Finally! A rainy day.
Well, light showers actually. But its cool and windy and wet enough to not feel guilty about staying inside. Time for some indoor chores. One of the tasks I've tackled today was tightening the large bolts securing the ceiling beams to the support posts. The large timbers had not fully seasoned when they were installed and over the last five years they have dried and shrunk. The bolts securing the thick iron brackets had loosened. I need those beams fully secured for next weeks major earthquake.
Thursday morning we drove to Vancouver to assist in Erik's move from his apartment. It was raining heavily as we drove down the island highway, but apparently the rain didn't cross the kilometer of water to Denman. (Probably couldn't afford the ferry rates.)
Erik's move was a little more complex than his many previous moves. This time he had more than a suitcase and a sleeping bag; he had acquired "stuff" and required a "U-Haul Truck". Fortunately two of his friends, Dan and Lenny, were able to come and help in the afternoon. Marit's challenge was the cleaning of his vacated apartment. Interesting (and exhausting) times for us all.
The picture to the right is not Erik's apartment. Its Gary and Lise's place, where we spent the night. They are in the midst of a major house renovation. A wall has been torn down creating a larger living room. (The wall was load-bearing so the operation included installation of support beams; quite a challenge). A new floor has been installed throughout the area. Moulding is being installed along the edges, and a new stairway is being laid to the ground floor. The picture was taken Friday morning; next Tuesday Gary intends having a large family party in the same area.
Back home this weekend, we find the season is really progressing. Leaves are falling from the trees. Nights are colder. Soon we'll need to fire up the wood stove.
Here's what "late blight" looks like. (I left one plant when as a test). The blight extends into all parts of the plant, ruining the fruit. Notice the blackened stem. (Ignore the pumpkin in the background).
Fortunately all the tomatoes we harvested at the onset appear to be free of the infection. Over half of them have ripened in storage and Marit has been busy processing them.
In the continuing landscaping saga, the area in front of the root cellar has been tamed. But this marks the end of the cultivation zone. Beyond those shadows, civilized horticulture blends into the natural wildscape of the front slope. I don't intend to have everything manicured. Here's how things look now.
One postscript to our Vancouver trip: after arriving home I quickly unloaded our supplies into the front room. Too quickly. One of the items was a gallon can of white paint we used to touch up the walls at Erik's apartment. Somehow on the return trip the bottom had been punctured. Yes, white puddles on the frontroom floor, a white pool in the car, and a trickle in between. If it wasn't water soluble latex, I would be in big trouble.
Week ending Oct. 9, 2005.
Thanksgiving. And we have a lot to be grateful for.
No, that's not one of the local "wild" turkeys. Even though it had the label "Organic", it was purchased from the supermarket. The pumpkin came from our garden, and so did its cousin in the pie behind. (Incidentally, our local turkeys have not been visiting lately. The only one I've seen has been the hen with two surviving chicks.)
There was a lot of effort in the preparation of today's Thanksgiving dinner. We're using the vegetables that don't store well, meaning they have a lot of imperfections that have to be cut away. And I understand the frustrations Marit encounters; (she keeps telling me). But the dinner she put on the table was delicious. Erik, who came out to join us this weekend, agrees.
Two days ago, this was the cauliflower that tonight we smothered with gravy. The garden is still providing, but we're nearing the end of the fresh produce.
Anyone reading this in the USA may feel confused. Here in Canada, Thanksgiving is held a month earlier than in America. I suspect that's because, being further north, our harvests are completed earlier
The weather has been colder, and there have been periods of rain. Last Monday I saw the first occurrence of snow on the peaks of the Beaufort mountains. And we've started having a fire in the stove in the early morning.
It seemed to be an appropriate time to start feeding the birds. So I shared Thanksgiving with them by setting out the feeding stations. They arrived almost immediately; towhees, juncoes, golden-crowned sparrows, and chickadees. I had the impression they said, "what kept you?"
I ordered more gravel to finish the surface of our driveway, and earlier this week 10 yards (almost 10 cubic meters) of crushed rock was delivered. Unfortunately the driver wasn't able to adequately maneuver his large truck within our curving path, so he had to leave several large plies for me to spread. It only took two days with a wheelbarrow, shovel, and rake; finishing just in time for my regular chiropractic appointment.
And a week ago we had a big event; two Orcas, "killer whales", came swimming up Baynes Sound in front of the house. The ferry, traveling across the water on its regular run, turned and followed them up the sound giving a special sight-seeing tour to the passengers. Apparently it was a mother and her smaller pup. I say "apparently", ... because I didn't see it. I had chosen exactly the wrong time for an errand to my neighbour's house. Next time!
