Happy Birthday Gram

My grandmother's birthday is today. She would have been ninety-six. Gram died last June in a nursing home. She battled cancer several times throughout her life, and won. She had a heart attack and numerous broken bones. But her indominable spirit always touched everyone she met. Gram, Florence, a.k.a "Mac"(McCann) always had a positive attitude, but she worried about people incessantly. Gram greeted her family and friends with a smile, always. She was one of the most stoic people I've ever known. If she was hurting she really never complained, she just dealt with it as part of life. Arthritis bent her body, and she kept right on trucking like the "energizer bunny". Often she would try to take care of chores, even the hard stuff, rather than ask for help. We would scold her for not calling. I think she got a kick out it, as if she had gotten away with something. Gram was a really bad "fibber" too. She would fib about little fender-bender she got into, despite the evidence on her car's bumpers. She would fib about eating this or that. She would fib about knowing about something. Gram would have been terrible at Texas Hold'em.

We all love Gram even though she is gone. There is barely a day I don't think of her and remember her. She had some funny coloquisms. I wish I could remember them all. Let's see if she got mad at someone, she'd "Lay them out in Lavender". If she saw someone speeding, they were "Hell bent for election". She told me if someone was getting the best of me, I should tell them to "run up a gum tree, and stick there!". That was my favorite.

Busy, busy, busy

It's been a hideously busy week for Anatomy & Physiology II! I had to do a life size drawing of the major blood vessels. It was alittle difficult to trace my own outline. Of course I took artistic license and made myself thin. Not that I'm huge, but you know... I have to write up a case study that I have been working on with four other students. Tomorrow is a huge lab practical exam, so I will have to be able to identify various tissues, blood vessels, formed elements in blood. I have to gather up all the lab sheets, complete with drawings of those pesky cardiac muscle fibers, and maps of both the systemic and pulmonary circulation.

Last week I asked my instructor if she would be interested in having me bring in the deer fetus I collected. She was totally psyched, so I'll bring that into class tomorrow night also. It's been in my freezer. I know what you're thinking. I have other frozen creatures in there too..... If some unwitting person went looking for something to thaw for dinner, they might be alittle surprised! I promise no human remains!

Unfortunately I have not had time to go out exploring in the natural world. But I will soon!

Who Let the Dogs Out?

I went back to the site where the doe had been killed. No more canine activity, which leads me to believe that it was dogs that took the doe down. I don't think coyotes would leave a kill like this. There is still so much left of the carcass. I noticed a lot of bird tracks around the carcass, crows I imagine. I took a hemlock bough and swept over all the footprints, so that I can return tomorrow to see what comes by.

The photo is also from yesterday, these are Fisher tracks.....not Fisher Cat, since Fisher's are not cats, but members of the Mustelidae (Marten)family. I would expect Fisher traffic to the dead deer as well. This picture was taken farther a field, during my hike. Notice the prints show five pads which Fisher have on both their front and hind feet. One night while I was hiking, I surprised a Fisher who was in a tree along the trail. We exchanged pleasantries and I continued on down the trail. Wearing a headlamp often provides these great opportunities on night time hikes. Try it!

Not For the Squeamish

I've not been out on my snowshoes for forever it seems. There has been so much ice lately, I've been relegated to the treadmill for my exercise. But today I got out after a light snowfall yesterday. I was out over three hours, and keeping my eyes open for things to take pictures of. I flushed two owls, found skads of tracks, grouse, fisher, coyote, fox, snowshoe hare. I recently "pecked" tree, demolished by a Pileated Woodpecker. I took photos of the Fisher and Grouse tracks, fearing I wouldn't find anything really interesting. Then not more than about 15o yards up behind my house, I came upon a horrible sight! A freshly killed doe.

Last night on my way home from class, at about 8:30 p.m. three deer crossed the road near my house. I thought it somewhat odd, considering they don't like to travel much through crusty snow. Today it added up. I had noticed so many canid tracks on my way out, many tracks appeared to be of the animal skidding and quickly braking.

