Letter from the Wilderness
Hi, Johhny B!
A helicopter ride is probably old hat to a former marine like you, but I went on only the second one of my life yesterday. Man, those things are fun! My pilot, Paul, picked me up at the Goose Bay airport, then we went to the (mostly) abandoned air base on the other side of town. That airbase used to host squadrons from all over the world – Europeans mostly – as their pilots practiced low-flying tactics, which is not something you can do easily in populated Europe. But now tactics have changed – it’s easier and cheaper to send a missile, postage due. So, the base is eerily quiet, with some buildings falling into disrepair.
It’s a good place to keep your helicopter though. We took off and headed NorthEast. The word for Labrador is "wilderness." Trees, rocks, ponds, lakes and more trees. There are huge scars on the landscape from a forest fire over a decade ago – this place may be a wildnerness, but that doesn’t mean it grows fast.
On the way up, we talked real estate. Paul the Pilot lived in Deer Lake on Newfoundland. He said that Europeans were flooding into the place. Lakeside lots that you could buy for $12,000 six years ago now fetched hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The other passenger, Dave Forrest, lives in Alberta. The price of his home has DOUBLED in the last six months, he said.
Me – I’m from West Palm Beach. The only way to move your house in West Palm Beach these days is to dynamite it! LOL!
Anyway, there are a bunch of mineral explorers (gold, copper, nickel, you name it) scattered over Labrador. We passed over the odd camp or two. We also passed over traces of the LAST uranium boom in Labrador – back in the 70s, before the price of uranium crashed. There are roads to nowhere that are nothing but snowmobile trails now.
We flew over some breathtaking cliffs and saltwater lakes, finally ending up at the former fishing village where the company makes its field headquarters. The actual mining camp is ANOTHER helicopter ride away – we’ll be leaving soon.
The air is so crisp and fresh here. And I remind myself that’s one reason uranium is going to get so popular … that is, unless you like choking on coal dust. And heck, some studies have shown there’s more radioactive traces in the exhaust from a coal-fired power plant than from a nuclear power plant. Crazy world, eh?
Gotta run (there’s a bear chasing me). Just kidding. You guys take care with that storm coming. If you have time, would you give my wife a call and see if she needs help with the shutters? Thanks, bud!
Sean
A helicopter ride is probably old hat to a former marine like you, but I went on only the second one of my life yesterday. Man, those things are fun! My pilot, Paul, picked me up at the Goose Bay airport, then we went to the (mostly) abandoned air base on the other side of town. That airbase used to host squadrons from all over the world – Europeans mostly – as their pilots practiced low-flying tactics, which is not something you can do easily in populated Europe. But now tactics have changed – it’s easier and cheaper to send a missile, postage due. So, the base is eerily quiet, with some buildings falling into disrepair.
It’s a good place to keep your helicopter though. We took off and headed NorthEast. The word for Labrador is "wilderness." Trees, rocks, ponds, lakes and more trees. There are huge scars on the landscape from a forest fire over a decade ago – this place may be a wildnerness, but that doesn’t mean it grows fast.
On the way up, we talked real estate. Paul the Pilot lived in Deer Lake on Newfoundland. He said that Europeans were flooding into the place. Lakeside lots that you could buy for $12,000 six years ago now fetched hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The other passenger, Dave Forrest, lives in Alberta. The price of his home has DOUBLED in the last six months, he said.
Me – I’m from West Palm Beach. The only way to move your house in West Palm Beach these days is to dynamite it! LOL!
Anyway, there are a bunch of mineral explorers (gold, copper, nickel, you name it) scattered over Labrador. We passed over the odd camp or two. We also passed over traces of the LAST uranium boom in Labrador – back in the 70s, before the price of uranium crashed. There are roads to nowhere that are nothing but snowmobile trails now.
We flew over some breathtaking cliffs and saltwater lakes, finally ending up at the former fishing village where the company makes its field headquarters. The actual mining camp is ANOTHER helicopter ride away – we’ll be leaving soon.
The air is so crisp and fresh here. And I remind myself that’s one reason uranium is going to get so popular … that is, unless you like choking on coal dust. And heck, some studies have shown there’s more radioactive traces in the exhaust from a coal-fired power plant than from a nuclear power plant. Crazy world, eh?
Gotta run (there’s a bear chasing me). Just kidding. You guys take care with that storm coming. If you have time, would you give my wife a call and see if she needs help with the shutters? Thanks, bud!
Sean
Check out my new gold and energy blog at MoneyAndMarkets.com
posted by Sean Brodrick @ 5:54 AM
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