I have been doing a lot of "lasts" lately.  My last visit to Nipissing University, my last meal at Twigg's, my last Lake Nipissing sunset, and all that... Well, the reason for that is that today is my last day of work at the museum, and in fact my last day in North Bay - though I have to add the caveat "for now".  I fully intend to return to my adopted home city, and even while I am away, I plan to contribute to the museum in any way possible.

So, this is not "Kyle's Last Blog Post."  Just my last as a local correspondent.  Jokingly, I have been promoted to "Foreign Correspondent", and intend to resume my position as a Blogger from my new country, the United Kingdom. 

Keep your eyes open for these new international posts!

In the meantime, just because today was my last day doesn't mean that it was a slack day... In fact, we managed to accomplish a lot here... See the posts below for more details!

FInally!  After years of being a student at Nipissing, I got to see the groundbreaking ceremony for our new Library!  It was nice to be able to do this in my capacity as a museum employee, as there is already a strong community connection between Nipissing University, Canadore College, and @discoverynorthbay.

In the picture here you can see the ceremonial groundbreaking taking place, with our local Member of Provincial Parliament, Monique Smith, taking the place of pride at the centre.  With her are former Nipissing President Dennis Mock, current President Lesley Lovett-Doust, and Canadore College President Barbara Taylor. 

This was my last visit to the Nipissing campus for quite some time - I was sad to walk away from so many wonderful friends, but I am very proud to have learned so much at this institution. 

You can read more about research memberships for student by following this link!

I asked Mayor Vic and Monique Smith for a quick photo before we left.

Posted by: Kyle

I love that there is never a dull moment at DiscoveryNorthBay. Today I was giving a museum tour, and to my surprise we discovered a cute little furry bat above our observation car photo booth. It was brought to my attention when one of the tour goers asked if the bat was real or fake. Down town has a large community of bats, as of yesterday we purchased a bat house, but we have yet to hang it up. We think our little buddy was just looking for a warm place to call home.

Here is a picture of myself and Kim assessing how we could capture our little friend. Eventually I placed a canvass bag inside the butterfly net, because I feared the bat could get tangled and injure itself. So with my new fashioned bat catching device and a ruler, I encouraged the bat into my device. With a few squeaks the bat entered the device, and I escorted the bat outside, and set it free. We had fun taking some pictures of our little friend

Everyone's favourite giant African snail, Friday, visited the museum today, to help us with a Green Legacy program this afternoon.  I can't believe that he didn't make it to the observation car for a photo before today... He is without a doubt, the first snail to be photographed here.
Kyle has brought his pet into the museum on many different occasions, whenever a snail might be relevant to our programming, and he is always a huge hit!

Wednesday was an exciting day for North Bay's war enthusiasts, as the Lancaster Bomber from World War Two landed at the Jack Garland Airport, and was open for the public to see.
Kyle and I were just finishing up an outreach program at the Near North Youth Center, and were lucky enough to see the plane circle the area, and then take a closer look once it landed.  I personally found it very moving to see the WWII veterans there, with the look of recognition on their faces.  Kyle even over hear someone say 'Still sounds the same...'.
I was completely taken aback at the size of the plane... This was the first time I have been able to truly appreciate this type of artifact, first hand.  They look much much smaller in textbooks.  In the picture below, you can even see some imperfections in the exterior of the plane, presumably from one of the plane's many battles.

Ever loook up at the model train at Discoverynorthbay and wonder, "I wonder what it would be like to ride that train?"

Well, here is a chance to see what it would be like to stick your head out the window and watch the train makes it's journey.

Be sure to subscribe to TheDNBvideos on youtube.com.

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later.  Today was the day.  Courtney, our illustrious Education and School Programming Director, took her first walk below the new Underpass.  And it was great.

Here, you can see her walking jauntily towards her future as a Downtown-To-Waterfront-By-Foot-Commuter.  I think it's a role that she relishes.

Speaking of relish, after being bullied to the Waterfront by my co-workers at the museum, we decided to take in a little lunch at a nearby Waterfront restaurant.  Not only was this place close (about 650 steps from the museum, which translates into about a 4-minute walk), but it was also quite delicious.

Arms outstretched, Courtney celebrates her Underpass odyssey.




