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Nature photographers often say that in order to really connect with a place you must experience and photograph it three times. As if like an ocean mist a sense of familiarity creeps in, and the scene becomes personal and the animals like family. This is an account of my third expedition to Sable Island.
At Peggy’s Cove they have a saying: “The fog comes and goes at will. You should not begrudge it for this, but only wish that you could be as free.”
A brief reconnaissance from the high dunes suggests that there are more horses to the west. The first individual I see is far in the distance, alone and moving slowly. Horses seldom travel alone, so I am thinking there must be more nearby. As I approach, the reason becomes clearer. This horse is injured, his right knee badly swollen and he is having difficulty traveling. It is the liver stallion ‘Spook’ and he is in bad shape and has lost his herd. He keeps looking into the distance as if to detect the slightest indication of other horses. An immediate reminder that life on Sable is not easy, and that help is not near. I wonder at this point if he will survive his injury, as I know many have not.
The light is typically flat and grey and I struggle to come up with something that will work photographically, but am grateful it is not raining. I come across several small bands including the silver foal from 2010, now a rambunctious two year old and doing really well. A yearling colt, looking shaggy and unkempt is doing his best to lose his furry foal coat in lieu of a smooth adult one. He is overtly friendly, crossing the line to nuisance and I have to push him away.Day 2: 4:30am comes much too early, but I know that I must press forward when the weather permits. No part of a sunrise today, 98% humidity and more greyness. Just east of main station I see a small group and begin to approach. The band stallion comes to meet me and I am thrilled to see this new young stallion. Caramel in colour with platinum mane and tail, I have to wonder if he is a son of “Flaxen”.
Continuing south, it seemed that for an instant the sun would appear but it struggled and gave up. I spied two horses far, far out on the sand plains, past the landing zone. It was miles away but worth the effort, if I could get there before the horses took off. About half way across the plains, the two boys spotted me and after a flurry of activity they decided to come and check me out. The came trotting right up, a matching pair of black stallions, and as soon as they realized I was human, not horse, they took off at a full gallop in tandem across the plains. Shooting at 2000 ISO I have just enough light to shoot the action. Then, within minutes the fog and wind pick up and I make the decision to return to base. The fog coats everything in a wet layer of salt and sand. Ahhh, the joys of Sable Island!
The afternoon shoot was exhausting. After three hours of hiking in deep sand I had not seen a single horse. This has never happened before. I am concerned and wondering if it has something to do with the ponds being low, or perhaps they had a difficult winter. Finally I found one of the families from this morning and was able to catch them in a moment of action.
Day 3: First alarm = fog. Second alarm = fog. I checked the weather radar report and it looked like an opening in the fog around 8am. I headed out and picked up a small band of bachelor stallions west of base and followed them along the ponds and out towards the south beach. What followed was one of those rare moments in photography (or life) where everything seems to line up th
e right way and something really amazing happens… The stallions went out on the beach, where the tide was up and big waves were crashing in. They were searching for small chunks of peat that had washed up on the shoreline. Apparently a delicacy! The four boys started sharing their ‘mineral lick’ but this quickly turned into proprietary behaviour over who should get the most. The morning sun burst through the haze just as two of the stallions started to perform. I switched from video to still camera and began to shoot. 
The bay and black stallions were rearing, striking and spinning down the beach, kicked up sand as they went. At one point they engaged in such boisterous knee-biting that they both ended up with their legs folded underneath almost laying in the sand. They carried on this behaviour down the beach to where the grey seals were hauled out. As quickly as it started, the action stopped and they quietly walked away. The fog rolled back in as if the curtain had just come down on a wonderful act. I sat down on a piece of driftwood and poured some tea from my thermos. My hands were shaking as I scrolled through my shots, praying for sharp images. Yes!!
Day 4: After yesterday’s shoot with the bachelors on the beach in perfect light, I had to force myself to get out first thing into the fog again. I decided to try for better shots of ‘Platinum’ and I headed west, soon to find him just east of the station. I was again impressed with this young stallion. He really had what we call ‘presence’ in the show horse world. He exemplified youth and strength and apparently rugged life on the island had not yet taken its toll. He was vibrant in his coat and his mane was extraordinary. Now that I was able to observe him more, I was sure he was the son of Flaxen. Yes, they had the same mannerisms and shyness. His only mare, a dark brown, had a sorrel foal that looked like him. Interestingly her feet were some of the worst I had seen on Sable. They curled right up and it was amazing that she moved around so easily and did not appear lame.
