Wildlife Sightings

There is a lot of wildlife around here... so far this summer we have seen:

Mink

Beaver

Whitetail Deer (many)

Fox

Rabbit

Bears

Birds (many)

Wild Turkey
Grouse
Ducks

Heron

Fish
Bass
Sunfish
Trout

Frogs / Toads
Snakes

Salamander

Butterflies
Damsel flies
Dragon flies
Deer flies
Horse flies

Weevils

Another Rainy Day In Paradise

Early to rise today as Matthew is at day camp this week at YMCA Wanakita and the bus stop is a half hour drive from the cottage.

Then off to Minden for a few chores - of course a mandatory stop at Home Hardware to look at deck preparation and staining supplies... I manage to get out on the cheap side with a gallon of "eco friendly" deck cleaner/prep solution and a colour chart for the stains we need to choose for the deck and house.

A stop at the Minden Hills municipal offices to talk about replacing the missing "Bacon Road" signs at the turnoff for our cottage proves unnecessary as someone has beat me to it and they are already on order! Then a drop off for Purolator to courier to Peterborough a well water test sample to see just how much if any metals are in the drinking water - I am concerned as there is much talk of Uranium in some of the Haliburton wells.

From there driving back to the cottage i find about a dozen Ford Model A's (circa 1928) parked all down main street Kinmount - a good photo opp.

Finally back to the cottage and I get going on the ongoing Bunkie reno project.
A mid afternoon bike ride up the road brings me face-to-face with two deer - well maybe the same one twice!

Finally a bit of R&R reading before driving back to the bus stop with deb to pick up Matt.

Another rainy day in Paradise...

Start of Summer Holidays

Our arrival on Sunday at the cottage was met with an auspicious viewing of a deer on the neighbors property and news that a big black bear was seen there Sunday Morning!

Bug season is still in full swing here with the mosquitos drinking
heartily!

Our first day was full of action. As usual I was up working way before the rest of the family even stirred. By the time they awoke, I had already done several hours work in the bunkie.

Greeted with sunshine instead of the promised rain, after breakfast we headed out and cut down several small trees in front of the house to tidy things up as we haven't really touched that part of the property much.... Then I got to work on the vegetable garden fence and more stones for the firepit.... as we just have to replace the cinder blocks the previous owner used.

We decided to go for a bike ride and found ourselves going straight up the road as it turns into a bush trail. This adventure took us deep into the woods through many muddy washouts in the road and we all got a good workout. I was particularly impressed with Matt as he was riding a pretty heavy BMX with no gears and managed to keep pace with Deb and I with nary a complaint - I think the muddy road engaged him as he got "skunked" really well!

After lunch and a short fishing expedition at Furnace Falls (where I caught two slightly larger than minnow sized rock bass) we headed into town.

Barely a day can go by here without a Kawartha Dairy ice cream. And of course the mandatory visit to Austin Lumber to get reno supplies for the next few days work!

Matthew has decided to audition for a local talent show in Kinmount doing a comedy routine. We started writing some of his jokes down and did a bit of research for more online. A bit of rehearsing and he may just be able to pull this off!

To top off a full day Matt and I decided to get in the car after dinner to explore the road and do some photography in the evening light - we did manage a few photos however the mosquitoes won and we retreated as the sun set.

All that in only our first day!

We have been here for 3 days now and we are wondering if it will ever stop raining for more than an hour at a time!

Yesterday we managed to get in a bit of fishing at the dam on Salerno lake with Deb, Matthew and his friend Alyssa and I. It was fun - the kids each caught a few small Rock Bass and one nice Bass got away from me right near shore! Of course as with any fishing outing with kids - most of my time is spent untangling line, dealing with snags in trees and replacing lost hooks and tackle.

As usual I've got lots of pokers in the fire - work continues on the bunkie renovation, garden twig fence, firepit stone gathering, wood splitting, building ladder for bunk beds, trimming trees around the front yard, bathroom reno, more coat racks, etc...... gee and it's only been three days! I did think about meditation - but that will have to wait for a nice dry day as my favorite spot in the woods is pretty wet and buggy!

Today we spent in Minden for the soggy Canada day festivities, there were a lot of people out considering the conditions - overcast to torrential rain followed by short stints of heat and sun!

The weather forecast is good and it looks like by the weekend we will be headed for some sunny hot days!