Hummingbird Swarm

While our Annas hummingbirds stay year round and feed at a feeder off the kitchen window, each and every year we look forward to the spring and the return of the Rufus hummers. Some years the swarms are amazing, but nothing like we are having this year. I have 2 feeders at the front of the house as well as the one out back by the kitchen window. I am going through the sugar water daily on all 3 feeders. Last night was particularly awesome. It was a gentle but steady rainfall and the swarm started. The sound of the chirping and zinging and whizzing was amazing. Eight to ten hummers at a time at each feeder, trying to get a spot... the males fighting, spreading their tail feathers like a fan. At one point I tried to go outside but it was too dangerous. It was like a star wars episode - zing, zing, zing - you had to duck and run for cover. I took my camera and tried to get some shots but it wasn't easy - I should have tried a video. It has been like this all week. Like nothing Chris or I have every seen or experienced. At the front of the house between the 2 feeders, at one point we counted over 23, and who knows how many at that point were at the feeder at the back of the house. I love hummers, and I love this "hummingbird" hollow we live in.

Buddies

Our good friend Kelli with our little Gypsy. Kelli graciously agreed to look after all the critters while we were in England. We are lucky to have her in our life, and the critters were lucky to get the attention she showered on them. As for Jake, well we now have to teach him he is NOT to go on the couch!!

Gosling Rescue

 

The other day when Kelli and I were down at the beach, we noticed a family of Canada geese with 3 little downy goslings. It was a very windy day and the surf was crashing and there were big white caps. All of a sudden an unleashed dog came tearing onto the beach and chased the adult geese into the breaking waves. Somehow 2 of the babies made it over the breakers but the smallest one just couldn't do it. Once the owner of the dog showed up to collect it, Kelli rushed to the shoreline where the little gosling was upside down almost drowning. The family of geese were quite a ways away by then. We kept the little guy warm, hoping his parents would return. After about 20 minutes they came closer so we let the baby down on the beach and he threw himself in the surf again, trying over and over to make it out to his family. He was relentless, but had no hope. Over and over again he was washed back into the sand with the waves crashing over him. Immediately a crow moved in, and unbelievably an eagle. The geese family swam off out of sight to a small rock island in the distance that we think the nest was. There was nothing to do but take the little guy home. He would be dead in minutes if we left him on the beach - either the birds would get him, or he would drown in the breaking waves. We walked home with him, I had him in my jacket he was quite calm. We searched the internet for info and later that night we went back to the beach and found 1 goose up on the grassy area. We thought for sure that mom had returned to look for him. We put the little guy down and he immediately started eating but following Kelli. We put him closer and he ran to the goose. The goose was clearly not his parent as it nipped at it and flew away. Back home with him we went. We fed the little guy lettuce and grass and he went to sleep in my kitty crate. In the morning we let him have a swim and a drink in the sink. What a lovely little house guest - no fear and willing to follow us. We took him back to the beach very early the next morning. The ocean was calm and there was his family, back in the same spot. The other 2 babies had made it and were feeding along the shoreline. We took our little guy out of the crate and he peeped and mamma goose honked. We put him down on one end of the beach and he took off like a race car to him mom.. who ran to him as well. A lovely reunion. We watched for a while and left with the hope that this little guy would get another chance for survival. Judging by what we found on the internet we figure he was only 2 to 3 weeks old at the most. While it isn't legal to keep Canada geese, this little guy would have made a great pet.

The Journey Home

I must say that the flight home was somewhat better than the flight to the UK. We left Eve's early in the morning to catch the 6:55am underground tube to Heathrow, and arrived at the terminal about 8:30am in time for check in. Fortunately we bought good sandwiches at the airport to take on the plane, as the food was disaster. We thought wine would be more appropriate. I managed to while away the 9 hours watching the flight path on the screen in front of me. Chris napped. As we flew over Greenland the hostesses came around again. So we each had a Heinecken. We did finally arrive in Vancouver,no worse for the wear, other than very tired. We stayed up for 28 hours before having our first sleep back home. All in all it was a great trip for such a short time.

River Lee at Turnford

 

What a beautiful spot this was to visit. Chris's parents met here on the bicycle path along the river so many years ago. Visiting this spot was one of the main reasons for our trip, and it was a beautiful day.

