I recently had the pleasure of touring a journalist from Victoria's Shaw TV to both Big Lonely Doug and the spectacular, yet endangered Eden Grove right next door. Check out the two resulting news pieces below, which also feature some of my drone clips and new video from my trail camera of a black bear climbing a giant cedar tree!
Press
Drone Video - Climbing Big Lonely Doug: Round 2
Today I'm excited to have launched a new video which I filmed and edited featuring the Ancient Forest Alliance and Arboreal Collective's second climb up Big Lonely Doug, Canada's 2nd largest Douglas-fir tree! Doug has become the educational mascot of BC’s endangered old-growth forests - his massive size highlights their grandeur, while the dramatic contrast of the surrounding clearcut highlights the threat to them posed by industrial logging. The drone footage, captured using the DJI Phantom 3 Pro, of tree climbers (thanks to Matthew, Aaron, and Elliot!) in this sobering setting will help us raise the public awareness needed to pressure the BC government to protect what remains of the adjacent Eden Grove and endangered old-growth forests across British Columbia, and to ensure a sustainable second-growth forest industry instead.
- See and share the video with over 55,000 views on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/ancientforestalliance/videos/1094270450667541/
- See photos from the climb here: www.tjwatt.com/big-lonely-doug-2016/
- Global News: Drone video captures epic climb up Canada’s second-largest Douglas-fir
- CHEK TV: Spectacular video released of three climbers scaling one of the largest and most famous trees in Canada
- Times Colonist: From scientists to activists, everyone has eye in the sky
My First Cougar Sighting in the Walbran Valley
Well, the moment that I've been waiting half my life for finally happened. I saw a cougar. Not just one cougar though, TWO cougars!! After spending over a decade exploring Vancouver Island's old-growth forests (home to the highest concentration of cougars on earth) and driving thousands of kilometers of remote backroads, I was starting to wonder if it would ever happen. Did these giants cats truly even exist? They're so elusive you start to eventually wonder.
On the drive home though from the Walbran Valley Convergence, a celebration organized by the Friends of Carmanah-Walbran of the 1991 environmental protests in the valley, a large female cat bounded directly in front of my van from a small side road. The distance she coverage with casual effort was incredible. After quickly stopping in disbelief, I looked up the side road to see a second smaller cougar slowly sauntering off. After fumbling for my phone and shutting off the vehicle, I managed to capture a short clip of the animal walking away. We then reversed down the road to give them some space while I frantically asked friends in the back seat to pass me my camera bag which, of course, was buried within all of our camping gear. As I scrambled to unpack and assemble my camera and zoom lens as fast as humanly possible, the large female cougar walked back out across the road to follow the juvenile, presumably her cub. I had just enough time to snap a single photo of her through the front window as she looked directly at use before she too was gone.
Though I wish I'd managed to get a clearer shot, I'm so incredibly thankful to have had such an up close and intimate view of these almost mythical creatures. Instead of just catching a brief glimpse of a tail disappearing into the forest at night, we were treated to a nearly minutes-long experience - enough time to make eye contact with one of the most beautiful and powerful creatures to call the island home. It's a moment that I will never forget for the rest of my life!!
Resulting news coverage:
Press: Tall trees turning Port Renfrew into tourist hot spot
in Press, Published and News, Forests, Drone
Earlier this week I toured the Port Renfrew region with CHEK News for a video about how old-growth forest tourism at the Avatar Grove, Big Lonely Doug, and other nearby ancient stands has transformed the local economy. Dan Hager, the Chamber of Commerce president, speaks up for a Tall Tree tourism economy, while Ken Wu and myself speak about the importance of saving the remaining old-growth forests. The news clip also features some of my drone footage from the Walbran Valley!
See video here: http://www.cheknews.ca/tall-tree-turning-port-renfrew-into-tourist-hot-spot-143533/
TV News Piece on Port Renfrew's Big Trees
Yesterday we took a Shaw TV reporter out to do a story on the big trees and ancient forests of the Port Renfrew area (Avatar Grove, Walbran Valley, and others) and their importance in supporting the local economy, including an interview with Dan Hager, the Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce president representing 73 businesses! Here are a few pics :)
Press: British Columbia Magazine - Vancouver Island's Ancient Trees
in Published and News, Forests, Press, Travel
Here's an article in the latest British Columbia Magazine about visiting the old-growth forests of the Port Renfrew region along the "Circle Route" which features 6 of my big tree shots! It also raises the plight of the old-growth forests in the Walbran Valley, Horne Mountain (above Cathedral Grove), and Mossy Maple Grove, and includes a blurb about the Ancient Forest Alliance. Pick up a hardcopy of the latest issue to read the article today!
P.S. Here's a big tree map that you can print out and take with you: www.ancientforestalliance.org/biggest-trees-map.php
Press: Using Drones for Conservation - Front Cover
in Published and News, Press, Drone, Forests, Logging
The story of how we're using drone technology to help raise awareness of endangered old-growth forests in the Central Walbran Valley landed on the front cover of The Province newspaper this week! You can read the full story featured on the inside page here: www.theprovince.com/technology/anti+logging+activists+using+drones+fight+information/11394855/story.html and watch the YouTube clip I filmed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyMPXHOjlK0