Birch Island Mist By Hanne Lore Koehler

Description

Birch Island is a smaller island off the shore of Manitoulin Island. Canada's Manitoulin Island is the largest lake island in the world, separating Lake Huron from Georgian Bay. Enormous coniferous and deciduous trees cling in every crevice to the rocky shores of secluded Birch Island where wildlife includes moose, black bear, loons and bald eagles. Magic and mystery envelop Manitoulin and Birch Islands. The name Manitoulin means spirit island and for centuries, the Chippewa, Ottawa and Pottawatomi people believed that the Great Spirit or Kitche Manitou lived in the island's highlands.

More profound than the magic of spirit history is the magic of its mysterious misty scenic beauty. On certain days when the air is heavy and moist, the Lake Huron horizon can simply vanish in the haze of humidity. Boats seem to sail off into the sky and swimmers wade and splash among the clouds as though in a dream sequence. In this painting, the autumn morning mist from the lake that surrounds Birch Island rises to reveal some of nature's deepest mysteries.