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magazine / oct09
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October 2009 issue |
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FEATURE
Surf’s bounty
Prince Edward Island’s Irish moss industry has been
dwindling for years, but there may be new hope
for the versatile seaweed — and for the island’s few
remaining mossers
Photography by Robert vanWaarden
with story by John DeMont
He knows it’s an odd way to look at the world, but
a wrath-of-God-style storm just makes Carl
Doucette’s day. For 52 years, he has waited for
the bad weather to pass so that he can head out
into one of two harbours near his hometown
on the western tip of Prince Edward Island to harvest the Irish
moss (Chondrus crispus) dislodged from the ocean bottom.
“There used to be 250 to 300 people out there every time
a nor’west wind hit,” says Doucette, 65. Now, most of the
time, his is the only boat in the water. There’s not a single
horse in the surf hauling basket-shaped scoops to gather the
ropy red seaweed. It’s equally rare to see anyone on the beach
collecting by hand the “storm toss” washed ashore by waves.
For the rest of this story, visit your local newsstand or go to our store to buy this issue.
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