The deed is done, the mission accomplished. Mount McGoogan is conquered. The date: June 15, 2011. Those who have read How the Scots Invented Canada will know that my last expedition was thwarted by my Canadian deference to a sign warning that unauthorized persons should proceed no farther. Yes, I attempted a different route and got turned back by a rushing river. This time out, understanding that my surname conferred the requisite authorization, I climbed over the gate and, with Sheena, followed a dirt road as it zig-zagged upwards to the top of Cruach Mhic Gougain (higher, at 246 metres, than Montreal's Mount Royal). The big surprise? The standing stone we found near the top. It marks the spot, I believe, where a lookout would light a beacon fire to relay news of any imminent invasion. We had neglected to bring champagne. The celebration would have to wait. Now, we unfurled a flag and marked the occasion by signing two copies of How the Scots.
The deed is done, the mission accomplished. Mount McGoogan is conquered. The date: June 15, 2011. Those who have read How the Scots Invented Canada will know that my last expedition was thwarted by my Canadian deference to a sign warning that unauthorized persons should proceed no farther. Yes, I attempted a different route and got turned back by a rushing river. This time out, understanding that my surname conferred the requisite authorization, I climbed over the gate and, with Sheena, followed a dirt road as it zig-zagged upwards to the top of Cruach Mhic Gougain (higher, at 246 metres, than Montreal's Mount Royal). The big surprise? The standing stone we found near the top. It marks the spot, I believe, where a lookout would light a beacon fire to relay news of any imminent invasion. We had neglected to bring champagne. The celebration would have to wait. Now, we unfurled a flag and marked the occasion by signing two copies of How the Scots.
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Before turning mainly to books about arctic exploration and Canadian history, Ken McGoogan worked for two decades as a journalist at major dailies in Toronto, Calgary, and Montreal. He teaches creative nonfiction writing through the University of Toronto and in the MFA program at King’s College in Halifax. Ken served as chair of the Public Lending Right Commission, has written recently for Canada’s History, Canadian Geographic, and Maclean’s, and sails with Adventure Canada as a resource historian. Based in Toronto, he has given talks and presentations across Canada, from Dawson City to Dartmouth, and in places as different as Edinburgh, Melbourne, and Hobart.
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