So I did the math on the way back when I found the carass. There was plenty of it left, which makes me wonder if dogs were responsible. Tracks of all sizes all around. And blood, like a massacre had taken place. I can only imagine an arterial bleed would cause such a mess. What's worse is I found two fetuses, completely developed and about 5" long. There was a female and a male. The trail of death was evidenced by the very lengthy drag mark from upslope. I found the spot where she fought for her life. She had been chased, and tired through the crusty snow. Finally she fell, and soon after, the arterial blood spatter literally everywhere.
I can only hope that death came swiftly.

I had hoped for an interesting day, I had no idea how interesting it would become.

Hors d'Oeuvres Anyone?

A gourmet hors d'oeuvres you ask? Nay, it's an owl pellet. I found the owl pellet on a recent snow shoe hike. The pellet was found at the base of a tree, near some bird droppings. The bird, an owl. Owls regurgitate undigestable animal tissues. Fur, bones, etc. is burped back up from the bird's crop, in the shape of a ball. Kind of like a hairball my cat might "upchuck". This pellet is a smaller one, but it clearly contained gray fur, and bone pieces. If I were to break into it, I might find some teeth. Most likely this pellet used to be a mouse! Yum

Nice day for a ride

It was actually alittle cooler than I thought, but I did have a nice bike ride nonetheless. I replaced my summer tires, with a more aggressive tire before I headed out. I don't have studded tires, but they are available, or easy to make.

I took a snowmobile trail that is less popular. Those trails are best because the trail has hardened up. If a sled has gone by recently, the snow is churned up and soft, making the ride more difficult. I rode to one of my many favorite overlooks. The view from there is spectacular to the west. You can see over to Vermont, and many of the ski areas. I didn't hang around long though, my toes were starting to get cold. Next time I will be sure and put those disposable toe warmers in my bike shoes. I was happy to find that there wasn't much ice on the trail. Hitting ice on a bicycle is very unpleasant. Falling is swift, and painful. Being gravity-challenged, I will walk the bike along an icy trail, before I'lll try to ride it. After 40 yrs, ya don't take as many chances. I didn't escape this ride without a wipeout, but it was a none-issue.

I noticed that all the snowshoeing I've done has really helped my stamina for bike riding. I never had to stop for a breather, so I was psyched. I did however have to stop to get the ice out of my cleats. The ice made it impossible to "clip-in" to the pedals. I'm thinking about carrying a little can of de-icer on these rides.

I didn't see any snowmobiles until the very end of my ride. By then I was pedaling up County Rd. toward home. The two sleds I saw were on a private trail, and had just come up from Fay Falls. I wondered where all the snowmobilers were, it was certainly a great day for that as well.

Hanging out

Yesterday while working my new part time job at the animal shelter, I took Bella the German Shepherd out for her "constitutional". The door closed behind me, and guess what? Locked, and I haven't a key for that door. I had heard that everyone who works there has done this very same thing. The only resolution, climb the chainlink fence. It's about 8' tall. When I got to the top, something caught my pants. It actually tore my pants, and I was hanging upside down! Mind you it was very cold yesterday. I hoped no one would spot me there, dangling. Bella sat and watched me. Finally I was able to release myself from the fence, and get to the other side. I thought the situation would have made a good video clip for "World's Funniest Videos". I also decided I wouldn't bother travelling to Japan for a try at "Ninja Warrior".

Last night, I went for a beautiful but bitterly cold walk in the moonlight. The moon was full, and the landscape became a painting of contrasts in blue/black and shades of gray. The silence, the crispness of the air, made me wonder if this might be what it's like in the far north. I heard not a sound, save a dry leaf blowing in the wind.

Snow Bunting

Last night at about 7:30 p.m., I was out on my snowshoes. I was near the end of my sojourn, crossing the top of a hill/pasture. I was wearing a headlamp. Suddenly four birds flew up from the snow. I wondered why they were in the snow, out in the open, easy targets for predators.
With no clue, I fired off an email to my old Ornithology teacher, Meade Cadot. He told me the birds were likely Snow Buntings. I was excited to have seen them, having never seen them before! The birds are about the size of Robins, and are mostly white in winter. Meade told me there were Snow Bunting sightings during the annual Christmas bird count.

