Beaver Sighting at the Humber River

There's a resident beaver, so I've been told, who resides in a dam on the west side of the Humber River north of Bloor. If I'd known that before traipsing around in the sticks and marsh-like mud and muck that extends down into the waterway that is a true urban dilemma - a fast running body of water full of fisherman, 2 canoeists and a beaver but sadlly due south of a water treatment plant so the area of land where the water has recessed is tattered with depleted plastic bags, hospital latex gloves, cardboard, fishing string, and chunks of floating foam. It was in the high 20s today - the first real glimpse of warmth for months and the walk through the new buds and ground growth was almost explosive with happiness. The garbage strewn everywhere however is depressing. And worrisome. Someone at the park told me a friend's dog got giardia from the Humber and had to be put on I.V. I won't deny my dog one of the nicest walks in the city for fear of maybe contracting something but I did scratch my leg badly on something and then have to wade into the river to retrieve Simon's ball (big shout out to all the retrievers at High Park who CONSTANTLY fetch Simon's bobbing ball for him as it floats down the rivlets). And when the cuts began to scratch I instantly became concerned with Staph and E Coli infections seeping into my bloodstream. I'd rather eat a fish with a bit of mercury in it who has been lured from a sparkling clear creekbed than worry about contracting a viral infection from a fast moving river through the city.

So, anyway, we ran into a HUGE beaver just hanging out in a tangle of dried sticks and mulch. Simon didn't even see it. I was watching Simon as he went straight for the water, went out up to his neck and sat down to immerse his full body. He won't swim but he'll wade. He won't jump off a dock like a retriever but he'll race out as far as he can with his feet still touching the bottom to fetch a stick. So as Simon sort of flits about like a minnow I see this enormous brown furry blob scurry off just a foot to the left of where I'm standing. Things then went blurry. Simon was at my side, I was trying to leap over an enormous fell tree trunk and the beaver was idly pushing itself off shore. I'm not sure what would have happened had Simon and the beaver met face to face, I don't know how vicious the buck-toothed creature really is, but I have a feeling by the pure might of its muscle and its bravado, story to follow, that it would have grabbed Simon by the nose and tugged him out into the river. I would then have to had bit my hypochondria adieu and raced in after him. But no, the beaver slinked underwater, and re-emerged downstream. Simon at this point was only picking up the scent and back at the beaver's sly stage exit. I walked south along the river and couldn't see the beaver anywhere. After a while, I looked out into the middle of the river - which spans about 75 metres in width - and I see the goddamn beaver fighting against the stream. He's swimming upriver into a fast current and is only a few feet from being swept over a dam into whirlpools. He's having the fight of his life. I notice a Japanese couple on the other side of the river with their cameras out and pointing and holy shit this beaver's fot fans rooting for him on both divides. He dives down to evade the fastest part of the current, pokes his sleek head upstream, and then swims on an angle to the other side of the river where he pulls himself out of the river and collapses out of exhaustion. After my experience with Simon, the deer and the Old Mill residents a few weeks ago I get him on leash. We pass an older couple sitting on a bench. I'm still riled up from the beaver's triumph so I say "there's a beaver over there, on the other side of the river, see it, see it right there, that big brown thing, that's a beaver!" They didn't really even look in the direction I was pointing but they thanked me and wished me well. They were American. From the south, it appeared. So now I've gone ahead and ruined Toronto as being chic and urban and cultural to these people. They're going to go back to Alabama and tell everyone they went to Toronto and saw a beaver.

(sadly I didn't have my camera to legitimize my beaver tale. later in the afternoon, we walked in high park. despite not crossing paths with any wild life, we still found a way to get muddy and wet. see picture.)

Comments

[Niall Harbison]

Hi there

I have just stumbled upon your blog. I love the clean design and fantastic photos. I am a blogger myself and always thought that design was key and you have certainly captured that! There are so many food blogs out there these days and being different to all the others is key. I have just started www.ifoods.tv which is a website for chefs, foodies and food bloggers to hand out, share recipes, photos and videos. When i was blogging I always thought i should be getting more traffic as my blog was getting lost in the masses of stuff out there so my new site is aimed at giving food bloggers and chefs a bigger platform! Hope you enjoy it and keep up the good writing and design here! I have now bookmarked you so will be regular reader, Cheers!

[Mats Flemstrom]

Daphne,
Interesting how this type of shilling is only addressed to "Hi there" and signed "Cheers". You must be just thrilled that Niall "loves your clean design"!!!!!!!
Mats