Spring ... ??

As I sit here watching the snow falling from a grey April sky, I wonder if spring is really on the way, or if nature is just teasing us once again.  A couple of weeks ago, the daytime temperature hit 24 degrees.  It was truly bizarre to be sitting outside in summer clothes, sweating, and having to drink ice-cold beer to cool off (oh, the hardship!). 



24 degrees C ... on March 22!

We even managed to get the ice out of our water line:



And there's Molly supervising the proceedings.

The crazy temperatures started the spring melt in earnest.  Here is the pond waterfall in full flood:



And the sluice gate had to be opened to the max to drain the excess water:



Molly worked hard of course:



Alas, the temperature returned to normal, and everything froze up once again.  Now, on April 5, it's 4 degrees and snowing ... but the robins have returned to the garden, squirrels are busy in the woodpile, the bulbs are sprouting, and tiny buds have appeared on the trees.  Spring is there ... you can feel it ... hovering at the edge of winter.  Check out this rather confused bee who awoke to balmy temperatures and a clutch of snowdrops:



We have of course been busy as bees here at Willow Retreat.  This is the perfect time of year to clear out tangles of bush, deadfall, and brambles before they start to grow.  And before the bugs come out!!  The woodland edges needed a serious haircut, and we have already burned a massive stack of cuttings.  We are also starting to drain the boggy areas.

One of the things we were shocked to discover as we cleaned up is that a lot of garbage, including barbed wire, has been dumped all across the property.  Paul is absolutely furious about the tangles of barbed wire, which are very dangerous, of course for humans, but especially for animals, as they cannot see it, and it has just been strewn around willy-nilly.



Barbed wire.



You really want this pretty face spoiled by a run-in with barbed wire?

Along with barbed wire, we have also found a lot of garbage.  Here are just a few examples:



Old broken bicycle.



Old snowmobile cowling.



Another old bicycle.

We have been really appalled at the quantity of garbage such as this that has been scattered about the property.  It seems to be a case of "out of sight and out of mind".  Well, now that we are clearing up, it is certainly not out of sight, and guess what?  We do mind!  In fact, we are fuming!!

Here is one of our debris piles from a cleared patch near the pond:



We now have a nice clear walk through from the lawn to the pond:



And here is another section that had to be cleared of deadfall, eye snaggers, ankle breakers, and brambles:



There is just so much to be cleaned up.  The surrounding woodland has been left to get seriously overgrown and is a tangle of dead stumps, brambles, fallen trees that have been left to rot, and all kinds of debris.  It's going to take us a long time to get it all cleaned up, but all we can do is one section at a time.  Here is an example of what we're facing:



Of course, Molly is always willing to help:



This is what we call "The Bog".  It is really not bog at all, but is a good example of what happens to ground when it has been logged.  There used to be massive, old trees there, but they were felled and used as lumber.  The unused wood was just dumped in place to rot on the ground.  Then, the area was simply left.  What happens then is, as the trees are no longer there to use the water, the earth becomes wetter and wetter until it is saturated, and then nothing can grow except sedge grass and moss.  It becomes a haven for mosquitoes and blackflies, and is essentially unusable.  Because it is not true wetland, but simply a logged and abandoned section of woodland, we have embarked on a reclamation program to turn this area back into viable ground.



Paul started the reclamation process by digging drainage ditches, and laying large diameter O pipe.  By working with the natural lay of the land and with the action of gravity, this will encourage the water to drain from the ground and re-enter the creek system further downhill.  Once the ground is drained of excess water, it will return to nutrient-rich soil and be able to once again support plants, grass and trees.

This is the beginning of a work in progress.  It is a fairly large portion of our property, and as part of our commitment to forest stewardship and ecologically sound practices, we are determined to reclaim this area and restore it to healthy woodland.  In a very short time, we are already seeing an improvement.

Well, the sun is now out, and I'm going to go help Paul clear out some more brush.  Another big bonfire tonight!  I want to wish everyone a Happy Easter, and hope the sun shines on you all.