With the colder and wetter weather, most of the garden is dying down. But the lawn is recovering and starting to grow. I'll actually have to mow it next week if there is a dry day. And these perverse Hollyhocks have managed to start re-blooming. They may not provide an acceptable artistic pallet, but each bloom is a unique miracle.
Finally, as I complete this log, I can relate it back to the beginning; I'm finally eating a large slice of that pie in the first picture. Not in the crude, nude state shown, but smothered in ice dream. Such decadence!
Week ending Oct. 16, 2005.
There was a bit of sun.
But most of the week consisted of various degrees of rain. The first of our winter storms roared through with traditional south-east gales and heavy rain. Other days were also traditional west coast conditions; no wind, clouds to the sea, and sheets of rain coming straight down. The kind of west coast weather that I know and love.
Between showers last Monday, Erik helped to chop up a large supply of kindling, a basic necessity during the winter. You can't imagine how discouraging it is on a cold winter morning to discover there is none.
The chairs? Well, bending over the chopping block for a long time is really hard on the back. But I'll admit we don't look like hardy lumberjacks.
On Tuesday the sun shone; an appropriate day for some chores I had promised the neighbours. The first was to finish glazing a greenhouse. (Didn't even break a pane of glass.) Then, over to Karen's to seed her garden and rake in the fall rye.
As I was spreading the rye seeds, I was suddenly surrounded by wildlife. Karen's yard is the local sanctuary where every wild animal gets fed; apples daily for the deer, seed for the birds, grain for large birds and deer. The three deer and eight turkeys that ran and surrounded the garden thought I was distributing food. And I guess it would have been, if the garden wasn't fenced.
Eventually, as I raked the seed into the soil, they all gave up and wandered off. I took this picture of the turkeys leaving in the next field. They are the same birds that disappeared and hid the week before Thanksgiving. Only a hen with two chicks remained in the "sanctuary". Incidentally, there's only one chick now. A few days ago one of Karen's many cats didn't understand the "sanctuary" concept.
This stark view of the beach is one of the last times this year that tides will be low enough in the daytime to reach the oyster beds. During the winter months the tide remains quite high during the daylight hours. The very low tides occur at night, and shellfish harvesters have to work with lamps. On a cold and rainy night, its a hard way to make a living.
In the garden, the last armload of zucchinis has been picked and the vines have been added to the compost. The last batch of cauliflower has managed to ripen now at season's end. "Good timimg" I thought. But when I brought another cauliflower in yesterday, my exasperated wife moaned "All I do is cook, clean, and process your garden produce". That's not true of course. She does many other things too.
One last plea. I need leaves. I want to dig large quantities of them in a new section of the garden. If you have extra, please bring them over. And those of you coming up this weekend,,,, big plastic bagfulls in the trunk please.
Week ending Oct. 23, 2005.
This weekend I ran away from home.
Marit was hosting this month's gathering of the "Sewing Club", a group of Norwegian ladies from the Vancouver area who gather monthly to practice their handicraft and converse in their native language. Come to think of it, they abandoned their handicraft sewing years ago, but they still meet regularly as the "Sewing Club" (Husbands call it the "stitch & bitch" club).
To give the ladies their "space", I toured Vancouver Island and went camping for three days. My first stop was Sayward, a logging town in the north area. The top left picture shows Sayward's waterfront. It's a working environment, totally dependent on the forestry industry.
But the suburbs still retain a whimsical attitude that I found quite charming.
And there appears to be a certain casual attitude, like leaving the Christmas lights up all year long. Diary note: This must sound a little lame without the humourous images to accompany it).
I continued North, intending to find some camping spots in the Nimpkish Valley. Or to explore some of the backwoods forestry roads for some designated camping areas. But somehow I went right through and ended up at Telegraph Cove.
Telegraph Cove is a historical site, and quite unique, built on pilings at the waters edge. The main street sidewalk is a boardwalk on the extended wharf.
In summer the area is quite a mecca for boaters, campers, whale watchers, and tourists wanting an unspoiled coastal area. The harbour has docking sites for a large number of pleasure boats. There's a developed camping area for 120 RV's on a nearby hillside. And there are services to support the visiting populace.
In winter, I was told it has a population of 20.
At that point I retraced my route, back through Beaver Cove (another massive log sorting operation) and headed for Schoen Lake Provincial Park, reached by 16 kilometers of rough logging road.
The provincial government has withdrawn maintenance from a number of parks to save money, and I don't know what the current status is for this park. I had to negotiate a fallen tree on the road. And there was no available firewood at the site. But there was still toilet paper in the outhouse, so the important facilities were provided.
