OK, maybe I’m jumping the gun a bit but we have arrived at Camp for the 2012 season! Let the madness begin. We arrived Tuesday evening. Our trip up was uneventful and spot-on for time. Camp survived winter like a trooper. We have been very fortunate every year; so much could happen during the “down” months, but we have experienced nothing major (knocking on wood).
Getting ready to make our annual trek proved more difficult that we had planned. I ended up with a whopping case of pneumonia and am still recovering. You may recall that I was teaching full-time as well, and this stuff knocked me for a loop. I had to miss three days of teaching due to high fevers (102-103). I didn’t care about anything except trying to sleep. I finally requested a chest x-ray and we discovered the pneumonia. Ugh. I don’t wish that on my worst enemy. It really slowed me down as far as packing, organizing, etc. Anyway, I’m slowly mending though still pretty tired.
Now that we’re here there’s plenty to do. Our new guy, Kevin, should arrive next weekend. We’re excited to meet him and have you meet him as well. I’ll have more info on him next weekend, including a photo.
I’ve been getting our house in order. The weather’s been a bit chilly–though sunny–so I’ve kept to the house more. Gruper had been keeping a low fire going but as of yesterday we’re going commando. Temps are coming up and we shouldn’t need to burn anymore. Besides, as the work load increases in the coming days we should be sweating non-stop;)
Gruper’s been getting things ready for the Tall Pines Launderette:
I’ve ordered the washer and dryer which should be delivered in early May.
I took my first real walkabout yesterday. It was a lovely day and I needed to get outside and breathe some fresh air. I was disappointed to find no poop–not one pile of anyone’s. I saw a grouse but couldn’t get its picture. I found one set of deer tracks in the driveway,
went beachcombing,
admired last fall’s new roofs,
checked my crops,
wondered who lives here,
and examined last year’s moose head that I saved from a ditch.
I’ll chisel out the teeth and give them as gifts throughout the season.
Ice went out in early, early April. Here’s a nice look at the Lake:
See our garage door on the far right? I helped Gruper undo that today. It requires taking off the plastic and stripping out a bunch of expandable(ible?) insulation. We were able to open up the basement, releasing the golf carts, 4-wheeler, and various other toys. Doing this means that we believe temps won’t drop below freezing again until fall (pray for us).
We did have one cute-but-naughty visitor this week. Gruper opened our door and a pine martin startled him. I always think about Bob Hartter telling me a monkey was in a tree outside their cabin:) He’s smaller and lighter in color than our previous martin, but he’s just as naughty! I had to wait patiently with the camera, shutting the door, etc. (’cause he’s so smart) but I got a few photos. WordPress is acting odd, so I’ll sign off now. I can’t get it to take anything else after these photos. See you next week (promise):)
Tall Pines Camp Blog 