As part of our tribute to the women of the Cascapedia, an old fashion country Christmas will be celebrated throughout the week of August 8^th to August 12^th and many events are planned.

 There is no doubt that women have always taken on the responsibility of planning Christmas for their families.  The many weeks of preparation including cleaning, sewing, knitting, baking and decorating added more hours of work to their already busy days. Yet they somehow managed to bring it all together and make each season a celebration and a time to remember.   In recognition of their efforts and the memories that these women have given us,  a small group of women including the staff and volunteers of the Cascapedia River Museum will  join together to relive a traditional Gaspesian celebration.

On Monday, August the 8^th, the smell of Christmas baking will fill the air of the Lady Amherst Tea Room as we wait in anticipation for the festivities to begin. On Tuesday guests will be invited to share their favourite Christmas memories.   There will also be an entertaining game of “Santa Gossip” and it will be interesting to see how that turns out, for gossip has always had a way of being slightly exaggerated, even in our small town. 

 On Wednesday there will be a traditional Christmas dinner served at noon and it is necessary to reserve ahead of time for there are a limited number of seats available. 

Thursday will be celebrated with a Christmas concert in the afternoon starting at 1:30 p.m. and hot chocolate and cupcakes will be on the menu.

The week will end with a Christmas Tea on Friday afternoon and every visitor will leave with a unique Christmas stocking filled with homemade treats.  Every day, visitors can enter their name in a draw and the lucky winners will get to choose one of the beautifully wrapped gifts under the tree before closing on Friday.

Throughout the week, except for Wednesday, a light lunch will be served with homemade pastries.  Christmas stories will be told, songs will be sung and a selection of old time classic Christmas movies will be played in the Tea Room.  A varied selection of handmade Christmas decorations and gifts, which have all been locally made, will fill the gift shop. All activities will take place in the Lady Amherst Tea Room between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. each day. This is a opportunity for everyone to take part in an old time family gathering amongst friends.

Noël style ancien au Musée de la Rivière Cascapédia

 En lien avec notre hommage aux femmes de la Cascapédia, un Noël ancien style country sera célébré durant la semaine du 8 au 12 août avec plusieurs évènements à l’agenda.

Il n’y a aucun doute que les femmes ont toujours eu la responsabilité de planifier les activités de Noël dans leur foyer. Les longues semaines de préparation étaient remplies de ménage, couture, tricotage, nourriture et biensûr les décorations, et tout cela se faisait en plus des tâches hebdomadaires. De plus, elles réussissaient à faire de cette période de l’année une célébration inoubliable. Afin de souligner leurs efforts et les moments inoubliables qu’ils nous ont laissés, un petit groupe de femmes (incluant le personnel et les bénévoles du Musée) travailleront ensemble afin de revivre une célébration maison à l’ancienne.

Le lundi 8 août, les odeurs de pâtisseries inonderont le Salon de Thé Lady Amherst pendant que nous attendons impatiemment le début des activités. Mardi, on aimerait que nos visiteurs habituels partagent avec nous leurs souvenirs d’un Noël d’antan.   De plus, nous avons mis à l’horaire le jeu de Père Noël placoteur, ce vais être intéressant d’écouter les échos qui sortiront de ces histoires puisque nous savons que, même dans notre petit village, les histoires ont tendance à être exagérées.     

C’est mercredi que le diner traditionnel de Noël sera servi à midi. Il est nécessaire de réserver votre place au préalable puisque le nombre de places est limité. 

Jeudi, à partir de 13h30, il y aura un concert de Noël et des petits gâteaux et du chocolat chaud qui seront servis.

La semaine va se terminer vendredi après-midi où chaque visiteur sera remis, lors de son départ, un bas de Noël rempli de friandises maison. À tous les jours, les visiteurs pourront s’inscrire à un tirage et l’heureux chanceux pourra se choisir un beau cadeau sous le sapin de Noël.

Pendant la semaine, à l’exception de mercredi, un léger diner sera servi avec des pâtisseries maison. Des histoires seront partagées, des chansons seront chantées et des films de Noël seront visionnés dans le Salon de thé. Une variété de décorations et de cadeaux maison, tous faits localement, remplieront la boutique de cadeaux. Voilà la raison parfaite pour tous de participer à ce rassemblement d’autrefois parmi amis et collègues.

