Tag: Canada

Cemetery Road Trips: Sault Ste Marie edition

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I have been thinking about road trips a lot lately.

During a normal year, my friends and I would be discussing plans for our next one. I have been itching to research locations and plan travel routes. But alas, just like last year, it looks like it will not be happening this year.

Cemetery road trips are one of my favorite things to do in the summer months. We all would pile into one vehicle, chit-chat, and listen to music while cruising along to our cemetery spots. We usually pick a city or town and stop at all the cemeteries along the way. After visiting the cemeteries within that city’s limits we would also explore the outskirts, sometimes finding hidden cemeteries that we didn’t find in our research. These are great ways to spend time together, make memories and explore our backyard!

  • Bruce Mines Cemetery, Bruce Mines ON ©2019

The last road trip we did was in 2019. We visited Sault Ste Marie. Normally this trip would only be about a 3-hour drive, but it took us a whopping 6 hours! We made so many stops along the way and took our time exploring. We visited some very old cemeteries, full of the history of the town, as well as some newer ones. Lots of discoveries were made, including one of the largest cemeteries I have ever visited before! We visited 11 cemeteries in total that day. We didn’t beat our record, but it was a very good attempt. Our record so far is 13!

  • Forest Lawn Cemetery, Thessalon ©2019
  • Old Green Wood Cemetery, Sault Ste Marie ON ©2019
  • Queen Street Cemetery, Sault Ste Marie ON ©2019

We also took time to do some sightseeing, and visit some of the historic museums there; the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre and the Ermatinger Old Stone House. We heard some interesting ghost stories from the staff at the Old Stone house and it prompted some interesting discussion and exploration while we were there. We did not find any ghosts though. It’s a beautiful house with some really interesting history. Getting in some sightseeing was a bonus for that trip.

We have also gotten into the tradition of visiting any Starbucks that we can find, and always end the day at the local Casey’s for supper. A favorite restaurant that we no longer have in our own city. It’s a great cap to the day, followed by a much quicker drive home while we debrief on the fun and experiences of the day.

So for this year, instead of grand travel plans, I will stick close to home and visit my local cemeteries. Re-visit my favorites and take more time to explore those that I have not been to for a while. There is always something new to find and photograph! 

Update: After writing this blog post I did just that! I had a mini road trip adventure this weekend. I’ll have a new post coming soon with some new photos.

Thanks for reading!

Crosses for Change

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A few weekends ago I visited Crosses for Change, a large roadside memorial that has been making headlines in the local news. 

It started with one white wooden cross, representing a life taken by opioid addiction. More and more white crosses are added almost every day. 

  • Crosses for Change, stands on the corner of Paris and Brady street, in Downtown Sudbury ON ©2021

This sea of white crosses can be found in the downtown core, on the corner of a busy intersection. It stands as a memorial to those lost to the current opioid crisis.

This haunting memorial has definitely made an impression on people, in some very different ways. For some it stands as a call to action against the opioid crisis. For others, it is a place of mourning—a place to grieve for lost loved ones. For our cities homeless population, it is a grim and constant reminder of their current struggles. 

  • Crosses for Change, stands on the corner of Paris and Brady street, in Downtown Sudbury ON ©2021

I am reminded of a quote I heard a long time ago, although I don’t remember where I heard it from; “Cemeteries are not for the dead, they are for the living”. I think about this almost every time I visit a cemetery. This roadside memorial to me, is a good example of this. These crosses represent the memory of a person, but there are no bodies here. They are buried in cemetery plots, within cemetery gates. But this little field of white crosses, for all intents and purposes is a cemetery—in downtown Sudbury. 

  • Crosses for Change, stands on the corner of Paris and Brady street, in downtown Sudbury ON ©2021

For further reading on Crosses for Change and the opioid crisis in Sudbury:

April showers bring May cemetery flowers

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Spring always makes me think of cemetery flowers.

Flowers may not be the first thing on your mind when visiting cemeteries, unless of course you are bringing in an arrangement. But you may start to notice them more and more, dotting the graves, as well as the green spaces in between. Wild flowers can be found snaking through the grass and reaching into all corners of a cemetery plot.

  • Waters Cemetery, Lively ON ©2016

Abandoned cemeteries are usually filled with wild flowers as there has not been anyone to weed or tend to the ever growing vines. They add a lovely pop of colour to a green space.

I have seen some plots completely filled with wild flowers, where families have made the entire plot a flower bed. I imagine their loved one must have been an avid gardner.

You might also see fabric or plastic flower arrangements. These must have been so beautiful when they were first placed; clean and bright. Over time these arrangements take on a different kind of beauty— weathering the elements and time.

  • St. John’s Alsace Cemetery, Commanda ON ©2019

Springtime also means that the snow is melting, making cemeteries more accessible. Trudging through the snow is never fun. I have been slowly making plans for some road trips this spring and summer to visit some new-to-me places as well as some of my favourite spots.

Thankfully cemeteries are not usually a bustling place so being able to physically distance while exploring is great.

Thanks for reading!

Introductions

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Hello, My name is Chantal and I am a taphophile.

I have always had a deep love of cemeteries and graveyards. It may sound a bit morbid, but I have always found beauty and peace in a cemetery. The combination of nature, art and history is what I find really appealing. A cemetery is a great place to go for a quiet walk, to learn about the history of a place, or to learn about your ancestors. Over the years I have visited many cemeteries and love to take pictures of what I see. I like to focus on details of gravestones, iconography, interesting epitaphs and mementos left behind by loved ones.

After realizing I had folders upon folders of photos, I wanted to do something with them—not just keep them to myself. So I decided a website would be a great place to showcase them. I’m still working out the details on how I want to organize them, but I’m sure that will evolve over time.

I chose WordPress because it looked like a great way to showcase my portfolio and include a blog option. I am in no way an avid blogger, but I do get the urge to write sometimes. So please do not expect a perfectly kept up-to-date blog! I’m hoping to write about my favourite cemeteries, road trips, newly explored cemeteries, cemeteries in the news and other cemetery related things.

I will also be slowly adding photos as I go!

If you are interested, I can also be found in other places around the web; Facebook, Instagram and ViewBug.

Thanks for reading!

  • Woodlawn Cemetery, Kitchener ON ©2019