How a coveted, slippery sea vegetable is harvested in a little Fundy harbour.

Dark Harbour, on the west side of New Brunswick's Grand Manan Island, has a rugged beauty overlooking the Bay of Fundy, with hills rising steeply behind. But it isn't the scenery that makes it special: this little harbour produces some of the world's best dulse.

Dulse, aka Palmaria palmata or purple seaweed, grows on the rocks and is exposed at low tide. It has been a food source for countless years-the people of the Passamaquoddy First Nations would paddle their canoes over from what is now Maine to pick dulse from this part of the island, curing it in the sun on the rocky beaches. Little has changed since those times.

Driving down the steep hill into Dark Harbour the first thing you notice is a rock breakwater that, apart from a maintained outlet on the north end, separates a large pond from the Bay of Fundy. The wall is a natural barrier, a testament to the awesome power of the Fundy tides. Over the years the strong currents have rolled smooth rocks up to build it.

Perched on top of the breakwater-more than 20 feet high and up to 300 feet long-are a couple of old, wind-weathered cabins. In the early part of the last century, dulsers lived in cabins along the seawall for two weeks of picking; back then it was too hard to get into and out of Dark Harbour for it to be a daily commute. After the dulse was picked, it was dried right on the seawall and stored in the cabins. For this, they would earn the princely sum of 3 cents a pound.

Nowadays, a few hours before low tide, dulsers congregate before getting into their dories to head out to gather the day's crop. They make their way across the pond to the seawall, where they get out and winch the dories to the top, then climb back in, and-in what can be a bit of a wild toboggan ride-slide their boats down the sea wall and into the bay on the other side. (To protect their dories and help them slide over the rocks, a sheet of Teflon is screwed to the bottom.) Then it is off to that day's rocky beach to pick dulse.

Bending over, the harvesters pull the leaves off the plants' roots, which stay attached to the rocks, and throw the wet clumps into a basket. They then pick their way over the slick rocks to the next bunch.

When the basket is full the haul is dumped into the dory. In two or more hours a dulser usually picks from 20 to 150 pounds. The pickers then pack everything into the dories and head back to Dark Harbour to unload the day's yield.

Dulse is harvested for about two weeks out of every four, dictated by the height of the water during low tides. (The water level is higher during some low tides than others, and it is only during the lower low tides that enough of the dulse is exposed.)

After being harvested, the sea vegetable is laid out on twine netting on crushed rocks so it will drain, then cure in the sun. Once the top of the dulse is dried, the sheets are rolled up and flipped over, so the other side can dry. If the dulse doesn't dry within 24 hours it's brought indoors until the following day.

On a Bay of Fundy island like Grand Manan, where fog sometimes seems to be ever-present, it can be a real problem to get the necessary six hours of strong sun.

The dried dulse is sold to one of three island distributors for about $5 to $8 per pound; they pack and ship it throughout Canada, and as far away as Australia. Although sold primarily as a food, dulse is also sold to vitamin manufacturers, and pharmaceutical and botanical companies. Several tons are sold every year, making this a significant industry for Grand Manan.

Dulse can actually be found all around the island and, in fact, in several other places on the Bay of Fundy, but it's largely con-sidered inferior to the thick, richly flavoured Dark Harbour dulse. The rocky bottom on the west side of the island helps to keep the dulse clean of sand and other debris, and the cold, clean, fast flowing tides wash away any debris that does get trapped among the dulse leaves.

For the Dark Harbour dulse collectors, some of whom have small camps along the shore, the warp and woof of the tides is a way of life.

Island appeal

Grand Manan is part of an archipelago called the Fundy Isles, which sits at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy; Deer Island and Campobello Island are the other two large islands, set among a cluster of smaller ones.

Fishing has been an important part of Grand Manan's history for more than 200 years. All over the island are signs of a thriving fishery-wharves with well-kept fishing boats, for example, and stacks of lobster traps on the sides of roads.

Tourism is also a significant part of the island's economy. Grand Manan is one of the best places in the world to take a whale-watching excursion to see endangered right whales; there's also spectacular sea kayaking, bird watching, hiking and cycling. Painters and photographers flock there to capture its unspoiled beauty. But it's dulse, that tasty, dark purple seaweed, that makes Grand Manan, and particularly Dark Harbour, famous.

Sea veggies in your diet

In the days of processed, unhealthy snack foods, there's great news for dulse lovers. Studies show that sea vegetables are the most nutritious plants on the planet. Like other leafy, deep-green vegeta-bles, dulse in particular is high in chlorophyll, linked to a host of health benefits-the most important being that it helps to repair cell damage that can lead to cancer.

Dulse contains an abundance of trace minerals, hard to get in a regular diet. It's also a natural source of iodine. Our primary source of iodine is table salt, which we should limit to avoid hypertension. However iodine is necessary to regulate the thyroid gland, critical for maintaining a healthy weight, and regulating the metabolic rate for the body's organs and hormones.

But the best reason to eat dulse isn't because it is good for you-eat it because it tastes great. The easiest way to get dulse in your diet is with dulse flakes. Use it in pastas, salads and soups; it's espe-cially nice in seafood chowders. If your local grocery store doesn't carry it, check out a health food store.

Dave Forestell, proprietor of Slocum & Ferris café in the Saint John City Market, has a twist on the old stand-by bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich-he replaces the bacon with dulse, for a delicious, unique DLT. While it's not the top seller on his menu, it certainly has its supporters.

On Grand Manan it's common to heat dulse before you eat it. Dry roast it in a skillet for a couple of minutes, just until it turns green, or put it in the microwave for, say, 45 seconds. Roy Miller, a lifelong island resident, enjoys his heated with a little vinegar, which softens the dulse and adds tartness.

Maybe the strangest recipe comes from the scallop fishermen of Maces Bay, NB, who prepare a dish called Hinges & Dulse. They start by frying about ½ pound of bacon in a pan; they remove the bacon and put in ½ cup of scallop hinges, frying them until just browned. (Scallop hinges are the hard, fingernail-size pieces on the side of scallops.) When the hinges are done, about one or two minutes, they are mixed with the bacon; about ½ pound of dulse is added. The bacon probably negates any of the health benefits of the dulse, but the dish is said to be a tasty treat.