Doesn't schoen mean "beautiful" in German? A neighbour told me years ago that the sight of the morning sun on the mountain at the lake head was a truly beautiful sight. But that was not something that could be seen on this trip. The clouds never left.
Not surprisingly, the campsite was deserted. All ten primitive sites were available. And no one disturbed me for the weekend.
Friday evening was very windy and everything had to be tied down very securely. Camping under trees in a high wind is a little worrying. Sometimes large branches, called "widow makers" break off. And sometimes large trees can blown over. A large one laying 5 meters from my tent had fallen earlier this year. But by midnight, the wind died down, to be replaced by a steady rain.
Fortunately I had rain gear. And the empty woodshed was a fine shelter to use the camp stove to cook food.
By mid afternoon the rain stopped, and that evening I was able to have a roaring campfire with wood scrounged from the area.
It was a pleasant site. There were some very large, centuries old, trees. And the surrounding area really appeared to be wilderness. But given the weather, and the daylight (sunset at 6:15, sunrise almost 8:00) the primary activity wasn't hiking or sightseeing. The biggest portion of time was spent in the sleeping bag.
The three-day weekend was interesting. But I was quite happy to catch the 12:10 ferry to Denman and get back home.
Week ending Oct. 30, 2005.
Red sky in the morning, Islanders take warning. This omen foretold the entire week.
Storm after storm has continued to flow onto the west coast. As I write, the wind is whistling around the corners of our house. And its raining. The weather forecast has posted a wind warning for tonight; the second time this week.
Last week a large dead alder tree was blown down at the edge of the beach. I considered it a gift, and carried the entire tree up to the house; in pieces. Several more weeks of firewood for our stove.
So far, we've had no frost at all; its still mild. But winter is coming. We can see it in the mountain tops between storms when the clouds part.
For those who don't have a cloud covered sky, take a look to the east after dark. Tonight mars is as close as it will be for the next 13 years. Its unmistakable; very bright, and pumpkin orange. During a brief clear period yesterday evening I saw it while going to the opera.
Yes! Opera. A touring ensemble from the Vancouver Opera appeared at the Denman Community Hall last night. They performed "Naomi's Road", a contemporary Canadian production. They then sang a collection of captivating arias, presenting 3 centuries of opera in 45 minutes. The beautiful "Flower Duet" from Delibes's Lakme was the highlight of my evening.
Meanwhile back at the ranch, the roundup continues. "What are those critters" you may ask. Well, at the bottom of the pile there are more butternut squash. The others, I don't know. They are volunteers of unknown parentage whose genes probably contain DNA from a mix of zucchini, pumpkin, and whatever squash that was grown in the neighbourhood last year. I'm curious to taste them, but we still have a glut of cauliflower in the fridge to consume first.
The broccoli have all been taken out and properly composted. They produced faithfully all season, but the sprouts were now becoming too small to continue. Besides, when they start rotting in the field, the smell is awful.
Our garden choices are now becoming limited. The lettuce bed is still producing, as are the carrots. Leeks, turnips (rutabagas), and arugula will endure into the winter. Incidentally, Marit discovered a super recipe for arugula and cauliflower salad. And her pumpkin soup is as good as, or better than a fine serving that I once tasted at a gourmet restaurant.
Out front, the waterfowl are a constant source of entertainment. For the past two weeks, a flock of approximately 50 scoters has remained in the vicinity. Two types have been commingling; surf scoters and white-winged scoters. Its amazing to watch with binoculars or telescope as they feed. They dive for clams in the mud below, then come up and swallow them whole. The large lump can be seen in the neck as the intact clam slides down their throat. The scoters have a very powerful gizzard that crushes the clam and its shell for further digestion and excretion.
It makes some of these other ducks, like mallards and widgeons that feed on soft seaweed look like wimps.
Marit is passing this rain-swept afternoon working on her loom. When earlier setting up the strings, I helped just enough to recognize that this is a very complicated project. Surprisingly she doesn't appear to be frustrated by the difficulties. Maybe its only the boredom that at times makes her cranky.
And to all you North Americans, be careful for all those little ghosts and goblins on Monday. Enjoy the evening. We may not have a Mardi Gras, but we do have Halloween.
Week ending Nov. 6, 2005.
Finally, the first hint of winter.
At sunrise this morning we were greeted to our first frost. The thermometer was at zero. And the smoke across the street indicated the neighbours were trying to heat the house quickly.
Across the water, the early sun highlighted the snow line on the Beaufort mountains. Beautiful scenery, but the view has been quite different for much of the week. Wind and rain has continued to be the predominant pattern; clouds and showers were back again late this afternoon.
