Discover Fly Fishing at WILSON’S

When I was younger I made a habit of donating blood to the Canadian Red Cross. I’m not sure what precipitated my initial urge to volunteer to donate blood but I recall how it felt knowing that in some small way I was doing something good to help someone in need. I also hope that if anyone reading this has never given blood that you will consider doing so. After university I backpacked for a number of months through what was then Western Europe, Eastern Europe and also a bit of Northern Africa and I think this trip was the trigger that got me out of the habit of donating blood.

Fast forward more than a few years and I recently found myself reading an article on the flu situation in Ontario and decided that I should donate blood. I walked into the Canadian Blood Services clinic at Square One in the Mississauga City Centre and was pleased that the staff were extraordinarily friendly and professional. As I made myself comfortable one of the nurses gave me a form to fill out and I quickly made my way through the questionnaire until I hit the travel questions. I left unanswered one of the questions and brought the document back to the nurse who started reviewing my answers.

“Well, we have a question we need to fill in don’t we ?”, said the nurse. “You haven’t filled in the answer to where in South America you traveled.”

“I’m not sure what states I traveled in but I can talk about the general areas if that is helpful.”

After a bit of conversation it became clear that fly fishing for Golden Dorado at Pira Lodge in the Corriente region of Argentina may be a trip of a lifetime but it isn’t kosher for the folks at Canadian Blood Services. The reason is that the Ibera marsh is an area known for breeding malaria and I subsequently learned that if you visit anywhere that has potential for contracting malaria you are not eligible to donate blood until 1 year after your trip.

Hmmmm. Fly fish for Golden Dorado at Pira Lodge or donate blood. Why am I feeling selfish at the moment… ?

Tags:   Argentina · Canada · Canadian Blood Services · Corriente · Eastern Europe · Golden Dorado · Ibera Marsh · Malaria · Mississauga · Northern Africa · Ontario · Pira Lodge · South America · Square One · Western EuropeNo Comments