Ice Out!

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