I am walking near a path leading to a Boreal Forest. There is a mist that ascends above the tops of the elongated coniferous trees and hangs in the northern air in wisps, rises and vanishes in the early morning sunshine. A boreal forest is named after Boreas the Greek God, and is also known by the Russian Word "Taiga". It is a unique ecosystem of a productive mosaic of interconnected habitats that include forest, lakes, river valleys, wetlands, peat lands and the Tundra at its northern reaches.
I have never seen a forest like this before. The trees are like wiry green bottle brushes and the trees are densely packed together like toothpicks in a box. There are huge patches in the forest where it appears that trees have been chopped. There are the signs of the coyote, and the elk. I have read that the Canadian Boreal forest is unique in its kind and is one of the largest intact ecosystems remaining on this planet. It is also the nesting ground for over 300 species of birds. From where I stand I can see the Athabasca River, twinkling at me in the sunlight. There is a little movement on the surface, fish perhaps. Fishermen have reported seeing a lot of deformed fish lately in the water.
The forest looms all around like a living presence. A bird flies out behind me jolting me into the grim irony of what lies before me. I am reminded that underneath this beauteous natural terrain lies the second largest reservoir of oil and petroleum in the world. These are the Athabasca oil sands and extracting this oil is not easy. This oil comes in a form of bitumen, a viscous substance that is mixed with sand and clay. Hence the term "oil-sands". They spray steam through this mixture to separate the oil from the sand. A lot of water is required for this process.
Early in the 16th century, fishermen from North West Europe were taking rich catches of cod from the west banks of Newfoundland and in the Gulf of St Lawrence in Canada and at times exchanged metal and cloth goods for furs and pelts from the Native Indians. The fishermen found an eager market for the furs and pelts in Europe and this exchange of goods set up the fur trade. The North West Company and the Hudson Bay Company were competitors in the fur trade and set up trading posts in Fort Edmonton and Fort McMurray as well as on the East coast.
Fort McMurray, also called "Canada's economic engine", now plays in important role in the history of the petroleum industry in Canada. Canada holds the world's second largest reserves of oil and petroleum (the first being Saudi Arabia). The Athabasca oil sands are large deposits of bitumen that are centered on the boomtown of Fort McMurray.
I venture into a Tim Horton's near Highway 63, the narrow highway that connects Fort McMurray to Edmonton, the capital of Alberta. My daughter wants a chili and a peach drink, while I settle for a medium double, double (which translates into two sugar, two creams) coffee. Huge trucks and SUVs pull up at the Tim Horton's drive through. I see a lot of tattoos and greased overalls. Oil workers flood this boomtown from all corners of Canada as well as the world. I see more immigrants here than I do in Edmonton or Calgary. A couple of ladies wearing the hejab are having lunch in a corner. I notice some South Americans, speaking in low Spanish tones, probably from Venezuela judging from their tee shirts. I choose a cheese bagel with my coffee. Outside the cafe window, I can look over Highway 63. It is construction season; half of the road has construction crew with yellow hardhats scattered all around. There are said to be two seasons in Alberta --- winter and construction. This crew is obviously on a tight deadline as the snows may come any time soon. There is a sound of a mini-blast on the highway and everyone inside the Tim Horton's rushes to the windows to see what is going on. Ambulances and fire engines rush to the spot. It is nothing major. However, the crowd still lingers on to watch in case something happens in a moment of inattention. Fort McMurray is a quiet place and any little activity is a source of entertainment. I see in the local newspaper "Connect" a picture of some Bangladeshi children dancing at an Eid festival.
Fort McMurray has astonishing vistas and one of the most awe inspiring sights in this town from one of the hills is the confluence of the four rivers: the Horse, the Hangingstone, the Clearwater and the Athabasca River. The view from Abasand drive is particularly breathtaking at night as the rivers shine in the moonlight while the lights of this northern town flicker and shimmer and rise in the cool northern air.
We take a drive to Gregoire Lake, only a half hour's drive from Fort McMurray. There is a sandy beach that my daughter takes to in a whoop of joy and I sit and watch the boats go by. It is hard to believe that I am so far in the north, almost near Yellowknife and yet have a sandy beach with white sailing boats before me. For a moment I visualize Lake Ontario, but that moment is fleeting and soon vanished buried forever in the recesses of my mind. Lake Gregorie offers catch and release fishing for those looking for more stress-relieving aspects of the sport.
Driving back to Fort McMurray, I notice humongous trucks moving towards the oil sands. From where I sit in the SUV, I cannot see the driver. It reminds me of the trucks in the movie Avatar (by James Cameron) with which they begin to cut down the trees and drive out the native people in the forest. This boreal forest also reminds me of the forest in the movie, in the manner that it almost has a living presence. I wonder to myself if James Cameron ever came to Fort McMurray before he made the movie.
Something troubles me in Fort McMurray, although I am not able to pinpoint the exact reason. On one hand is nature so vast, dignified, beauteous and plentiful in its resources. On the other hand are the needs of man and the maintaintence of all that he has created through civilization. Could there not be a balance between the two? I think to myself: perhaps I should leave these questions to more able mortals like David Suzuki and merely take pleasure in what I see before me? A living breathing boreal forest like no other forest on earth!

Sayeeda Jaigirdar writes from the province of Alberta, Canada.