottom a few times but it was a great experience. Traversiing the lake, everyone got excited to see a school of fish boiling on the water. Walleye, first come to mind!! Alas it was a loonie (a water bird) and her chicks escaping the path of the 9.9HP and four geos!!
It was getting late but we to give the deep spot a go. My first cast caught a small elusive walleye. We were ecstatic. Our prize fish had been caught. Pity it was only 20cm long, but a walleye no doubt. Later on Brendan caught a larger one. Steve warned me about the sharp dorsal spines. Instead, the sharp gill rakers went into my thumb and produced a mere flesh wound. We kept on fishing but we knew we had to take the boat back through the rapids and it was getting dark.
We ended up balancing the boat with Steve and Brendan up front with oars and me holding the engine out of the water, enough to get the propeller in now and then to give us the much needed power. When we got through them it was high fives all round. A fantastic fishing trip!!! Now we know where to find the walleye (or pickerel as it sometimes called).

17th July, Raven Camp, SK

Went out to check the rigs this evening. The afternoon sun on the rigs brought out the colours.

At 10.45pm, Steve come running into the tent. “BEAR!!” Leo jumped up and I got dressed and put on my contacts and was out there. One of the drill offsiders saw this larger bear walk through the camp. We all had our cameras (against the procedures) and Bart, the camp helper who loves his hunting got the gun. We thought the guy was full of shit until Leo saw the bear walk past one of the core shacks. From all accounts it was chest high. This happens and that is why we carry bear spray and bear bangers. Leo set off a bear banger, a small firework, which shoots 40’ into the air for good measure. I wasn’t impressed that I didn’t see my first wild bear.

16th July, Raven Camp, SK

Tom, one of the geologists went on break today, so I took over his core shack and logged away. My helper Dan is a good guy and he prefers my kind of music than Tom’s disco!! Fishing free day today!

15th July, Raven Camp – Wolf Lake, SK

Brendo and I went to Points North this morning to pick up the slings for the chopper. Points North is a series of warehouses and has an airstrip which services the local area. We checked out his shed for logging and then we saw a chopper that took a fall a while back. Not that nice seeing it after the chopper ride yesterday, but we have a good pilot, a good machine and a good conditions. Mark used the slings that morning to take timber out to the drill site. Slinging a 8 by 8 inch 10 foot long piece of timber looked quite difficult.

That afternoon, we got back into the chopper and went out to Wolf Lake to peg some more holes. We landed in a clearing formerly used for helicopter access but some of the trees had grown. Guess what – we chopped them down!! Brendo nearly messed up when the tree fell towards the chopper. We called him all sorts of names but everything was fine.
We searched the bush for old drill sites from the 70’s and I was amazed when we found collars on how quickly the trees had regenerated, After establishing some of the old lines we were happy that we could peg the holes confidently in a few days. On the way home we headed further east over the Wollaston Bay lodge. This lodge had four float planes, lots of motel style accommodation and lots of boats. Mostly catering for the expensive American fishing market. As we flew over, a float plane took off which was really good. The chatter in the head sets was great to listen to as well.

On return, I went through the core splitting procedures with Michel which is very different from back home.
That night we went fishing, surprise, surprise. Heather, a girl Tan and I met in Vancouver come up. So us fisherman and Heather went out. We found white rum, Zooper Doopers (icy poles) and dry ginger to be a good mix. Sweet, savoury and cold. Heather fell over in the water and caught a few fish. Horn got snagged and swam out to retrieve his lure. I ended up walking up my waist in the water looking for some of our lures we lost. I found three. Steve caught another belter!

14th July, Raven Camp – Wolf Lake, SK

My role here apart from been the fish supplier is to fill in for people while they on breaks. It is a good way to check out other projects and see a bit more of the country. Today, I was hanging out with Brendo to check out his Wolf Lake exploration project. We got to the old camp and waited. Mark, the chopper pilot flew in, idled and we boarded the chopper under the rotating blades and within 20 seconds we were in the air. The chopper in this area is a powerful tool. With the swamps, lakes, rivers and poor vehicular access the only way we can get to area is by helicopter. We followed the road down south, just past where we put the boat in only three nights before and then headed west. We found the old camp where the wooden drill core boxes were stacked. We unpacked some old core and took some photos of the rocks. Mark, the chopper pilot, is great bloke, and was willing to lend a hand. He took me through all the compartments in the chopper and was really informative. Brendo and I gave Mark and Matt (one of the helpers) some impromptu geology lessons which was really good.

We had some lunch on the side of the lake and then proceeded to go fishing. What? Well it is a non-accessible lake so we packed the rods into the chopper. We had a few casts and I got snagged. I didn’t want to lose another lure so I waded out into the thigh depth water in my jocks to retrieve it.

Afterwards, we flew to where the line cutters were working and saw a bald eagle and it’s nest in the highest tree on the highest hill in the area. It flew off and the wingspan was huge. The line cutters cut lines (tracks) through the bush and then hand dig the ground and level it so the drill can sit cleanly on timbers. By the way, the drill is flown in place in three sections and the crews flown in and out each day in the chopper. It’s a good gig! We flew to the next lot of holes and I navigated from the front seat. Once you get out of the trees you can see the lakes and work out where you have to go. We checked out two landing spots and picked one. When we landed the chopper sunk a bit into the muskeg. Matt, Brendo and I jumped out with the axe and Mark hovered 20m above us while we cut down some trees for him to land on. I love this exploration caper.
We did some walking through the bush added pegged a few new hole locations with the GPS. Co-ordinates of the proposed holes are plugged into this machine and then you walk through the bush using satellite navigation to find the spot. The best thing about this is, once you have found the spot you can cut heaps of tree down. So we did and had lots of fun doing it!! On the way back I asked if we could go via Kewen Lake to check out where the deep spots were. It was a 5 minute detour but well worthwhile. Under the bridge on the other side of the rapids it looked deep and like walleye territory. I took a lot of photos in our air reconnaissance mission.

