Steveschwarz Photography – Instagram Page

Posted on January 19, 2025 by Steve

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steveschwarzphoto

Retired and enjoying life, parenting, photographing, endless house renovations and collecting really old and rusty Landcruisers.

Leaving Uranium City, for the fourth time. When t

Leaving Uranium City, for the fourth time. When the mill closed in 1982, most people left- and never came back. Almost overnight, the population dropped from 3000 to around 70. The rapid drop in population gave rise to the expression “Would the last person out PLEASE turn off the lights “. There are no roads leaving town, only a barge during the summer or an ice road across Lake Athabasca. I’ve driven the ice road, and on different trips have flown out to Fort Smith, Stoney Rapids, and to Fort McMurray. I know there is still at least one person there - and my dog !. #uraniumcity #turnoffthelightsplease #lakeathabasca #uranium #nuclear #eldoradomining #saskatchewan

Uranium City has been called a “Boom & Bust town

Uranium City has been called a “Boom & Bust town “, and a “Ghost town”. Most people the visit come to photograph the abandoned buildings and 1950-1960’s vintage vehicles. Initially- I did that too. Now, after staying in Uranium City and Camsell Portage for extended periods during the past year, the beauty of Uranium City and surrounding areas is definitely the abundance of nature and the people. Generous and welcoming. I’ve been invited to wedding anniversaries, dinner, community events, fishing trips, friday night pool, had the use of their cabins, and more. Most of all - felt welcome by the community. #lakeathabasca #uraniumcity #camsellportage #saskatchewan

Lake Athabaska, northern Saskatchewan. The fish we

Lake Athabaska, northern Saskatchewan. The fish were plentiful (northern pike, trout, whitefish, and pickerel), the geology (absolutely photogenic - even to non-geologists), and scenery is stunningly gorgeous. That was yesterday. Today with a 35km/hr wind, a couple of hours on the lake would certainly be less enjoyable…. #lakeathabasca #saskatchewan #uraniumcity #saskphotographer #saskatchewan #fish #beautifuldestinations

Melville morning commute. Early morning paddle ac

Melville morning commute. Early morning paddle across the perfectly calm lake to the truck, drop off a passenger and head back to coffee brewing on the woodstove in the cabin. Paradise!. #uraniumcity #commuting

Fall colours and a view of Uranium City. The buil

Fall colours and a view of Uranium City. The buildings are mostly hidden among the colourful Birch and Poplar trees; the RC Church, Ben McIntyre Elementary School, and one other. Since the mine closed in 1982, most of the buildings have been removed and vegetation has taken over. First carigana, shrubs, poplar, birch and eventually to spruce and pine. In amongst the trees are cull-de-sacs with foundations, white picket fences, paved street and sidewalks, and the remains and memories of where people lived. #uraniumcity #fallcolours

Uranium City Saskatchewan. At one time, it was a b

Uranium City Saskatchewan. At one time, it was a booming town of over 5,000 people, now approximately 50. Many visitors have called it a “Ghost Town “. No one here talks about ghosts - though they are likely talking about me, the guy that attached his camera to the front bumper of the truck to capture these 25 second exposures. Why ?. 25 seconds- long enough exposure to photograph the “ghosts”. #uraniumcity #ghosttown #ghosts

Family time. Had a ‘date’ with my daughters.

Family time. Had a ‘date’ with my daughters. We had ‘date squares’ for dessert….bad dad joke. Quality time. As they grow older, our time together becomes less and less. Same bad jokes, same laughs and smiles.

