This funky looking bird can be found in the north Pacific as well as along the coast of far east Russia, including Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands.
I had seen many of these crested auklets flying around, and some diving in the water in search of krill or other food, but hadn’t been able to really get up close to many of them until I made it to Yankicha Island in the Kurils.
There were many bird species here, but the crested auklets were in huge numbers here, thanks to it being a big nesting area. With thousands of them flying about, I spotted a few that were still hanging out on land as we toured the island by Zodiac.
This guy was nice enough to pose for the camera. If you’re a crested auklet, the size of your crest is a big deal, as in both male and female aucklets prefer mates with large crests!
Often called the “undertaker” bird, the Marabou Stork is one of the ugliest birds you’ll come across in Africa.
A Marabou Stork in a Tree in Nairobi, Kenya
Strangely, this was my first wildlife encounter when I landed in Kenya for a month long safari in eastern Africa. These birds were found in parks and trees around the capital, usually just standing there, as if waiting for something to die so they could swoop down.
Kind of intimidating at first, after a few days and seeing them fly and hop around on the ground, I started to like them a bit more. They’re no beauties but just like vultures, they play an important role in the cycle of life in Africa. For the most part they are harmless birds, attracted to leftovers at animal kills. But if you do run across a bunch of them in a city, be a little wary, as they have been known to get aggressive if they’ve become habituated and accustomed to feeding off of human garbage and scraps.
I rarely drink coffee. It’s something I’ll have if it is included for free, like when I’m flying on a plane or a hotel includes a free breakfast, or a friend buys me one. But I’ve never bought myself a coffee. Not even once, and I don’t have any coffee in my house.
To most people that seems crazy. But to me, it’s a habit, or should I say it’s an expense, I don’t need.
Still, I like the smell of coffee and am fascinated by how addicted so many people are. On my last trip to the Galapagos Islands, I decided it was worth checking out the Hacienda El Cafetal coffee farm on San Cristobal Island.
El Cafetal coffee farm in the Galapagos
When I was in the Galapagos back in 2012, I was enjoying a fruit smoothie (they call them batidos) at The Mockingbird Cafe in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno. Nicholas, the stout and personable guy whose family runs the joint, is the coffee man. This is “the” place to get a great coffee.
Shortly after that batido, I walked down the road and in an open courtyard, drying on the hot pavement in the sun were coffee beans. These beans had been brought down from the farm in the highlands to dry out. There were tons of beans, covering the entire parking lot sized courtyard. It seemed that it was harvesting time, as I was there in November.
A coffee bean dryer at El Cafetal
On this last visit to the Galapagos, I was there after harvest time had occurred, so it was quiet on the coffee farm. The beans had been picked and only a few leftovers could be found on the coffee plants as we hiked around the dense, deep vegetation of the farm.
It was cool seeing all of the equipment that was used to bring those beans from their home in the Galapagos highlands. There were tumblers, sorters and all sorts of machines that obviously had an important role in ensuring your organic Starbucks Galapagos coffee was the best possible thing you could taste.
Some kind of coffee bean tumbler
Now I will admit I’ve bought some of this Galapagos coffee. Not at Starbucks, but locally on San Cristobal Island in the Galapagos. I bought it not for myself, but for family and friends. My friends who do live in the Galapagos swear by the coffee that Nicholas provides. They say it is the best in the islands, and I don’t doubt them. He sure takes pride in it and deserves the success. Maybe I should buy a bag of the Galapagos coffee from Starbucks and bring it back to him the next time I am in the Galapagos Islands? I wonder what he’d think of their finished packaging and pricing?
A few leftover coffee beans, after the Galapagos harvest
Anyhow, I think it is always smart to know where your food comes from, so now you know where your Starbucks Galapagos coffee comes from!
The coffee farm is located in the lush highlands of San Cristobal Island
More coffee bean sorting equipment in the Galapagos Islands
One of the great urban wilderness surprises of Toronto is located out on Lake Ontario. It’s a 5km stretch of land known as Tommy Thompson Park, or the “Spit”.
The park is only accessible on weekends and holidays. With a strict no dogs policy it has turned into a urban haven for wildlife and birdlife. You can easily spot herons, egrets, cormorants, geese, swans, ducks, falcons and other birds here. You can spot beaver huts and if lucky – maybe coyotes or other more elusive creatures. Definitely one of the best places in Toronto for wildlife viewing.
American Mink in Toronto
I was lucky to stumble across a hungry American Mink (Neovison vison), also called an Eastern Mink or Little Black Mink, as it is the smallest subspecies of mink. He was darting along the shoreline in search of food. He scampered across the rocks, stopped for a nice big yawn, then dove into the water. The mink is the largest member of the weasel family in this part of the world.
He swam out about 30m before diving down and disappearing for a couple of minutes. When he finally emerged, swimming back to shore, I saw he had caught some dinner. It was some strange looking blobby fish that had a white fin. As ugly as that meal looked, the mink sure liked it and hid behind some rocks to devour his tasty meal back on the beach.
Mink stopping for a yawn before diving into Lake Ontario for a meal
If you’ve ever wondered “what do minks eat?”, well apparently ugly fish is on their menu! Judging by the shell piles on the beach, this mink had a steady diet of mussels as well, which I had expected him to find on this swim.
It’s the first time I’ve come across a mink in Toronto, but hopefully not the last. Great to see such a cool creature only a short hike away from the Toronto skyline!
