November 23, minus 28 degrees celsius -- Dick has taken refuge in the house, that is definately a rarity!! Even more telling, Charley won't go out!! Charley is currently laying on his sunny chair sopping up the heat through the window, Dick is nearby at the table going through old pictures. Nice past times for a cold day. Not that it is by no means 'too' cold to be outside, just that the biting wind makes it a bit more sensible to stay in. Our morning walks have been 'put off' until mid-noon, we haven't started the truck in a week, the mail is probably piling up in the postal box, we are out of milk (got lots of powder) -- but even so, we have lots of fire wood, the house is warm and the sun is shining sooooo bright that we have lots of power too!! That means more time on the computer so I'm busy playing with internet searches, area research and blogs.
Bowron Lake is trying to freeze up. It started three days ago. Each day the ice in the northern bays reach further into the lake. We took our first walk on the ice two days ago, sticking real close to shore. Even so, a few 'zipper' rips succeeded in raising the hair on the back of our necks. The geese and swans are sticking close to shore, dippers are in the river, the eagle sits on his snag and the ravens are begging. Small bloody droplets in patches of snow indicate successful eagle fishing jaunts. A small twitching tail muskrat swims near the lodge under the bridge. Nothing seems too active, I guess they don't want to use up too much energy. Tell-tale tracks speak of noturnal visits from wild cats and dogs. Dick saw two wolves just down the road last week, so they seem to be staying in the area. The cat tracks are either lynx, bobcat or small cougar, hard to tell for sure without the animal standing in them.
Yesterday we 'walked' across Antler Creek... and the ice held...whew! Yes, we used a jab-pole to test each step, but the cold gurgling below always keeps one worried. There is only about 10 cm of snow on the ground so the frozen country is wide open to wander, especially when you can 'walk on water'. I wonder what marvels today's outing will bring.....