Yellowknife. My home town for the past 27 years. I

Yellowknife. My home town for the past 27 years. It has a lot to offer- don’t compare it to Montreal, Toronto or Vancouver. What makes Yellowknife special?. Other towns have ‘rush hour’, Yellowknife has ‘rush minute’. And - How long does it take to get out of town to a quiet place surrounded by nature?. By canoe, that’s 20 minutes in Yellowknife, from door to nature. Not a bad place to spend the evening !. #whyilivehere❤️ #yellowknife #rushminute

A truly unique only in Yellowknife event ‘Float

A truly unique only in Yellowknife event ‘Float on the Rocks’. Live music on a houseboat anchored in Yellowknife Bay, all the audience on paddle boards, kayaks, canoes, small motorboats, even a sailboat. Estimated 2,000 people (comment if that nuisance way off). #yellowknife #fotr #floatingmusicfestival

In Uranium City you can’t hear the mosquitoes- o

In Uranium City you can’t hear the mosquitoes- only the four helicopters slinging steel power poles, slinging people, slinging gear and pulling the wires from one pole to the next. #saskpower #uraniumcity #helicopter

Forest fire (ZF025-25 and ZF015-25) between Fort P

Forest fire (ZF025-25 and ZF015-25) between Fort Providence and Behchoko. Massive pillars of black and grey smoke, glow of flames in the clouds. Thick smoke (poor visibility), patches of flames on the ground, and water bombers attacking the fires. #nwtfire #nwt #waterbomber

Padding around the Crackingstone Peninsula, Lake A

Padding around the Crackingstone Peninsula, Lake Athabasca. Stunningly beautiful scenery, endless camping sites, unique geology, delicious fish, calm waves and electrifying thunderstorms. #lakeathabasca #canoe #uraniumcity #gunnarmine

The “CANDU Canoe”. We rebuilt the front seat o

The “CANDU Canoe”. We rebuilt the front seat of this well used canoe using floor boards from the CANDU High School in Uranium City. We padded around the Crackingstone Peninsula on Lake Athabasca. Starting at the former harbour of Bushell to the 1950’s vintage Gunnar Uranium Mine (cleaned up, nothing remains) past the 1930’s vintage Goldfields Gold Mine (abandoned and partially cleaned up), and returned to the once booming, now quiet Uranium City. Approx 100km of padding and a 1km portage. This part of northern Saskatchewan is dotted with abandoned mines and graveyards. Some mine sites have been cleaned up (ie: remediated) more resembling a bouldery moonscape. There is a lot of history here, many lives forever changed by the boom and bust minerals industry.

The long abandoned Yellowknife Race track. From th

The long abandoned Yellowknife Race track. From the look of the vehicles, it was probably a smash-‘em- up track. Does anyone have any details?. #yellowknife #racetrack #historical

10:15pm. Another hour to sunset. The lake is compl

10:15pm. Another hour to sunset. The lake is completely calm, gentle reflections mirror the scene. A few days ago there was still ice. Paddle boarders and canoes in the distance. Two chairs at the dock. Smoke from distant forest fires on the horizon. #yellowknife #sunset #nwt

The time of year when the sky is full of migrating

The time of year when the sky is full of migrating birds, days are longer, leaves are budding on trees, and there are no pesky mosquitoes!. I think these are Tundra Swans (do comment if I am mistaken). #nwt #canoe #tundraswan

Feels like Summer!. Canoe season has started. Rive

Feels like Summer!. Canoe season has started. Rivers and small lakes are ice free. When I can wrangle a second paddler - I drop everything and get out there. My daughter joined today. #qualitytime❤️ #yellowknife #canoe

Ice roads, roads to no-where, ice, open-water, old

Ice roads, roads to no-where, ice, open-water, old mines (Giant Yellowknife Gold Mine), and Yellowknife airport. Helicopter aerial photography, 1524 photos (client wants 30 photos only). Thanks to Great Slave Helicopters. #yellowknife #aerialphoto #greatslavehelicopters #nwt

First paddle of the season (May 17th). Stopped by

First paddle of the season (May 17th). Stopped by soft and mushy ice, too hard to paddle through. Maybe next week?. #yellowknife #nwt #spectacularnwt

Yellowknife. Photographing the ice to calibrate sa

Yellowknife. Photographing the ice to calibrate satellite imagery (Radarsat). Wolf tracks, abandoned ice roads and a whole lot of unique patterns in the ice. #yellowknifenwtcanada🇨🇦 #aerialphotgraphy #iceroads #ice

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