Ft Myers FL

We arrived here at 10:30am, in sunny 81ºF warmth.  It sure beats last year when it was much colder.

Our place on Crooked Pond Court is a beautiful house in a gated community, right beside the pool [as advertised].  Life here promises to be very good.

Our home phone now works down here, or if you are calling from the USA, you can use our US number 239 400-4128.

I will try to update later in the day with pictures of why we go to Florida.

Orangeburg SC to the Holiday Inn in Sarasota Fl

We left at the crack of dawn [today's was 8:30am] and had a fairly uneventful drive all day.  It was sunny most of the time, and the temperatures reached 29ºC in late afternoon.  Too bad I didn't chose to wear the shorts.

The traffic was pretty heavy in the afternoon, and accident delays caused us to lose over an hour and a half. After sitting in stop and go traffic for well over an hour, it was decided that Sarasota was a good place to spend the night, even if we were only two hours away from our Winter home...

As it turns out, we emailed Jan [of Minnesota] who winters here, and asked if she would join us for supper at the recommended Gecko's Grill and Pub. Since we didn't receive her reply quickly, we went to the restaurant, and it had a 30 minute waiting list.  Since we don't do 'waiting' well, we tried another restaurant in the same mall, where the waiting list was 45+ minutes.  

Returning the Gecko's, after securing a much better parking spot, were asked to be put on the list, and lo and behold, they were just cleaning up a table that we could have.  

This is a local family owned restaurant with at least 5 places in Sarasota, it is not a chain.  It is a sports bar with humongous screens showing semi-final football games that the patrons came to see.  The game was nearly over, and as the waiter predicted, the restaurant emptied quickly, before the next game was to start in an hour or so.  Joan had a salmon sandwich which was very good, I had a hamburger that was good.

After we returned to our hotel, Joan jumped into the tub, I was supposed to start this blog when the phone rang: our good friend Jan Pierce was in the lobby.

A great reunion, big hugs but no [female] squealing this time. 

We quickly started sharing our news as if no time had elapsed since last year.  Jan brought a red wine which quickly evaporated, as we caught up on the adventures we each had in 2018.  What fun!

Jan has a place about ten miles away, and left after promises of new shared adventures to be planned. Joan hit the sheets, and is happily sawing logs or something.  I thought a blog update was in order.

We should reach Ft Myers easily tomorrow, about a two hour drive,  and all things going well, we should be able to contact our local friends and stock up enough food to eat for a while.

It's about 27ºC as I write this, so shorts, and sandals will be the dress code from now on. Wow! I really enjoyed writing that line...

Shippensburg to Orangeburg SC

I forgot to add that we ate at CJ's restaurant yesterday where the hamburgers were very special and great tasting.

Now we are in Orangeburg South Carolina and just got back from eating at Ruby Tuesday, our favourite chain because of the excellent salad bars and tasty hamburgers. As usual, that was good too.

Today started with clear and sunny skies, so I toasted in the driver's seat while Joan shivered in the shade...  

The traffic became extremely heavy as the day progressed, with major slowdowns without any visible causes. This happened more than just a few times and cost us about an hour and a half in lost time. The driving was tense because of all the drivers with a total lack of talent, couth, or common sense. We managed to hang out with the quicker drivers and made reasonably good time in spite of the slowdowns.

The big surprise was the lack of rain which I had expected for most of the day. Another great day to travel.

I think traffic will keep getting heavier as we get closer to Ft Myers, but with luck and no accidents we should have a relatively easy day, arriving in late afternoon.

Stittsville to Shippensburg Pennsylvania

We managed to squeak through a major storm that dumped snow and cold weather to our west, while preparing to do the same to the waiting folk east of us.  It seemed that today was going to be a pass on bad weather, and it was.

It was about -3ºC when we left home, and reached 10ºC by the time we arrived at the 1000 Islands Border crossing, [a two minute wait, less than a minute questioning] and on we went.

