Natalie Lucier's Travel Blog

Kiska in captivity at Marineland

Sparklestarr — Fri, 18 May 2012 13:24:41 +0000

I went to Marineland on opening day May 17, 2012. It was very hard to witness and see the sad lone killer whale named Kiska circling her pool. I took lots of photos and some video as well. You can see the sadness in her eyes. I will be posting more very soon. The is the one and only Orca whale in captivity in Canada at the moment. She was caught in the wild and has been living out her life in captivity. Why do we keep whales prisoners like this? Or any animal for that matter? For us to look at and entertain us? It is very sad.

I watched children say “Wooooowwww” and stand in amazement watching her. Most of them requested their parents to take a photo of them standing in front of the whale.

I sat with her on the edge of her pool in the underwater viewing area for a couple of hours. Sometimes there was a crowd watching her and then after a few family photos, they would clear out and it would be empty again.

I wondered what she was thinking. I wondered how she felt inside.

A Marineland whale trailer worker came up to me and asked me if I was a “Whale nut”? Probably because I was watching her for so long. He asked if I wanted to hear more information about Kiska. He told me how she was originally taken from Icelandic waters when she was young. And she has been at Marineland since the early 70′s. She used to be the main whale who did all of the whale shows at Marineland. She also birthed a few young but most of them have died. Now because of her age, she is considered “retired”.

She lives alone in a pool with artificial salt water (the park adds what they feel is the correct about of salt to the fresh water) to keep the whale buoyant and to artificially replica the ocean.

There are a couple of rocks at the bottom of her tank and rock formations around the edges of the pool. She circles these rocks over and over again…

Her dorsal fin is wobbly and not strait. Her eyes stare deep to the bottom of the pool as she circles over and over again…

It is very sad.

I will be shooting a film this summer 2012 on Vancouver Island featuring the killer whales in their natural habitat. Support an Orca Whale Documentary here: http://www.indiegogo.com/orcadoc2012?a=507914

Support an Orca Whale Documentary!

Sparklestarr — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:23:31 +0000

How are humans affecting the Orca whales? How do our choices have an affect on the whales? This documentary will give Canadians insight into the lives of the Orca whales that live in the northern Vancouver Island waters. Their habitat is changing fast and their population is also at risk. Principal photography will be shot this summer July/Aug 2012 on the Johnstone Strait. I will be working in cooperation with Orcalab, a whale research station for 30+years in Canada that uses non-invasive research techniques to study the whales in their natural habitat.

This will be my first feature film. I am excited about the opportunity to work with OrcaLab to tell their story and inspire others to take action and make this world a better place. As a 2011 graduate of TV and Film, I am inspired to make a film that will have an impact and make a difference in our world.

As a filmmaker my goal is to raise awareness of the plight of orca whales, but more importantly to inspire viewers to take action to help protect our natural world. Ultimately, it is not just the orca whale that is at risk, but our own health and well being depend on conserving this treasured species and our planet.

See the fundraising campaign here: http://www.indiegogo.com/orcadoc2012 - Your support is needed and appreciated!

Watch a promo video for the documentary:

Orca Whale Documentary Promo Video from Natalie Lucier on Vimeo.

The Whale

Sparklestarr — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 21:25:12 +0000

I recently went to see the film “The Whale” in Ottawa during the Environmental Film Fest April 21st at the Nature Museum. It was chosen from the Planet in Focus Film Fest that takes place in October every year in Toronto – See their site here http://planetinfocus.org/.

I was blown away and very moved by the film. It is a MUST SEE! The film is about a whale named Luna who is a lone killer whale living without his pod. He becomes very close to humans and shares a bond with many people. This film left the audience speechless. We were lucky enough to meet the directors through a Skype call that the museum set up after the screening. I met the directors on Skype and told them how I was very inspired by their film and also as a filmmaker, how I am very much looking forward to making a documentary film also about the killer whales – which I will be shooting this summer, in cooperation with Orcalab.

For more info on this film, see the website http://www.thewhalemovie.com/ and look for a screening near you!

The Museum of Nature also has a whale exhibit on as well.

