We all know we live in a spectacularly beautiful part of Ontario, but sometimes it takes highly knowledgeable experts to open our eyes and look at our own back yards in a new way. Who knew that scientists from all over the world travel here to marvel at and study things we take for granted: "pillow" rock formations from ancient sea beds; the Plevna Fault (which is not a shortcoming of the good citizens of that town); traces of the last glaciers to scour this landscape; a watershed divide; and an extensive wetland and headwater that harbours rare species? We can even boast of Little Round Lake: a meromictic lake, which is a stratified lake consisting of two layers that do not completely mix, and creatures that thrive without oxygen.

On the Woodlands and Wetlands Tour on April 23, organized by Friends of the Salmon River, about 50 lucky passengers learned to look at their terrain in a new way, thanks to some local scientists and experts. Gray Merriam (landscape ecologist) taught us about the Kennebec Wetlands complex, Dave Smallwood (professional forester) pointed out past and present forestry practices and woodlot management, Dugald Carmichael was the geologist on board who enlightened us with stories of events millions and billions of years ago that formed what we now see in the rocks at roadsides, and Don Cuddy (ecologist) shared his knowledge and insights into the complexity of the relationships between living things and the landscape.

The route took us north on Road 38 to Sharbot Lake, then up Road 509, through Snow Road Station, Ompah, Plevna, Meyers Cave, south on 41 to Northbrook, Henderson, and continuing south through Arden, returning to our starting point in Verona. There was never a dull moment as commentators both educated and entertained us.

The trip was a partnership sponsored by Friends of the Salmon River, the Ontario Woodlot Association: Limestone Chapter, and the Frontenac Stewardship Foundation. For more on these groups, see friendsofsalmonriver.ca, www.ontariowoodlot.com, and facebook.com/Frontenac-Stewardship-Foundation.

Can't see the forest for the trees? Dave Smallwood of the Ontario Woodlot Association explains good woodlot management practices.

On April 30 Ruth Wark and her crew of volunteers at the Snow Road Snowmobile Club presented a cheque to representatives from the Perth branch of the Canadian Cancer Society to support research, programming and prevention in the fight against melanoma. The club held a fundraising breakfast for the cause and after all the pledges were in, the final total raised was $1466. President Derrick Dixon and fundraising manager Jessica Roback of the Perth CCS received the cheque and conveyed their thanks for the club's support.

On April 16, committee members of the Canadian Cancer Society of Lanark, Leeds and Grenville and the Smiths Falls Relay for Life event were thrilled to receive a cheque from Ruth Wark, president of the Snow Road Snowmobile Club.

Wark, along with her dedicated crew of volunteers, held a charity pancake breakfast at the club. Over 150 diners turned out for the event and by 11am, over $1,000 was raised.

Wark made the cheque presentation to Julie Brady and Norene Allan, both committee members of the Relay for Life in Smiths Falls, which is just one of four Relay events this year in Lanark, Leeds and Grenville.

Allan and Brady thanked Wark and her team and said they were grateful for the club's ongoing support. “We have been coming here for a number of years and are really appreciative for the support of the club and the local community; we do our best to see that the proceeds come back to support the local community in the form of transportation services, cancer research and more,” Allan said.

The charity breakfast, which has taken place annually at the club for the last seven or eight years, is just one of three charities that the club supports through their breakfast fundraisers.

The first took place on April 2 and raised $1640 in support of the Alzheimer's Society. The club's final charity breakfast will be in support of melanoma and will take place on Sat. April 30 from 8-11am.

“All three causes are very important to us,” Wark said, “and we are happy to be able to get people out from the local community to support them.”

Ruth Wark, president of the Snow Road Snowmobile Club, wore a brave face Saturday morning despite having had to cancel the ride portion of the club's second annual snowmobile Ride for Dad fundraiser. The ride was scheduled to take place on February 27 but a snow/ice/rain storm last week wreaked havoc with area trails, which were dangerously water logged and covered with fallen branches and trees.