There were some gusty winds, and periodic rain almost all day. The neat stuff consisted of low hanging clouds and fog over cold lakes and frozen fields, as the temp slowly rose to 12ºC for the rest of the afternoon. At times the rain got serious, requiring slower speeds and cranking the windshield wipers to panic mode. At other times, the fog got serious as drivers slowed to below 50mph in a 65mph zone. The rest of the time, 70 to 75 was the fast lane in PA, while very visible state troopers kept things reasonable in NY State.

Our GPS gives read-outs of altitudes and we went from a few hundred feet at home to 1800+ over the hills of Pennsylvania.

A tankful of gas is under $2.29/gal. [both US measures. That seems a lot better than the recent $60+ CDN we paid back home...

It looks like the snow is all behind us with no freezing temperatures in the foreseeable future.

All in all, a safe drive without incident.    ...to be continued

Saturday: Elli Bird Farm

It ended up being much more driving than I expected but it was well worth the effort. Colleen drove, Nick, Eric and I took turns bobbing heads, especially on the return trip.

Every farm worth visiting has goats, right? Here are Colleen and Eric wearing big smiles while trying to fend off the feeding frenzy. There was a lot of pushing and shoving, and much laughter.

Near the entrance, they have many very active Martin houses. Many little ones were being fed by parents, and the noise factor was almost overpowering. What fun!

There seems to have been a tradition of sending birdhouses to this farm, and they are in evidence everywhere. Many have donor plaques and they come from not only North America, but from Europe and Asia as well. This is truly an International collection of mostly hand made birdhouses. Here are just a few tacked onto a barn wall.

Sloughs are everywhere in Saskatchewan and Alberta. This farm has many to see and visit. There was a constant stream of visitors and we would have seen more birds had we used one of the many benches throughout the property. 

This would be a great birding facility if one lived nearby and visited often. I am positive that near each bench is a gathering place for one or more different species.

Our walk around the facility provided us with some interesting reflections.

Talk about a large family...

This viewing platform provided small fishnets, about the size of a tennis racket,  to collect what was swimming near the edge of this slough. After emptying the nets in provided trays of water, everyone could see the mermaid of small creatures that live there. Unfortunately, the blood-suckers brought back memories of my first summer camp...

This is a bird farm, and many quiet places had birds to be found, usually well hidden. Nick spotted this woodpecker [about 4"] deep in this bushy tree.

This is the picture that explains 'cowlick'. [you can click on any picture to see all of them larger]

There were many butterfly attractors planted everywhere.

The many sloughs had a few ducks, mainly near the middle, away from the near constant parade of onlookers.

And finally, the old building where the goats were.  I loved these clouds

We stopped on the way home to pick up a Sammy's World's Greatest Pizza [.com] for eating at home.  Perfect way to end a great day. 

I think I'll just have another piece now...

House Fire in Okotoks

We smelled the smoke from the back yard where Nick was having an argument with a stubborn lilac root. Mind you, lilacs are always stubborn.

Eric and I borrowed Nick's truck and followed the smoke. It wasn't long before traffic was slow and we turned into a parking lot. These shots were made near the parking lot, on the opposite side of the street from the fire.

Another bystander mentioned that the fire had started about a half hour earlier. It must have been some roaring fire to make this much damage in a half hour.

This garage was smoking and the roof had a swayback.  Eventually it gave out.  Next the water just started pouring in...

Eric and I drove around and approached the fire from the other side. Pedestrians like us were shooed away, and this is the only shot I made.

Okotoks, like many western cities, has lanes behind behind their houses. Eventually, owners make fences, garages, and sheds at the back of their backyards. Here is a little study of blue...

Nick's truck is back and has completely recovered from its encounter with a deer on the highway a few weeks ago. I hope the deer went to a good table...

Lilac Removal, day 2

These pictures were made today, but the work was completed yesterday. The first two pictures are the 'after' shots of the previous 'challenge' shots in the last post. 