Last Monday a long-time neighbour moved across the water to a new condominium in Courtenay. I'm going to miss his company; we often walked together to pick up the mail. I must admit, I'm very puzzled. Why would anyone ever voluntarily move from here? I'm never leaving. Never, ever!
Well, almost never. I did have one day off. My neighbour Nick desperately needed a break in his routine so the two of us went for a day in Nanaimo. The hour-long drive in the blowing rain wasn't too pleasant but lunch at Nick's favorite restaurant, "Katarinas" on Front street, was great. Tastiest Greek food I've ever had. Marit spent the day baking; bread and fresh muffins were ready that afternoon.
No opera on the island this week. The only entertainment was an all-candidates meeting for the Island Trust elections that are approaching. Three candidates for two positions. All appear to be well qualified and fully capable. I suspect many of us will have a tough choice deciding.
The garden tasks haven't been very glamorous this week. I've been working with the compost piles; turning them and covering the compost from the winter rains. Marit continues to clean the up the plants that have finished blooming, and to tidy up the flower gardens. We've compromised with the birds, leaving any seed heads that may provide food for them in the coming months.
One of the great interests here continues to be the birds. I'm still learning, discovering variety and surprise. After looking closely at this photo I realize they aren't the Red-Breasted Mergansers I had assumed. These were the Common Mergansers. Did I mistake my earlier sightings or did these two slyly sneak into the picture? And this afternoon, I was surprised to find a flock of shore birds that I didn't recognize, feeding among the seaweed on the beach. With the help of "Sibley's Guide to the Birds" I found them to be Black Turnstones.
The beach continues to change with the high seasonal tides and the strong storms. A lot of dead salmon have washed up; salmon that have spawned and died in the Tsable River, been washed down by high waters, and blown across the sound. There was even a dead duck; a Western Grebe. I wondered about that one; surely it didn't drown? (Lets hope it wasn't the result of the bird flu.)
And speaking of rotting dead fish, I want to pass on a warning about another danger that reeks even worse. Sony has put software onto its music CDs. If the CD is played on a computer, the software will secretly load automatically as a Root Kit; an insidious form of trojan/spyware that could be malicious. Attempts to remove it have caused the drive to disable, breaking the computer. Read the report at http://www.cnet.com/4520-6033_1-6376177.html. Do not play Sony CDs on your PC.
Personally, I'm so outraged by their audacity and lack of integrity that I can't imagine ever again buying a Sony product. And for all of you who plan to shower me with Christmas gifts this year, make sure none of them are from Sony.
Speaking of Christmas, mark your calendars for the annual Denman Island Christmas Craft Fair on December 3rd and 4th. It has grown to be a huge extravaganza of hand-crafted offerings from Denman and surrounding communities. Hand-crafted with integrity.
Week ending Nov 13, 2005.
I know! Absolute insanity
But one brief afternoon was so bright and dry; I felt compelled to cut the lawn. It was necessary. With this cool moist weather the grass is growing better than it did all summer.
Sunshine and dryness are not common conditions now. But that's when most photographs are taken so my pictures are not true indications of the week. When we're able to see the mountains, they're really picturesque.
The top picture was taken from the bottom of my path to the beach. (Maybe this is the winter when storms and high tides will take away that large stump).
Those mountains look a little different seen through the eyes of a high-powered lens. Here's a closer view of an area that's currently being logged. They are using an interesting technique. Some stands of trees are being left in the midst of a clear-cut area. I assume they're for stability and for natural reseeding. The circular configuration must provide the best buffering against the wind to avoid "blow-down". Watching the natural process of recovery will be interesting.
Storms continue to roll in from the Pacific, one after another, with winds up to 80 kilometers. But the loss of power last Thursday was not caused by any gale. Shortly before noon I heard a sharp explosion and assumed it was a hunter's shot from the nearby fields. Actually, it was a transformer, only 70 meters away, causing loss of power to 15 houses on our street. It was repaired by 3:30, but still I had to start up my generator; two "soap operas" HAD to be recorded on the VCR.
Birding continues to be a prominent pastime. The popularity of my feeders appears to be growing since the move of my neighbour, Bill. When he left, the local birds lost a major, year-round, smorgasbord. Now I find that a 40 kg. sack of cracked corn doesn't last too many weeks.
At our local community school there's even a night school course on birds now. The presenters are great; interesting, knowledgable, and enthusiastic. Can't help but learn even though I've been familiar with many of the subjects.