The cancellation was decided on Thursday by Wark and the other two organisers, Shelby Knight and Brandon Crain, but the three also decided to carry on with the other events that were planned to go with the ride.

Therefore, while the actual ride was canceled and the news went out online, riders who had raised pledges were still invited to drop them off at the club, take home prizes and enjoy a hot lunch and a full course spaghetti dinner.

Wark said she was very disappointed at having to cancel the ride since she was looking forward to a bigger ride this year following last year's extremely successful event, which attracted close to 100 riders and raised $8500 for prostate cancer research. “When I saw the state of the trails after the storm I almost cried. Last year's ride so hugely surpassed our expectations, especially since it was the first ever snowmobile Ride For Dad to be held in District 1. We were really hoping to see even more riders this year.”

The ride this year was dedicated to the late Wayne Southward, a long time snowmobile enthusiast and volunteer with the Ompah and Snow Road snowmobile clubs as well as with the K&P Snow Trails. Southward was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February 2015 and passed away on January 19, 2016.

However, throughout the day, Wark was pleased to see a number of riders arrive at the club to drop off their pledges and sit down for a meal. A number of them also took home prizes donated by individuals and local businesses, as well as by other businesses from as far away as Westport, Perth, Peterborough, Carleton Place, Tamworth and Kemptville. Up for grabs were a number of helmets, boots and other trail gear, gift certificates and gift cards, resort packages and much more.

In an effort to try to give those who did show up on their machines a chance to get out on the local trails, Brandon Crain and a number of other volunteer groomers had been working around the clock since early Friday morning to clear some of the trails close by, including the K&P trail south to Sharbot Lake and north to Flower Station so that riders could at least go for a ride.

I met five riders from Snow Road on my way to the club on Saturday morning who had registered for the ride and took to the trails and enjoyed the day. By the end of the day $7,200 was raised - not too shabby for a ride that was canceled. Wark said that she has every intention of running the event next year.

A yearling cow moose that was lingering in the vicinity of Snow Road made the mistake of trying to cross over a frozen bay to get a drink of water from the Mississippi River.

Jeff and Jenna Fenwick, who live off the bay, saw the moose on the ice on February 4th. The moose had already been in the area for a few days by that time, and a picture of it appeared in the Frontenac News that week.

However, things took a turn for the worse at the end that week, as the moose slipped on the ice.

“We saw that it was slipping on the ice on the Thursday, I believe it was, but it seemed to be able to get up and move around,” said Jeff Fenwick, when contacted this week.

Fenwick said that on Saturday morning, February 6, it was clear that the moose was stuck on the ice.

“Its back legs were splayed out and it could not move off the ice,” he said.

They went out to the ice to try and help, and eventually relatives and neighbours were called.

“We tried getting a horse harness on the moose, but it kept slipping off, and we tried to get it on a tarp to pull it off. In the end we needed four people, one on each leg, to get it off the ice,” he said.

The moose's back legs were still not working and it was a struggle to get her to some high ground on a neighbouring property.

Over the next couple of days, the moose fed on brush that was placed near it, and slowly one, then the other leg, started to hold weight and it was able to start moving around and eating more and more.

The neighbour put up some yellow tape between where the moose was feeding and the water to discourage the animal from going back to the bay and getting stuck on the ice again.

“On Monday it was doing much, much better, and on Tuesday it had just slipped away,” said Fenwick.

There have been no further reports of sightings since then. The hope is that the moose crossed the road and made its way back to the bush.

Over 60 people of all ages attended the dinner and Chinese auction fundraiser at the Snow Road Snowmobile Club on January 16. The event included a full course meal and as well, close to 20 items, most donated by club members, were auctioned off. By the end of the night over $500 was raised and the proceeds will go towards the cost of keeping the club operating.

