When you go for a tour with Paul Morralee of Canadian Lighthouses of Lake Superior be prepared to think outside the box.
As a society, we’re often tied to our phones. Anytime we witness something new, we feel like we need to record it digitally and see the whole experience through the lens of a camera. Paul is set on changing this.
“When people come on a tour, I ask them to put away their phones for a moment and be in the place that they are. I ask them to make a mental note of it. To feel the beauty around them, to absorb it with their eyes and all their senses, and take, well, take a mental snapshot.”
It’s this experience that has such an impact on people. “They leave with more than just a hundred photos, they carry a memory with them that will last a long time,” Paul maintains.
Paul is passionate about the beauty of Thunder Bay and Lake Superior. But he is also passionate about taking people away from the rules and regulations and red tape in society. That’s why his tours take people away from the city to see it in a different light.
“We’re cloistered by the railway and the grain elevators and the solid infrastructure, like the break wall here in Thunder Bay. The best view is when you leave the boundaries and see it all from a different perspective.”
Paul has a great appreciation for the lighthouse on Porphyry Island, but his gratitude extends beyond the actual building. He is a lover of its history and its stories, and he sees the lighthouse as a beacon that calls us to move away from society and immerse ourselves in the flora and fauna, and all that Lake Superior has to offer. “We have 54 km of shoreline of Lake Superior here in Thunder Bay but only 5 km that is accessible to the public. When you head out onto the lake, that changes.”
Paul lived in Oxford, England and remembers exploring the Thames River many times as a child. When he moved to Canada to Deep River, located along the Ottawa River, he continued his quest to see all that could be seen. Now, as an adult in Thunder Bay, his passion continues to grow. “Our area has been described as ‘The Galapagos of the North.’ Paul says with a smile. “And it is. We have such a great diversity of plants and animals. And our landscape. We even have black sand! Just like in Hawaii!” he adds with a laugh.
Paul likes to encourage people to immerse themselves in things that they do not know. “Sometimes we walk around like we have horse blinders on,” he warns. “Sometimes people in Westfort rarely, if ever, see the Kaministiqua River. Sometimes people living in Current River never see the Mission Marsh Conservation area.”
Paul has shared his love for the beauty of Thunder Bay and its surrounding area through his articles in Thunder Bay’s newspaper, The Chronicle Journal. In a span of ten years, he wrote 120 articles that provided readers with historical stories, interesting tidbits and a celebration of nature in Thunder Bay and Lake Superior. All these articles are now in a book called “Lighthouse Dispatches: Ramblings of a Modern Day Lightkeeper” and is available at Entershine Bookshop. “The purpose of the book is, of course, to entice and encourage people to explore and enjoy Lake Superior,” Paul says. “But it’s a challenge to tell people what Lake Superior is like. It’s better for people to experience it for themselves.”
In a world where AI can alter photos of nature in attempts to enhance their natural beauty, the beauty of Lake Superior is real and majestic and good for our mental health. Just ask Paul. But better still, go out on a tour with him, and leave your phone behind.
For more information about Paul and the Canadian Lighthouses of Lake Superior tours, visit their website at www.clls.ca.