The water in front of the house has been teeming with scoters, a flock of about 50 Surf scoters with a few White winged scoters mixed among them. I watched them feeding in the shallows this week, and witnessed them frantically scramble out to deeper waters when an eagle swooped towards them. The eagle was probably watching for a sick or injured one, but continued to circle the area waiting for a diving bird to surface. It finally left, unsuccessful. That time.
Another drama I've been watching for weeks is the sea lion and seagull feeding frenzy; a gathering of gulls around a splashing in the water. Through my spotting scope I can clearly see a sea lion surfacing with a large salmon in its mouth. The sea lion appears to shake the fish, scattering bits of salmon which the gulls scream after. Why the sea lion plays with its food, I don't know. Maybe the same behavior as cats? Or maybe, like me, they just enjoy feeding the birds?
Feeding: Marit just came in with a piece freshly baked pumpkin pie, topped with ice cream. I'd better finish this off and enjoy dessert. I like being spoiled.
She's been very busy at her loom recently. I suspect she's preparing for the Christmas Craft Faire in three weeks. For anyone who's forgotten, the huge, annual Denman Island Christmas Craft Faire is being held December 3rd & 4th. Re-adjust your schedules if necessary, but don't miss it.
Week ending Nov. 20, 2005.
Preliminary introductions can be misleading.
Monday's sunshine at dawn illuminated a crisp, frosty scene. We were having a respite from the storm track that has been aimed at this part of the west coast.
It's been a pleasure being outside. The garden hasn't completely surrendered to the light freezing of the previous nights. These last roses of summer are still very beautiful, and the chrysanthemums are in great form.
There was even a new addition to be planted. At the garden club meeting this month I won the door prize; a flowering current from Wildside Nursery. Fortunately there was a site near the Ornamental Grass garden just crying out for this addition.
If only those Monday morning conditions could have continued . . .
My winter-long swan counting assignment began on Tuesday. I've been assigned "Middle Marsh" again; a smaller marsh in the centre of the island, accessable only by a short hike in the woods.
This "Comox Valley" area is a major wintering ground of the Trumpeter Swans. Although they are no longer classified as an endangered species, their numbers are still small. Every winter their population is regularly monitored. Comparative trends are maintained. That's why troops of volunteers are out every Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM to scan every habitat.
No swans have yet appeared at this marsh, but they have been seen from the road at nearby "Graveyard Marsh". (Don't you love these names?). At last count, 855 have returned to the Comox Valley, but to date less than a handful have shown up on Denman.
Even without seeing swans, it was enjoyable getting back to this area. Winter wrens are still common at the water's edge. The beaver are still there; I heard one slap the water, and saw a tree it had recently chewed.
And speaking of trees; I was shocked to discover the consequence of my neglect in my own back yard. Years ago I transplanted a pine tree that had germinated in our Port Moody garden. It grew well, but heavy snow bent the tree causing me to support it with a thick rope. This week, while pruning out some low branches, I discovered that the forgotten rope has strangled the tree, forcing it to grow around the consriction.
I cut away some of the rope, but in pulling it out, some damage occurred on the bark. I've left half the rope and will monitor the trunk to see how the tree recovers. It has always looked healthy. It'll be interesting to watch.
And finally, this view from the beach indicates the deterioration of our weather. Fog. For days. Clear skies conditions that cause heat waves in July now bring fog and dampness. This picture was taken when the fog briefly cleared enough to see the light beacon.
While working on the beach, I was startled several times by the sudden loud blasts of the fog horn on the ferry. It was so clear and loud that I felt I was about to be run over by the ship. Both Marit and I are thankful that the last ferry sailing is 11:00 PM.
One more reminder: No matter what the weather, there are only two more weeks until the annual Denman Island Christmas Craft Faire. A huge collection of spectacular hand made articles. The Spinners and Weavers Guild will be a highlight in the Seniors Hall. And Marit's handiwork will be included in their offerings.
Make every effort to be there.
Week ending Nov. 27, 2005.
Even worse than writers cramp; this has been a very dull week.
Dull in more than one way; most of the week has been covered in fog. Cold, damp, fog. Finally after a few hours of rain, the sun has broken through for this weekend. Even in the sunshine, some of the landscape is bleaker in winter without the foliage and flowers. This is the current view of the house from the beach.
(Yes, we've heard about the snow in Vancouver, but up here we've had sunshine today).
The beach is always interesting. I try to go down every morning to see what new changes have occurred and find what the tide has brought. Recently there have been some large logs deposited at the water's edge. I suspect they are escapees from log booms that were destined to become 2x4 planks at a local saw mill.
