Are You Chertin'?

I received an e-mail the other day asking if I was interested in a paddle from Motts wharf across the lake in search of the semi-elusive chert source.

Chert? Chert is a type of hard, sharp rock that the First Nations people used to make weapons and tools. The chert along the shores of the Washademoak ranged in colour from off-white to black, but it was the reddish chert that was so attractive to my eye. It fractures easily and is as sharp as a knife.

My first thought when approached about this little paddle was 'what if it's windy'. As it turned out, the lake was as flat as a tire on a prairie nail highway so I didn't need to worry about missing a windsurfing day (my worst fear). I met up with six other hardy paddlers and across the lake we paddled.

It was easy to find the chert source because I've been there before. I knew exactly where to find it and it was there in abundance. We found lots of chert along the shore, in the water, and at the bottom of the cliffs.

Most of the paddlers in our group had never seen the chert source before and they were quite excited about 'the find'. We found evidence that others had been here before us, very recently (beer bottles and fractured chert). We're not the only ones who knew of this historical secret.

After our time rock-hounding on the shoreline, we paddled into Craft's Cove to have a look around. We found a flock of geese and a few golden-eye ducks. It was a gloriously sunny, late September morning. Autumn mornings like this are fleeting, and I found that everyone was vocally appreciative of our moment together in the sun and warmth.

We paddled back across the placid lake and ended our harmoniously rocky relationship.