The morning sun started to come through and sparkle on the ponds. I noticed the irises were in full bloom. It would have been such an idyllic scene if not for the constant and abrasive screech of the Arctic Terns. They were nesting by the thousands near the main station and were very protective of their sites. The terns were not well-liked by the island staff or visitors because of their propensity for diving at people’s heads and pooping on them regularly. The only real fans the terns had were the ornithologists, a group of six researchers currently working on the island. They referred to themselves as the ‘bird nerds’. One of the girls showed me how they made little bird harnesses out of fishing line, in order to attach transmitters to the Ipswich Sparrow.
This afternoon the fog returned. That is ok though, with soft light I can focus on getting some good portraits and today the fog will be my friend. It provided a wonderful soft white background creating a sense of space around my subjects.
One of my goals for this trip had been to capture more action shots. As I set out on my afternoon hike I was pleased to see there lots of horses around and they were very active. It proved to be a great time of year to be here – lots of babies, lots of stallion behaviour and horses on the beach all the time. I had to really be on my toes… the horses would be standing peacefully or walking quietly along and then all of a sudden would take off at a full gallop. What a wonderful opportunity to depict a typical Sable island morning – fog, surf and horses galloping on the beach!
I traversed back and forth across the island several times, following various groups, but I was especially interested in a flaxen stallion with a particularly long mane. He was really playful and appeared to be vying for leadership with an older black stallion, so there was frequent ‘discussions’ going on. He became a major character to be known as “Rockstar”.
By this time the fog was closing in again, and I wanted to head back to the pick-up point early as it was hard to tell how far west I had gone. Over the course of the last few hours I had crossed the island several times while meandering continuously west. I decided to hit the tideline for easier walking. After 40 minutes of hiking I sat on a log for a snack and pondered how few people have been to Sable Island, and how fewer still have had the privilege of viewing the west end. I was also wishing I had a GPS.
The low dunes looked slightly different, but somehow the fog always plays tricks and I could not be sure. No sooner had this thought occurred when the fog lifted and the sun came out. I cannot describe how sick I felt as I realized that the sun was on the opposite side of the island to where I expected it to be. In other words I had hiked farther west instead of back east to the station. I was now sitting at the extreme end of the west spit. This is the place I had always wanted to see, where the currents converge and many a ship has been run aground.
I wondered if sub-consciously I had made this choice to ‘be lost’. My body was exhausted from already hiking 8 hours, but somehow the adrenaline rush of being ‘lost’ kicked my body into a new gear. I now had twice as far to hike back and it was getting late. Off I went in high gear. Unfortunately I passed by many photographic opportunities. However, one shot I could not resist was taken when I came across one of my favourite stallions who I had not seen since 2009 when I had found him near main station. He was much older looking and grayer, with only one mare and foal in his family. It was a beautiful moment.
Suffice it to say I made it back safe and sound, albeit very late. Though I was thoroughly embarrassed at having been tricked by the fog, I was then regaled with many stories from the Sable staff who had achieved the same fate! Ah, yes a rite of passage!
I woke up in the night to torrential rains, thunder and lightning. Tropical storm Debby had pushed some weather our way. I grabbed my D3s and tripod and sat in the dark, videoing from the veranda of the staff quarters. The sound of the storm beating against the big windows was deafening. Every time a sheet of lightening lit up the sky, eerie shapes appeared in the foggy downpour and then were gone. It mesmerized me for hours as I imagined the fates of early seafarers run aground here. In the centuries before modern navigation thousands of souls were lost here. Before the life-saving station was established in 1801 any castaways would have found a deserted island with no shelter and precious little to eat. Often they would be stranded for years before anyone would find them.
The afternoon was dedicated to some macro shooting and enjoying some of the smaller wonders underfoot. One of the fascinations of Sable Island is the diversity of vegetation including six species or orchids. I also took the time to make some videos which I had hoped to do more of, but realized that my priority had to be with the still shots.
The evening brought clearing skies and I decided to walk down to the west light research cabin and visit the group of seal biologists that had recently arrived. Among them was my friend and colleague Damian Lidgard who is also an author and photographer. The group invited me for dinner and we had a wonderful evening exchanging adventure stories and compared our notes on all things Sable. I am envious of this group that spends several months of the year on the island. Later, I walked back to main station enjoying the pure darkness and the incredibly bright stars. Far on the distant horizon the lights of the Exxon Mobile drilling platform also sparkled, a reminder of other Atlantic activities nearby.
Day 8: I felt rejuvenated and ready to go. Today I wanted to get a better look at the dune landscape further east, beyond the first Bald Dune. I started out walking the tideline and soon came across a group of bachelors. They were out this morning to have fun! They played in the surf, rolling and pawing. Together they pawed and dug a hole (drinking trough) and slurped sea water from it. Then a wave would crash in, filling the hole, and they would splash in it again. Amazing.