Crystal Spring

Check out this 200 hundred year old spring. In the summer months you can't even see this unique cistern because it's covered with plants. On the front is carved "Crystal Springs 1808".
I imagine people and animals used this spring on there way to/from the village of Walpole, NH.
To look inside the spring now, you are not inclined to sip. The spring is full of leaves and sediment, but one has to wonder how deep it is. I also wonder, if it were cleaned out, would it be potable?

This photo was taken during a perfect sunset last week. Sunsets in winter have such a painterly array of color.

Snow Bugs

After voting my choice for our next president, I decided to try the xc skiis out. Temperatures were into the fifties, with bright sun. Lovely spring-like conditions. I noticed many, many insects on the snow surface; spiders, a cricket, and this little creature. He measured no more that probably one centimeter long. What will become of these early risers?

I decided shortly into my adventure that I really don't like the skiis for exploring. My boots offer zero ankle support, and I had very little control of the skiis on the downhills. The snow was wet, and slushy in spots. I stuck to the snowmobile trails of the Hooper Hill Hopper snowmobile club. I'm afraid that the trails will be mostly mud after the next two days of forecasted rain. At times during my walk, I felt blasts of seemingly tropical warmth. I loved it.

The sunset this evening was a spectacular orangey/pink. The perfect ending to a perfect day.
If you haven't voted....you have ten minutes!!! Hurry

The Walpole Guide

Thursday I took my high school art teacher out for a snowshoe hike on one of my favorite trails.
The sun was pouring through the white pines, creating a fairy tale scene. We made our way to the cabin I've mentioned in an earlier blog. She had never been there. She commented that I looked like a Maine Guide standing by the cabin.

It surely looked like something you might find in the Whites. The weather that day was frigid, and a biting wind kept us moving right along.

Fay Falls

The other day on one of my more adventurous snowshoe hikes, I made my way along the ridge of "Sheep Hill". I traveled west to Fay Falls. There are some awesome falls that were created by huge glacial erradics. The large boulders also create some great caves.
I had hoped to find a hibernating bear, but no such luck. I did find a den which had been inhabited by a porcupine. There were quills and skat around. The falls themselves were covered by ice and snow. The video clip can't do this place justice.

Winter fog

This morning I grabbed my camera on my way out to run errands. You just never know when you'll get a good photo-opp. I was passing a beaver pond on my road, and noticed this serene winter scene. The sun was bright, and a fog had settled on the ice covered pond.
I'm not sure the photo really does it justice. Experiencing the spot made me take pause and thank God for putting me there at that moment.

The Day After

This picture is of my sister and me. You know the guy in the middle. I really didn't know what to make of him.
I'm guessing I was around four years old at the time.

Christmas dinner was at my house this year. We remembered my grandmother, Florence who passed in June of this year at the age of ninety-five. Christmas was one of her favorite times because she loved having her family all around. Though she wasn't there physically, I definitely knew she was with us.

I tried to get folks to sing carols with me, while I played my guitar. Trouble is I hadn't practiced, so the carol idea fell by the wayside :-) All in all, Christmas was a success. How could it be otherwise?

It's Just a Crush

Last Wednesday night, I had the misfortune of crashing my truck. I didn't think the roads were slippery, they hadn't been until I reached Surry. Surry, NH has a reputation for not maintaining the roads very well, and I shouldn't have guessed. Anyway, there was just enough greasy slush on the road to bring me in to a fishtailing skid. When I landed, I had slammed into some trees. I banged my head on the driver's side window, and bruised my legs on the steering wheel. I think perhaps I pulled a muscle in my lumbar region too as it has been achy ever since.

Who knows when the truck will be fixed, there was a problem with my auto insurance. Apparently when I bought the truck last February it was never processed. I have been paying for car insurance on a car I don't have anymore. The insurance company is investigating and will determine if they will be helping me repair the truck. Meanwhile, I'm driving my dad's plush Blazer. It's kind of a gas hog, but a nice ride nonetheless.