They may have originated from the raft of logs (shown below) that we watched last week being towed south. I recall the log boom seemed to be almost half a kilometer long. It's probably illegal to cut these up for firewood and carry them away. So I'd never admit to such a thing.
Last month I mentioned harvesting some "volunteer" squash, and had a picture of some in the wheelbarrow. Well, Marit recently tried to prepare one for dinner. She called for help; the skin was almost bullet-proof. I didn't know whether to use a hacksaw or an axe. We did manage to open and cook one. The taste was sort of acceptable, but not great enough to warrant the hazard of opening. They are being relegated to the compost heap.
Yes, I new better, but had to try. From now on, all volunteer squash will be considered weeds from the start.
Wednesday night was the last night school session of "winter birds" and this morning the class took a field trip. We went to the northern tip of Denman Island where a long mud flat joins it to Tree Island at low tide. There's a large concentration of waterfowl. And its probably the best area to view shore birds. Sure enough we found groups of Dunlin, Sanderling, and Black Belly Plovers in their winter plumage. And three Oystercatchers too.
Even up in this area, Henry Bay, there are a large number of escaped saw logs. At the current value of timber, its surprising the industry isn't more active in salvaging and retrieving these losses.
Highlight of the week was a visit from Erik this weekend; out to give his old dad a hand. I forgot to take a picture of him carrying all the heavy loads of firewood up to the wood shed area. I noticed the perspiration; better get back in shape Erik.
I regret there were so many sports games on TV that we never did get a chance to see the DVD he brought. "Shrek 2" is high on my "must see" list.
And a final reminder: Next weekend is the big Christmas Craft Faire here on Denman. Don't miss it.
Week ending Dec. 03, 2005.
This week has been much more interesting, and challenging.
The first snowfall of the season came on Monday night. About 7 cms. lay outside at dawn. Apparently we had a 6 minute power outage in the middle of the night, but we hadn't noticed. The clocks had to be reset though.
Tuesday morning was not a good time to be snow bound. Marit had a broken tooth that needed dental care, and her appointment was early that morning in Comox. She had to get there. Fortunately we had heeded the forecast and left the car up on the road. But the snowplows hadn't considered our side road to be a priority. It had not been cleared.
I've had experience driving in snow (as well as getting stuck), so Marit insisted on my services. It was really challenging, but I managed to reach the main plowed road and get to the ferry. And on the other side, this was the first time I could remember that no one was speeding on the highway.
Marit's damage required a crown. During her Tuesday appointment they made a mold of her tooth. Then, thanks to the snow, someone cancelled their appointment the next day, and Marit was able to go back and get a temporary crown. She'll get a permanent fixture later in a couple of weeks.
The snow has remained all week with temperatures as low as -4, although some has melted in the daytime sunshine and the roads are now bare. My feeders are more popular than ever and require filling several times a day. I'm attracting more than these little seed eaters. One afternoon a Coopers Hawk smacked into our window, (I think the junco dodged). The hawk survived and flew off to a fir tree to nurse its headache.
Thursday morning I noticed a bird that I didn't recognize feeding on the cleared road. I went back to the house for binoculars, back again for my camera, (then back for the card, and again for fresh batteries; that was the most patient bird I've ever met). After studying the 76 pictures I took, I realize that the bird is a Mourning Dove. Its a regular but very uncommon visitor on Denman in the summer. In the winter; very rare anywhere in B.C.; unheard of here.
There must be a lot of small seeds from the trees that have blown onto the road. The dove was feeding there most of the day. And it was replaced the next day by a Killdeer.
I've noticed a very strange trend. Every time we have a major furniture delivery, it snows. When we initially moved our stored belongings here, we waded through. 25 cms of snow. When we had our appliances delivered, more snow. Now, shortly after this snowfall, a new couch and side chair that Marit bought a few weeks ago were delivered. Next time we do some major shopping I'll do it in August and see what happens.
The chair and couch looked very nice in the rearranged room. Marit was pleased,,, until she put the carpet back. "That ruins it" she groaned. So a new carpet, with complementary colouring, has been ordered and hopefully will be here before Christmas.
And finally, this was the weekend of the big Christmas Craft Faire. With blue skies and sunshine, no one seemed to mind the snow. And visitors had a great choice among the two buildings full of vendors, plus the offerings in some stalls outside.
On the left, Marit and her friend Jan are shown at the Spinners and Weavers table. (Jan is the one in gray). They both did well in total sales and are pleased with their weekend. It must be very satisfying to know that others appreciate their work enough to pay money for it.
On the right is another friend, Hanna Christensen, with her great pottery. We have a lot of her product in our house.
