Portal Lake | nichepoetryandprose

poetry and prose about place

Posts Tagged ‘Portal Lake’

preface to fire

I always associate November with bonfires and the smell of smoke and burning leaves. I love sitting in front of a fire, with friends and family, sharing stories and talking about days ahead. But even in the midst of having fun, I am reminded – fire is not always a friendly force.

In 2002, we encountered the negative side of fire when we took an extended car trip to the west. In Quebec, Ontario and Alberta, we saw evidence of the destruction of recent forest fires.

One of the places we visited on our trip was Portal Lake, near Mount Robson, in British Columbia. We were at Portal Lake for about an hour. We hiked along the east side of the lake, and sat on the mountain rocks to dangle our feet along the rock face. The berries were brilliant, glowing like embers. Although there was no burnt land at Portal Lake, the paths were like tinder, the lichens dry and brittle. The lakeside had the thickened scent of drying vegetation.

The smell of smoke was in the air, as well as the faint smell of sulphur. We had just visited the hot spring at Miette. I had dangled my hands in the warm water and the sulphurous odor still lingered.

It was a kind of foreshadowing. Later in the week, the Rockies would be hazy with smoke as we made our way south of Banff. Two weeks later, we were back home, watching the reports on the Weather Channel. The Parks, Jasper, Banff and Kootenay, were all closed due to forest fire.