WALK ALONG THE RIVER

 

Yesterday we took Leanne for a hike along the York River. As we have so few pictures with just the two of us, I was delighted at how professional her pictures turned out; all taken on her iPhone 11.

Lots of rocks to scramble over but we managed without injuries.

Leanne and Penny enjoyed the falls. We had to put Penny on her leash as she had no fear of the slippery ledge.

This is the best weekend for viewing the fall colours. Hope you get a chance to see them for yourself.

Just a man his dog and the roar of the river ........... paradise.

It was the best hike of the season and we were so glad Leanne could join us.

Stay safe and well everyone and thanks for stopping by.

EGAN CHUTES and the YORK RIVER

 

This morning Penny and I took a hike along the York River. I was concerned she might head right into the water but she was well behaved on the whole hike.

Where we parked the river is wide and peaceful a major contrast to what we would soon see.

Being a retriever Penny has no fear of the water and was back and forth for a drink or splash whenever she could.

The river soon narrowed as it was forced through the gorge and roared over the bolders in its way. The noise and spray that covered us was a surprising contrast to the peaceful river where we parked. If you decide to canoe this river make sure you know where the portage points are. Taking a canoe or kayak through here would be too risky for an old guy like me.

Penny seemed to sense the danger here and stayed where it was solid and safe.

We stayed for a while enjoying the autumn morning, the roar of the river and the beauty of the gorge. It's a place we haven't visited since Ad and Gertie were here from Holland. I hope they remember our visit.

All good things must come to an end and it was soon time to head for home.

We will return but for now ...............

Penny is too tired to travel.

Stay safe and well everyone.

Thanks for stopping by.

PENNY and CARROTS

 

The sun is slowing moving into our south room as the days get shorter and the sun stays lower in the sky. Penny enjoys the warmth of the sun and has discovered a comfortable way to take an afternoon nap. I think we need to move her blanket to the window ledge where she can enjoy the views and warmth on cold winter days.

We've been enjoying carrots from our garden lately. Carrots are best left until after the first frost as this makes them sweeter. The carrots on the right were planted early May the ones on the left were planted July 1st. (see blog entry) Both bunches look very similar the ones planted in July look a little larger. Why? Both were planted in the same soil, same location, same watering. I suspect the difference was spacing. The ones on the right were too crowded and thus didn't have the room to expand as expected. Next year all our carrots will be planted on toilet paper to ensure adequate spacing when they sprout.

Our tomato and cucumber plants were hit by a heavy frost last week (-5*C) so those beds have been cleared and are ready for winter. Our cold weather crops are fine, (spinach, kale, carrots, celery, Romain lettuce, beets) and we continue to pick and enjoy them.

Leaves are turning and nights are cooler, fall is definitely here.

Stay well everyone and thanks for keeping an eye on us.

ALGONQUIN PARK

This moring we headed north to Combermere then decided to go further north and check out the Fall colours in Algonquin Park.

We entered the park through the east gate where you can purchase your "Day Pass" which allows you access to all trails and events that day.

Usually the traffic is bumper to bumper this time of year, but today as you can see we had the road to ourselves.

One reason for such light traffic could be Covid-19, the other reason might be the colours haven't reached their peak performance yet.

Next week will definitely be better, so we will try again next Saturday. 

Until then, stay safe and well.

KATE'S BIRTHDAY

 

Yesterday we celebrated Kate's birthday. She actually turns four today but we all got together yesterday.

Sherri made a delicious chocolate cake that Kate requested. She is just like her grandpa; loves chocolate. Looks like Owen and Frankie are helping Kate blow out the candles.

Next it was time to open the gifts. Owen was such a big help looking after his sister.

Every gift was met with the same enthusiastic, delighted response and every giver was hugged and thanked by Kate. She so appreciated all that was done for her.

Oma's gift went right up to Kate's bed and kept her warm and cozy last night. It's a beautiful quilt perfect for Kate's room. Homemade quilts are treasured heirlooms in our family and having one made by your Oma makes it extra special.

After all the cake and excitement it was time to take Penny outside and relax with the birthday girl.

Thanks everyone, especially Sherri for her delicious cake which she so kindly sent home with grandpa.

SWISS CHARD

This morning I've been busy harvesting some of our Swiss Chard. Our gardens have been very productive this summer and now it is time to get what's left into storage for the winter.

As you can see there is still plenty left in the garden and these will be harvested over the next few days.

The process is simple; rinse, slice, place on trays.

The trays then go into the freezer and once everything is frozen I will place the swiss chard into bags and enjoy it in my morning smoothie.

There is still plenty of kale in our gardens. Mary thinks it's best to harvest this after the first frost as the taste improves once the plants have been exposed to the cold. Kale is another excellent vegetable to add to your smoothie and keeps very well frozen.

Another cool rainy day here. Some leaves are starting to turn and we see the odd patch of red in the maples.

Stay safe and well.

Thanks for stopping by.

MORE COMPANY

 

It's always lovely to have family visit and this week Andrew and Margaret stopped by for a few days.

Our gardens are producing more than we can eat so we were glad Margaret took some vegetables home. Looks like Penny is checking to make sure everything is ripe.

Penny was always there to help Mary select the best and largest vegetables. Wish we could train her to pick and deliver the vegetables to our table.

We are working on her bad habit of biting. She seems to do this whenever we carry something in our arms.

Penny is just a puppy so this habit may take a while to correct. 

BIRTHDAYS

 

Birthdays get celebrated when we get together not always on the correct date. 

The guys managed the barbecue on our tiny deck....................

which got a little crowded with everyone there to celebrate.

Now I know why we had to vacuum the house every morning.

Frankie stayed clean this trip but she is crawling and I'm sure she will soon be playing in the sand. 

After supper we enjoyed a campfire thanks to Sean.

Even Penny was content to sit and enjoy the warmth of the fire.

Owen often borrows grandpa's camera and has a good eye for pictures. Can you feel the heat?

Thanks for a great weekend everyone. Looking forward to our next time together.

Stay safe and well.

Thanks for the great shot Owen.