John Power – Out Door writer

[ketchenany]

Just read in the Star of his passing on Wednesday Oct 1, 2008.

I was a avid reader of his outdoor reports for many, many years.

I had the pleasure of Ice fishing with John in 1981 in Owen Sound and was featured in his weekend report.

Great man with loads of outdoor knowledge.

[bucktail]

Man that sucks!

I remeber looking forward to his artcles when I was younger.

m

 

D

[Pigeontroller]

John was also instrumental in the forming of Muskies Canada 30 years ago!

[Rizzo]

I also remember as a youngster reading his articles, always excited to read the ones about fishing

[Toronto_Angler]

Yup before the internet I couldn't wait to read his weekly column. He was very active in conservation and did a lot o good through his work.

[outdoorguy61]

I also grew up with his work and later got to know him to a limited degree. Thank-you for posting this. He will be missed.

 

outdoorguy61

[Nemo]

OBIT from the Star....

 

The "great outdoors" is only a phrase to most of us. To John Power, it was his second home.

 

An avid hunter and fisherman, Power wrote about his adventures in the Canadian wilderness in a popular weekly freelance column from 1970 to 2000 in the Toronto Star. His beloved outdoors not only provided sustenance to hunters like himself who lived off the land but it also inspired Power's boundless energy in promoting conservation.

 

He died Wednesday in Brampton. He was 75.

 

Whether regaling readers about a hunting expedition, plugging wetlands causes or sniping at anti-gun advocates, Power's passion for nature leapt off the page because he was such a compelling writer, said Star sports columnist Dave Perkins, a former sports editor.

 

"His politics and his causes may not have had the traction two and three decades ago that they would now, but John expressed himself so well that his column was always a terrific read, even if the subject seemed not to apply directly to city folk," Perkins said.

 

For instance, Power would call a downed moose "bush beef." He wrote about a hunt required to rid a town of marauding bears and his first sentence was, "Trouble is bruin." He also pooh-poohed forecasts that pollution was killing fishing "glory holes" and challenged the scientists with, "This piscatorial pundit predicts tight lines in the millennium."

 

Add this to Power's list of pretty good stuff: "The yodel of dogs on a hot trail is beautiful music to a houndman's ears."

 

"I don't know how many houndmen there are out there, but the houndmen, the hunters, fishermen and those who love and respect the environment and the outdoor life couldn't have asked for a better friend or advocate than John Power," Perkins said.

 

"He lived the life, which is one reason he wrote about it so well. He's also the only guy I ever knew who owned a mink necktie."

 

Power was a member of numerous conservation groups, including Ducks Unlimited, the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters and the Canadian Wildlife Federation, organizations responsible for the wall full of awards and honours Power won during his writing career.

 

Power's son Gavin said his father had been in a nursing home for about six months after a series of small strokes. Power was predeceased by his wife, Jean, in 1996. He is survived by five children and eight grandchildren.

 

A private family funeral will be held in Beaverton, Ont., with a public memorial service at 2 p.m. on Oct. 8 at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Beaverton.