Take a Hike

Mothers' Day, was the perfect day for a hike. Sean made breakfast for his mom and then we decided to hike the "Greenway Trail" right here in Peterborough. This trail is part of the "trans-Canada " trail system, a system of trails that spans Canada from coast to coast. This section follows an old railway line that ran from Peterborough to Lindsey. This trail is perfect for the family, gentle, good solid surface, beautiful country scenery, and easily accessed from many different locations.

As you can see, it was busy on "Mothers' Day"

Of course our spring flowers are starting to appear and I had to stop and admire this "Blood Root".

Looking out across the valley from the old train trestle, we could see lots of marsh marigolds  far below. Unfortunately, when I double checked this picture I couldn't see any, but I like the picture and believe me, there are marsh marigolds down there somewhere.

Look closely to the left of the railing, can you see the folks having a picnic lunch? (click on the picture) It was the perfect day to be outside and active.

Lots of families on bikes passed us by. Maybe next time we will bring our bikes. First we must get them out of storage at Carol's.

Time to turn back and head back to Toronto. Yes, Mary is back at work and Sean and I are up in Bancroft cutting trees.

Safe travels and stop by anytime.

Move in Day

No, we didn't move into our new home,we haven't even started to build yet, but Connie and Andrrew moved some things to Peterborough.

Here Sean is moving into Connie and Andrew's place. Fortunately the weather co-operated and we could use my open trailer.

A sure sign that summer is coming are all the boats ready, by the dock, waiting to be uncovered and put into the water.

Sunday morning and it's "Mother's Day" Happy "Mother's Day" to all the moms reading this blog. Sean made breakfast for his mom then went for a ride with Casey, Tanya and Paul.

Checking the map and deciding on a route before leaving Peterborough.

The sun is shining, the trees are in bud and we are going for a hike.

Safe travels and we will talk later

Bancroft - A Warm Spring Day

Finally, it was warm and dry and I could work outside. Of course it's impossible to take pictures of me working when there is just me here so you will have to settle for a few pictures taken when I wasn't working.

We, I should say I, have been looking after Yvan and Nancy's chickens while they went north. The chickens almost know my name by now and come running when they hear my truck pull in. The morning visit is the most rewarding. Usually I collect 10 or 11 eggs they have been busy laying during the night. Anyone care for an omelette?

Here is one of the major producers. She is always the last one out in the morning; likes to get a little extra food before going out into the pen.

This was yesterday's haul, great looking eggs and the very best "free range eggs" in Canada; well maybe not all of Canada, maybe just Ontario.

With the sunshine and warm weather the spring flowers have started to appear. I'll have to get Mary to send me the names, but until then, enjoy the pictures.
"Colt's Foot"

"Mullen"

These maple trees are ready to pop their buds and send out leaves. In a day or two the forest here will be a wall of green.

Now this flower we should all know; it's the provincial flower of Ontario, the Trillium. This one is the red variety, the white one is our provincial flower.

Have a great day and safe travels.

Bobcat Returns

After a winter stored near Apsley, our "Bobcat" came home yesterday. Technically, we should call it a "skid-steer" but everyone calls them "bobcats".

It was well looked after and all the services are up-to-date, (thanks Dave) so now it's time to get to work; and these babies are designed to work and work long and hard.

Here she is being delivered to our yard, and I'm anxious to get it unloaded and see if I remember how to operate it..

Up here, we cut wood, wood, and more wood...............................................................

but once the trees are down and limbed, the bobcat takes over and hauls the logs over to the wood pile. The "grapple bucket" makes moving the logs so easy, even Mary enjoys working the bobcat.

Here Mary moves a load of gravel to build a new lane across our property.

It really is a versatile piece of equipment which makes our job of clearing bush so much easier.  With the regular bucker and forks which attach so easily I know we will be keeping it busy as we build the house.

I'm off to Peterborough for a few days and will report back on Monday.

Safe travels and stay warm

Bancroft 2011

This is Bancroft's 150th year celebrations and I may have given the wrong impression in an earlier posting. Bancroft, today, is a modern vibrant northern community with a posted population of 3, 500. It has a modern high-school, many new retail outlets, a live theatre, churches of every denomination and a small hospital.

Last week, our newest grocery store opened and it is beautiful. I'm sure the cottagers who arrive late on a Friday night will be glad to learn, FOODLAND is open 24 hrs.

Another busy business is Canadian Tire and they have a new store on the north end of town.

The busiest place in Bancroft is the "Tim Horton's" I heard they are considering building a second Tim Horton's on highway 28 because they are so busy.

We have two auto supply stores in town. Not sure why we need two but the garages must be busy.

Main Street, Bancroft.

Every weekend there seems to be a special event on. Last weekend the "BIG Bike" was in town and 22 teams rode it to raise money for cancer research. The weather was perfect and everyone had a great time.

Next time I blog about Bancroft, I'll write about all the restaurants we have.

Safe travels and stay dry today.

Green Drink

A few days ago I wrote a blog about our attempt to eat a more healthy diet. Our goal is to avoid sugars, fats, and food additives as much as possible while also greatly reducing our intake of meat.

We usually start our day with a warm water and lemon, followed by a green drink of frozen or fresh berries, water, protein powder, flax seed and chia seeds. Chia is an excellent source of many vitamins and is easy to add to drinks and salads.

Our ingredients ready to put in the blender. This is an easy way to get your vitamins and very easy for your body to digest.

Even in our trailer, living on "solar" power we can use our blender.

Below, Mary is stuffing the vegetables into the "juicer" to make our "green" drink.

The juice from all the raw vegetables.

Now, if I could just stay away from the sugars that creep into my daily consumption.

Enjoy your day and drive safely.

More about Bancroft

I thought you mike like to see a few behind the scenes from Bancroft. How many buildings in your town are covered in tin? This was a popular building material back in the 1930's so you can guess how old some of the buildings are in Bancroft.

Have you ever seen a tow truck like this? Back in the 1940's garages would make their own tow trucks from any truck body they had available. Of course this one has seen better days but I'm sure it pulled a lot of cars out of the ditch before it was parked behind these buildings in downtown Bancroft.

Every year Bancroft hosts the Rock and Mineral show along with the Art's and Crafts Show, the last weekend in July. Bancroft calls itself the "Rock Capital of Canada" because of the large variety of minerals found in the area. Why not come on over and enjoy the show?

The park is filled with crafts people, selling a variety of products from soap to carvings. The quality of workmanship is impressive.

This is the pottery lady from Maynooth. She was eager to talk about her craft and how she got started after she retired. She hated to part with her creations, each one was personal to her. Now that's loving your work.

So why not book a weekend in Bancroft? Come up any time, and drop by when you are in the area. Personally, I like the fall the best, the last week of September to the middle of October. That's when the leaves start to change colour, the nights are cool, the days are sunny and the bugs are gone.

Safe travels and we will talk later