Posted by: Kyle

Well, it happened.  The Pedestrian Underpass to the Historic Waterfront District opened yesterday afternoon, and it was .. well, it was just terrific. 

About 150 people (maybe more) were there for the first walk under the Underpass, and they couldn't have been happier.  It wasn't until we were halfway across that I thought aloud "wow, a marching band sure would have been awesome right now."  It is my goal that, in the future, we can arrange for just such a marching band.

Anyway, here are some pictures from The Big Day. 

Seen here are Mayor Victor Fedeli, who was addressing the crowd at the very moment this picture was taken.  He really seemed to be beaming with community pride when he spoke of the fact that this was a project that had finally been realized, after first being suggested in 1928.  Deputy Mayor Peter Chirico was the Master of Ceremonies, and was a phenomenal one at that.  Also speaking from the platform were Monique Smith, our local Member of Provincial Parliament and the Minister of Tourism.  She brought along John Wilkinson, the Minister of Revenue (who didn't speak, but wow we were glad to have him here).  Harriet Madigan represented the Community Waterfront Friends and Heritage North Bay, and she was beside herself with pride.  Jeff Serran represented the Downtown Improvement Association, and Lindsay Furlong represented our local Member of Parliament, Anthony Rota, who was unable to attend the ceremony. 

This is another crowd shot.  Among the attendees were longtime museum volunteers Joyce O'Halloran, and Pam Handley (who is a former Curator of the museum).  Former Mayor Stan Lawlor was there to cheer on the project, as well.  Newly-minted Nipissing University President Lesley Lovett-Doust attended, along with former Nipissing University Student Union President Genevieve de Bruyn.  Forgive me if I forgot a name here - I was just so happy to see you all there!

Okay, my boss and co-workers are rushing me out the door for lunch right now, so we can walk under the Underpass!

Posted by: Kyle

Tomorrow is The Big Day.  The Pedestrian Underpass to the beautiful Lake Nipissing Waterfront will officially open to the public, in a special ceremony hosted by the Mayor and City Council. 

The 2:00 pm ceremony is sure to be the day's highlight, but back at the museum, we have been eagerly preparing for a post-ceremony reception, which includes the launch of a new "Rail Land Retrospective" - a small exhibition of historic photographs of the rail lands next to the Waterfront.

Discovery North Bay staff have been working hard to get ready for this big event. We even applied a fresh, clean, new coat of paint to our upstairs gallery! 

Here you can see the last-minute construction action taking place on the museum side of the Underpass.  The side facing Lake Nipissing is the first stage of the development, and if you happen to be on Memorial Drive in the near future, take a close look - the work that has been completed is truly beautiful.

Here our newly-painted gallery is spotless, and ready for tomorrow's visitors.  On the walls, you can see some of the photos being used in the Rail Lands Retrospective exhibition.

On display here is a piece of a CPR Dining Car plate that was found about ten feet under the rail lands that are currently being redeveloped.  This artifact was donated to the museum last year, and according to the Canadian Pacific Railway archives, dates from around the turn of the last century.  It is one of several pieces of North Bay's "hidden heritage" that have been unearthed in construction sites around the city.

Posted by: Kyle

This past Saturday, July 25th marked 6 months until Christmas! What better way to celebrate than to visit Christmas in July at the Carousel and Mini-Train.  Danielle, Jenn and I acted as Santa's helpers for the morning, and made sure that every child that wanted one got a turn to visit Santa.
The day was cut short, unfortunately due to the very intense rain we got early afternoon.  But, with the train being less busy, it gave Danielle and I a chance to start on our second carreers: engineering.  Mini-Train and Carousel manager, Dan, took some time to teach Danielle and I how to drive the Mini-Train, and each of us got to take her out for a spin a couple of times. Who knows, the next time you're on the train, you may be taking a ride with one of us!

Posted by: Kim

The citizens of North Bay along with tourists visiting our region are snapping up our clever shadfly t-shirts faster than we can put them on the shelves! Love 'em or not, the shadfly is certainly being embraced at the Discovery North Bay Museum giftshop.
We now offer mens shadwear tees in black and white and women's tees in periwinkle blue. We also carry children's sizes in white.
Grab your shadwear now before the shads are gone!