Staying Safe and Cool

Hello hello from the North.  I am very happy to report that we are staying safe and fire-free lately, and the weather has been seasonal to cool.  I can't believe the fires down south and the crazy heat that other parts of the province and country are experiencing!!  And Trump says global warming isn't happening?! I think he's been sniffing glue... for a long time.

In any case, it's been a great few weeks here for Tom and I.  For starters, it's Tom's birthday today (hooray!) and yesterday I took him out kayaking on Lake Kathlyn, just on the edge of Smithers.  I rented a paddleboard for myself which was fun too but I found it hard to navigate... or keep up with Tom as he raced around the lake.  We saw a pair of loons with a baby and they let us get within feet of them!  Tom also had an otter that followed him for a bit, popping up here and there.  And I had fish jumping all around me for some reason! Everyone was celebrating Tom's special day : )

Hudson Bay Mountain, Lake Kathlyn and Tom

Today we hiked up the ski hill to Crater Lake.  We went up right after breakfast and were driving back down the mountain by 11 so we missed the crowds - usually a popular hike but we didn't see anyone else until close to the parking lot.

"You belong among the wildflowers..."

Hi Mom!

The birthday boy

Marmot! 

Last weekend we hiked the Seaton Ridge, just outside of Moricetown.  The views are supposed to be spectacular but it was one of those trips when the clouds move in and we didn't see everything... however, I was happy because we did get to see a rainbow in the valley below.  And being inside of a misty cloud just added to the wild BC mountain life.

Wildflowers : )

A magical rainbow in the clouds

Tom trying to stay warm (it was only 6 degrees!)

I need to stop posing into the sun... always squinting!

Tom is still really enjoying his job, and I'm jealous that he gets to come home to the cats at lunch and finishes early enough to hit the gym... I'm still waiting to hear about a possible interview for the Permitting job I applied to with Canfor.  If I get that, I'll try to hit the gym at lunch a few times a week.  My back feels so much better when I can work in the office, but then everything else (including the waistline) complains.  So a nice blast of blood pumping work mid-day would do the trick.

We are both very excited about my dad and little bro coming to visit next weekend!!!  I can't wait!  Dad arrives Friday afternoon and Stefan's arrival will depend on his work schedule this coming week.  I'm hoping he can make it up on Friday night, but if not it sounds like he may take the following week off and stay here and bike the mountain.

Jill has offered to host a party at her place next weekend - wohooo!!  All we have to bring is dad's margaritas and his cheesecake.  YESssss.  Should be a wild night. I can't wait to see Jill let loose hee hee
She is excited to meet dad and Stefan after all of the stories she's heard about them.  Next I'll have to convince Jill to come back to Ontario to visit mom - they both share a love of scotch which I think could cause trouble.

My cabled sweater has taken the back burner for a bit, as I've started a mystery knit along for a shawl (sections of the pattern or "clues" are released every week and you have no idea what he finished project will look like until you're done), and have been feeling a bit guilty that I haven't started any potential Christmas presents yet.  I always say I'll start them early and never do, and then it gets too close to Christmas to finish anything... one year - I'll get it one year.

I've also taken on a spinning and knitting challenge with the spinner's group from back home.  Spin sock yarn and knit a pair of socks with it by the end of the year.  I just got the fiber in the mail and will start spinning very soon.  I have to first finish some other fiber on the wheel... I wanted to make sure I was all practiced up for sock yarn.  I've never spun for socks before, and the yarn will be more fine than I'm used to.  A good challenge for sure.

Soon-to-be-socks.

Speaking of spinning, this will sound extremely nerdy to some but I really do find it so entertaining - there is a show on Netflix and probably available elsewhere, called SLOW.  It's supposed to be all the rage in Norway and features hours of mundane things, like the view out of a train window as it ges cross-country, and apparently this is supposed to be very relaxing.  Well... they have one on spinning.  There's a group pf women and one man who shears a sheep and immediately the wool is spun by six different spinner, right there.  Then as the yarn is made, other ladies begin knitting it, and the challenge is to knit a men's sweater out of it.  They talk all about speed knitting and the culture and history of spinning, and all the while are trying to set a world's record!  It's all being timed.  I'm only about an hour in to the 8 hr program (which Tom can only take so much of watching at one time - fair enough!), so I think I'll spin with it in the background.

Bruce the adventurer took off for almost 24hrs last week.  Tom and I were worried sick.  He's back and in one piece.  No clue where he went to but I wonder if he was stuck in a garage.. or off climbing a mountain. We've only let the cats out once since then and will keep a better eye on them.

I can't believe the end of summer is lurking around the corner.  Still a month left, but I feel like time is literally flashing before my eyes - it goes SO FAST.  Good when you're talking about the workweek, but in general I'm just trying not to let life slip by! There's so much to see and do and so much to check off the bucket list.  Especially since we know we will eventually make our way back to Ontario, Tom and I want to soak up as many experiences as we can in the mountains while we have the chance.

And on that note, I'm off to relax with Tom and get into some fiber.  Hope you all have a great rest of your weekend!

xoxox

It's been a while

I'm back!  It's been awhile since the last post!  Lots to share.

