Tag: friends of HIbou

May 2017: Hibou Trail Clipping Afternoon

Volunteers can help us improve the trails.

When:  Tuesday May 9/17 at 1:oopm till about 3:30

Where:  Meet us at the first parking lot after the Hibou Entrance coming from Owen Sound.

What to bring:  large branch clippers, work gloves, water and hat etc.

Giving the trails a good clipping in the spring keeps them in good shape for the rest of the year. It would be helpful if you could let us know if you are coming.  But just showing up is fine too.

Our Website: We are feeling really good about enhancements we have made to our web site.  Click here to look around the site.  You may even see your picture on it somewhere.

Note:  Committee members meet briefly at 12:30 same location.

Beach Clean-up Tues Apr 25, 2017 9:30am

When: Tuesday morning April 25th at 9:30 till noon

Where to meet: at the beach parking lot

What to bring: work gloves, tools such as rakes and pitchforks plus a wheel barrow if you have one.  we simply have to move the sawdust debris from the shore and dump it back a little so that the GSCA tractor can pick it up.

It is getting to be that time again.  Sometime in the last century there was  sawmill and they dumped the sawdust into Georgian Bay.  The current picks up what lies on the bottom and takes it to be dumped along the shoreline at the Hibou beach area.  By getting rid of it a little at a time, it makes the beach area much more pleasant for swimming through the summer.  We are hoping that by doing this in early spring this year we will catch more of the sawdust before it is washed into the water.

It is so helpful for us to know roughly how many will be there to help. If there is significant rain that morning we will have to reschedule. Many hands make lighter work.

let us know by email at friendsofhibou@rogers.com

 

Hibou Beach Cleanup May 17th

IMG_4925Reminder:  Help us get Hibou Beach ready for kids and adults to enjoy this summer.  Last year the beach was significantly improved when several volunteers came together for a morning  to work at removing sawdust and wood debris along the shore. Let’s do it again!

When: Tuesday May 17th from 9:30 till noonish.

Where:  Meet at the beach.IMG_4923

Bring rakes, pitch forks, wheelbarrows, work gloves if you have them.

Please RSVP if you can join us.

Email: marieknapp@rogers.com

or phone us at 519-371-1255 and leave a message.

Hope to hear from you.

For more information about Friends of Hibou go to www.friendsofhibou.com

Marie and Bob Knapp

May 11 at 12:30 Grand Opening of the Hibou Trail Boardwalk

Oct 2013 eIn the Fall of 2014, an enthusiastic group of volunteers built and placed about 200 ft of boardwalk over a wet portion of trail.  That trail had been impassible for a good portion of the year.  Now we will celebrate by officially opening this new boardwalk.

Come and join us Monday May 11 at 12:30pm for a brief opening ceremony located in the north east section of the park.

Park on the road by the beach entrance and head north towards Leith to the trail entrance.  Try to arrive at the Boardwalk for 12:30pm opening which should be very brief. Light refreshments will be served.

Anyone who would like to volunteer for trail work following the opening, bring some clippers or a pruning saw and we’ll be making sure the trails are in good shape.

Enthusiastic Group Begins

by Marie Knapp

For me this is like picking up where we left off over 30 years ago.  Bob had been very involved with the procurement of Hibou.  We have continued to visit the area for a walk along the shore or for a ski or snowshoe over the years.  The water levels changing have had an impact on the beach at Paynter’s Bay but that didn’t keep us from entering the trails more to the south and finding a place for a refreshing dip in the water on a hot summer’s day.

Frequently it crossed my mind that we should develop a Friends of Hibou to help with the upkeep of the area.  In his book published in 2008, Bob Knapp wrote: “Thirty five years have passed since Hibou became a park.  Perhaps it is time to form a friends of Hibou organization to assist with the park so that it continues to be a very special place on Georgian Bay“.

The timing is right.  Malcolm Kirk died in September 2012.  In his obituary I found the following: “An ardent conservationist throughout his life, Mac was deeply committed to the preservation of Ontario’s and Canada’s natural heritage. Mac and his generation were the pioneers of Ontario’s modern environmental movement. His legacy is manifested in numerous nature reserves which were secured in conjunction with public and non-profit nature organizations.”  Yes the time is right!  It is partly filling a legacy left behind by those of another generation who were ahead of their times.  This is very exciting!

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