Cape Split Hike

Cape Split is a jut of land that extends northwesterly into the Bay of Fundy, home to the highest tides in the world. Twice a day the bay empties and fills with rushing seawater, eroding anything in its path. At the base of the start of the hiking trail that leads to the actual split, is a village known as Scot's Bay. It has a wonderful rock beach with all sorts of stones and minerals to be found; a rockhound's delight. In fact, I have a couple of specimens of amethyst from that site.

The land on which you'll find Cape Split was owned privately until 2002 when the province of Nova Scotia purchased it. The previous owners allowed access to the land by the public for many years and, as a result, a very definitive network of trails has been formed. Probably thousands of hikers use this trail every year and you'll find it listed in every hiking or walking guide of Eastern Canada.
It starts out at a few metres above sea level, taking you through prehistoric sites and old forest that feel almost rain-forest-like as a result of humidity trapped by the dense forest canopy. There are a number of rare or threatened plant species that call this forest home as it rises to 300 feet above sea level. It's not an easy hike for those of us with heat or mobility issues, but it can be done with the proper preparation. And the reward at the end of the trail is a view like none other in the world, if there's no fog.

If.

This is Cape Split from the north at low tide. This aerial pic was taken by Bob Grantham, a geologist affiliated with the Nova Scotia Museum. (Bob also showed me purple sand from an unnamed beach in this province. It's purple because of the high garnet content.)


The Wookie has been talking about doing this trail ever since we met. So we decided that yesterday was the day to do it. We didn't get there until noon, my first mistake. Should have arrived at 8 AM. It is an uphill climb to the end. An 8 kilometre climb to the top of Cape Split. On a shaded and very sheltered (by trees) trail. The humidex was 33, despite the temperature at the start of the trail only being 18. About an hour into our walk I was thinking we should just stop and turn around or they'll only be able to just push me over the cliff at the top to get me home. But the Wookie so rarely asks anything of me, I really wanted to do this. So we carried on.

We were passed by everyone else on the trail that day. Kids with more energy than a 10 megawatt power station, their yuppie parents and even the grandparents passed us going up. About an hour and half into the trek we started to hear navigational buoys in the Minas Basin, on the eastern side of the Cape. On the western side we were getting brief blasts of wind and fog sneaking through a few breaks in the trees. The actual temperature was cooler than at the base, because of the fog, but because the trees were still fairly thick and we were climbing, we were quite warm.

We finally arrived at the top, in a small meadow after 2 hours and 15 minutes. I took in the air, the field, the screaming gulls, and straight ahead the first "split cliff" of the cape. And the fog. I couldn't see the Bay at all. Looking to the east I could see blue sky and some water, but some of the fog on the western side was creeping around the tip of the cape and making a good view impossile.

Here's what I should have been able to see:


I have to interject at this point to describe what may actually have been the highlight of this little walk. In the meadow was a family of 6-8 people sitting in a semi-cicle facing us. One of the young girls in the family was standing in front of the group doing a little dance and singing a song with her back to us. We stood about 20 feet from the group and watched the girl for a few seconds and the entertainer in me just broke out. I was watching her movements, very similar to a chicken dance, so started mimicking her moves, elbows up and out at my side, head bobs, and foot stomps. The observing family members who were already chuckling at the girl burst into full out laughter as I danced with her and slowly crept closer behind her. She finished her performance and turned around as she realized there was someone behind her. We all had a great laugh over that.

Anyway, I plopped myself down in the meadow, the Wookie went off to the other side of the meadow to take pictures and we recovered a little bit. I inspected the local insect life as well. At least the bugs that landed on me or in my arm's reach. I looked down at my leg at one point to see a Daddy Long Legs trying to bite me. I could actually feel his (or her) little palps trying to bite my skin. After 3 or 4 unsuccessful attempts at tasting my leg, he (or she) literally jumped off into the grass and disappeared. All I could do at that was laugh.

