Twenty Four Hour Holiday!

 We just came home from a 24 hour holiday today!  After having friends join us for tea in the afternoon (who had an excellent time at the Creston Birding Festival), we left in our camper van for Summit Lake Provinical Park, located part way between New Denver and Nakusp.   It was a very cool night and we didn't have much luck with birds, but there were a few around.  Very frequent heavy showers had discouraged some campers, but plenty of fishing folk partially filled the campground.  Birds sited were:  common mergansers, one pair of shovellers, a few bufflehead (one male surrounded by females), a bald eagle, a loon, and several Canada geese.  We tried out the new awning for the camper van and it seemed to work effectively.  I was able to read while outside, but it was too cool to stay out for long.

In the morning, we had another look around the campground for birds and then headed to Nakusp for a walk along the promenade and then up to the hot springs for a dip.  It's a small pairs of pools but it was quite lovely as the clouds began to dissipate and sun prevailed.  We visited the Heritage Nursery in Nakusp and bought a barberry for the Trail residence.  After lunch back at Summit Lake, we then headed towards New Denver, stopping for a walk at the Snk'mip Marsh.  Disappointingly, the birds we mostly observed were mallards, Canada geese, robins and fortunately, a lot of rough-winged swallows!    And the best place to visit of all, was the Kohan Garden in New Denver.  The photo shows why!

SPRING, 2025

 I feel that it's been a slow spring this year, but there are always delays to every season during the past 2 decades.  We had a week of spring in late February when it poured rain and ruined the snow.  I'm going by the skunk cabbage, or as Patrick Lane called them,  swamp lanterns.  We have a large patch at the end of the Pine Ridge Road and they usually bloom the 2nd and 3rd weeks of April.  This year, it's been the third and fourth weeks of April.

Yesterday, we had our first warm day.  I had a lovely drive to Trail and many trees are in bloom.  Hiking up to the Bluffs, it was actually HOT on the exposed part of Trail that faces south.  One delightful thing in my yard was the nectarine tree in bloom.  The peas, onions, garlic, and sweet peas are all growing and the next planting should begin in another week.  Tulips that are protected from the deer are doing fine.  Very happy to see my Pasque flower has finally found a place to be happy.  

Earth Day 2025

 I just returned from an hour's litter picking along 1.3 km of roadside in my local area.  It's a mix of good news and bad news.  I managed to do each side of the road in 50 minutes but I am leaving all paper products, heavy items and I don't scramble in and out of ditches any longer.  I am feeling my age!!  Two and three years ago I know that it took me a couple of hours to complete that much of the road so the amount of litter is perhaps less.  The most encouraging thing is that I think I only picked up ONE styrofoam container.  But there's still tons of paper drink containers with their vile plastic lids.  Let me vote for a party who bans the use of "take out drink containers".  I don't think it would take long to convert people to "carry your own container" if there was no other choice.

I've been cleaning up cans on this stretch of road for the past several years.  I get started just after the snow leaves.  It was just as plentiful this year as any other.  In fact, it may even be worse.  I've converted Dave into becoming a "can picker" and I am dismayed to say that he picked up 140 cans on 2 sides of the highway over a 2.5 km stretch.  Litter bug, Litter bug, shame on you! 

BC Parks and Recreation Recreation Sites

 We've stayed in plenty of recreation sites over the years and last week, during our trip "west" to Keremeos we ended up at the Red Bridge Rec Site on the Ashanola River.  This is located on a FS Road that used to lead into Cathedral Provincial Park, a place we visited many, many years ago.  

This particular site is very nice, although its appeal is somewhat dampened by the huge fire that swept through the region 2 summers ago.  The campsite is now pretty much surrounded by dead trees, but the grass looked lush and inviting on our recent visit.  It allows the rock cliffs to be the major feature.   There had been some attempt to take down some trees and clean up parts of the campground, but lots of work still needs to be completed.  We had a fire in the firepit and managed to get one campsite looking quite good.  I wished that I had brought a rake!  

My main complaint about these sites is that they are "user maintained" which means the "user" is supposed to take their garbage and recyclables with them when they leave.  I find it rarely happens.  This campground had one site which had a large pile of garbage in it and perhaps the intention was to "clean it up in spring".  I do hope it gets done.  I collected 9 recyclable containers left in firepits because people won't even put these into their cars and give to a charity group who are fundraising.  The amount of litter that gets left around by humans is disgusting.  My other complaint about these sites is that they can become "party places" and it isn't long before they get pretty much "trashed" - literally and figuratively.  BC has such beauty - why can't we learn to treat that beauty with respect and kindness?

