Arrived home from Spring Break Sunday night - luckily we were only in Philadelphia and not Mexico! The warm weather brought out some wildlife ... both on South Street in Philadelphia and upon entering the Northwoods. We passed a turkey, a red fox, and a moose on the drive up. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite warm enough to melt all of the snow and dry up the mud, so we parked the truck in the usual spot, left all our things in the truck ... including about a week's worth of dirty laundry ... bet that's going to smell good in a few days, baking in the heat no less ... and walked in in the dark. No moon that night so it was rather dark and a bit difficult to navigate the sink holes in the road. Needless to say we were covered in mud by the time we arrived at the camp. Millie told Garrick yesterday that she thought it would be another three weeks before the gate would be unlocked and life would return to normal. You can bet that we, the non-four-wheeling crowd, are counting the days!
Awoke yesterday morning to the hoot of an owl ... a big fellow who sometimes perches in the trees above the bird (and squirrel) feeders ... and the cries of a loon ... a sure sign that the ice is out. Adie was spooked by the loons; their call is quite haunting and is very unusual. But we love to hear them as it is a sure sign that Spring has FINALLY arrived. When I walked downstairs and saw the blue water of the lake rippling and lapping against the shore, I was astonished that so much had changed in the nine days that we were gone.
Our walk yesterday brought new smells ... a sensory overload for the poor dog ... as well as deer and fawn tracks. We're hoping that as soon as the grass turns green, we'll have some new visitors on our lawn ... I could do with out the black-colored kind though! The temperature is an unusual 78 degrees. Hoping that this will melt the rest of the snow before the cold front arrives this afternoon, bringing with it more seasonal temperatures. May not be warm enough for that kayak ride this weekend!
Karyn
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
The Last Ride
It's been so long ... would you believe that I forgot my login password??? Or, maybe that I fell off the end of the Earth? Well, we traveled to the end of the Earth ... Limestone, Maine ... the last weekend in March, but that's a story for another blog ...
In the meantime, we've been anticipating the last ride in for a while now. Hopefully that very expensive Lehigh education that I received so many moons ago ... 267 to be exact ... has finally made itself useful. I have industrial engineered this upcoming month to the nth degree and am hoping that we are truly ready. It will be the last test of endurance after a very enlightening winter spent surviving in these woods.
Paul arrived Thursday night for the Easter weekend ... actually it was Friday morning at 3:30 am ... after having driven 576 miles and walked 1 1/2 miles into camp with the dog. That included a short stop at Walmart to purchase a flashlight as he did not appreciate the value of a full moon. We resumed using the snowmobile on Friday but on Saturday night, returning from the final performance of the Pirates of Penzance, brought to us by the Greenville Middle School/High School, the light came on on the snowmobile during the second trip in indicating that the engine was overheated. On Sunday, we tried again on the way to the local VFW Pancake Breakfast (the opportunities for socialization are numerous as you can see). While Caroline and I managed to get out on the first run, the machine overheated again upon returning to the house to get Paul. So, Paul and Garrick had the benefit (?) of walking out, quickly, I might add, as the breakfast closed at 10 and it being Easter Sunday, nothing else in Greenville was open. We haven't yet determnined if it was the frozen snow that caused the problem ... the machine uses the snow to cool the engine ... or perhaps those 'little' patches of mud that we had to cross on the way out. As we are now out of coolant and those 'little' stretches of dirt have gotten bigger, we have retired our trusty sled and have resorted to the original method of transportation when our 'development' was first established, the feet. And that is getting old quickly!
This morning both kids had to be in town at 7 am to catch the van to Bangor for the final Math Meet. So, we left the house at 5:55 am in order to make it to town by 7, including a short stop for Colby, our 7th grade coffee addict. While I considered booking a hotel room in town for the night, I felt that my status as a true mountain mama would be degraded by this blunder. When the electricity went out yesterday afternoon, I reconsidered but knew that I must tough it out. Of course it helped that the repairman was extremely efficient and had the power back on within 45 minutes!
I am now headed out for my second trip to town for the day ... that's 6 miles of walking now ... to run some errands and pick up the kids. Luckily, the sun is shining and the temperature has reached 50.2 F. Hard to believe that it is 85 degrees warmer today than it was only 10 weeks ago!
Karyn
In the meantime, we've been anticipating the last ride in for a while now. Hopefully that very expensive Lehigh education that I received so many moons ago ... 267 to be exact ... has finally made itself useful. I have industrial engineered this upcoming month to the nth degree and am hoping that we are truly ready. It will be the last test of endurance after a very enlightening winter spent surviving in these woods.
Paul arrived Thursday night for the Easter weekend ... actually it was Friday morning at 3:30 am ... after having driven 576 miles and walked 1 1/2 miles into camp with the dog. That included a short stop at Walmart to purchase a flashlight as he did not appreciate the value of a full moon. We resumed using the snowmobile on Friday but on Saturday night, returning from the final performance of the Pirates of Penzance, brought to us by the Greenville Middle School/High School, the light came on on the snowmobile during the second trip in indicating that the engine was overheated. On Sunday, we tried again on the way to the local VFW Pancake Breakfast (the opportunities for socialization are numerous as you can see). While Caroline and I managed to get out on the first run, the machine overheated again upon returning to the house to get Paul. So, Paul and Garrick had the benefit (?) of walking out, quickly, I might add, as the breakfast closed at 10 and it being Easter Sunday, nothing else in Greenville was open. We haven't yet determnined if it was the frozen snow that caused the problem ... the machine uses the snow to cool the engine ... or perhaps those 'little' patches of mud that we had to cross on the way out. As we are now out of coolant and those 'little' stretches of dirt have gotten bigger, we have retired our trusty sled and have resorted to the original method of transportation when our 'development' was first established, the feet. And that is getting old quickly!
This morning both kids had to be in town at 7 am to catch the van to Bangor for the final Math Meet. So, we left the house at 5:55 am in order to make it to town by 7, including a short stop for Colby, our 7th grade coffee addict. While I considered booking a hotel room in town for the night, I felt that my status as a true mountain mama would be degraded by this blunder. When the electricity went out yesterday afternoon, I reconsidered but knew that I must tough it out. Of course it helped that the repairman was extremely efficient and had the power back on within 45 minutes!
I am now headed out for my second trip to town for the day ... that's 6 miles of walking now ... to run some errands and pick up the kids. Luckily, the sun is shining and the temperature has reached 50.2 F. Hard to believe that it is 85 degrees warmer today than it was only 10 weeks ago!
Karyn
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