The temporary exhibition for the season is A Woman’s River and a dvd tribute will be  soon be completed and available in our gift shop.

Tonight ( July 27th) we will be hosting a photograph presentation by Michael and Gordon Duthie about early lumbering on the Cascapedia River.

Christmas will be celebrated early this year on the Cascapedia from August 8th to the 12th. The Tea Room will be decorated and  a variety of gift ideas with a Christmas theme will be on sale in the gift shop. Of course there will be sugar cookies served throught out the week as well as other delicious homemade treats. On Wednesday August 10th, a traditional Christmas dinner  will be served at noon. Reservations are necessary so please call ahead ( 418 392-5079) .

Our gift shop is now open on the veranda  with a variety of new items and a country tea room theme.

The staff is busy working on the collections management catalogue and all information is being updated and digitized. The new business strategy is being developed and will be presented to the Board of Directors in the early fall. From there it will be submitted  to the government  for funding for the new permanent exhibition as well as other objectives.

I hope that you will all have a chance to stop by for a visit.

 

Cascapedia River Museum Public Announcement for 2011

The Cascapedia River Museum is making plans for the future development of this amazing cultural site.  Last summer we celebrated our 10^th anniversary and we are now preparing our work plan for the next decade with much anticipation. We are developing strategies that will make certain that our non profit cultural site will remain a vital resource for our local community as well as the Atlantic salmon angling world.  A Five Year Business Plan and a feasibility study will be developed during the summer, which will be submitted to our Board of Directors for their approval. Once accepted it will be used at a Reseau Express (round table government discussion) in September.  A copy of this will be available online at that time for anyone who is interested.

In order to build these strategies, which will include the possibility of a new permanent exhibition, the main exhibition room will not be open to tourists during the 2011 season.  This will enable us to take the time to research, develop, write and submit project funding proposals to the different levels of government funding departments so that we may attain our future goals.  We will also complete the cataloguing and digitization of our valuable collection of artefacts which is one of the strict requirements of museum operations. This Museum is recognised as a quality product on the Gaspe Coast for we represent a unique heritage that only our river can offer, therefore we are optimistic that the government will support our mandate and secure the local jobs that the Museum has created.  

The Lady Amherst Tea Room will be open on June 20^th and will operate from Monday to Friday. We will serve a variety of lunches every Wednesday, so be sure to follow us on Facebook to see what is on the menu. We invite you to come and enjoy the delicious homemade pastries that Kathy will be baking, for she will be operating the tea room once again this year.   As part of the 2011 restructuring plan, the gift shop will be relocated in the Tea Room this year. A new exhibition titled A Woman’s River, will be on display throughout the summer. We will also have a series of invited guests to animate and entertain us and details of these events will be posted. 

We will be adding a collection of photographs to a computer which will be accessible to anyone wanting to look through a series of pictures from our history. You are also invited to add your pictures to this collection for the research and enjoyment of others in our community.  Together we have a heritage to maintain.

We have been very fortunate to be selected as a participant once again in Quebec’s Placement Culture Program.  The Conseils des arts et des lettres is a provincial institution mandated to respond to the needs of the cultural community in Quebec. They have sent us a letter of intent agreeing to match our fund raising efforts by encouraging donors to participate in a fund raising campaign to continue to build the Cascapedia River Museum Trust Fund. For every dollar that we raise, they will match our donations by 300 %. Our goal at this time is to raise $100 000, which will be placed in the trust fund. Therefore every dollar counts towards securing your heritage so that our children’s children will have the opportunity to discover Cascapedia’s rich heritage. The Cascapedia River Museum is a Canadian non profit registered charity; therefore all donations to the Museum are tax deductible. Your support will be greatly appreciated for we cannot do it alone.

This river has many stories to tell and we will be focusing more attention on the local history and its people.  Throughout the summer we will be adding pictures, video clips and interesting historical information on our Blog and Facebook network and we invite you to share your comments, stories and pictures with us.

With a new direction, we hope to make this a place you will always want to come back to, whether you walk in the front door or find us online. The future of our heritage belongs to us and the future generations.

