Northern Perspectives

2012-02-20T10:28:00.001-05:00

A beautiful winter day yesterday - perfect for a bonfire by the lake and for soaking up a few ... rays.

2012-02-19T11:45:00.000-05:00

The Ice Marshal walking across Trout Lake.

2012-02-18T09:45:00.000-05:00

Deer antlers as shed door handles.

2012-02-17T07:38:00.002-05:00

The February sun is getting stronger and is melting the snow and ice from a lot of bedrock surfaces.

2012-02-16T08:04:00.002-05:00

haha, nice doggy, good boy Tembo. This is a massive mastif, a South African Boerboel. This fella weighs over 175 pounds!!! Not the kind of dog door to door folks want to be messin' with!

2012-02-15T08:01:00.002-05:00

No, this isn't Alberta. The poplars are in a stand out back of our place in North Bay - it's a real diverse bush with over a dozen species of trees, some incredibly large - white pine, red pine, tamarack, cedar, white spruce, hemlock, black spruce, balsalm fir, white birch, yellow birch, silver birch, red oak, sugar maple, silver maple, alder, ash ....

2012-02-14T07:24:00.001-05:00

Sometimes black and white photos in winter work better than colour ones. I took this yesterday back in the hills between our place and Quebec.

2012-02-13T08:36:00.000-05:00

Marry this sign with a monster dog, and you'd be all set.

2012-02-12T11:04:00.002-05:00

We were out in the Nipissing Village area last evening at a snowshoe party. We stopped for a break on a frozen pond, and Steve was framed nicely in a stand of old tree roots.

2012-02-11T10:44:00.001-05:00

Sunset at Playa Guiones, Nosara, Costa Rica,,, ahhhhhhhh ....

2012-02-08T17:00:00.001-05:00

I re-discovered this photo among my stash of photos. This is the Nipissing University Hockey Team from 1974-1975. Aside from me in the photo, anyone recognize anyone?

2012-02-08T09:14:00.001-05:00

I'd like to be done with winter - here's a look back at a winter trip a few years ago to Costa Rica. This is sunset at Nosara.

2012-02-07T07:17:00.001-05:00

Wouldn't it be nice to be somewhere warm right now, like, say, Cienfuegos in Southern Cuba?!!

2012-02-06T08:51:00.000-05:00

And no, we don't use the solar power collector to keep the wood pile warm and less snow covered.

2012-02-05T10:31:00.000-05:00

Early February sunrise on the lake - it won't be long until the sun travels further to the east (left), and we won't see it until a couple of hours after sunrise.

2012-02-04T08:20:00.002-05:00

This is the 200th anniversary of The War of 1812. Here is the inside of Fort George, Niagara-on-the-Lake, command center for the British and Canadians for the war. General I. Brock commanded from here, and he died in the fall of 1812 nearby in the Battle of Queenston Heights. He was buried in this fort.

2012-02-03T08:17:00.003-05:00

The De Luxe Taxi stand, just off Main Street in an alley way. It really hasn't changed much in the past 30 years. It looks pretty much the same now as what it looked like when you stumbled out of the Belmont Hotel into the same alley way.

2012-02-01T15:45:00.001-05:00

With the winter we've been having, I doubt these horse blankets have been getting much use.

2012-01-29T09:31:00.002-05:00

Winter - 'nuf said.

2012-01-28T10:14:00.004-05:00

This is our garden shed which we commonly refer to as "Arkansas.' This is where we sit in the afternoon sun from mid-Feb. to May and Sept. to mid-Nov. On sunny days with the temperature between -5C and +10C, the sitting area on the deck is extremely warm. It's also nice having the house stereo blasting through the speakers under the roof eaves.

2012-01-26T16:23:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago there was a major fire on Main Street. Here is what the old building looks like today. I'm hoping, but not holding my breath, that the building can be saved.

2012-01-25T08:23:00.000-05:00

More examples of waiting around our place.

2012-01-24T06:49:00.000-05:00

Ball hockey nets waiting for next year already.

2012-01-22T09:20:00.000-05:00

Serene Buddha, even in winter.

2012-01-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

The stump by the lake has solar lights that brighten up the shore a bit at night.

2012-01-20T07:31:00.000-05:00

There must be a whole lot of heat leaving this house through the roof to create all these icicles.

2012-01-19T08:04:00.001-05:00

At the end of our "dead end" road is this little old seasonal cottage. It sits empty all winter, and its owners spend a month or two at in the summer - very quiet and relaxing.

