Yes, Folks, we have arrived. We hit town yesterday (Friday) afternoon. Our travel was unbelievably uneventful! We left Iowa Thursday morning. Freya was ready to go:
OK…maybe not quite that ready, but with the help of a tranquilizer three hours prior to departure, she was a great little traveler! I think the entire trip was way less stressful for both of us.
Many things were different this year. We had new paperwork at the border which delayed us about 1.5-2 hours. The crossing itself went well; it was just long. STAY TUNED FOR INFORMATION ABOUT POULTRY/EGGS FROM THE U.S. RIGHT NOW BRING NONE; WE’LL LET YOU KNOW IF THINGS CHANGE.
Here’s what we saw upon arrival last year on April 29:
Here’s the driveway today:
Lovely, I say! Here’s Gruper several days after arrival last year trying to gain access to one of his buildings:
Today he wandered up to his building and was able to get the garbage truck out:
Amazing, I say! I took a 5ish-mile walk on 105. There were signs of life everywhere:
a fox has visited
a deer has visited
a moose has meandered through
He had nothing on the one I saw about 10 miles south of Camp yesterday. The bull was ENORMOUS! He already had a great start on a rack and it’s only April!
mushrooms are sprouting (though not morels like Sally found on her walk at home yesterday)
I saw a grouse and a whiskeyjack along the driveway when I returned. Check out the white birch on the blue sky:
Check out this alligator under the dock:
Gruper left out a few trail cams over the winter again. We only got a couple of usable pics. Here’s a whiskeyjack who discovered the camera:
Perhaps this is the fox who used our driveway as a bathroom:
Look at how beautiful he is later in the season:
So, what’s it like when we arrive on a “normal” year such as this? Gruper and I cross the border and get to Dryden for lunch. He then takes Freya and some of my cargo so I can get groceries while he heads up the hill. By the time I arrive, he has a fire going in the entry room, heat going in the propane fire place, water throughout the house, etc. I come in, put away the fresh groceries (produce, dairy) and get Freya more settled. By evening, it’s like we never left: we’ve showered and have settled down to watch The Amazing Race with a yummy dinner of black bean salsa chicken:
I spent this morning unpacking and came to a huge realization: I am food-obsessed! Please raise your hand if you knew this about me. Wow. Anyway, we are set for some time. This afternoon was so beautiful that I wandered around and took pics for this blog entry, coaxed Freya from the basement for a walk about the yard, and took my good walk.
OK, I’ve played with you all long enough. We know you’re wondering about the ice situation. Here’s a gull floating by:
Here’s a nice view toward the falls:
The cute tree on the right is “our” tree by the way. We planted it many moons ago. Here’s a nice glitter shot:
Perhaps I’ll do a family foto fest in the next day or so. Until then, you know where to find us!