Club organizers have also been busy preparing for the club’s second annual Ride For Dad fundraiser for Prostate Cancer, which will take place at the club on Saturday, February 27. Last year’s event attracted close to 100 riders and club president Ruth Wark says she hopes to see that number rise. “We're shooting for 150 riders this year and it looks as though the snow and cold will help the trails freeze down and make for a great day of riding for those who come out.” Local businesses are invited to sponsor the event.

Registration takes place the day of the ride from 8 –10 am. The $30 registration fee includes a trail lunch at the Civitan Club in Lanark, and riders who raise over $100 in pledges will get their registration fee returned, or, if they wish they can donate it to the cause. The club will be serving a full course spaghetti dinner the night of the ride for $8.

Riders will depart from Snow Road and follow the trail to Sharbot Lake, then head east to Perth and north to Lanark, where they will stop for lunch. They will then continue on to Middleville, Hopetown and meet back at the club. The 100km ride will take riders through some fabulous scenery and terrain. Participants can pre-register at www.ridefordad.ca and supporters can also make pledges on line there. For more information, contact Ruth Wark at 613-278-0477.

On Sat. February 27, Snow Road Snowmobile Club will again host a Telus Ride for Dad event in support of the fight against prostate cancer. This will be the second year this small club has taken on the challenge. Last year over $8,500 was raised and organizers are hoping to increase that amount this year. You do not have to be a sledder to support or assist at this event. Volunteers are needed for preparing and serving food, directing traffic on event day, registration of riders, signing the trail route, contacting donors, and picking up donations, etc. If interested, contact a club member, leave a message at the clubhouse, 613-278-2022, send a message on Facebook or go to one of the club breakfasts, which are starting again on Sat. January 9.   

The annual free Abrams Brothers concert, which took place at the John Thomson hall in Snow Road on September 27, was not surprisingly a standing room only affair. The show opened with grandparents Wayne and Mary Abrams revving up the crowd with some old time country favorites.

John Abrams was then joined onstage by his new wife Alex and the two sang “Falling Slowly”, the song that was played at their wedding at an Irish castle, which took place earlier this year.

John was then joined by Dad Brian and the two played a few rousing duets and were joined by banjo player Glen MacDonald. James finally appeared along with granddad Wayne on stand up bass and the five raised the bar a notch with their lively version of Nancy Griffith's “Cross the Great Divide”. They did a fast and furious version of the Stanley Brothers' “I am a Man Thomas” and also played the legendary tune “Reuben’s Train”, which they said may have accounted for the heart attack that Harold Bonner suffered and survived.

The two brothers then took to the stage for the second set of the show, with James demonstrating that not only is he a vocal talent, a master fiddler and so much fun to watch but an adept banjo player as well. John was equally in fine form, his vocal leads packing a punch and with his guitar solos matching his younger brother’s note for note. Together they whipped up the kind of instrumental fury that they have become so well known and respected for.

Their enthusiasm was shared by listeners, many new to the annual show and some sitting with mouths agape in awe. The brothers played originals like Northern Redemption, and The Tin Man, the latter a song inspired by their long stretches away from home, friends and family. Their original titled “The Walls of Jericho” was inspired by a recent trip to Israel and their cover of the classic “In Constant Sorrow” was lightning fast and furious and shows how these two brothers, who have been playing together for years, have risen to the cream of crop. They showed off their mellower side with a cover of “Brown Eyed Girl” and as always left their local fan base of listeners wanting more.

The Abrams family dedicated this year’s concert to Dale Gemmill, who passed away earlier this year and who was remembered fondly by members of the family and the local community. Free will offerings collected at the event were donated to the Snow Road volunteer firefighters in Dale's honour.

Photo 23924- the Abrams family concert at the John Thomson hall in Snow Road. L-r: James, John, Brian & Wayne Abrams, and Glen MacDonald

Last week, it was reported that Federal grants under the Canada 150 program were going to Frontenac townships.

Below is the complete breakdown of grants in Lanark Frontenac Lennox and Addington, including a grant that was just received by Frontenac County.