Where we fish at Kewen Lake!! Big pike territory!!

13th July – Raven Camp

Learnt more about how to log core today from Steve and Dave. The team is quite young and it is good fun.

Another plan. Leo said “Come check the rig!” We did then we went to the airstrip. Consistent moderate to strong wind is unusual here. We got to the airstrip and Leo pulled out the kite. It is a trainer kite for kite boarding and kite surfing. I was the wingman which was best as the wind was really strong to the point that it was dragging him down the strip. Lots of fun. Brendo flew past in the chopper and his comments to the chopper pilot about us doing our environmental base line study to determine wind velocities didn’t work.

That evening we went fishing at Kewen Lake again. I had a terrible time and caught one fish and lost six of the nine lures I bought. We ended up talking shit and drinking white rum in the moss by the side of the lake. We fished until about 11:30pm and it was still twilight. The twilight here is amazing, it gets dark (blue) at around midnight and dawn starts at about 3am. Brendo caught another belter and the bugs were everywhere. Thanks to our uber-bug spray we were fine.

12th July – Raven Camp, SK

I did some logging with Steve and started learning the codes and practices. The core boxes are 1.5m long and you log on tables under fluoro lights. The “helpers” or fieldies are young kids from Saskatoon and good blokes. We had lots of fun joking around and getting it done (as they say here).

Brendo and I were very keen to back up our fishing luck and give it another go tonight. A rookie error was forgetting the bug spray. The bugs can be quite nasty. We put on our coats and fished away. It was terrible. Brendo and I come back quite early and full of bug bites. There are the traditional mossies, a spruce bettle which is really nasty (I haven’t been stung) and this little wasp that bites you and makes you bleed. You don’t feel the wasp bites but it looks like track marks on a junkies’ arm.

Near Kewen Lake, there is an old cabin. We stopped in to have a look and there was walleye skeletons everywhere. We were stoked just to see the semi-fresh carcasses. Another wierd thing was rabbit skeletons hung up to dry. One looked like he was quite comfortable recling in a hammock.

Instead of more fishing, we went for a cruise to the entrance gate to Rabbit Lake uranium mine, a big one just up the road and to the Hidden Bay camp ground. The forest here is quite old with an understory of pale green moss. It is referred to as parkland as it easy to traverse.

11th July – Raven Camp, SK

Horn saw me today and said “Dan, I have a plan!”. What? “No I will tell you after lunch!” After lunch I had a chat with Leo to get some further information. He wasn’t forthcoming. About 4.45pm, Leo asked if I new anything about boats. Sure I do. Sierd, our boss in Vancouver, hired a 14’ aluminium dinghy with 9.9HP motor for us to hoon around in. A great plan! We got into the boat, squeezed the fuel and pulled the cord. After about 30 pulls the boys thought I was Mr. Rubbish for the day. Have faith!! A few more pulls and it started. Once it got into gear, it stalled. It did this a couple of times until it was going under full steam. The plan has unfolded. The smiles on our faces were huge as we hooned around in the boat on the lake behind the camp. Plan B – Just keep on doing!! We put the boat in the back of the truck. Even with ropes and straps it looked quite precarious, but it worked. We trucked down to Umperville River, which flows into the massive Lake Wollaston. Steve, Brendo, Leo and I got the boat going and headed up stream. We caught a few pike but we were hunting walleye, the best eating fish in Saskatchewan. Steve, once again caught a huge pike. We tried to get up the rapids but the bottom kept on hitting. Sitting at the foot of the rapids with the motor engaged was lots of fun. We were in the purple zone but alas no luck with the walleye.

Drinking tins and hanging out in the boat was awesome. A great plan and well executed. A token footy photo pose and we were back in camp.

10th July – Raven Camp, SK

My first full day on site. There are 32 people in camp and we stay in a mix of insulated ATCO demountables (dongas) and canvas tents. I stay in a canvas tent with Leo, Steve and Tom all geos. I remember the first time I saw a photo of these tents I thought “no way” but they are quite good. We had a site safety meeting with all the crews and ran through a mini induction. When we were running through the wildlife interaction it started to rain. Here we all were watching how bear spray and a bear banger operates in pouring rain (and it is summer). Welcome to Saskatchewan. Leo and I checked the rigs and went through some of the core. The standards are a little lower here with some drillers and offsiders who choose not to wear helmets. Very different from home. The area we are drilling is the closest surface diamond drill program I have observed but with a narrow high grade shoot this style of deposit has about $1.8 billion Canadian dollars worth of uranium in it!

After knocking off at 5.30pm, Steve, Brendan and I walked into a lake called East Lampin. I got my introduction to walking in the bush. Muskeg – a swampy marsh with soft spongy moss which can spring up to 0.4m. Boulder fields – coarse uneven boulders left from a retreating glacier. Frost heave – the power of water turning to ice can shatter rock into flat slabs. All of this wasn’t easy to walk over but when we got to East Lampin Lake, it was like another post card. We got a few pike and then headed back to our original spot in Kewen Lake. The lake narrows at our fishing spot and then runs under a bridge over rocks into another section of the lake. A picturesque spot!

Steve caught some belter pike while we were wading in knee high water. Then I got one, it was 70cm long. It was fantastic to see this one come in and fight in the shallow water. I was so chuffed to catch a big one. Another photo opportunity!!