2012-01-18T07:16:00.002-05:00

Recently my pal Mike (Silverpixel - http://mdemoree.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2012-01-11T16:56:00-05:00) posted a photo with an oak tree that still retained its leaves in the winter. Here's a young oak tree in the bush with most of its leaves, even after heavy snow, freezing rain and blizzards.

2012-01-17T15:49:00.001-05:00

Sunny and I just got back from a walk in the blizzard - we're due for 15-20cm of the stuff.

2012-01-15T17:36:00.002-05:00

Sunny and I went for another frigid walk in the bush this afternoon. It was quite nice; although it was cold, I did over-dress somewhat. The snow was knee deep as we plowed through the untrodden paths.

The snow hangs heavy in the trees, and it makes the normally clear paths a bit more closed in.

Not sure what type of critter lives here, maybe a partridge?

Where the sun can get through, no matter how cold, it can warm the rocks enough that snow and ice can't form.

2012-01-15T09:58:00.001-05:00

After I got off the frigid lake, I continued my walk through the bush. Out of the wind, it felt much warmer, even though it was still minus twenty-something.

2012-01-14T16:08:00.001-05:00

Went for a very short frigid walk out on to the ice this afternoon. The windchill was vicious!!

2012-01-14T09:34:00.001-05:00

-26C this morning on the lake without windchill - COLD!! It will be a while before we're haulin' the canoe out for a spin on the lake, unless we literally spin it on the ice.

2012-01-12T13:08:00.002-05:00

Got a bit carried away with the filters here, but what the heck. It will be a while before the chairs are enjoyed on the dock over the water.

2012-01-11T17:31:00.001-05:00

Fun with panoramas - the view from our beach this afternoon.

2012-01-09T16:49:00.002-05:00

They finally opened Main Street in front of the site of last week's fire at the Cochrane Building. As I drove by the site this afternoon, I snapped a photo. I'll have to take the time to stop and check it out soon as it's a real mess.

2012-01-07T09:41:00.001-05:00

Another quality business on North Bay's Main Street. The new book selection is quite good.

2012-01-06T08:51:00.002-05:00

The Chicago Restaurant on Main Street, North Bay, across the street and 100m west of the fire at the Cochrane Building.

2012-01-05T16:55:00.000-05:00

This is Oak Street, North Bay. These buildings face Lake Nipissing.

2012-01-04T14:14:00.002-05:00

North Bay's Main Street lost another "heritage" building last night due to fire. Over the past few decades there have been a number of old buildings that have gone up in flames. This one, the Cochrane Building built in 1911, also lost 2 great vibrant businesses in the fire - Vested Interest Trading and Lefebvres.

2012-01-03T12:58:00.000-05:00

New Year's Eve 2011

2012-01-02T09:31:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!!!
Here's a New Year's Day photo of the ice and open water in front of our place. With all the cold weather that's around the corner starting tomorrow, the lake should freeze over soon.

2011-12-30T10:42:00.001-05:00

Yesterday morning was very clear and cold (-26C). It sure made for spectacular photo ops, though.

2011-12-27T13:46:00.000-05:00

Post annual Boxing Day road hockey photo. We won again!

2011-12-24T09:18:00.000-05:00

2011-12-23T09:21:00.002-05:00

"The Greatest Snow on Earth?" I don't think so, at least not yet, not by a long shot. There's barely a skiff of snow anywhere; although, it is -19C this morning under a clear cold blue sky.

2011-12-22T09:10:00.001-05:00

Not sure how this cap ended up at the shoreline frozen in the ice, but it looks like it will be there until the spring thaw. By the way, what emblem is on the cap? The Avalanche?

2011-12-21T15:19:00.000-05:00

One Mile Bay frozen over. The main lake is still ice free.

2011-12-20T09:11:00.000-05:00

Nice scarecrow in downtown Arden, ON.

2011-12-19T14:47:00.003-05:00

I was in Arden, ON, for a couple of hours on Sat. to pay respects at a friend's funeral. Arden is a tiny town south of Perth, off Highway 7 in "nowhere land." It seems to be a town that will be close to ghost town status in 10 years or so. It currently has 2 churches, a community hall and a Legion. The Legion doubles, a tiny bit, as a small small convenience store. The houses are dilapitated, and the ones for sale will probably never sell. I wonder how many other little towns there are like this that are succumbing to the move to urbanize.