There were a large variety of superb artists and craftsmen. I'm awed to be living among such a collection of talented people.
For those who were unable to get to this event, you have something to look forward to next year.
Milder temperatures are forecast, and the snow is expected to soon disappear. I don't have to shovel my driveway. Until next time.
Week ending Dec. 11, 2005.
It took its time, but it finally left.
These last traces on Thursday morning ended ten days of snow. And the uncovered ground isn't always pretty. Some shrubs have had broken branches. The garden's cover crop of winter rye has been flattened. But these things will recover.
Marit had warned me last month that my roadside pile of bark mulch would be flattened if a snowplow ever had to remove snow. But did I act on her advice? Nooo, and today I was raking up the bark mulch spread all along the road. Its finally been taken inside the yard.
Four eagles put on quite a show this week. They were acrobatic in their flight, swooping down around each other. They perched in large trees and called loudly. Very loudly. I couldn't decide whether they were screaming at each other or trying to sing a harmonized quartet.
It all happened right outside the house. These pictures were taken from our upper balcony. The eagles were mature adults, at least four years old. They may have been socializing, or they may have been disputing the territory. I'll probably never know.
Conditions were perfect today for the monthly water bird inventory. Its not often we have calm seas in December. And cloudy skies eliminated any glare from the sun. Visibility was good up to 1,000 meters. We were able to identify quite a number of Marbled Murrelets swimming offshore.
Most of the wintering birds have now made their way to this area. All three species of scoters were seen, and all three species of cormorants were identified. There was a large flock of not only American Wigeons, there was also a visitor; a lone Eurasian Wigeon mixed in with the flock. It was an interesting survey.
And in the weekly Trumpeter Swan count, I finally got one. Four actually. I was quite astonished walking along the shore of Middle Marsh, when four "lumps of snow" on the far shore started honking at me. Next week I'll be much more observant.
But we do have some problems with our wildlife. They are becoming much too tame. Yesterday this deer was at the steps of my next door neighbour, waiting for some food to be given. (Its less than 40 meters from my back door). After taking its picture I whistled to get its attention. Instead of running, it trotted toward me expecting a treat. I could have fed it from my hand.
Its not good for these deer to lose their natural wariness. I know of five this year that have been turned into venison roasts when they boldly walked into the wrong gardens and yards.
> On the social scene, the "Denman Island Spinners and Weavers" held an open house to show their facilities to the community. They're not only good hand crafters, they're gourmet cooks. The spread of food was great. And even though this wasn't intended to be a marketing function, some of Marit's products were sold during the display.
At home Marit is transforming the house with her collection of Christmas decorations and ornamentation. Christmas baking has been started; I just hope our guests don't leave too much of it uneaten when they leave after the holidays. The outside lights are lit up. Next week I expect to get our Christmas tree. (I'm hoping to take a walk with my saw and find a wild one that needs a new home).
And I've saved Marit the trouble of finding me a gift. I've bought my own. This new LCD display monitor. My old CRT had broken and I've been using a smaller replacement resurrected from storage. This arrangement is great. The only thing missing is the element of surprise on Christmas Eve, and I get enough of them all year.
Week ending Dec. 18, 2005.
Christmas time again.
The local ferry has put on its seasonal look with Christmas lights strung above the navigation bridge. Watching it cross at night, it looks like a Christmas tree mounted on top of the ship. I took this picture of it while waiting to board the 6:40 sailing on Thursday night.
We've had some really nice weather; clear sunshiny days, and star filled nights. For star gazers, the sights have been spectacular, especially at sunset. Mars has been high in the eastern sky; distinctive with its reddish colour. And Venus has been bright and unmistakable low in the south-west. Seen through my bird spotting scope, Venus clearly has a dark crescent like the moon. The skies at night are very clear here. So far, we have managed to avoid the light pollution that plagues most of the civilized world. By choice, we don't have street lights anywhere except the downtown core and the ferry dock. And private "security lighting" is unpopular and unnecessary.
There was a meteor shower earlier this week, but the full moon so bright that the meteor trails were not distinguishable. The full moon this month was known as the "Long Nights Moon" because it occurred near the winter solstice. This week the moon was the highest full moon in 18 years and was above the horizon for more than 15 hours; a long night indeed.
Incidentally, the picture to the right is the view facing south-east in the morning, not at dusk. The down-side of clear skies is cold temperatures. Frosty mornings. And only at the end of the week did the fog horn start blaring on the first early runs of the ferry.
The fog started rolling in again last night as I tried to get a photograph of our Christmas house lights. I think the obscurity adds to the mystique of the season. (I'm very good at rationalizing).
