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HIGHWAYS AND LIFEWAYS: HIGHWAY 11 AND THE SHAPING OF THE WAYS OF LIFE AND SENSES OF PLACE OF NATURE-BASED TOURISM OPERATORS IN SOUTH-CENTRAL ALMAGUIN, ONTARIO, CANADA by Kayla McCulla Best B.A. (Hons.), Queen's University, 2013 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA March 2016 © Kayla Best, 2016 II Abstract Transportation infrastructure played a vital role in the establishment of the communities in South-Central Almaguin, and the development of this infrastructure continues to shape the landscapes and taskscapes of the region. Nature-based tourism operators are a key stakeholder in the South-Central Almaguin region and are uniquely situated as they rely on transportation infrastructure, the natural landscape, and the local communities for the operation of their businesses. For this qualitative case study I used semi- structured interviews and the collection of news media to explore the impact of the Highway 11 development project on NBT operators. Using lngold's concepts of landscape, taskscape, and mobility, I sought to understand how the highway changes have shaped the ways of life and senses of place ofNBT operators. Through the interviews I identified major shifts in the mobility of travellers and in the organization of the communities of South-Central Almaguin. These shifts resulted in economic changes and loss of business connections for NBT operators, change in travel times and safety, increased regional collaboration, and a drive for a regional destination brand. The implications of these shifts on the ways of life and senses of place ofNBT operators were largely positive for destination businesses, while being largely negative for businesses that relied on through-traffic. The nature of the given businesses also determined the impact that the highway changes have had on the place dependence and place identity of the NBT operators, and subsequent changes to place attachment. The results of this research suggest two possible paths forward for the communities of South-Central Almaguin, as communities struggle to sustain themselves in isolation and destination NBT operators push for a regional focus and cooperation. III Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my graduate supervisor Dr. Philip Mullins. There have been many ups and downs throughout my Master's program and curveballs that I have thrown in and Phil's patience, knowledge, guidance, and continued support have had an immense impact. I would also like to recognize and thank my committee members for their guidance and support. The course that I took with Dr. Greg Halseth inspired me to look at the issues facing the communities close to my heart in Near North Ontario, eventually inspiring my thesis research. The course I took with Dr. Pam Wright helped to fill in gaps in my knowledge about designing and conducting research. Both Pam and Greg brought different perspective, which enhanced my understanding of the current issues and past literature. I would also like to thank The Office of Graduate Programs and Dr. Kevin Smith for their accommodations and support in moving my defense forward. A special thank you to my family for their continuous support and encouragement. To my dad, who is always keen to discuss a wide array of subject matter. To my mom, who was an amazing editor and support despite being busy completing a degree of her own. To Brit, with whom I enjoyed navigating this crazy world of qualitative research. To Maddie, who helped keep me sane discussing plants. To Jason, who was always around for a much needed phone call. I would also like to thank Glen Bernard Camp, Jocelyn Palm, Kim Graydon, and Megan Snape for fostering my passion for the outdoors and The Almaguin region. Thanks for a great fall season at camp and creating an amazing distraction from the stressful wait to gain my ethics approval. Finally, I would like to thank my UNBC cohort, and friends old and new who helped to get me through this journey. Sandra, through sharing an office with you, I not only gained a wonderful friend, but also the guidance and inspiration from an incredibly driven, passionate and knowledgeable individual. Kim, Bann, Cherise, Carling, Tony, and Tim, you made my time in Prince George a lot more fun and I cannot wait for the next time we are together and can share a cold one. To my friends back home old and new who kept me sane, listened to my rants about subject matter they had no interest in, helped me procrastinate and generally just supported me through thick and thin - Thank you from the bottom of my heart. IV Preface Northward Hof North where the lakes are crystal clear, And the sands are gleaming white, North where the balsam scents the air, And the days are long and bright, North where the furry folk creep out To watch with wondering eyes, And sunsets flash in rose and gold Along the western skies; Ah, Northward lies the trail I seek, It's calling now to me, And when the year comes round to June It's northward I will be. - Mary S. Edgar (1923) Northward Hof was written by Mary S. Edgar, who grew up in Sundridge and founded Glen Bernard Camp in 1922. Glen Bernard is located in Strong Township on the shores of Lake Bernard about 5km from The Village of Sundridge. Despite its close proximity to the Village of Sundridge, the camp creates a sense of remoteness and isolation from everything that happens outside its 730-acre property. I grew up attending and working at Glen Bernard, spending every summer at the camp from age 7 to 23. Northward Hof illustrates the somewhat magical view of the camp and its landscape that I developed as a camper. The camp program encourages campers to connect with the natural environment through experiences with non-motorized nature-based recreation and environmental education. Many of my prominent memories of camp relate to moving through an idyllic version of the natural landscape by foot, canoe, bike or sailboat. My sense of self, including my beliefs, values, feelings, behaviours, and goals, developed through these recreational experiences and the camp teachings of living lightly on the earth and respecting all that the environment has to offer. As my affinity for these recreational activities grew, I developed a V dependence on the camp's landscape as an integral part of my recreational experience and my sense-of-self. This romantic view and my dependence on the natural landscape evolved over the years as my "way of life" (Ingold, 2007, p. l 03) progressed and I transitioned from a camper to a staff member. My daily activities changed in terms of my responsibilities at the camp and my interaction with the local community outside of the camp increased. Although I still hold romanticized feelings about the natural landscape, largely based on memories, the realities of the isolationist and idealistic view of this natural landscape and how we interact with it came into focus. I gained a greater dependence on the landscape to fulfill my professional responsibilities and the services of the local community became an important facet of my leisure time. An important, but seemingly insignificant part of my camp experience was the travel between Toronto and Sundridge. As a camper, I travelled to camp on a large coach bus accompanied by 40 other excited campers. The ride largely consisted of talking and singing until we drove through Sundridge and pulled off Highway 11 onto the road leading to the camp, which was dotted with camp signs that we counted along the way. With the excitement building, this long winding dirt road through the forest, which usually took a grand total of 5 minutes, always seemed longer than the 3 hours we had just spent on the highway, adding to the sense of isolation and remoteness. This experience changed significantly in 2007 when I drove myself up to the camp for the first time. Self-driving altered my travel experience as I was now focused on navigating the route and reacting to driving conditions. In addition, the access to a personal vehicle allowed me to travel freely between camp and town, reducing the feeling of isolation. VI Over the next few years, the drive from Toronto to Sundridge became a regular part of my routine several times a summer. Although getting stuck behind a slow moving truck was a regular occurrence, I became very comfortable with the two-lane highway that allowed me to travel up north, pull over at my favourite restaurant along the way and arrive in Sundridge without having to think about directions. At that time, I was not aware of the government initiative to further develop Highway 11 into a four-lane divided highway, so the first summer that I drove up to find that the land had been clear-cut and excavated and large portions of rock faces were being blasted to make room for the new highway, I was quite shocked. The shock turned to feelings of anger and sadness as the familiar landscape was, in my mind, being destroyed. The highway construction became part of the new normal and every summer I drove up to camp finding more changes to the landscape. The attachment I had developed to this environment as a camper led me to think that this development was negative because of the destruction I saw of the landscape. My perception of the project became more negative as I listened to individuals, mainly business owners, in Sundridge provide their opinions of the project and the impending bypass of the town.

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