Lava in Hawaii – The Big Island

Sparklestarr — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:45:03 +0000

Lava on the Big Island, Hawaii

Sparklestarr — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 21:57:50 +0000

One of my Fav. images from Hawaii – March 2012 – The Big Island

Sparklestarr — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 18:14:51 +0000

Hawaii - The Big Island

I took a walk with my mom early in the morning in Hawaii on the big island. I happened to have my camera in my pocket and I took this as we stopped to view the ocean on our coastal walk. I love how magical the soft morning light is on the ocean. Gives me the sense of “Ahhhhhhhhh”. Such a nice way to start the day

A Dream trip to Hawaii, March 2012

Sparklestarr — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 01:13:02 +0000

I had an amazing experience visiting Hawaii in March 2012 with my mom Martha and her good friend Jan. We visited the Big Island of Volcanoes and hiked to the lava which was pretty epic. We watched the ocean crashing against the shore and enjoyed lots of swimming and dreaming by the sea. Then we went to visit Maui, where we encountered humpbacks galore! We connected with the Pacific Whale Foundation in Lahiana, Maui, and went out on a few sunrise whale watching adventures and saw the humpbacks in their glory. They were breaching like crazy! Just imagine flying whales! That is what we saw. What an incredible experience. See some photos from our trip below. Oh and I must say, Hawaii is one of the most amazing places I have ever been, I highly recommend a visit!

more photos to come…

Waterfalls in Tennessee Cave – Magic

Sparklestarr — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:16:42 +0000

On our road trip to Florida – my parents and I decided to stop in Tennessee to see Ruby Falls. If you drive to Florida taking i75 – you might notice all of the Ruby Falls signs along the way. We decided to take a detour on Feb 20th 2012 to check out the falls. The falls are located 250feet underground deep inside a cave located at mountain lookout in Chattanooga, Tennessee. For about 15 dollars they will take you on a tour underground – via high speed elevator 250 feet down and then on a walking tour through the cave tunnel which leads to the falls. They are pretty magical. Click the photo to see more.

See images that inspire me on my Pinterest

Sparklestarr — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:41:19 +0000

I just joined Pinterest.com and started pinning images that inspire me on there. It is a cool place to see images and post images you like and share with others. See my inspirational boards here http://pinterest.com/sparklestarr/ so far I have made boards for killer whales, wild places, true love, faces, dreamscape, animals in the wild, natural and winter. Check it out! I hope to add more images as I go…

Listening to Whales

Sparklestarr — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:03:00 +0000

I just finished reading the book – Listening to Whales by Alexandra Morton. I have always been fascinated with killer whales and it was such a treat to get the inside scoop from a woman who has researched killer whales for over 25yrs.

Alexandra speaks about her life photographing the whales dorsal fins and saddles which each are distinct and she eventually got very familiar with each whale and pod by name and category in the northern Vancouver Island waters.

She had experienced the Atlantic salmon farms rise up on the coastlines of the Broughton Archipelago where she lives and has witnessed the devastation to the natural eco system that they bring. The whales have fled the area because of the loud blasting noises the salmon farms had used to scare off seals and porpoises from the fenced in farms in the ocean (acoustic Harassment Devices (AHD). According to Wikipedia: After Alexandra Morton sent thousands of letters to the government opposing the use of AHD’s, and the salmon farmers finally withdrew their use in 2001 but the killer whales still have not come back to the Archipalago.

Alexandra continues to live in Echo Bay and she runs a research station in the small northern community. An environmentalist at heart she strongly believes in protecting the natural habitat and the eco system where she lives.

I realized after reading her book that I had actually paddled right by the research station in echo bay in the Broughton Archipelago. If I had only known more about Alexandra Morton at that time… It would have been wonderful to stop in and say hello and meet her in person. Maybe it will happen one day.

I came across a great article about Alexandra here: http://kickasscanadians.ca/dr-alexandra-morton

More info on Alexandra and her work can be found on:

http://raincoastresearch.org/

http://www.salmonaresacred.org

http://salmoncoast.org/

If you are interested please take a peek at a Delta kayak promo video that I assisted in filming while on an 8 day sea kayaking trip in the Johnstone Strait and Broughton Archipelago Marine Park - http://vimeo.com/12817311