I did manage to get close enough to an edge (actually about 5 feet from the edge) to take this pic. Look closely between the crevice and you just make out the beach below, as the tide was coming in. Oh, yeah, the beach is about 300 feet below where I was standing.



The return trek was 2 hours. And despite the good hiking boots I was wearing could feel a couple of blisters forming. Once we got to the bottom and the car, the family we had seen at the top were leaving in their van and we all waved good bye to each other, big grins on the kids' faces as they passed me. The Wookie and I headed back to Wolfville for a bit of supper and then home.

We'll do the hike again, probably in autumn when there's much less fog. Probably about 10 years from this October.

Vacation (Kind of)

I have been going non stop for the past two weeks. Work, personal appearances, remote broadcasts, and fund raising for the upcoming bike tour have occupied my time almost completely. Until this week. The Wookie and I left very early yesterday morning for a drive to Kejimkujik (called Keji for short) National Park. There is an old growth forest that the Wookie really wanted to see so we spent a couple of hours in the car in order to get there early enough for a hike. We traipsed through mixed wood forest and finally got to the hemlocks, some of which are 400 years old.

The Wookie taking a pic:



The beauty of this park is such that I am almost tempted to take up camping. Almost. As much as I love nature and the outdoors, I prefer to sleep in a bed with a pillow and use indoor plumbing with hot and cold running water.

Anyway, we only spent a short time in this park (for now - we will return) as we also wanted to go to the Sea Adjunct of Keji, 40 minutes drive away. The main part of Keji is in the middle of the province; the adjunct is a pacel of protected land right on the ocean. We hiked most of the trail through the park, after having checked in at the entrance and learning that a black bear had been spotted on the beach. And there were seals on the rocks off shore. Cool. So off we went.

We never did see a bear, though two kilometres from the end of the looped trail (and technically two kilometres from the start) we did find bear scat. Having already published pics of bear poop from one of last summer's treks, I declined taking a pic. We saw seals swimming and trying to sneak up on several ducks, including two eiders, and we startled a porcupine, the probable source of animal poop that was quite abundant on the trail and poop I did photograph for Linda:



We came across deer tracks on the beach and wild strawberries, ripe for the picking (and I did eat two). We also came across a small frog pond with at least 12 frogs in and around it. And the flowers! I had never actually seen a pitcher plant in bloom; actually, I don't think I'd ever seen a pitcher plant period. The barrens were covered in them. And the orchids were in bloom as well. I have known that we have orchids in Nova Scotia, but have never seen them. They were the most spectacular candy pink. And the blue flag iris were everywhere. Fields of iris, iris on the beach, iris next to the trail, clinging tenaciously and in various states of bloom. These wonderful flowers reminded me of Herrad, hanging on in the most discouraging of weather, living so close to the violence of the North Atlantic seas just waiting to pop open. Herrad, these flowers just made me think of you, biding your time as your sore heals and you can get out in your chair again:






The weather here has been atrocious; wind, rain, drizzle, fog, and mist and about 5 minutes of sunshine towards the end of the day just to tease us. We left the park and continued on to a resort for the night, where we ran into family friends. Of course, the two of us were absolutely exhausted and eventually collapsed into puddles (after I insisted we go to the marshmallow roast on the beach so I could have a few of those ooey gooey treats).

Today we headed specifically for two other beaches. One is Risser's Beach, a provincial park with a gorgeous sandy beach bookended by jagged rocks. There we found tons of snails, shrimp like creatures, and actual shrimp in the tide pools, and even a couple of live hermit crabs. What a hoot.



I will publish as many pics as I can over the next day or two. The Wookie and I are going to get some biking in this weekend. I'm off Monday as well so the first part of my summer vacation will be complete and the sunshine will return to this part of the world on Tuesday. When I get back to work.

