The Website of Kyle Thomas (KyleWith)
I have never really followed any of Julia Child’s recipes but she is an inspiration. She beat the odds and made good food. I feel I can relate. No one suspects a 22 year old male to be as domesticated as I am.
The movie Julie and Julia was the one that really did it in for me though. Combining good food and blogging. That is me all over.
Now there is this awesome remix of Julia cooking, thanks to PBS in honour of her 100th b-day.
My time in the kitchen can really not be defined by one type of cooking or baking. I’m sporadic and unsettling. You never know what I’m going to come up with or get into next.
Over the past couple days it has been baking bread. I got the breadmaker a couple weeks ago and made dinner rolls and pizza dough but never actual bread.
However I really wanted to make my own loaves of bread so I could stop having to by them from the stor… and give them away.
So the first thing I did was try and make the bread completely by breadmaker. I realize to an actual baker this would be considered cheating, heck any use of a breadmaker might be cheating, but I wanted to try it. It didn’t work.
The bread that came from the breadmaker was tough and compact. It was as if it didn’t rise properly. So I wasn’t doing that again.
I then settled with making the dough in the breadmaker and then letting the bread rise for an hour or so under some low heat, in the sun, under a lamp or on a warm stove. When the bread had risen enough I through the loaf in the over for 19mins at 375°
Needless to say I was onto something. So far I have made two loaves of herb bread using my fresh basil, oregano and thyme and a loaf of white bread.
So the question now is, who wants a loaf?
As a kid I flew by bush plane to some of the most remote places in the north and I absolutely loved it. This past weekend my joy of flying and adventure was rehatched as I spent the weekend at Yellow Dog Lodge.
Yellow Dog Lodge is about a 15 minute flight or 30 kms north of Yellowknife, on a point between Graham and Duncan Lake. The lodge is beautifully situated with viewing points of both lakes
Upon landing on the cleverly named “Rainbow Dock” I had the pleasure to finally meet the lodge owner and operator, Gordon Gin. Gord has been operating the lodge for over 6 years and has done many improvements since I last visited back in the early 2000’s.
Right off the bat I was given a tour of all the facilities, and there is a lot going on. The main building houses the kitchen, dining room, lounge, and sitting room on the main floor. Then there are staff quarters below and guest rooms above, featuring spacious double beds or singles. There are then two winterized cabins and another full service cabin, which acts as the winter lodge. Of course there are then all the extras, like the wood burning hot tub, sauna and Internet.
The one facility that really stuck out to me and makes Yellow Dog Lodge unique was the dock house. Imagine a barge with Astroturf, railings all around the edge and a 12×14′ prospector tent on it. If you haven’t guesses yet, it is a floating campsite, fully equipped with a BBQ, stove, generator, camp supplies, canoe and an onboard lou.
While many people travel to these lodges for great fishing and meals without having to worry about anything, some are looking for that great outdoor adventure. They are wanting to experience the Northern Frontier and the dock house is perfect for them.
When I first arrived at Yellow Dog Lodge a couple, originally from Russia but living in the USA, were heading back to Yellowknife after spending an entire month on this dock house. They couldn’t have been happier I heard them saying to Gord as they boarded the plane.
It is pretty simple to stay on the dock house and Gord will help with logistics, like food and getting to it, but it can be completely a self-service operation. The dock house is also equipped with an outboard motor so if a person so choose they could have a different view each morning, move out of bad weather if it appeared or even move to where the fish are biting best. This truly is a unique northern outdoor adventure you are not going to find anywhere else.
To me Yellow Dog Lodge isn’t a place to go trophy fishing, although the fishing is amazing, it is a get away vacation spot where you come to bond with your friends and family. It is where you would go to have a special time with those you are with. I imagine a father and son coming to the lodge and spending the weekend fishing and hiking together or an office get-together to unwind after a big project is complete.
It is also a place to make new friends and swap stories. I spent many evenings and meal times conversing with Gord, the cook Heddy and another guest Lisa from California. We all came from different walks of life, different experiences and had different stories but now we are all connected because we were all at a remote lodge in the middle of nowhere together.
Yellow Dog Lodge is right in my backyard but when I was there I felt like I was a million miles from anything. It was without a doubt peaceful.
*Disclaimer: Yellow Dog Lodge is a client on mine through my day job. I was flown to the lodge by the owner for a meeting. I was not asked to write this article.
I’m a little annoyed about the constant quote streams coming from some people.
Believing that this does not in fact make them wiser people, I see it as fluff so we might buy into you.
Personally I’m more of a STFU and do it type of person. The only person that is really going to inspire me, is me and the outcome I make for myself.
Now I do have mad props for these people that are being quoted, Disney, Einstein, Doc. Those guys were geniuses but they got to where they did by just doing shit. They made several mistakes along the way, and that is where most of the quotes come from, but they eventually succeeded.
So to those who like seeing those quotes, here is mine: “stop what you are doing and go do something productive.” To those who feel the need to post them constantly, go make your own. That’ll gain you more klout.
I was posting the progress on Instagram (@kyle_with follow me!) as I built the fireplace in my backyard but now it is complete.
Having always wanted a fireplace in the house I lived in I saw my new residents in downtown Yellowknife the perfect opportunity. You can’t just have a fire in your backyard though. We may be accustom to the bush life up here in the north but there are still rules one must follow when in city limits.
Firstly I researched it and land on this page on the City of Yellowknife website, which gives you a downloadable document of the requirements of fireplaces. I then had to ensure my backyard was fit for the pit by measuring it all out.
Once I had found the place that was evenly away from anything combustable and the power lines I started to dig down. I dug aways down and then filled the area with sand.
For constructing the pit I purchased 14 interlocking bricks from the local hardware store and a grate to cover it. 7 blocks made a ring and the first ring was half into the sand making a strong base and the next ring contained it all.
Having constructed the pit I needed to get the guys from the Fire Hall to inspect it to ensure it safety, which took another 4 days as I had to (which I found out after 3 days) get the property manager to sign off on the pit. Finally this afternoon they came by and I was good to go.
Now here I sit perched feet away from the fire in a blissful state. Enjoying the outdoors, the summer and the fire.
Who is coming over to roast marshmallows?