Will & Kate's Royal Wedding

 

Eve and I went to Katie's for the Royal Wedding. Katie put on quite a spread of food, complete with cucumber sandwiches and scones with cream. The Buck's Fizz was flowing, and after the wedding we all went down the road to a royal wedding street party. Click on the collage to view the events, and click on the title link above for to view all the wedding photos in my picasa album.

The Eve of the Royal Wedding

 

Click on the collage to enlarge and see the Buckingham festivities in the late afternoon on April 28th. Chris and I wandered through Trafalgar Square and on down to the Mall and walked to Buckingham Place. Everyone was already camping along the roadside claiming their space for the royal wedding in the morning. It was a fun thing to do, and really gave us a sense of being there for this occasion.

Old Hastings, Sussex

We spent 3 nights with our friends Gwen and Paul who live right in the heart of Hastings Old Town. The slideshow is available through the title link above. As you can tell by all the photos, we had a great time, and the weather was fantastic.

Hitchin Around

The next slide show, again in the title link, is of our adventures around Hitchin where Laurie and Anna live. We had a lovely tour of the countryside, a great walk and got to see the town itself.

Family BBQ in Hitchin

Easter Monday we all gathered at Laurie and Anna's for a BBQ feast. Here we have Chris with cousins Pat, Eve, and Pat's husband Don. One of the hottest days of the trip. Photo album is again available by clicking on the title link above.

In and Around London Areas

London was fun. Chris's cousin Eve lived on the outskirts of North London in Winchmore Hill. This was our home base. We did a few trips to South London and other areas to explore Chris's old childhood neighborhoods. View a short slide show of some of the London adventures by clicking on the above title link, and choosing slideshow.

April 17th - The Journey Began

The sun was shining the morning we left for the airport. Kelli was chauffeur and we caught the 12:30 ferry to town. Our Air Canada flight was on time at 6:15pm, and although we arrived earlier than necessary, we managed to do a bit of shopping and stop for a pre-flight glass of vino. A very long 9hr flight to London's Heathrow airport saw us both very tired due to lack of sleep during the flight. After almost 2 hours clearing customs, we managed to make our way straight away to the tube and catch the Picadilly Line to Cockfosters. It was then an hour and a half on the tube, and Chris's cousin Eve met us at Oakwood station where we were whisked away to her home in Winchmore Hill.

First Swim of the Year

Jake always likes a walk around 4pm, so I took him up the road to my friend Elisabeth's place for a walk around her lake. It is a very sunny spot, and despite the lateness of the day, he really wanted to play in the water. So I threw the only stick I could find (Elisabeth is meticulous when it comes to keeping her property free of "debris"). In the end, Jake had a couple of good swims and got thoroughly soaked, just in time to travel home in the back seat of my car!!

Long and Thin and Covered in Skin

Took the Jake-meister for his little walk early this morning and was startled by this little creature. As usual I had my camera with me (still waiting to spot the elusive Bowen wolf) and snapped a quick shot of my first snake of the season! A common garter snake. It was all curled up and then shot out in front of me. I don't mind these snakes, they are kind of calming to watch. Click to enlarge.

Solitary Bees. Who knew!

This morning as I was checking the rhubarb patch, Chris called me to come take a look at the weeping pussy-willow. As I approach the tree, he pointed to the actual pussy-willow catkins which are beginning to bloom; they were covered with fly-like bugs! Almost every catkin had one or more of these things on it. I assumed they were drinking nectar from the flower. But what were they, maybe baby wasps??? I am lucky to have a male pussy willow which is one of the best trees for bees because it blooms especially early in March and April when little else is in flower and available to the bees. Of course if it is too cool, the bees still won't be out and about, and I suspect this is the case right now as it is not that warm yet. Regardless, these little bugs did not appear to me to be bees. They looked more like flies of some sort. You can click on the photo to enlarge/zoom. By the way, did you know that only the male flowers produce the yellow pollen but both sexes produce nectar. The pollen is considered to be of high quality in terms of its nutritional contribution to bees, having a crude protein content of around 25%. Amazing what you learn when you take up gardening and bee, bird and butterfly watching. So while I was blogging, I emailed the infamous Eric the Bug Guy from the USofA, to see if he could identify these critters. Well, as usual, true to his style, Eric delivered the answer. These are Solitary Bees, male ones to be exact, probably in the genus Andrena! So now I am on a mission to learn all about solitary bees, which I had never heard of before. You can find Eric's very informative bug blog at: http://bugeric.blogspot.com/

Little Lenten Roses

Tucked away in my little woodland garden you will come across this little lenten rose (helleborus). It is one of the easiest plants to grow, and one of the first to bloom in late winter and early spring. I think I will source out some other varieties this spring. Oddly enough, I just found out that this happy garden specimen is actually a member of the buttercup family. Who knew!

