Due to the location, remoteness and the serenity it ceases to be hard work and more of a labour of love. Perhaps a necessity of the idealic existence. We are totally exempt from the modern world's day to day drudgery (other than death and taxes) and an 8 hour day is something we chuckle about.
We share the same viewpoint on many fronts. Lagoon Island is only a short boat ride from Tofino, near to impossible to access from the south because of extensive tidal flats, but only at high tide. Even then it's not practical, because it's easy to become marooned for several hours and possibly days, depending on the moon phase. Access to the farm is via going arount the top of the island then south, which has a ithsmus at the entrance of the lagoon. Technically, it's part of Meares Island and only becomes an island unto itself a few times a year. The entrance to the north has uncharted rock "fangs" in the middle which scare away even the more experienced boaters. An ideal situation from a security
and serenity standpoint. It's rugged, rustic and not for the faint of heart.
Dave I had no experience as in working on Pearl Farms before purchasing this one. I did not finish school Dave so I can't help you with scientific data. I'm a practical hands on trial by error kind of operator.
To go from no experience to a producer of gorgeous SS gems in two and a half years is a feat, Rusty! I'm no scientist either, but endeavour to be technically correct, while often admitting to being naively misleading. Observation and ecology are words often used here.
I'm very interested in your operation Dave and have no knowledge of a bivalve industry in Canada. No doubt you are also busy but I'd love to know what you expect to acheive.
Never to busy to discuss pearls!!
This area is part of a United Nations Biosphere, where sustainable development is the keystone for industry. For many years, beautiful Clayoquot Sound was the epicenter of environmental activism, preventing clear-cut logging over-fishing and mining. The farm is surrounded by ancient rainforest. The reaches to the farm (Lemmens Inlet) boast more species per square unit than any other ocean in the world, second only to the Red Sea. Food is plentiful and growth is seasonally rapid. Eighteen to twenty months is my target cycle.
I vowed to myself years ago, to never tear a page out of the southern oceans book in developing my farm, even though some techniques are utilized. Monoculture is one of them. Diversity is important to me. I enjoy the priviledge of harvesting optimal adult shell stock for conditioning and grafting, without the precarous burden of hatcheries, inbreeding or juvenile rearing. The bulk of my work involves Mytilus californianus aka the California mussel, but leave no stone unturned in my research, dabbling with gastropods, cephalopods, pectens and even some species of venus clams. No abalone though. It's been tried before in Canada and failed miserably on many counts.
I've harvested a lot of natural pearls from mussels ranging from the whitest whites to the blackest blacks as well as some magnificent colors in between. I am very fortunate to be involved with collaberative studies in the causes and formation of natural pearls, with some of the most preeminent scientists and experts in the field.
Although I have some inventory hanging from floats, the main goal of my operation is a "free range" concept, where animals are grafted and reintroduced to their place of birth in the middle intertidal zone. This all but eliminates anti-fouling needs, as the daily turn of the tides, exposure to air, sun and critters keep the animals clean naturally. It also allows me to inspect their growth and survival regularly. Just recently, I've been granted an experimental lease in the very stomping ground of my mentor Ed Ricketts at Clayoquot Island.
Like yourself, I don't expect to produce much more than a few kilograms of pearls annually, but focus upon unique features in the finished product. I currently have inventories of beaded, non-beaded and mabe shell stock in growout.
Perhaps one day, I would be fortunate enough to attend your farm. Be welcomed here anytime. We often kick around the idea of a mini-ruckus here in Canada, because many of the contributors of this forum are on the west coast of the continent.
So once again, thank you for sharing your experiences with us and I look forward to future discussions.
