FIRST FIRE

I know for a fact that we weren't the first up here to have a fire - John and Linda had one last week.  But Rejean started one up stairs and down stairs today to take the chill and dampness out.  Myself, I wouldn't have started one as it really wasn't that chilly or damp.  I just put on more clothes.  But it was nice to see the flames and feel that heat again.

And so it begins...

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF FALL

The leaves around here start turning in mid August.  We returned from Hinkler on Sunday and the changes in the colors was amazing in just those few short 4 days.  It seems to be best around our little area of the highway but the rest of the trees and bushes are in transition.  The Vintage Car Rally takes place at the Wharncliffe Hall this Saturday so if you are in the neighbourhood be sure to drop by.  There are some pretty sharp cars and trucks on display.  They leave from Thessalon in the morning and make their way up 129 and stop for lunch at the Hall.  From there they head north to Lafoe and then back to Thessalon.  It is quite the parade!!
This is my favourite time of year - the sunny cool days and cold nites - we will probably have our first fire in the house shortly.  Thank goodness we are all set in that department.  And I have all my turtlenecks out and ready to be worn ;o)

A VERY SUCCESSFUL HUNT

We headed up to Hinkler on Monday to try our luck with the birds.  Monday turned out to be very lucky for me.  It was my 30th wedding anniversary and I got 3 birds!!  We have a system - first Rejean is in the lead looking for birds and I follow behind on my bike.  When he spots one, he stops and signals me - never taking his eyes off the birds.  I get off my bike, load up and hopefully get the bird.  Once you take your eyes off them, they disappear completely!!  My 3 birds were all in one spot and I got them with 3 shots.  Then I am in the lead spotting for Rejean.  It works out just fine.  We finished our hunt with 10 birds - we gave Ron and Mary 5 because we ate their 5 birds as appetizers on Wednesday nite.  Delish!!
The 3rd picture is of our breakfast table at our camp and our outside kitchen in the background.  It was warm enough to still eat outside.  The last picture is of a bridge we had to cross on one of the trails up there - the first picture is also of a great view coming out of the bush on another trail.  Even if we don't get anything,  just riding all day on the 4 wheelers up there is a thrill.
See Ya Bye

TOO MUCH RAIN

As if we hadn't had enough rain, we got more the other nite.  It was quite the storm - constant lightning and thunder and a steady downpour all nite long - but nothing like they got in Thessalon and the Sault.  I read in Kim's facebook that morning that they had blocked traffic on 17 and were diverting because of washouts.  It was blocked between Thessalon and Iron Bridge due to a washout by the old golf course. And when that happens the traffic is pretty heavy on old 129.  I started noticing the ditches and swamps were pretty full but the full impact wasn't noticed until I got to the Little Rapids cutoff and the property where the museums are was all under water - it looked like a lake and you could see that the buildings were surrounded by water.  A home further up the road that had a horse coral beside it was all under water.  The road next to it was blocked by a truck and the road was under water.  The Thessalon River looked like the Mississagi in the spring.  And, unfortunately, a local man was killed when his motorcycle crashed into a sink hole that was filled with water.
There will be a big cleanup once the water recedes...

GETTING READY FOR THE HUNTERS

It's getting to be that time of year again - when our thoughts turn to what I am going to feed the hunters when I get back from Florida and this year I have to get their new change room ready for them.  Now that the downstairs is all finished with a real floor instead of cement and the rafters are now covered with a beautiful ceiling, there will be nowhere to hang their damp, smelly (sorry guys) hunting clothes and boots.  It was decided that they will change in the finishing room in the garage.  We can heat it so their clothes will dry and they can get it as dirty as they want.  But we had to clean it up a bit.  There were still boxes from our move from Windsor 8 years ago.  Plus we had 2 Ikea bookcases from Stacey and Andrew I wanted to install to house all of our magazines (Wood, Fine Homebuilding, Cottage Life plus an assortment of other woodworking issues).  We worked on it today and we have a load for the dump and the store at the dump for Wednesday.
This is the room where I finish all the wood that we used for the downstairs - you can just see the drying racks on the left.  Now that it is organized, I will be good to go for the wood we will be using for the new bar and stairs we will be working on this winter.  Projects...

EMA

I met an amazing young lady up at camp this weekend.  Ema.  She introduced herself with her parents and later brought over her fishing equipment.  She had a nice rod and reel combo and a nicely stocked tackle box that she had won.  She even makes her own lures (she didn't have an "s" so she used a "c" in the lure.  When she came back from the fishing trip with her parents, she was so proud of her walleye - the biggest one of the trip - 25 inches!!!

Nice fish Ema!!!!

BASS N' BERRIES

It was supposed to be a quick trip to Hinkler to clean up the camp in preparation of bird season which starts September 15th, but it turned into a little more than that.  We left Thursday morning and we came home Sunday evening - Ron and Mary stayed another day.  We went blue berry picking one day.  I have never done that before.  Up here, everyone goes berry picking.  Tim told us of a spot and off we went - all in Ron's new machine.  It seats 3 in the front and I got to ride in the back - they had cushions all set up for me and I was very comfortable.  I had a neat view of the road behind us.  We arrived at the spot and I was shocked at the lushness (is that a word) of the berries available to be picked.  They were the size of grapes!!!  There were millions of them and we got there before the bears to boot.  Between the 4 of us we filled our containers in no time.  They are cleaned and I have a few packages of fresh picked blue berries in my freezer.
We went fishing one day and did great!!  The first time we were out back in June, we really didn't know the lake well so we were just exploring.  This time, I thought a spot looked like it might be good and we hit the proverbial honey hole.  We kept about 10 bass and released a few more.  And everyone caught fish which is always nice.  And bass are so much fun to catch.  We went fishing another day and got some walleye (I got a very nice one) and more bass.  All I ever use is a hook (with the barb pushed down) a worm and split shot.  I push the barb down so it is easier for me to get the fish off and I don't hurt them too much.  And I always keep a tight line so I don't loose them.
Can't wait to get back!!