Since posting last, Tom and I took a day-trip hike to the Blue Lakes Trail in Hazelton.  The hike climbs up the inside of a valley, crosses several avalanche paths, and at the end looks down on a beautiful blue lake.... however... the day we did the hike, the Weather Network told us it would be 22 degrees and sunny.  It was 13 and we never got out of the fog/clouds.  So we never saw the lake.... or the view...  BUT we will just have to do the hike again another time - and it will be like doing a brand new hike if there's a view!  It was still great to get out and moving and we enjoyed the adventure.

The Blue Lakes Trail

Weee! Waterfall

Ohhh Ahhhh... There's a big blue lake view in there somewhere...

Then last weekend we hit up the Silver King Basin.  One of my favourite hikes.  The hike itself isn't super interesting, although it does follow a river bank for a while and has little waterfalls along the way.  It's near the end of the hike when you come out of the trees and are greeted by the MASSIVE valley and GORGEOUS peaks of orange and red rock.  The valley opens up into meandering streams and wetlands, and there's a big log cabin at the end of the trail.  Anyone can stay there for $5/night, and it is HUGE.  Full of bunk beds and a wood stove, it would be a great place for a family getaway. 

Tom and I decided to pitch the tent, though, which I like better than a bunk bed.  We set up the tent right under some trees that were FULL of Whiskey Jacks!  We shared some trail mix with them and had a steady line-up of birds coming to eat out of our hands.  
We ventured past the campsite a bit to check out some old mine shafts and mine cars, and got super excited when we spotted what we thought was a big white mountain goat, in the distance.  As we stood there in awe, squinting up at the mountain side, a group of people approached it and it started running around... and wagging it's... tail?  A dog.  Yep, a dog.  It was a sneaky dog all along.  We did get so see a big chubby marmot, though! I love those things.

Tom just as the valley opened up before us

Tom and the Basin

And me too!

Room with a view

Tom has really been enjoying work, and that makes me so happy.  He's got his finger on the pulse of Telkwa (hahahahha makes it sound like a city) and knows all the ins and outs of the village now.  He's been discovering parts of the town I never knew about!  Water treatment plants and hidden old settlements.  He's outside in the driveway at the moment, working away on his truck.  He's repairing the rust patches that are growing under his fenders.

My work has been alright -- I'm felling a bit restless.  I don't love the job as much as I thought I would, but don't really know what my 'dream job' is anymore.  If I wasn't doing this, what would I want to do? What's the next step?  We know we want to lay roots back in Ontario eventually, so what the heck will I do for work then?  Something to ponder.  I've been thinking about taking some online tree pests and diseases courses to refresh my memory on that front, and maybe make it easier to get a consulting arborist job back home, or work for a town...I think I'd like to try diagnostic work with trees.  I think... sometimes I wish I could see into the future.  I know it will all work out in the end, but have a hard time convincing myself of that!!

Also, not sure if I shared this before, but it has come to my attention, with the help of an amazing physiotherapist and my family doctor, that I have (a mild case of) scoliosis!!  No wonder my back has hurt all of these years!  It honestly has been a pain in the butt -er, back - since I was about 14.  And my doc explained that that is usually when scoliosis starts.  It progressively can get worse through childhood (teenage) years, but once you get as archaically old as I am, it won't get any worse.  Which is good!  However, to avoid pain it's best to stay away from load-bearing work, and in my experience, field work.  Which sucks!  That's what I've basically done my whole life!  Some form of field work.  So that's also something to consider when I eventually start job hunting back home.  Doing tree diagnostic work would be so back-friendly.  Still moving around, but not all day, and not bearing extra weight.

So, it's Canada Day long weekend!  What is everyone up to?  The weather here is pretty dismal, so we've been spending our time just taking it easy at home.  We have a family of crows in the backyard, and the babies are just about to start flying.  We've spent some time watching them, fixing Tom's truck, I've been knitting (finally started the second sock in a pair) and the cats have been out roaming the neighborhood.  They love it.  We keep their harnesses on, which have their address on them, and they don't seem to go much further than our neighbor's yard.  They are pooped when they come back home, too. Good, because otherwise they cry at the door allllll night.

Zzzzzzz.....zzzzzzzz.....

My dad and hopefully Stefan are planning to visit on the August long weekend!! We can't wait! Parrrtyyyyy!! The margaritas will be flowing, for sure.  Hoping to get in some cool sight seeing and fingers are crossed for good weather! And of course, we will have to get dad to the German bakery in Telkwa before he goes.  Stefan will likely do some mountain biking on the trails around the area on his drive up!  Good for him - downhill riding scares the poop out of me.  I'll stick with road biking, thanks.  Somehow sharing the road with logging trucks isn't as scary to me.

Well, off to Crappy Tire.  Tom needs some stuff for the truck, and I want to look at a second pot for yarn dyeing.  I've been dyeing again this weekend!  It is so much fun.  I get to be an artist again! They should incorporate yarn dyeing into the curriculum at my old high school, where I was an art major. Although somehow I don't think it would be as exciting for those who don't knit...

Okay, I'll sign off.  I hope this long weekend is a chance to recharge everyone's batteries, get out with friends, or relax in peace : )  Have a great Canada Day weekend!!

Love, Danielle xoxox