I cut inland with the intent to find the 2nd Bald Dune. I followed miles of horse trails heading east. The rain-soaked vegetation glistened and the moisture enhanced all the wonderful colours of the heathlands and grasses that cover these sand hills. I saw only few horses and it was still a little foggy when I sat down top of one of the hills to relax for a lunch break.
Suddenly the quietness was broken by the sound of thundering hooves. I scrambled to my feet, peering out across the valley. A group of stallions flew out of the mist running full out. At first I was not sure what caused such a rush, and then out of the greyness appeared another much larger stallion running full tilt behind them, giving chase. He pursued the bachelor group across the valley and over the next hill until they were out of site. As if in a movie, he stopped on the skyline, spun around and screamed. He had successfully chased off the challengers, but in the process had left his mares unattended. He took off again, this time even faster, bolting back across the valley to reclaim his herd. I was so engrossed in the scene that I only captured the final moments on camera.
Sunshine!!! The day quickly changed to a beautiful sunny afternoon and I had new-found enthusiasm for hiking. The landscape eventually became more desolate and I entered an area known as second bald dune and further along, third bald dune. It now resembled a lunar landscape. Here the winds and rain had shifted massive amounts of sand, and over time created remarkable and other-worldly sand shapes. Expectedly there were fewer horses here and I wondered why any of them would choose this location over the more lush areas of the island. My excursion to 3nd Bald Dune was a success and it only served to whet my appetite to come back tomorrow. I felt that I was getting fit and if the weather co-operated, I might be able to make it all the way to East Light!Day 8: I felt rejuvenated and ready to go. Today I wanted to get a better look at the dune landscape further east, beyond the first Bald Dune. I started out walking the tideline and soon came across a group of bachelors. They were out this morning to have fun! They played in the surf, rolling and pawing. Together they pawed and dug a hole (drinking trough) and slurped sea water from it. Then a wave would crash in, filling the hole, and they would splash in it again. Amazing.
I cut inland with the intent to find the 2nd Bald Dune. I followed miles of horse trails heading east. The rain-soaked vegetation glistened and the moisture enhanced all the wonderful colours of the heathlands and grasses that cover these sand hills. I saw only few horses and it was still a little foggy when I sat down top of one of the hills to relax for a lunch break.
Suddenly the quietness was broken by the sound of thundering hooves. I scrambled to my feet, peering out across the valley. A group of stallions flew out of the mist running full out. At first I was not sure what caused such a rush, and then out of the greyness appeared another much larger stallion running full tilt behind them, giving chase. He pursued the bachelor group across the valley and over the next hill until they were out of site. As if in a movie, he stopped on the skyline, spun around and screamed. He had successfully chased off the challengers, but in the process had left his mares unattended. He took off again, this time even faster, bolting back across the valley to reclaim his herd. I was so engrossed in the scene that I only captured the final moments on camera.
Sunshine!!! The day quickly changed to a beautiful sunny afternoon and I had new-found enthusiasm for hiking. The landscape eventually became more desolate and I entered an area known as second bald dune and further along, third bald dune. It now resembled a lunar landscape. Here the winds and rain had shifted massive amounts of sand, and over time created remarkable and other-worldly sand shapes. Expectedly there were fewer horses here and I wondered why any of them would choose this location over the more lush areas of the island. My excursion to 3nd Bald Dune was a success and it only served to whet my appetite to come back tomorrow. I felt that I was getting fit and if the weather co-operated, I might be able to make it all the way to East Light!
Day 10: I awoke to the brilliant amber light of sunrise coming through my window. Time for one quick excursion before the plane arrives. I hiked the north side ridge and surveyed the incredible panorama in front of me. In the distance I spotted the lone stallion from the first day and went to him. His knee was recovering nicely. He was able to travel quite easily now and I felt reassured that someday soon he would regain his band.
I waited out on the sandy plains for the pilot to land her Briton-Norman Islander on the beach. Her incoming cargo was Zoe Lucas, Gerry Forbes and all their supplies for the summer. Zoe explained that she had been much involved in meetings with Parks Canada, and that the transition towards their stewardship of the island was going very well. I was disappointed that Zoe was not here during my stay, but on the other hand, for just a little while, I imagined myself to be the Sable horses’ only companion.
*PS: a month after my trip I was exhibiting my work at Spruce Meadows when a tall, grey-haired gentlemen paid me a visit. Jim turned out to be the last keeper of the old east light and caretaker of over 80 domesticated Sable Island horses in the 1950’s. I think we have a few stories to catch up on!