Waterfall Wonderland

We got out to the waterfall yesterday. Absolutely spectacular. We found the right road into the woods, parked the car in the parking lot, and as soon as we stepped out of the car could hear the water. As we walked down to the falls, you could feel the temperature drop by a few degrees. The water, the rocks, and the shade of the old growth pine and fir trees contributed to the chill, but when I saw the falls, I had goosebumps. The Wookie took this picture:


The falls are about 30-40 feet high. And there is another waterfall close to it:


I started out at the top of the main waterfall and took pics, working my way down. Actually, I didn't get too far as the terrain isn't great unless you've got ropes:


My pics really don't do the site justice. Almost everything in the woods was covered with moss and sitting on it was like sitting on a shag carpet. We hiked downriver along the ridge above the flow but failed to find a way down. that will be for the next trip out there. But I did find what, at first, made me think was a gigantic pile of bear poop:


It's actually a chunk of fungus that was knocked off a tree. Thank God, as the size of it would have indicated a grizzly in the vicinity. And we don't have grizzlies in this part of the country. But I had to take a pic of it for Linda at Braincheese.

I love this picture the Wookie took. Kind of a Where's Waldo, but with me instead:


And so concludes our trek to the waterfall. We'll be going back as there is another path that can get you to the bottom of the falls for another perspective. The Wookie wants to go back some morning before sunrise to get the light streaming in as the sun comes up. Um...ok....I'll bring coffee.

S.

A River Runs Through It

Last Sunday was the first time the Wookie and I went for a walk since I banged up my butt. We had received information about a waterfall and so wanted to hike to it. Sadly, we didn't find it, though we had a great 2 and a half hour hike, some of it through untrailed woods along a river. A little bushwhacking was in order. We started close to the mouth of a small river that had a few
really gnarly trees that were like something out of a horror story:

There's a closer look at this tree at the end of this post.

The river runs through a small gully. We saw lots of deer sign and the Wookie claimed he could make out a bear track. It was rather old and faded though, so I'm not sure. Either way we continued on. We found a sac of frogs' eggs. I'm used to the jelly like substance that encases the frogs' eggs in the Wookie's pond, so this one was new to me. It had the appearance and feel - or at least what I imagine the feel to be - of a silicone breast implant. Very cool.

More fiddleheads(can't wait to get a pound at the grocery store or farmer's market):


One of the "relaxing" spots along the river:


As we hiked, the terrain started to get a little rougher, the rocks bigger and more jagged, and we were closing in on the waterfall. According to Google Earth, we were about a half inch from it....lol. We had to turn back in order to get to our Bike Team meeting on time. But after rechecking Google Earth, we now know where exactly to enter the woods to find the waterfall. That's where we're going this morning.
My favourite picture from the day is this one: a cross between Salvidor Dali and Edvard Munsch.


You could almost hear the tree moaning...

Anyway, we're heading out to the waterfall this morning and should have some spectaulr pics later.

Birds, Botany, and My Butt

As usual, click on the pictures for a better look.

The latest hike (yesterday) was about 7k through woods to the power line that runs between Sandy Lake and Marsh Lake. When I was there a week and a half ago there was no sign of nesting osprey. This time we saw two nesting pairs. The birds are still putting the final touches on their summer homes and will lay eggs in the next two weeks. The osprey cam that I featured last summer should be up and running again soon and I'll post the link to it when that happens. The Wookie got better shots than I did but hasn't posted them yet. So mine will have to do.


Along the power line were these transitioning pussy willows:


Following the power line we arrived at the stream (though now a river) that empties Sandy Lake into Marsh Lake. Following the stream into the woods towards Sandy Lake was an option we hadn't enjoyed before so we tramped through the wet trail that was there. On the way we came across a mouse condo:


I saw tons of ferns sprouting from the wet ground. Almost time for fiddleheads! Boiled with butter and salt or a little bit of vinegar....yum:


We managed to traipse around the eastern side of Sandy Lake and got right back to our starting point with no problems. Now I need to get to the western side. I also found an insect pupa. No idea what it is or what it's going to be so a little research first and pics and identification will follow. The fish ladder cleaning was cancelled because of high water and it's been rescheduled for next weekend.