2011-12-14T09:01:00.000-05:00

Happy Holidays sign from our local pub on the lake, The Portage.

2011-12-11T11:31:00.001-05:00

Went for a hike up in the bush yesterday with the Ice Marshal and our hounds- a great trek! Here Sunny perches over a ravine looking down a hydro line.

2011-12-10T09:31:00.001-05:00

The Portage dock on One Mile Bay. The rest of the dock is made of floating sections, and they were removed in October.

2011-12-09T14:39:00.000-05:00

Here's another photo from yesterday morning taken on One Mile Bay.

2011-12-08T16:47:00.000-05:00

I took this photo this morning as I was looking down towards the mouth of One Mile Bay.

2011-12-05T12:14:00.001-05:00

Early morning photo looking down One Mile Bay.

2011-12-04T13:50:00.001-05:00

It's been a rainy day here at the lake. This is one of 2 young deer that were out above our place checking out the salt at the edge of the road.

2011-12-01T10:45:00.000-05:00

We had our first snowfall of the season yesterday. Here's the view over the lake from the hot tub this morning.

2011-11-28T07:51:00.001-05:00

Replaced all the old style Christmas lights at the top of the driveway with LEDs. They'll look more festive this week when the snow starts. It sure helps at night, though, as it's pretty dark out here.

2011-11-27T14:14:00.001-05:00

This is what the lake looked like a few days ago before the rain moved in. It'll probably be a while before we see the sunshine as wet weather and snow are moving into the region.

2011-11-26T09:58:00.000-05:00

Great tree fort in the bush on a hill overlooking Trout Lake towards the south.

2011-11-25T08:01:00.000-05:00

Relaxin' in the late afternoon autumn sun.

2011-11-24T10:26:00.000-05:00

The off shore weeds in the lake sure do look golden in the late afternoon sun!

2011-11-23T13:42:00.001-05:00

Here's a view from today looking eastward down Trout Lake from Ingwerson's beach. What a beauty day!

2011-11-22T06:32:00.001-05:00

Budha on a stump - more yard "art" at our place.

2011-11-20T15:49:00.001-05:00

Here's another example of the "yard art" we have all around the compound. This is on the wall of the garden shed.

2011-11-17T17:17:00.001-05:00

Ah, summer time!! It sure beats the crap out of the weather and season we're just entering. Hola, los tres amigos!

2011-11-15T07:17:00.000-05:00

Funky Fungi, or is that Funki Fungi?

2011-11-14T18:42:00.001-05:00

It may well be the middle of November, and by all rights here in the mid-north it's quite a ways past the plant growing season. However, these green shoots in the leaf litter didn't get the memo. They are green and vibrant. I wonder how they'll do after days of steady frost.

2011-11-13T09:16:00.000-05:00

Looking east from "the compound."

2011-11-12T10:22:00.003-05:00

This is the entrance to our college that is not shared with Nipissing University, in other words the only entrance to our college that is exclusively our own. It, unfortunately, reflects the sad state of affairs inside the doors.

2011-11-11T09:09:00.001-05:00

This is one of the path ways through the bush in our "back yard." A couple of hours of leaf blowing and some pruning is all the maintenance required.

2011-11-10T07:38:00.000-05:00

Gourds or squash? They look like monkey bums to me.

2011-11-08T07:23:00.001-05:00

Nov. 8, 2011, 7:00am - Sunrise photo this morning from the deck.

2011-11-06T17:41:00.003-05:00

FIRST, and I really hope some techs and officials from bloger are reading this - sometimes this blogger program is a piece of CRAP!!! I tried 4 times to post these 5 pictures in the correct order, and each time the program decided the order the photos would appear, no rhyme or reason. The order I wanted was in the same order the photos were taken - BS if you ask me.
Anyway, it was a beautiful day, and I finally put the Fortuitous to bed, tarped her up for the winter while Sunny relaxed on the picnic table. Afterwards we went for a great hike in the bush.

2011-11-05T12:33:00.001-04:00

Grandson Cody, Andrew and Gemma were cooking up a storm yesterday and today in our kitchen.

2011-11-04T08:07:00.000-04:00

Not a lot of good came out of this late night work shop encounter, except a whole lot of fun!

2011-11-03T08:18:00.000-04:00

Last Friday, the Ice Marshall, Mike and I hiked up the end of Viceroy Road (my street), and we toasted the day and the view over Trout Lake.