Carleton Place -$67,000 of funding is being provided to the Carleton Place Town Hall

Perth – The Table Community Food Centre will receive $45,600

Township of Central Frontenac - will receive $110,000 towards a new Community Centre & Library in Mountain Grove

Smiths Falls - $22,500 of funding for the Smiths Falls Public Library and an additional $60,920 in funding for the Smiths Falls Town Hall Tourism and Economic Development Centre

Township of North Frontenac - $23,000. The funding will be used to renovate the Snow Road Community Centre

County of Frontenac - $247,000. The funding is going towards the completion of the K&P trail project, which will link the Cataraqui and Trans Canada Trails when the section between Tichborne and Sharbot Lake is completed.

Late last week, Central and North Frontenac townships received word that they are the recipients of grants under the Canada 150 fund.

The largest grant will go to Central Frontenac. They will receive $110,000 towards a library and community centre in Mountain Grove.

“The vibrant and growing community of Mountain Grove will benefit greatly with a new community centre and library, and I am very happy that they received all the funding they requested,” said MP Scott Reid in a press release that came out on Friday, July 31.

The grant will not go towards a brand new building, said Central Frontenac Mayor Frances Smith, but rather to an addition to be built onto the township fire hall in Mountain Grove.

“We had planned to build a 1,000 square foot library branch, but it will likely need to be larger because of accessibility requirements in modern branches,” said Smith, who added that the township will be contacting the board of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library to talk about moving the Mountain Grove branch to a new space.

Among the good news for Central Frontenac is the potential cost savings that will come from closing down the building that currently houses the Mountain Grove branch. The branch is currently located in the former Township of Olden offices, which since they were vacated by the fire department several years ago, are not being used for any other purpose except storage of records. Reduced maintenance costs in the entire building will lead to savings in the municipal budget.

While the new library is not going to be a full-fledged community centre, “It will include meeting space for the public,” said Smith.

The other project that received funding in Frontenac County was the Snow Road Community Centre in North Frontenac. The funding of $23,000 will be combined with $41,000 in funding from the township and $7,000 that was raised locally to make up a $71,000 pool of money for a series of upgrades. The largest of these is the addition of a 15' x 25' vestibule at the front of the building, which will cost $45,000 to build, according to John Kittle of the Snow Road Community Centre .

Kittle worked with Cory Klatt from the township on the grant application, and said the users of the hall, which is now in used over 20 days a month for various events, will make good use of the new entrance and vestibule. The rest of the money will go towards an upgrade to the kitchen as well as a proper air conditioning system for the building.

The Snow Road Community Centre is located in a converted 19th century school house that served the community as a school for over 60 years. There are some current members of the Snow Road Community Centre who attended the original schoolhouse, back in the 1960s

“The integration of historic facilities with the modern community here in North Frontenac is one of the many things that make it such an interesting and wonderful place to live,” said Reid.

Although it was not part of the funding announced this week, the Snow Road Community Centre also announced they are planning a related project for the 150th anniversary of Canada in 2017.

“The community is planning to research, document and showcase the area's history with our heritage schoolhouse as the focal point,” said John Kittle.

The project has already been bolstered by locating a number of photographs from the early 1900s, when Snow Road was more of a commercial hub than it is now.

There are also seven people who use the center today who went to the Snow Road school, and the project will include interviews about their memories of their school days.

The Canada 150 grants were announced on Friday, just two days before the government was dissolved with the calling of an election on October 19. The grant application deadline was in early June. In Scott Reid's now former Lanark Frontenac Lennox and Addington (the new riding is Lanark Frontenac Kingston), grants were also given to projects in the communities of Smiths Falls, Carleton Place, the Town of Perth and Lanark Highlands.

The grant in Perth is going to The Table, a comprehensive community food centre. It will be used to enhance accessibility as well as other upgrades. The amount of The Table grant as well as information about the Lanark Highlands grant were not available this week from Scott Reid's office.