Sept. 16 - New local murder mystery book set at Craigdarroch

Good morning !

Today we open the week with two stories about locals researching and writing: one for science, and one for fiction.

— Cam

Today’s approx. read time: 5 minutes

🌡️ Weather Forecast

Today: 🌤 21 / 11

Tomorrow: 🌧 16 / 12

Wednesday: 🌤 19 / 12

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NEWS

Local author returns with another murder mystery set in Victoria

She killed it with her first murder mystery offering, Blood on the Breakwater, and now Jean Paetkau is back with another.

This time the death takes place at Craigdarroch Castle. That’s a subplot to the real mystery, which brings us back to real life in 1904 when a steamship carrying 92 passengers and crew set sail from Seattle for Victoria brought real death.

S.S. Clallam never made it to port. Listing agonizingly within view of Trial Island, the so-called jinxed ship, one-year removed from her maiden voyage, sunk in the storm-tossed waters of the Juan de Fuca Strait.

Launched lifeboats didn’t survive the waves, nor did those inside, and 56 people drowned in one of the regions’ worst nautical disasters.

Like the well-received Blood, there’s a lot of Victoria in The Sinking of Souls, from Abkhazi Garden to Ross Bay Cemetery.

“Victoria readers loved seeing their community in Blood on the Breakwater, and they sent me many suggestions for the second book,” Paetkau tells Capital Daily.

“I love the challenge of trying to capture the spectacular beauty of a sunrise on Dallas Road,” she says.

Read Mark Brennae’s full story here.

⚠️ Capital Bulletin

Rain likely tomorrow & Friday, but sun & cloud expected for most of week.

Paving on Blanshard from Pandora to Caledonia. Today to Sept. 27, 6am-8pm.

No Air Canada shutdown: Airline & pilots’ union reach deal, avoiding looming travel disruptions. 

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.

NEWS

Coming of age in the Ice Age: UVic prof's new research on ancient puberty

Give or take some braces, cell phones, and cave bears, adolescence wasn’t so different 25,000 years ago vs. today. Those are the conclusions of UVic paleoanthropologist April Nowell and her colleagues at 5 other universities in the UK, Italy, and Morocco.

The study suggested these Pleistocene youths were actually fairly healthy. They entered puberty at a similar time (age 13.5, with full maturation at 17-22) as teens in modern wealthy countries. The research was looking at whether the typical human development arc remained similar in a different epoch with a much different human lifestyle.

Everyone has an experience of going through puberty, Nowell said in a release, and so her team’s research “helps to humanize these teens in a way that simply studying stone tools cannot,” Nowell said in a release.

For years Nowell has studied and written about Ice Age children, a group Olivier Graveleau says has been under-researched despite making up more than half of those times’ human population. But as her own kids grew older, she says she became interested in learning more specifically about ancient teenagers.

For this latest research, just published in the Journal of Human Evolution, Nowell co-led the study of 13 ancient skeletons aged 10-20. Various bones—from canine and wisdom teeth to pelvises and elbows—were analyzed for typical indicators of age.

In the video below, she and her colleagues explain some of their research methods.

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⭐️ Capital Picks

🪂 Gliding in a hazy oceanside sky in this waterfront photo by Colin Smith. 

🎵 Rifflandia photos: See a weekend full of concert coverage from Rocktographers.

🐺 Hear the debut singles from new Victoria artist ti-loup at Bandcamp.

🛒 77-second shopping spree for local parent who won Peninsula Co-op contest. [Video via Peninsula News Review]

🦌🦌 Roosevelt elk lock horns to prove their dominance during rutting season. [Instagram video]

🗞️ In Other News

Record-high funds expected from yesterday’s Victoria Terry Fox Run
Organizers estimate nearly 1,000 people went to Mile Zero for the annual cancer run, and that this year’s fundraising total (now at $54k) will come in about $15k above last year. [VicNews]

Lighthouse de-staffing continues at Carmanah & Pachena stations
Crates are now arriving onsite for the fall move-out, and the 4 lightkeepers have accepted jobs at other lighthouses. But southwest-Island groups who say the coastline will be less safe without staff onsite at the stations are still hoping a reversal is possible. A motion to call for one will go to the Union of BC Municipalities this week. [Times Colonist]

Oak Bay won’t add housing atop park sports facility
The district’s 4 Carnarvon Park redesign options included a version with housing above an indoor pickleball facility. But it has been cut due to low support, and the remaining 2 options are a fieldhouse with community space plus childcare vs. one with only the space. [CHEK]

UVic men’s soccer posts 5th shutout in 7 games
After each delivering decisive weekend wins (3-0 and 4-1) the Vikes men are now 5-0-2 while the women are at 3-1-1. 

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🗓️ Things to do

🧙‍♀️ What’SUP Witches Paddle Event: 100+ witches showed up in its inaugural run in 2022. Thetis Lake. Oct. 5. 2-4pm. [Info]

🕊️ Meditation, Music and Inner Peace: The Art of Living Foundation. Movement to stillness, with Swami Sadyojathah. Victoria Scottish Community Centre. Sept. 17. 7-8:30pm. [Info]

🎸10th SALT New Music Festival: Featuring diverse and thought-provoking free music from the 20th and 21st centuries. Various venues at UVic. Through Sept. 20. [Info]

🍵 The Victoria Tea Festival Revival: Activities include a tea fair with tastings, a tea symposium, live music, food, ceramics gallery, documentary screenings, and the World Tea Championship. Nootka Court. Oct. 5. [Info]

🧑‍🎤 Pacific Edge Chorus: Are you a woman who likes to sing?  Learn to sing a cappella in a fun, free, six-week workshop. Gordon United Church Hall. Sept. 17-Oct. 22. [Info]

🥗🛻🎵 Food Truck and Music Festival. The third annual fest will showcase a variety of food trucks and vendors, along with games and activities to entertain all age groups. Langford Station. Sept. 20. 4-8pm. Veterans Memorial Park. Sept. 21. 12-7pm. [Info]

👀 In Case You Missed It

 $12.8M for Centennial & Royal Athletic upgrades. Seal ends up in whale's mouth. Dragon statue stolen. [Sunday newsletter]

Proposed conflict-of-interest policies could limit developers' influence in Colwood. [The Westshore]

Cougar encounter on Sooke trail: Middle schooler describes face-to-face moment. [CHEK]

Marmot baby boom brings Island’s furry icons back from the brink. [Sat. newsletter]

Overnight repaving of Malahat: Sun-Thu until mid-Oct. 

Golden ocean photos taken by Work The Angle.

New music from Blue Moon Marquee, the Juno-winning Island band. [YouTube]

Poet and you know it? City of Victoria seeks new Poet Laureate.

Synchronized swimmers: Orcas breach in unison near Victoria. [Facebook photo]

Westshore Rebels fall to Langley Rams in just their 3rd loss in past 2 seasons. [Watch full game]

That’s it!

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