SWIWS

We just returned from a 4 night camping trip to the "West".  There was definitely a taste of spring.  After leaving Kaslo in midafternoon on a Thursday, we travelled as far as Greenwood to spend the night.  I found the trailhead for the ride to Midway from Greenwood (13 km) and was rather excited to see it - it is one section of the trail that we have not completed.  Alas, it was -3 when we woke up in the morning, but it was clear.  Travelling on to Osoyoos, we readily found a campsite at swiws provincial park, formerly known as Haynes Point.  It's a very nice park, actually, but is one of the most popular in the province and difficult to get into.  However, no reservations are accepted before mid-May so April was our opportunity.

It was excellent for bird-watching - there were hundreds of red-wing blackbirds who were busy showing off their red epaulettes in the marsh.  I picked out our campsite from the male wood duck who happened to be swimming by.  There were great globs of coots on the lake, and the next most popular birds were the buffleheads.  Mergansers were a close second.  My prize sighting was 2 red-necked grebes hanging out with the coots.  Saturday morning, we observed a very large and fierce looking bald eagle high in a tree and one of the early morning runners said this particular eagle lives a couple of "blocks" away on the lakeshore.

I'd definitely go back to swiws in the spring.  It was quiet - and we even had one full day without wind.  We did learn that wind can be a big factor in one's enjoyment of the park.  The park is located on that very narrow stretch of land that juts out into Osoyoos Lake.  

Spring is Springing!

Yesterday morning it did feel very much like spring.  We took ourselves off to Castlegar to discover Waldie Island, a former heronry on the Columbia River.  There's a good trail along this side of the river and our first stop was an elevated platform to observe the birds on the sewage lagoon!  There were tons of them, mostly ring-necked ducks and there were also enormous turtles laying on various logs - the sun was out but it was only about 5 degrees.  That did surprise me.

Other bird species we saw were:  teal, common goldeneye, mallards, buffleheads, common mergansers and we think, a female wood duck.  There was even a lone,  red-winged blackbird sitting in the remains of bullrushes.  

As we hiked along, we read well-worn signs about the area and in the early 2000s the location of Waldie Island in the Columbia River was a huge heronry.  However, since 2003 there have been very few pairs found at the Island.  It is a restricted area, but likely it was NOT restricted 20 plus years ago so the herons decided to leave because of all the human activity.   The walk is a good discovery for us because birds do seem to come there, at least in spring!  Here is the Island on a bright spring morning.  

Seventy Fifth Year

I've just had my birthday weekend and have entered the 75th year.  I enjoyed celebrating myself.  Saturday (the actual birthday), I went out with the "running" group who are mostly all walking now.  I have become a walker with my 75 year old left knee and plan to continue with that for the long term.  We celebrated "me" with coffee and treats which is the usual Saturday morning routine, but I got toasted!  In the evening, I went to see The Red Thread, performed by Elle, at the Langham Theatre.  It was a very well done presentation of Elle's life and her relationship with the three muses.  It was cleverly put together and I so admired her red crocheted pantsuit - I wonder if it was a thrift store "find" or do she make it herself???

Thursday evening, my pre birthday, eve, I had 3 women to dinner for our regular book club and was presented with my absolute favourite chocolate cake!  I have yet to make one of these cakes but I do have the recipe.  It's the best chocolate cake that I have ever eaten.  The women did the candles and song version of the birthday.

Friday, as part of my pre-birthday celebration I had lunch with a friend at the Kaslo hotel and we were served an excellent fish chowder!  I will return.

Sunday, another friend took me for lunch, once again at the Kaslo Hotel.  This time, I had the "mini brunch" breakfast - also very good.  Then I had a walk with Dave in the areas of Woodbury and Ainsworth and we dined at JB's in Woodbury that evening.  I have been extremely overfed!

Happy Birthday, me!  

Enough Said!

Puzzling!

 One change I've made in 2025 (other than turning off the top of the hour news) is to try doing some word puzzles,  rather than simply playing bridge hands to keep my brain active.  I haven't had to pay any money yet and I participate in 3 games.  Free access (at the moment) is available for NYT Connections (my favourite), a few words on the NYT Spelling Bee, and the Mini Crossword.  It's a quiet and calming way to begin the day in these rather turbulent times!  