Surprisingly, the flower bed was spared. Now there is no privacy screening at the back of the house. On the plus side, the roots are not likely to cause foundation issues.

Next is a picture of the stump that will likely have to be removed so that the earth can be properly graded away from the house, and so a shed can be installed, probably not happening this week...

Here is a pile of wood to dry out and use in the outdoor fire pit.

These longer pieces still need cutting down to size for drying and burning. Three truck loads of branches were taken to the dump, and the major clean-up is already done.

The last two pictures show the back of the house after the removal of the three lilacs.

The back yard now looks a lot bigger, but the shade and privacy are gone. Plans include a shed on the far left, and some privacy 'something' on the far right. 

One major 'tick' on the to-do list.

Lilac removal, Day one, part 2

Further to the previous entry,  we borrowed an electric chain saw which needed trying out while I was doing the previous blog entry in the comfort of air-conditioning. The saw was very quiet, and quite efficient. Nick lowered the stumps to ground level before great hamburgers for supper.

After supper, the chain saw had to be tested some more, so I watched and made a few pictures of Nick's progress.

After all the branches and limbs were loaded onto the truck, Colleen showed up to do the finer cleanup. 

Quite a difference from yesterday's 'before' picture.

These next two pictures show tomorrow's challenge. 

Some flowers and flowerbeds may suffer...

To be continued...

Lilac removal, day one

These two large lilacs [plus one more, to the left of the picture] were planted way too close to the house foundation and were allowed to grow over the roof of the house. 

The reluctant consensus was to remove all three. Reluctant because they provide shade and privacy, and also because it will be a lot of work in 30ºC temperatures. Timely because I can help some.

This first picture is the before...

After a few hours of work this morning with a saws-all and pruners, the fattest lilac was trimmed down to about 2m, and the branches were man-handled off to Nick's truck.

Now you can see the neighbour's house.

Quite a difference already, but a borrowed chainsaw should make a big difference this evening and tomorrow. Here is a closer view of the work done so far.

The truck bed was lined with a tarp, the larger branches were trimmed of their shoots. The larger branches were saved for future fire pit burning, while the limbs and shoots were loaded up for the trip to the dump.

Nick doesn't really like loose ends...

And finally, here is the dumped load. We were actually able to pull out most of the branches and stuff free of the tarp, so unloading was much easier than expected. We deserved that break...

All the work was done with the help of Eric, and if we didn't break him, he'll be at our sides again tomorrow. 

The chain saw should make it easier, faster, and all that good stuff. Unfortunately, tomorrow will likely be a little hotter. Oh well, I did have a pound or two extra...

Black Diamond Alberta

 I flew into Calgary Friday to visit Nick and family. Today, Sunday, we drove to a natural area reserved as a dog park in Black Diamond, a village nearby. The sky was spectacular, and the wild flowers were scattered here and there.

 The walk led us along a windy path to a fast moving stream that was great for dogs to chase sticks and cool off.  Here is Dexter retrieving just one of many sticks thrown for him in the water.

It was fairly warm so Eric decided to test the waters. While cool at first, the waters were good enough to throw sticks for Dexter.

Nearby, a small butterfly was feeding on the nectar of this small yellow weed.

Meanwhile, Dexter is still getting lots of exercise and slowly slowing down.

On the path, we crossed this pile of rusted wire: likely parts of a bridge washed away during the floods a few years back.

Imagine the power required to shear these large cables and bunch them up in a large mass of twisted steel.

A quick stop for the requisite Sunday ice-cream cone, and we are back in air-conditioned comfort while supper is preparing to just appear as if by Magic. Meanwhile, Dexter is napping, now that's good idea...

Back Home Again

This was without doubt our fastest trip back to Stittsville. Fear of impending doom does that to people. 

American news and weather stations were predicting major winter storms before the weekend that were directly on our route home.