Our tree is still sitting outside, waiting to be brought in and decorated. Actually I have two, and a choice has to be made. Earlier this week I took a hike over at Buckley Bay, under the power line right-of-way. I harvested two Balsam Firs that had to be cleared anyway. They're not too bad, slightly better than a Charlie Brown special. I'll post a picture of it in full splendor next week.
One of the casualties of the winter season is our beach. Tides are so high that the beach is gone during the day. Even an hour after high tide, there's still no access to the shore at the foot of our steps.
Our shoreline access was very narrow this morning too when we conducted our Christmas Bird Count for the Comox Valley region. We stayed mainly on the inland trails as we walked up to the northern end of Denman. Unfortunately a marsh that normally hosts a great variety of species was solidly frozen. Often we find rare or unusual specimens there, but not today. At the northern sand spit of the island, light fog limited the distant visibility. In total our list included only 42 species; quite short of our usual Christmas Count.
I could have included many additional species just from counting at my backyard bird feeder. But this isn't in the Comox radius. There's another count coming up, the Deep Bay area, that includes Southern Denman. Maybe I can be included then.
The picture of frosty roadside broom was taken as a whim. But I think it epitomizes Marit's condition now. A stubborn cough has now blossomed into a first class miserable cold. She's feeling rather terrible. We're hoping she can recover enough to enjoy the Christmas celebration with the family.
We didn't go up this afternoon to the community carol sing or the afternoon Christmas party with the potluck dessert table. We also didn't turn out to Friday night's "Midnight Madness" in downtown Denman.
"Midnight Madness" of course is a North American fad where the local stores stay open very late to accommodate the frenzy of shoppers. On Denman, the evening was enhanced with hundreds of paper lanterns lighting the pathways of the downtown area. And the stores stayed open as late as any Denmanite could stay awake; .... 9:00 P.M.
Merry Christmas everyone. And if next week's update is a day late, don't be alarmed.
Week ending Dec. 25, 2005.
Merry Christmas Everyone
A few short hours ago we were enjoying one of the tastiest roast turkey dinners that I can remember. Our neighbour, Bo Filter, was invited to join us.
Lise, Gary, and Erik arrived yesterday afternoon. We celebrated Christmas Eve with the traditional pork roast, complete with "surkaal", a cabbage dish spiced with caraway seeds. After dinner was complete and the dishes cleaned, we continued the Norwegian customs we have grown up with; the opening of the gifts on Christmas Eve.
Gift opening is not a frantic "free-for-all". Gifts are handed out one at a time, and everyone watches as the parcels are opened and the presents are displayed. (A very civilized custom, I think).
After the gifts, we celebrated with birthday cake. It was Marit's birthday on December 24th. Birthday gifts had been given in the morning to separate the two occasions as much as possible. (I even remembered to use birthday wrapping paper, not christmas gift wrap). And I won't mention which birthday it was; I think we're going backwards now.
>But the weather has not cooperated. It is definitely not a white Christmas, and the storms tried to make this an un-Christmas. Heavy rains have been falling all week, and strong winds have been hammering the area.
On the morning of Christmas Eve, winds blew branches and outdoor furniture, all around our back slope. The water in Baynes Sound was as rough as I can remember seeing it, and the waves were crashing on our beach at high tide. Power failed in mid-morning; not only to all of Denman Island but to Hornby as well. Christmas dinner was in peril. Fortunately power was restored by 12:20 PM. Thank you B.C. Hydro for coming through for us again.
Incidentally, the temperature at 7:00PM Christmas Eve was 17 C, or approximately 63 degrees Fahrenheit. Records are being broken by this warm wet air streaming directly from Hawaii.
Despite our maintenance of Norwegian tradition, we have borrowed one custom for Christmas morning; the Christmas stocking. Stockings with names marked on them were found under the tree, stuffed with small surprises; candy, magazines, books, and even Starbuck coffee packages.
Our new front room furnishings have had good usage this holiday season. The new rug came just in time on Friday. And we managed to push the couch far enough to leave just enough room for the Christmas tree in the corner. (I had to use the smaller of the trees that I had cut).
There's been a few discomforts. Marit isn't completely over her cold, but she is much improved and nearing recovery. Erik is suffering from a different strain of cold but is gamely "soldiering on". And our neighbour Anne is home with the same cold as Marit; she was unable to join us for Christmas dinner. Gary unfortunately has to be at work on Tuesday morning, so they will all be leaving Monday afternoon.
But in all, this has been a very pleasant Christmas. And it'll linger in all the leftover meals in coming days.
For the diary of previous months, select the month below.
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