With all the rain we're due to get today, hopefully alot of the snow will melt. My roof is leaking despite raking the snow off, so I am definitely anxious for the rest of the snow to disappear.

On a more cheerful note, Christmas is nearly upon us. Merry Christmas one and all!

The Life of Merle

We've had a pretty good dump of snow the last couple of days. I ventured out on my snowshoes Saturday. It was sooooo cold, I stayed out there for two hours. Today it warmed up a bit, and I have about 9" of snow everywhere. Sleet came down on occasion. I stayed inside most of the day, running on my treadmill, watching TV, studying for my A & P final, and watching Merle basking in the firelight. She hadn't a care in the world, Oh the life of a cat.

The First Snow

The first real snowstorm hit Sunday night and into Monday. It has been a beautiful sight for sure. I decided to give up my wicked cool Christmas job at UPS. The thought of pushing a couple hundred pounds of packages through the snow using a two wheeled dolly wasn't worth $9.50/hr. I went hunting instead. For several hours I tracked four deer but never saw them. I suspect they could hear my heavy breathing! I was on snowshoes, and struggling. I was soaked with sweat but warm. I had prepared by wearing my "under armor" then a layer of wool. Works every time. I didn't see the deer, but I got a great workout, and found the biggest White Birch I've ever seen. I am going to estimate it to be at least 7' around. Two people would have a hard time stretching their arms around it. I may go back and take a picture of it, while my tracks are still there.

As I made my way out of the woods, I heard a shot ring out from the other side of the brook where I had been! Only one shot. I wondered if that hunter was successful, or whether he just had an itchy trigger finger.

This photo is of my neighbor's apple tree. There were deer tracks beneath it. The tree is only a few feet from the road. I imagined this deer could be that four pointer that has been eluding me! Just imagine what would happen if he got a hold of all these apple? He'd be so drunk! Then I might stand a chance of getting him. Perhaps I should shake the tree?

Winter Is Upon Us

This just in! I just got this photo from my Mt Monadnock connection, Jim Bacon. He lives just above the foot of Mt Monadnock, more like the ankle. Anyway, snow fell there from daybreak until 10:00 or so. I had some brief spits of snow in Walpole. I am betting on a white Thanksgiving, and absolutely a white Christmas.

Just more photos of "Tobacco Rd." to the Pinnacle

Trust me, when I saw these places I did NOT get out of the truck! I could just imagine all the booby traps. I think these folks don't like tourists come through their neighborhood to hike. The good news is, there is another trailhead south of here!
In case you can't read the sign, it says, "Vermont Chernobyl Evacuation Zone". These signs were all over the place.

Scary Road to a Nice Trail

Today I bought a book on Vermont trails. So I decided to "take a hike" in nearby Westminster West. It took me nearly an hour to find the road I needed to take to reach another road/trail to the trailhead. The journey took me along a dirt road, and then to a not so great logging road, where people were living in squalor! It was like driving somewhere through a scene in the movie, "Deliverence". There were weird stenciled signs warning of Chernobyl Vermont, and Evacuation Zone. The photo with the little piece of heaven you see, was littered with everything under the sun. There was even a scarecrow dressed up in gas mask, and radiation warning signs. I got the feeling that either the person who lives in "there" was really eccentric, or there was a psychopath in there. It was creepy. I passed travel trailers, that appear to be inhabited. Mind you, I didn't see any electrical wires overhead, no telephone poles. At the end of the road, there is a more normal looking house, also with no electricity! I quickly backed out of this guys' driveway and continued down the road a little further, bearing left. Ah, finally the trailhead to "The Pinnacle". By the time I found this place, it was too late to do any decent exploring/hiking, but at least I know how to get there. I did have the benefit of a beautiful sunset. The trailhead faces west, and is mostly upland, hardwood forest with lots and lots of ledgy granite. I walked down "Paul's Ledges" trail for about twenty minutes, then walked back because I didn't want to be out there in Deliverence.....alone, .....in the dark....no worries, I was armed as usual. I'll go back there another day, earlier.