School Absenteeism

 I understand that school absenteeism has really blossomed since the end of the pandemic.  I certainly think that many people learned that school isn't all that necessary and I have to say that I wonder what academic work is actually being done within the school.  There are lots of valuable things going on inside the school, but I really don't feel that my grandchildren in Canada have a good understanding of the geography of Canada and how our own country "fits" together.  It's something that they should know by eighth grade.  Their knowledge of history is also limited.  

In our family, to complicate matter even further, both of the grandsons are heavily involved in ski racing.  One of them is participating in both nordic and downhill racing.  The meets occur almost every weekend of the winter season which means they often miss TWO days of school - the meets are comprised of events on Friday, Saturday and Sunday - and there is a day of travelling involved, often.  In March, the boys are going to Smithers, BC (over 500 km away) for some ski races.  It happens to be "winter break" in Smithers.  They will get back from Smithers and begin their two week "spring break" for the last 2 weeks of March.  They are going to have nearly a month away from school.  It's bizarre.  

I DO feel that they get a good learning experience from ski racing and they are meeting lots of new people.  The boys aren't particularly academically-oriented so perhaps it doesn't even matter.  I'd really like to see a return to some regular consistency in the school year that devotes itself to the three Rs but I don't think that is to be.  And perhaps I'm just way too "old school" for this generation.   At least they get to experience the winter wonderland of Canada!  

CanCon

 The theme song segment on Daybreak South (my current favourite CBC radio program) is CanCon for this week.  I had to remind myself via google when CanCon became a "thing" on the radio and I do remember it.  I was a bit disgusted because at the time I was living in Nova Scotia and listening to a lot of American radio that played all the rock and roll hits.  It was 1971 when CBC was "ordered" to include 35% CanCon.  1971 was also the year that I rediscovered CBC radio.  I had been raised in a "CBC family" and as a teen I was genuinely annoyed that it didn't play any Beatles music, etc.  As a university student in 1971, I became aware of This Country in the Morning,  and in the evening,  As It Happens.  I felt that I had discovered the world. I remember arguing with one of my profs (later President of Acadia University) that I was learning more by listening to the CBC than I was attending classes.  He was taken aback!

I think that CanCon was an excellent decision in Canada.  Listeners were "forced" to listen to Canadian composers and singers and the system worked. The content had to be 35%  Canadian of all content played.  That rule remains in place, according to google (if we can believe any of what it tells us!).  We discovered the talent that we had (have)  in Canada.  It's never looked back.  Thank you, CBC.

I'm still an avid CBC listener (won't listen to anything else, really) and have been throughout my adult life.  One thing that I like about listening in the Kootenays is that there isn't a lot of radio competition so almost everyone in my age group is listening to CBC.  It provides plenty of discussion points.  Thank you, CBC.  I'm glad that my daughter listens to CBC but she is the only one of my parents' grandchildren who is a listener.  I do hope that the CBC can survive the next election because I'd like to remain a listener until the end of my time!

BC Highways: Changes Needed in Transportation

The Kootenay Lake Ferry strike is going into its FOURTH month and service has not been restored, except for 2 ferry crossings each day.  This is becoming a hardship as the snow falls on Kootenay Pass.  And I am positive that it is an absolute nightmare for the employees who are losing so much income.  

We experienced the hardship involved on Dec. 28th when we decided to travel from Trail to Cranbrook in mid-afternoon.  We did see the sign that indicated the pass was closed and we checked online and it was to open at 4 pm.  We decided to continue our travel.  We were stopped by the traffic about 1 km from the summit.  It was snowing heavily and the temperature was 0 degrees C.  We waited and 4 o'clock arrived.  The Pass did not open.  An hour later,  traffic travelling west was allowed to begin.  By this time we knew that we'd have difficulty with our camper van getting started on an icy hill with no momentum.  Dave shoveled beneath the wheels and asked the snow plow truck to leave us a bit of gravel.  The driver did do this but by the time we could begin, it was to no avail.  We simply could not get started on the incline under those icy conditions.  Our only option was to turn around, which we did and it was no problem to go downhill, although we travelled gingerly because of the icy roads.  At 7 pm we arrived at the Kootenay Lake ferry terminal.  I was able to talk with the strikers and a ferry was going to leave at 9:40 that night.  We took it.  We stayed in our camper van overnight near Creston and 17 hours after leaving Trail, we made it to Creston on Sunday morning.  The usual time is about 2 hours.  