                                                        Be a Part of it!

Communiqué de la part du Musée de la rivière Cascapédia

Le Musée de la rivière Cascapédia travaille présentement sur les projets futurs de ce site culturel exceptionnel.  L’été dernier, nous avons célébré le 10^e anniversaire du musée et nous préparons maintenant les plans pour la prochaine décennie avec beaucoup d’anticipation. Nous sommes à développer des stratégies qui vont assurer la survie de notre site culturel à but non lucratif qu’elle demeure une ressource essentielle pour notre communauté et pour les amateurs de pêche au saumon.  Un plan d’affaire étalonné sur 5 ans et une étude de faisabilité seront développés pendant l’été et seront remis à notre conseil d’administration pour approbation. Lorsque ces deux documents seront approuvés, ils seront utilisés par Réseau Express (table ronde pour discussions gouvernementales) en septembre. Ces documents seront diffusés sur le site Internet du Musée. 

Afin de préparer ces stratégies, et possiblement une exhibition permanente,  la salle d’exhibition sera fermée pour la période estivale 2011.  Cette fermeture nous permettra de faire de la recherche, développer, composer et soumettre, aux différents départements des gouvernements, des propositions de projets de financement, qui nous permettront d’atteindre nos buts futurs. De plus, nous allons profiter de ce temps pour compléter l’enregistrement et la numérisation de notre collection d’artéfacts (exercices obligatoires pour les musées). Ce musée est reconnu comme étant de qualité supérieure pour la péninsule gaspésienne puisqu’il représente l’héritage laissé par notre rivière, c’est pour cette raison que nous sommes confiants que le gouvernement supportera notre mission et protègera les emplois locaux que le musée a créés.  

Le salon de thé «The Lady Amherst» ouvrira ses portes le 20 juin et sera en fonction du lundi au vendredi. Des repas à menus variés seront servis les mercredis, ils seront annoncés sur note page Facebook. Nous vous invitons à venir déguster les délicieux desserts maisons préparés par Kathy, la responsable du salon de thé. Une partie de notre plan de restructuration pour l’année 2011 comprend le nouvel emplacement de la boutique de cadeaux, celui-ci sera situé, pour cette année, dans le salon de thé. De plus, une nouvelle exhibition intitulée « Une rivière de femmes » sera exposée pendant la période estivale. Nous aurons aussi des invités spéciaux qui sauront vous accueillir et vous divertir, ces évènements seront diffusés prochainement.   

Nous aurons une série de photos numériques disponibles en version informatique. Ces photos seront accessibles à tous.  Nous vous invitons à ajouter vos photos à cette collection pour des fins de recherche et de plaisir pour les autres membres de notre communauté. Nous avons tous un héritage à maintenir.

Encore une fois, nous nous considérons très fortunés d’être choisis à participer au programme Placements culture du Gouvernement du Québec. Le Conseils des arts et des lettres est une institution provinciale mandatée à répondre aux besoins de la communauté culturelle au Québec.  Ils nous ont fait parvenir une lettre d’intention nous indiquant qu’ils vont jumeler nos efforts de campagne de financement en encourageant les donneurs à participer à la campagne de financement afin de continuer à fructifier le fonds du Musée de la rivière Cascapédia. À chaque dollar contribué, le Conseil des arts et des lettres versera 300 % du montant donné. Présentement, notre but est d’amasser 100 000 $ qui sera placé dans le fonds du musée. Alors, chaque dollar investit représente un investissement précieux et aidera à sécuriser votre héritage afin que les enfants de nos enfants puissant découvrir l’héritage riche en histoire de la Cascapédia.  Le musée de la rivière Cascapédia est une œuvre de bienfaisance à but non lucrative canadienne, alors tous les dons faits au nom du Musée sont déductibles d’impôts. Vos dons sont grandement appréciés, puisque nous ne pouvons atteindre notre but seul.

Cette rivière déborde d’histoires à raconter et nous allons nous concentrer davantage sur l’historique local et sur la communauté l’entourant. Pendant l’été, nous allons ajouter des photographies, clips vidéo et de l’information historique sur notre blogue et sur notre page Facebook. Nous vous invitons à nous faire part de vos commentaires et histoires et de partager vos photos avec nous.