Stupid Cat

It is difficult to reconcile myself to the fact that while I love my cats to be free as they are... this boy-cat of mine, "Smoke", is just not the brightest cookies on the block. He manages to get on the roof despite everything we do to restrict access. He then becomes a sitting duck for the eagles that tend to fly by every day. I sure hope the 9-lives legend is more than just that. He has already used one.

In and Around the Pond

March 27th may seem a bit early to be wading around in a pond, but today I decided to clean up the dead pond plants. My friend Elisabeth lent me her leaky hip-waders and I ventured into the icy pond to clean out last years dead water plants. It was indeed cold, and once I was into the pond over my knees, the water started to leak into to waders. It was cold and sloshy but I did get the job done. It was worth the wet and cold. I climbed out of the pond and changed to dryer clothes, and then I taackeld the pond banks cleaning out all the dead plants and grasses from last year and raked and tidied everything to be ready for the season. I even managed to get the water fountain going, but the water is still to deep to get the proper water effect from the fountain. It is basically bubbling. After 5 hours, I retired to a hot bath and a glass of red wine.

A Very Scruffy Moggie

Gypsy is loosing her winter coat already, and fast. The downside is that she is looking particularly scruffy these days. She is not the best self grooming kitty, but she does her best, and her best is all we can ask for.

Veggi Garden 2011

Today I took a stroll over to the veggi garden and had a look inside the gates. Thinking it was too early to see anything exciting, I was pleasantly surprised. The Rhubarb has poked its way up and is starting to come to life. And the Raspberries...oh yes.. the raspberries are all sprouting their leaves. It is very uplifting. Now we can't wait for enough time to pass so we can plant some more.

England Here We Come

Flights are booked, arrangements are made on this end for the critters (thanks Kel), and April 17th we are Air Canada bound to England. Last year our plans were interrupted when the volcano in Iceland spewed out all its ash and canceled flights. This year we are ready! Stay tuned.

Spring 2011

Ok... I am 1 day early, but all the bulb plants are up and almost all are flowering. It is a sign of hope, really. That just around the corner, spring is here and that means summer is just waiting to make its appearance. These little crocuses are lining the driveway outside the gates. We sure can learn a lot from these plants - patience, as they wait all winter for the first warming of the ground; perseverance as they try so hard to poke their heads through the soil, or sometimes snow, and in this case bark nuggets; optimism for sure, because they believe once they poke through the ground the world and climate will be ready for them. I also heard the bard owls hooting this evening and frogs croaking. Perhaps it was the special moon last night. Happy spring!

Strong Yet Sweet

Funny thing about our Jake. I am not sure if dichotomy is the right word to use, but he really is 2 species in one. We have the strong Jake, as we try to capture on our fence post: And then we have the cuddly pup who has just decided to claim the sheepskin for his new stuffy: How do you describe something like this?

A Rainforest Walk

Today it really rained. We donned our wellies and hellies and investigated a new rain forest trail. Chris me and Jake, and the rain.

A Little Sad at Wildflower Hollow

For three years we have been able to keep the herons from the pond with fishing line barriers and have felt quite clever at outsmarting them. Who would have thought we would get a Smew duck in the pond. Chris actually saw it diving in and eating the poor fish. It was a bit too late though when he chased it away. We had about 60 gold fish in there from our original 5, plus 2 koi. We have counted only 4 goldies left and 1 koi. Thank goodness it is out large koi that has been spared. I suspect he is too big for the Smew. I guess we need to net it. I am quite bummed by this, but it is nature I guess. A heron would do far less damage.

Icicles

A recent Arctic front brought sub-normal temperatures this past week with -10c showing on the outdoor thermometer. We had about 2.5 inches of snow yesterday but the warming trend is on, and it is raining now. I couldn't resist the picture of icicles on a rock bluff, with what I think on the left is honey-suckle vine leaves already sprouting in hopes of spring.