Last Friday we had a major snowstorm in the Koots and once again, the Pass was closed and the ferry remains on strike.  I have written to my MLA in Nelson and negotiations, as far as I know,  have not recommenced.  This is a huge inconvenience and danger for  people  needing to travel to and avoid the Pass.  Winter conditions close Kootenay Pass regularly and the last thing we need is a ferry strike through this season.  At least the roads are somewhat safer in the summer!  I sincerely encourage the BC government to send these employees back to work for the many people affected by the strike and the dangerous driving conditions.  

Medical Care in Canada: A BC Perspective

I've spent the past week partially under the care of the BC medical system.  I felt my SVT return on a Thursday afternoon while sitting quietly with a book.  I had experienced a couple of earlier episodes in the morning  that had been easy to diminish.  In the afternoon, the usual "vagal" practices didn't seem to work.  Dave took me to the ER in Kaslo which operates from 9 - 5 pm daily, I believe.

There I was met by a nurse within 5 - 10 minutes and monitored by an ECG.  At the beginning, my heart was calm but it soon escalated.  Fairly quickly, I was met by the attending ER dr (who also has  patients that he/she needs to visit as a GP part-time in our town).  Within an hour he had administered a drug that was supposed to bring my heart back into regular rhythm, but did not.  After 2 doses of this unpleasant experience, he called the hospital in Nelson to consult with an internist there.   I was given 3 doses of a different beta blocker and it did reduce my heart rate but not below 120 bpm.  By this time it was approaching 5 pm and I was asked if I wanted to go home or check into Nelson hospital to be monitored over night and see the internist the next morning.  That was the route that I chose.

Nelson hospital was expecting me (although not at the registration desk) and I was put onto a Holter monitor and saw an attending dr to review the experience.  I actually slept in the very quiet ER where I was basically given a private room (no bathroom) with a very good internet connection.  My heart continued to go in and out of arrhythmia.   I was given breakfast and the internist was at my bedside by 9:30 am.  He did a very thorough "past experience" interview and told me that if I had SVT, the drugs I was given in hospital should have worked.  Because they didn't he felt that I should take a blood thinner because of either atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter.  I was given a new beta blocker and went home with prescriptions to deal with the issue.  It worked well through the weekend, I was booked into an echocardiogram on Monday morning and then went to revisit an ER in Trail on Tuesday morning because the arrhythmia began again.  After spending the morning there, I was sent home and continued to have an uneven heartbeat (that didn't happen in the hospital) but it was manageable and I had a good night.  We sent the internist an email about the latest episode. He did not call us back until the next day, but I was surprised that he did call.  I am now booked for a stress test in 2 weeks.  He has also made the cardio unit in Kelowna aware of my situation.  

Most everyone is complaining about the medical system in our country.  BC is no different.  I was extremely impressed with the care that I was given in an "emergency" situation.  I was given full attention, I felt.  Each dr that I saw (3 in total) wrote a very thorough and accurate report on the hospital experience that is now in my health portal.  I suspect that these reports, which I believe are dictated, still take a physician at least 10 - 15 minutes to complete.  I felt very CARED FOR with the staff that I met in this recent experience.  I don't have to undertake medical care very often (and perhaps that is about to change), but my situation assures me that I should be in good hands.  

 

Travels in America: Road Island

 I've always liked the name of this home in Bernardsville, entitled Road Island.  It's a triangular lot that is surrounded by 3 roads, and I do enjoy the name of it.  The picture doesn't really show what's involved with it, but it's a very nice piece of property in a small town in America.  I'm always amazed at the large, older homes on fairly big lots that dominate the eastern part of the States.  

Bernardsville is quite a lovely town if you enjoy looking at real estate.  Unfortunately, it's not a "walking" town.  I walk everywhere, but there is a very busy intersection that has to be navigated to go in almost any direction  and it is very unfriendly to pedestrians and bikers.  However, I don't think that I've ever seen a public bus that travels through the area (there's a train that goes from town to town into NYC) and as a consequence EVERYONE is driving EVERYWHERE!  

Travels in America: Up Close to the 1 Per Cent

We've spent the past week in the US, on the east coast, visiting our family in NJ.  It's a different lifestyle compared with Kaslo - we basically drive everywhere and almost every drive is 20 minutes.  Watching basketball games - which I prefer to soccer games - has taken us to a few new spots.   The skies are bright and with all the leaves off the hardwood trees it's easy to spot things in the distance.  The bird watching has actually been quite good.  There's been several very scenic walks.  And as we take that 20 minute drive, nearly all of the time we are driving amongst homes that belong to the 1 per cent.  This is one of my favourites, located on the outskirts of Bernardsville.  From the McCormick home, we get a 8.5 km walk partly through town and next to many homes that are similar to the one below.