Welcome to the GNS web page! It is under construction. Please email corrections, suggestions, and new material (photos as jpeg attachments; under 200K, please; please date event and identify people if you can) to Tim. (For the moment, though, aesthetics take second place to content.)
Bienvenu au site SNG! Il est en construction. SVP envoyer par courriel des corrections, suggestions et du nouveau matériel (les photos comme attachements jpeg, toujours moins de 200KO svp, et svp identifier le gens et les dates d'événements si vous le pouvez) au Tim. (Pour l'instant, cependant, l'esthétique prend la deuxième place au contenu.)

President's Report 2004 / Rapport du président 2004

It is a privilege to report on another year full of fun and edification in the calendar of Georgeville Nature Ski. Our three "funski"s and five nature walks attracted over 50 people (Adams, Bachelder, Beattie, Boynton, Cowans, Dawson, Denis, Desjardins, DuFresne, Elliott, Grace, Guy, Hadrill, Hardman, Howell, Hutchinson, Hurlow, Irvine, Kakebeeke, Kertland, Kohl, Lacoursiere, Leclerc, McTavish, Merrett, Moore, Pascal, Pasztor, Sinclair, Stanger, Swartz, Temple, Terni and Todasco: any I missed, please complain), about a dozen per event. The Barbara Clift Annual Ski Day was again oversubscribed and another triumph for Nancy Amos' dinner, John Boynton's centrepieces, and Jean-Paul Clermont's punch.

We started the 2003--2004 season with a wonderfully stimulating talk by Sue Morse last November on tracking carnivorous animals and on how to inventory their habitats around us so as to offer informed support for conservation and opposition to reckless development. Thanks to the Stangers for organizing this event and hosting the speaker. This was followed in December by the annual Bird Count, organized by John Hoblyn and generously hosted by Diane and Jake Kakebeeke.

We were unfortunately unable to hold a Young Families' and Children's Ski Day last winter, due to a lack of children. We are standing by for Georgeville to ask us to do it again. We hope the next gap will not be as long as the last one (from 1987 to 2002) and Georgeville will produce some more children before 2018.

GNS contributes to related organizations: Ile du Marais (Katevale Marsh), Elliandress Conservation (Marlington Bog), and the Cherry River Marsh. Endeavours like these need our support and visits. Sadly, the Katevale Marsh site was vandalized this summer, and the reception kiosk burned. The more we appreciate these resources, the more their neighbours will, too.

We are gearing up for another ski season. Thanks to Richard Bourassa, Jean-Paul Clermont, Jill & Kip Cobbett, Peter Denis, Dominique Gagnon, Fern Hitschfield & Ivan Macbeth, Diane & Peter Kohl, Guy Lord, Ed Markwell, Wayne McTavish, Mary Ann & Tim Merrett, Stephan Morin, Francoise Lacoursiere & Chris Paige, Valerie Pasztor, Don Robertson, Betty & David Stanger and Andrea Terni, the trails are clear and ribboned and waiting only for snow and skiers. We are as always indebted to Georgeville property owners, whose fields and woods are crossed by GNS trails, for their permission for winter outings across their land.

Bird Count will be on Wednesday, Dec. 29 this year, hosted by the Hoblyns. (NB. there are _two_ $5 charges: one for party costs, and one for the Audubon Society to cover processing and publication costs for all birds you report off-feeder.)

Ski Day will be on Saturday, Feb. 5. Don't forget to book early for dinner. Please, however, wait for our mailing in early January: it will contain your registration form, and nobody else will be booked before that mailing. Please do not call before then. And note that dinner bookings will be accepted only for paid-up GNS members and one guest per member (two per family).

We also expect to hold Family Fun Skis again this year: on Sat. Jan 29, Sat. Feb 19 and Sat. March 19. Keep an eye on the Community Association calendar for these and for next summer's Nature Walks!

There is now a GNS website: www.cs.mcgill.ca/~tim/gns/ We have been especially careful not to provide any identification of Georgeville, or even of last names of people. It is not intended for publicity but as a photo album of memories. Have a look! If you have photos of GNS outings, please send them to be shared!

I look forward to seeing you on the trails.

Tim Merrett