Snow, snow, snow

So after a major meltdown over the last couple of days, with temperatures reaching 7 degrees C, I nurtured hopes of an early spring.  Foolishly, it turned out, as I woke this morning to a white world and a fresh layer of wet, heavy snow.  Undeterred, Molly and I ventured out. It was actually quite mild: 3 degrees above, and I brought my camera along for the walk:



A snowy garden.



Molly is delighted with it, of course!



What?




So we set off down the lane, to see what was going on.



Our sign is practically buried!



Molly savaged a defenceless spruce.  Puppy bliss!



The mountain in snow.



Huge animal tracks!  Is it a wolf?  A mutant coyote?  No, it's just Molly.  ;)



Spied a pair of these birds. Too big to be a chickadee, and appears to have a tawny breast.  Anyone?



Tracks close to the house.  Fairly small, and in a straight line, so I'm thinking bobcat.



Somewhere down there is our pond!

Okay, I've got to go out and start clearing some of this stuff!  I'll leave you with another pic of Molly, in puppy heaven:



:)

Moving is Hell

For those of you who've been wondering where the heck we've been, the following pictures should serve as an explanation.  In the middle of November, we finally managed to get back to Ontario to empty out our storage unit.  This is a loathsome task at the best of times, but we lucked out with the weather, and were able to get everything from one unit, and a bit of our other unit, packed into a 26 foot U-Haul truck.  The hotel was kind enough to let us park the truck overnight, and we even squeezed in a visit from our daughter and her boyfriend!

As always, getting through Montreal was a nightmare.  Traffic was backed up for miles due to various reasons, including the usual construction delays, as well as a student demonstration against tuition fee hikes!  It took three hours just to get through the centre of Montreal.  The weather was also a factor, as usual.  Quebec and New Brunswick seem to be prone to torrential rain!  At least it was not snow!  We took our time and stopped for the night at hotels along the way, and three days later we were back in Nova Scotia. 

Although mainland Nova Scotia is lovely, it's always a relief to cross the Canso Causeway onto Cape Breton Island.  Once we got home, of course, the challenge was to unpack the truck!  A lot of the contents was to go into the barn.  It had been raining heavily and the ground was soaked and soft.  Backing the truck up to the barn to unload was one thing, but getting the tires to grip on the soft, wet grass after we were finished was a nightmare.  There was zero tread on the tires, and even with the application of cardboard and gravel, they just kept spinning out and bogging down in the mud.  It took a great deal of time, effort and cursing, not to mention barrowloads of gravel, but slowly the truck inched forward, and finally Paul managed to get it back onto the driveway.  Good job the truck was half empty, and there was no incline to speak of, otherwise we would never have made it off the grass!  We offloaded the rest of the stuff, and soon the house was filled to bursting point with boxes and furniture.  We'd spent so much time struggling with the truck, we had pretty much had it by that time.  Needless to say, we were glad to drop that truck back to U-Haul in Baddeck!  It was then that the U-Haul rep told us that their trucks are only fitted with summer tires, all year round, even though the trucks are rented out from Florida to Alaska! 

Here is the offending beast, next to Boris the tractor to give you a sense of scale:

And here are some pictures of our house, stuffed to the brim, and Paul, enjoying a well-deserved beer:

You'll not be surprised to learn that since then, we've been spending most of our time unpacking!  One of the bedrooms is still stuffed to the ceiling with boxes and stuff, but eventually we hope to find a place for everything.  It's actually amazing how well our belongings are fitting into this house - and now, finally, it really feels like home.

P.S. We just beat the weather back before the first big snowstorm of the season hit, and we had to use our snowblower (which had been in storage!) - imagine driving that U-Haul truck in a white-out?!

Winter Scenes

Hope everyone had a break from work and was able to spend some time with family and friends.  Here are some pretty "winter wonderland" pictures I made from photos taken on our property.  All images are © Willow Retreat.