When you picture the jewel-toned waters and white sand beaches of the 100 Wild Islands, chances are good that you are picturing Shelter Cove. It’s one of the show-stopping coastal vistas that has brought the Eastern Shore into the Nova Scotia mainstream – and Property Guardian Dan Hutt has been helping to take care of it from almost the beginning of its life as a Nature Trust conservation land.

Twenty-five years ago, he bought a house in Tangier; “we just wanted to have a cottage away from Dartmouth, but not more than an hour’s drive,” says Dan. Tangier fit the bill perfectly. He spent more and more time there as the years passed, exploring not only Tangier but the many beaches and islands just a paddle away. “I’ve always been interested in nature and outdoor activities, and sea kayaking and canoeing from an early age but I didn’t really have the opportunity to do as much as I like,” he says. After he retired from his career with Defence Research and Development Canada, and really retired after a 3-year stint as a NATO consultant in Italy, he was able to spend more time outdoors.

“About fifteen years ago I stumbled on the Shelter Cove property, and I somehow learned it was a Nature Trust property,” Dan continues. He contacted the Nature Trust immediately, without even knowing whether volunteers were something they were looking for. “I said, I’m often in the area and I’d like to help with restoring the trail, do you want help with that?” Of course we did.

Along with Dusan Soudek (another longtime Nature Trust volunteer and donor) and volunteer Dave Young, they flagged where they thought the original trail must have been. Then they organized a big work party with more volunteers and several Nature Trust staff, and in a single day they managed to clear most of the trail. Dan has been maintaining it ever since. “We usually do at least one work party every year but I often do minor maintenance myself since it’s so close to where I live in Tangier,” he says. “Over the years I’ve developed a sense of stewardship about the trail. It’s important to me that it’s in good shape so people can enjoy it.”

During the height of the pandemic, Shelter Cove was one of many rugged places that suddenly had a huge influx of visitors – “and suddenly the campsites were trashed with human waste, it was so gross!” In response the Nature Trust approved the installation of thunderboxes – simple and low-impact outdoor toilets to encourage visitors to contain their waste to a designated site. “As it turns out, they’re incredibly effective!” Dan exclaims. “They’ve really cleaned up those campsites, they’ve exceeded everybody’s expectations! I never see toilet paper in the bushes anymore. People I’ve talked to are really grateful for them.”

Dan brings his keen stewardship eye to many of the islands and coastlines not only close to his home (including Ship Rock Island, where he organized last summer’s trail building parties to reconstruct trails that had not been cleared since Hurricane Juan) but also along his many regular excursions. “There are a lot of trails on the Eastern Shore,” says Dan, “but nobody knows about them.” On a recent visit to the Mabou Highlands, he was very impressed by the trail system. “It was so organized, with signs and people obviously taking care of the trails. You can see how much work goes into that though.”

As the conversation continues, he casually mentions more and more ways he volunteers his time – overseeing map creation for Canoe Kayak Nova Scotia, helping guide paddle excursions with Coastal Adventures, chairing the Board for the Otter Ponds Demonstration Forest, building photojournalism side projects into his vacations, and interviewing elders along the Eastern Shore through the Memory Lane Heritage Village. Throughout these projects weaves a common thread of uncovering local histories that are otherwise disintegrating – often literally. Finding and clearing old portage routes with Canoe Kayak Nova Scotia is a great example: “Some of these portages haven’t been used in years so you have to find them, and you stumble on remnants of old forestry operations like slucies, dams and sawmills,” Dan explains. “There’s a big history of forgotten industry in the area.”

And of course, the Eastern Shore islands themselves hold their own histories. “There are several old homesteads on Shelter Cove, where the foundations and wells are still visible,” says Dan. “Go back a hundred years and that was a really remote place! Just a little cart track to the nearest town, Tangier. Or Gerard Island – there was a whole village, you can see the foundations today. You wonder, what kind of life these people lived. I’d love to know more about how people lived in these areas.”

“Doing volunteer work and being a Property Guardian for the Nature Trust is rewarding, fun, and not stressful,” Dan emphasizes. “It’s a great way to meet like-minded people. I love walking in the woods by myself but it’s even better with other people.”

He also encourages everyone to jump in, not matter how “outdoorsy” they may or may not feel. “I’ve met lots of people who are reluctant to get involved because they think it could be too much work, but I always tell them: Come along on a work party, you’ll find a way to fit in and it’ll be a good time. There’s plenty to do for all skill levels; just picking up brush behind the person with the chainsaw or the hedge trimmer is valuable. Everybody has something to contribute and can have a good time doing it.”

We are so grateful to Dan for his ongoing care for Shelter Cove and the other 100 Wild Islands! Learn more about our Property Guardians program.