A 7:30 departure this morning, was indeed at the crack of dawn. Some early rain when the temperature was only slightly above 5ºC kept us busy.  As the day wore on, the temperatures rose to 15 or so, the sky stopped crying and eventually, even the traffic thinned out.

Customs was unlike any crossing we have even experienced. The truck in front of us turned a sharp right, and suddenly, we were faced with completely empty lanes. Not a single car being processed, not a single car, motorhome,  trailer, or motor bike waiting in line, nothing!

We drove up to the window, were asked a few questions, and told to have a nice day.  Total time: much less than a minute.

We drove off, and there was no-one behind us. Weird but wonderful.

We arrived at 1:30 this afternoon, and it is now shortly after 5. The car is unpacked, the luggage emptied, the suckie bags are empty, but there will be laundry.

The most snow we encountered was on the way to the bird feeder in our back yard. Life is good. Hope yours is too.

Columbia SC to Hazelton, PA

After an early departure at 8am, we drove through mountains and rain along with a few thousand trucks... Just a long fairly tedious drive through horse country where the ranches are fenced in white.

We stopped in Hazleton Pennsylvania around 7:30pm, already in darkness.

Our departure temp was around 11ºC, and as we climbed mountains before lunch, we hit new lows of 5ºC, with moderate rain. as the day wore on, the temperature rose to a max of 18º and it is about 11º now, with above freezing and rain expected tonight.

We are kind of rushing along to try to avoid expected snow storms further North as we head home.

Ft Myers Florida to Columbia South Carolina

After sad farewells to friends, we started our journey back home shortly after 9am. Nothing special to report other than the traffic kept increasing as we headed northward. The Interstate 95 was polluted with tractor trailers as is the turn-off towards the Interstate 81.

We stopped for the day at after 7:30pm, found  room at the LaQuinta hotel, then drove to Ruby Tuesday, a mere half mile away. Their salad bar is as fresh as ever, and the steaks nice and tender.

I gather there will be a presidential visit in Charlotte North Carolina  tomorrow, and we have to hope that the extra traffic will not affect us too much.

We left in 26ºC weather, and by mid day, it had dropped to 18º. Now it's about 16º, so shoes will replace sandals, long pants already replace the shorts.  Things may get colder...

Pelican Preserve Boardwalk

Amidst the preparations for going back home, Peter and I snuck away for one last walk on the boardwalk in the Preserve.

This Remembrance Pergola, in the butterfly garden,  is just covered in wonderful blue flowers. The vine is not a Wisteria, but certainly looks like one. This vine has sandpaper-like leaves, and is named the Queen's Wreath.

Next is a female butterfly laying one egg on many different leaves and plants: this is a good sign that the next crop is not too far away.

The small pond in the Butterfly Garden used to have some large Koy fish with protective cover of fishing lines overhead, to discourage the herons. The overhead protection is gone, and so are the fish. Fortunately, the waterlilies are just fine.

We have seen these White Ibis fishing in shallow water, aerating lawns and grasses, but this is the first one I have seen eating a small water snake. The trick seems to be to grab the snake, head first, position it, and swallow. Sounds like a viable plan.

This early attempt caught the snake near its tail.  Not only is the snake very slippery, but the Ibis has no hope of swallowing it tail first. So the snake is dropped, re-caught, and flipped again and again until the head is well in position to be swallowed.

Next shot has the snake's head well in position, but being slippery, it is wiggling out of position...

A tighter grip on the snake's head only seems to make matters worse as the snake keeps slipping away. The process is repeated a few dozen times before this delicacy is enjoyed... We did not wait until the end, a few minutes had been long enough in the very hot sun.

It seems that when you walk around with a camera in Florida, everyone wants you to see the alligators. The babies I photographed a few weeks ago are now somewhat bigger [a little more than a foot and a half long], and have moved to a bigger pond to sun themselves.

Here are three of the five that Peter spotted for me.

This is a close-up of the one that was sound asleep. Enjoy!