Ken Miller passes

Ken Miller has died in Nova Scotia.

When I first moved to Bowen, Ken got my attention.  He was a short man with a straight laced attitude, quiet and shy.  He reminded me of the many people I have met in the Cariboo in BC.  He often stood with his thumbs locked in the belt buckles of his jeans, chest thrust out, proudly taking in the world.

Over the years I got to know him a little, chatting at the beach in Tunstall Bay where he was a regular fixture in the summertime, hanging with his family in the "Miller's Kitchen."  I had some great conversations there with him about his days beach combing the Bowen shores.

Outside of Tunstall Bay, Ken was perhaps best known for being the master of ceremonies at the annual polar bear swim every new year's day.  In these videos from 2008 and 2009 you can see Ken wielding his bullhorn, wearing his winter hat and sunglasses, tending the fire, counting down and encouraging everyone to get wet and cold.  At the end of the 2010 video, he has a now poignant signing off.  The polar bear swim won't be the same without him.

Ken took ill last February and was in hospital in Nova Soctia.  He died there on Monday.  Condolences to Susan, Kelly and Cindy.

Ambrose leaves us

Another friend Has left us. And Ambose Merrell has done it in a most tender way.

Marian Bantjes: Intricate beauty by design | Video on TED.com

Bowen Islander Marian Bantjes on intricate beauty by design . This was her TED talk given in February of this year.

We are surrounded by brilliant people on this island.

Snowin' on Bowen

A little video blog on the kind of snow we get on Bowen.

Snow day

Firs snow day of the year.  After a few days where snow fell all around us, we finally got dumped on this morning.  Five centimeters fell overnight by breakfast and continued to fall all day.  We're expecting about 10-15 before it turns to rain at our altitude.  Perhaps I'll make another video about THIS kind of winter weather event.

Just in time for our first winter snow event, the Bowen Island Road Status Tool is up.  Please participate.

The Squamish howls

Yesterday the Squamish blew at it's fiercest.  The outflow winds through Howe Sound were 80 km/h during the afternoon and rose to storm force in the evening.  It was as hard a blow as I have seen in ten years here, and not the hardest, nor the longest (in 1990 the Squamish blew for two weeks) but it brought lots of tress down and the power has been out in parts of the island for more than 18 hours.

On the ferry the ride was reported to be wild, and the freezing spray warnings issued by Environment Canada came to pass, as evidenced by Richard Smith's photos of the Cap.  The video above was my way of trying to convey the power of this wind.  Enjoy!

Solving the mystery of guessing at the weather

Dave Pollard has put together a nice summary of how to forecast Bowen weather based on the methods I have used for a number of years.  Have a read here on the Phorum.