Avec cette nouvelle direction, nous espérons faire de cet endroit un milieu où vous seriez attiré à visiter, que ce soit en personne ou sur notre site Internet. Le futur de notre héritage appartient à nous et aux générations futures.

                                                  Faites-en partie !

This year the temporary exhibition  on display in the tea room is Peter Corbin’s Three River’s – One Artist’s View which will add to your experience.

For all of you wondering why the tea room is not opened  this week, it is because we have several school groups coming to the Museum and the tea room is reserved for them. It will definitely be opened next week for the official opening of the season on Friday, June 25th and you are all invited to our open house.  

The opening ceremony begins at 2:00 p.m. and refreshments will be served of course. I will add more details later in the week as to what will take place but I hope that you will plan on being here to celebrate our 10th Anniversary with us.

 Be a Part of It!

  

Peter Corbin – Three Rivers Press Release Revised

The Cascapedia River Museum is opened as well and we  will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary this year. It is unbelievable how this small community museum has developed and grown over the past ten years and we will be celebrating   this  accomplishment throughout the upcoming season.   You can take a look at our latest ad for the season through this link.

SPEC.pdf 2010

 Join us in our celebration!!

                                  Lured by Salmon – Hooked on History!

Today we are working on the website and the final changes are going to be sent to  our web designer who will work them into our website. He  runs his own cascapediariver.com website and you can find a wealth of information there about the river and the community.

I have posted a few pictures of warmer days on the Cascapedia to remind you to get your cards in the draw for the November 1st Draw. 

 Have a great week!

Wesley Harrison who was a guide for Englehard's Camp

Arron Ferland Guide for Tracadie

Marc Cabot with guide Perry Coull

The 17 Mile Falls

Against the rapids

A Magnificent Fish

A Cascapedia Salmon

Strength and Determination

 The  rain has finally come after the dry spell that we had in September and the nights are becoming cooler. On most days this week, the sky has been overcast and we can feel the fall weather is in the air.  

The fishermen are gone, the guides  have moved on to other activities and all is quiet along the river… or so it seems.

Beneath the colder waters of the Cascapedia, this is the peak time for the Atlantic salmon to spawn. From approximately October 15th to November 5th,  the Cascapedia salmon are ready to follow the course of  nature and reproduce.  The males have developed their pronounced kype on the tip of their lower jaw and the females are getting ready to choose their nesting site  or redd. On average, a female deposits 700-800 eggs per pound of her body weight. It is an amazing process that takes place and it represents the  future of salmon fishing on the “Grand”.   

The  salmon  count   for this year  was 1800  fish which is very encouraging.  The  live release rate  was  89%.  Angling continues to be good with many 30 pound plus salmon being caught and released.  The feeling among anglers and guides on the river is that the agreement with the Gesgapegiag Band to lift their nets at the mouth of the river has really helped.

Until next time,

 Mary!

  One of the most  popular events at the festival is the Go Cart Race.  A lot of work goes into building the go carts but more time is spent talking about how fast they will go and who are the drivers to beat. Men and women are involved in this fast paced event and the laughs are guaranteed. If you are in the area, take the time to come and join the fun. Here are some pictures from other years…..

Guides competition

On your mark, get set, go!

Hold on boys....

My car goes fatster than yours... just wait and see!

Walking a fine line

Balancing act

Opps

A cold dip

This is also a time to  work with the Society to send out their fishing package so that anglers can put their name in the ” Draw ” for next season’s fishing.  This is an intense time for everyone as we  write, print, sort , stuff , stamp and mail out almost 2000 letters.   If you are interested in the fishing then you can send an email to info@cascapedia.com  and we will get back to you. If you would like a copy of the Museum’s newsletter, just send us an email cascapedia_museum@globetrotter.net  

This Museum is a work in progress and throughout the fall and winter, I will let you know  about our plans for the up coming year. For those of you who have checked our website, please be patient with us as it is being redesigned so that it will be user friendly and easier to update.

This is a special place and I hope that you come back often to learn more about us.

                           Be a part of the Cascapedia Experience!