Mink swimming back to shore at Tommy Thompson Park with an ugly fish for a meal
I started drinking Unibroue beers about 15 years ago. That was when they were often considered the best brewery in Quebec, if not the best Canadian brewery.
Their beers were consistently ranked near the top of almost any “best beer” ranking when it came to styles like Belgian Tripels or Strong Belgian Dark Ales (and they still are). I had friends who thought I sometimes drank Unibroue beers simply because they were high alcohol and I wanted to get drunk. But I actually enjoyed the 8% and 9% beers.
Unibroue – Trois Pistoles
For a few years I’d treat myself to these great beers whenever I wanted something more than the generic lagers that dominated most nights out with the boys. But, slowly I was able to get others to start to enjoy trying different tasting beers. It started when I used to work near the original Bier Markt in Toronto. A group of us would go out and try different Belgian and German styled beers. Soon it wasn’t just the Belgian-influenced Unibroue beers I was picking up at the LCBO, but other fine beers like Westmalle, Rochefort and Chimay.
I had found a niche of beers that I really enjoyed, all thanks to Unibroue. If you like La Fin du Monde, then try Westmalle Tripel…if you like Trois Pistoles, then try Rochefort 8. Belgian beers were my thing. I started to shun all other beers.
Then, my next job was in Belgium. How cool was that? In Toronto at the time, you were almost limited to the Bier Markt or Beer Bistro when it came to trying some great Belgian brews. Now I found myself in a small town in Belgium, where every little restaurant and bar had 100 or so bottles of beer to choose from, it was overwhelming.
My beer growth started. I expanded into trying beers like lambics and sours. I discovered Oerbier, Delirium Tremens, Struisse, Bernardus and other fine Belgian beers. Well, I cut that job short after some colleagues were thrown in jail, and found myself back in Canada again.
My fascination and appreciation with Unibroue continued, this time working on an international marketing project to export their beer to Sweden. No, it wasn’t officially working for the brewery, it was for a course I was taking, but I made Unibroue beer my “research”, not bad huh?
This Unibroue passion continued on and soon I had new people experiencing and enjoying their beers. It wasn’t always the big, strong ales either. Quelque Chose became a favourite for a number of friends, especially when it was served warmed up at Beer Bistro in Toronto. It’s a beer that is still a sentimental favourite of mine, but sadly no longer in production. I have one bottle left from 2002 and the Unibroue website says it can age for 15 years, so I am hanging on to it for as long as I can.
Enjoying a La Resolution by Unibroue, at Beer Bistro in Toronto
Even after being bought out by Sleeman and then by Sapporo of Japan, Unibroue has maintained a unique identity. Their signature beers have a common yeast quality to them, which many people love, including myself. I think I could tell you I was drinking a Unibroue beer even if I was blindfolded.
Even with all this positivity, Unibroue has always been a source of frustration. I worked near a bar for about 5 years that served Unibroue beers on tap. They always had two rotating Unibroue beers. Usually one of the Éphémère fruit flavoured beers and one of the stronger ones like Maudite or La Fin du Monde. But never Trois Pistoles.
Far and wide I searched, for over a decade, to have a glass of Trois Pistoles in Toronto. But it seemingly only comes in bottles in Ontario. It is my favourite of the regularly produced Unibroue offerings, yet not even the LCBO carries it.
This beer is the only reason I ever go to the Beer Store in Ontario. When I need a fix for Trois Pistoles, I go and buy a 4-pack.
Recently, I got to share my Unibroue passion with people from around the world, as I was guiding tours in Quebec. Access to so much Unibroue! I could find beers we don’t get in Ontario, such as Noire de Chambly, Quatre-Centième, Don de Dieu and U Blonde. I’d take groups to bars like La Ninkasi in Quebec City, where they served many Unibroue beers on tap. My world travellers loved it, although I’d often have to make sure everyone stumbled back to the hotel safely later that night.
Jerry Vietz – Unibroue Brewmaster
The ultimate Unibroue beer experience for me was in Quebec was always hanging out at the funky hostel in Tadoussac, where Quebecois culture would embrace me and my travellers from around the world. Bonfires, live music and Unibroue on tap, it was a perfect little place. A full pint of Trois Pistoles went for $5. Crazy. Amazing.
And, every time I visited that little hostel I would be envious of their monstrous (empty) bottle of Unibroue they had on display. I think it was a 3L bottle of Maudite. It may have been 6L, it may have been La Fin Du Monde. But it was big and I could imagine the festive night that must have brought about.
So, when Unibroue recently announced that they were selling, for the first time ever, some 6L bottles of La Fin du Monde through the LCBO, I had to check it out. I had the pleasure of chatting with Unibroue Beer Sommelier Sylvain Bouchard and Unibroue Brewmaster Jerry Vietz at the event and learned that a new incarnation of Quelque Chose could appear down the road one day. I also nudged them to try and get Trois Pistoles on tap here in Ontario. As far as brewery folks go, these are two great guys who have a strong passion for their brand and their beer. Sylvain has been with Unibroue for 14 years and Jerry joined in 2003.
After enjoying the event, which officially launched the new beer La Résolution, I was lucky enough to obtain one of those huge 6L bottles of La Fin du Monde. It’ll be a big beer night whenever I crack the new bottle open, but I’m more excited about keeping it around as a memento and “thanks” to Unibroue for brewing so many great beers and kickstarting me down the path of enjoying flavourful craft beer in Canada.