2011-11-02T12:26:00.000-04:00

Weathering barn board on Mr. P.'s garden shed.

2011-10-31T08:03:00.000-04:00

Looking north across Trout Lake from Mr. P.'s spread.

2011-10-30T08:32:00.001-04:00

I just took this at 8:25am from our lower deck, just after sunrise. The heat of the lake is leaving in the form of mist.

2011-10-29T13:42:00.000-04:00

Looking west down Main Street at noon hour yesterday.

2011-10-27T11:26:00.001-04:00

We had a herd of deer visit us this morning. There were 5 in total - 4 in the photo and 1 ambled up the driveway.

2011-10-24T08:15:00.001-04:00

On Friday we took the Fortuitous out of the water for the 2011 season. It's always more fun doing the opposite in the spring!

2011-10-23T16:53:00.003-04:00

Here I am yesterday after our dock extraction. We took out 5 docks, a new record - take that Tim Horton's!
The Ice Marshall and Killer mug it up, pretending they have the last beer after dock #2 removal.

2011-10-22T08:47:00.001-04:00

It's a beautiful fall day - and it's dock removal day here at the lake. First we take out Franklin's dock, then Walpole's, then ours and finally the Simmons' dock. After all that we'll need a beverage or two.

2011-10-21T20:15:00.001-04:00

Last day of 2011 with the Fortuitous in the water. Summer is over as today we took the Foruitous off the lake. There's a lot of cold and snow between now and when we launch her again.

2011-10-19T17:00:00.001-04:00

The view from the hot tub a little while ago as I toasted myself with a Dortmunder beer at the exact moment I turned a year older.

2011-10-18T13:41:00.000-04:00

Bud Light photo op from a couple weeks back when the trees still had leaves on them.

2011-10-17T07:11:00.000-04:00

Lake weeds - these will be dying off soon as the lake temperature plummets.

2011-10-16T08:23:00.001-04:00

Sunny and Marsha relax on the Fortuitous a week or so before Marsha's "big break."

2011-10-15T10:32:00.000-04:00

Marsha in "Command Central."

2011-10-14T10:51:00.000-04:00

Very nice stone work on Nipissing University's Monastery wall.

2011-10-13T08:44:00.000-04:00

From our Trout Laker Shaker #3 on Oct. 1, Peter Cliche on dobro.

2011-10-12T09:37:00.003-04:00

Here we are on Monday on "Mystery Bay" just off the Butcher's and G.A.W.D.'s compounds looking north towards the flat hill on Four Mile Bay. What a FABULOUS weekend, at least as far as the weather was concerned. Marsha would agree with the weather, but her broken ankle and subsequent repair surgery sure put a damper on things for her.

2011-10-10T08:40:00.000-04:00

I took this photo this morning, just after sunrise, not very long ago, actually.

2011-10-08T09:27:00.002-04:00

The "Butcher" had boat problems this week, so we had to tow him down the lake for repairs and an end to his boating season.

Sunny maintains watch as we tow the Butcher's boat down the lake yesterday afternoon. It was a fabulous day to be on the lake - T-shirt, shorts, flip flops, +25c, in fact so warm we went topless!

2011-10-07T08:08:00.003-04:00

Here we are on the "viewing cliff" at the west end of the flat hill on Four Mile Bay of Trout Lake. The view is WSW looking over first, Four Mile Bay; second, One Mile Bay; third, Delany Bay - all part of Trout Lake; fourth the city of North Bay; fifth, Lake Nipissing; sixth, the Manitou Islands; seventh, The Goose Islands (hills on the lake); and eighth, the far shore of Lake Nipissing and the start of the French River - all essentially the Samuel de Champlain fur traders' route of the 1600s. Oh yeah, and a few fall colours as well.

2011-10-06T09:21:00.001-04:00

Look up, look waayy up ... on our Sunday hike up the flat hill to the high cliff with a view to the French River, we went through an amazing grove of old mature maple trees. These giants are HUGE - almost 1 meter in diameter and +/- 30 metres tall!

2011-10-05T06:53:00.003-04:00

Another Monastery pond reflection.

Here are a few more fall colour photos from a week or so ago. The colours are starting to reach their max, with the winds starting to knock the leaves off the trees. Still lots of green in the forest; though, the green leaves are mainly poplar, aspen and birch - they''ll be yellow soon.