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| Wild Turkey at Larry and Elsie's |
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| Balsam Root beginning to bloom on hillside |
In March we had ordered the wood and steel for our wood shed and shop/deck in order to get a good break on the prices. The road was not passable at that time so they agreed to deliver it to Larry and Elsie's in April. It had been stacked at their place since then and we were finally able to start hauling it up to Rose Camp the first of May. It had been quite a temptation for Larry, so we were glad to see that it was still all there! We could only take small loads with the trailer as the road was still quite muddy and the wood and steel were very heavy.
The weekend of May 7 and 8, I babysat Larry and Elsie's chickens and plants, but because it was still quite cool the plants didn't need watering as often, and I only had to make one trip down a day. They had wild turkey hen nesting near their blueberry field and I was able to get some great shots of her. The balsam root was beginning to bloom on the hill sides along with other wild flowers that hadn't blossomed up at Rose Camp yet. We are about two to three weeks behind the lower canyon for most plants.
We took the tracks off MAX on the 8th, as its main job is done for the season. Spring has sprung, although we are still getting the occasional snow flurry. But then, it is the mountains.
My best friend, Sandy, who lives in the Sonoma wine country of California, convinced me that I needed to get off the mountain and come visit her. So in March, I had made reservations to fly out of Wenatchee and into the Santa Rosa airport from Seattle on May 10th. I planned to stay for ten days, and was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed myself so much for that long of time Down There. I'm sure most of that was due to the company, as she and I have been friends for more than 40 years. We spent two nights on the ocean at Fort Bragg (her birthday present to me) and visited Mendocino for a day. The rest of the time we explored the Sonoma and Santa Rosa area, more than satisfying my shopping cravings for the next year. And, of course, I took more than four hundred photos during my trip.
Once home, I was amazed that it only took me a day or so to slip back into life at Rose Camp.
Now: August 15, 2011
It was a chilly ride down the mountain at 8:00 yesterday morning, even bundled up as I was in my hoody and vest. But there is nothing like the smell of the forest early in the day. The chickens only had one egg for me. They definitely know when their Mama Elsie is not around. When I arrived back home, JB cooked our big Sunday breakfast. Then, even though we had agreed to take today off, we installed five more 12 ft. boards on the deck. It was a pleasantly cool morning and it felt good to get some more work done on that project.
There was a strong skunk smell again this morning down from our spring, so I guess those little varmints are still around. Going to have to research how to get rid of them, other than with a .22.
After lunch, JB went up to his computer and the dogs and I went for a short hike.
Elsie called to say they were home - a day early! The water level on the lake at which they were camping was rapidly falling as the water was being let out at the dam a week early. They were at an island on the lake and actually had to go to a different ramp to get their boat out than the one at which they had put in on Friday. So I didn't get my afternoon run down the mountain, but I will get to drive down this evening to return the ATV.
RJ and Mike came up about 2:30 for their last round of Magic cards with JB for this year. After our spaghetti dinner, they played some more. The dogs and I went for another hike. It was cooler than it has been and, according to NOAA, we are in for another couple cool days. That's fine by me.
We bade a sad farewell to Mike at the end of the evening, as we probably won't see him again until next Spring. Can't believe his summer visits are over already.
Today JB has to go Down There again for his annual physical. Hopefully we can get some more boards installed on the deck when he returns.
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| Sunset over the ocean at Fort Bragg, CA |
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| House for sale downtown Mendocino $1.5 million |
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