Last week I went on another trip to NS (which also included a trip to PEI on one day). In short, it was motherfarkin' awesome.

It's called the Atlantic Teachers Tour. For four days, we got schooled on tons of things forestry related. We went to see harvesting, thinning, planting, planning, effluent treatment, production, we had presentations, we just about had it all. We learned scads. I left feeling a bit better about the forestry industry, which was probably one of my main goals. The thing that impressed me most (and there were many things) was the sense of care and responsibility, especially by small woodlot owners. In NS, we saw how a large company has things marked on maps like nests of birds of prey, so that they avoid those trees. That, among other things, I thought was cool. For the small woodlot owner (Sid Watts on good ol' PEI), I was impressed with how much work he will do for his lot, just for the betterment of it. He'll see some profit, sure, but overall, he's planning and doing things that he'll never see any benefit from. It was a great attitude of stewardship and doing the right thing. I thought it would be nice if everyone thought of the world that way.

Aside from learning, we had a lot of fun. We had lots of laughs (got Team Pregnant! I mean Purple!) driving, and lounging around the lodge. We had campfires, stayed up real late drinking, talking, and playing crib of all things. There was a reception and meal every night... from bruschetta to salmon to bacon-wrapped scallops, to veggies & cheese, to apple-stuffed pork & shrimp-stuffed haddock... great veggie sides, BBQ night was incredible, deserts were awesome. Man, it was killer. And, ya can't beat free drinks every day. Double rum & cokes (good & strong, too), beers aplenty, Singapore slings, scotch... and that was just me! They really knew how to cater to teachers. :)

It was A-1 all-round. I hope to try and keep contact with some of the cool folks I met. Maybe I'll try and attend next year's similar tour in NB. Free travel and liquor? OK!