We also attended a skating party yesterday afternoon. I foolishly borrowed someone's skates, got 5 feet on the ice and promptly smashed onto it, butt first. I ended up straining some butt muscles so am walking a little slowly today and it will delay my biking by a few days, but I'll be riding soon enough. I also have to write a note of apology to the rink maintenance people for cracking their ice......

S.

More Hikes

The past week has been rather on the busy side, with work commitments, dinner with friends, and then getting the Wookie at the airport.
Last Wednesday I took a trek to Jack's Lake from the western side. It's completely cleared of ice as this picture can attest. If you look to the opposite side of the water you can see the little beach I normally come to for pics.


Saturday morning I was part of a spring clean up in and around a small part of the Little Sackville River. It didn't take us long to gather 25 bags of garbage plus bigger stuff that won't fit in a garbage bag. I had a young partner, Jennifer, who, though quiet, was excited to be part of the clean up. And as an added bonus we came across another cocoon in a pussy willow tree. It was almost hidden by leaves and grass but I gently pried off a bit of the leaves to reveal the cocoon to Jennifer. I later sent her pics of our discovery and pics of the moth that I believe will emerge.

On a trek today I found a skull in a tree. OK, not a real skull:

On our hike yesterday, the Wookie and I tried to get pictures of a couple of woodpeckers but they were uncooperative. I did spy the cutest little racoon pawprint, though:

But I think the greatest discovery was of the rare, endangered, and dangerous Kung Fu Panda Bear:


S.
PS:
The bike will be coming out of hibernation very soon. I'm hoping that all the hiking is building muscle in my legs in preparation for the long bike rides I'm planning for the spring and summer. And I'm currently researching Parkinson's Disease. It is a very different animal from MS, but it does run in my family. I hope to have something on that in the near future.

Surprise Waterfall

The weather in Nova Scotia is volatile at the best of times. Because we stick out into the ocean, have a run of mountains in the northwest and the northeast, we are affected by a number of systems. First, there's the Arctic cold that comes down in the winter. It is usually tempered by the Gulf Stream, though not always, and January and February can be drastically cold for a maritime province. The Gulf stream and its warmth is affected by the ocean and so we get a lot of precipitation and fog. In the fall, we get the tail end of hurricanes that come up the Eastern Seaboard of the US, sometimes we even get an actual hurricane (like Hurricane Juan about 5 years ago). The summers are generally nice, but frustrating when we get a wet one. People at work wait to find out when I've booked time off and don't take the same weeks as that's when we get the down pours.

There's a saying in Nova Scotia: If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it'll change. On Saturday night we had a thunder and lightening storm the likes of which we don't usually see until August. On Sunday, the northern part of the province, connected physically to the rest of the country, and New Brunswick received almost a foot of snow. On Monday, we experienced snow, snow-showers, sunshine, rain, and snow pellets. Every time I looked out the window there was something different going on. The only way to know if spring is actually coming is by the plant and insect life.

So, Lanette, in answer to your question on my last post, yes, spring is here, judging by the buds, crocus, and the few bugs I've seen. However, even if we do get warmer weather, and an abundance of gnats and black flies, they are often killed off with a "killing frost" in mid May. Their populations rebound of course, as that's how Mother Nature works.

I have been trying to convince my dad to so a little hiking with me and the Wookie. He was ready until he discovered that sneakers aren't appropriate for where I go. I showed him how to use Google maps to see the different hiking trails and access roads I use and with the promise of taking him to Jack's Lake when it's dry and he can do it in sneakers, he has agreed. That's a few more months away. To inspire what he can see on the hikes I snapped a couple of pictures of Marsh Lake yesterday. Sandy Lake is to the south and empties into Marsh Lake which in turn feeds into the Sackville River.




I was standing on what I'll loosely term a road taking those shots. Runoff from the big hill I'd hiked is going down the road and emptying eventually into Marsh Lake. In the summer time it's bone dry on the road with sometimes a tiny trickle on the side.

While standing there, the wind picked up, the clouds moved in, and the snow started again. I couldn't continue on that road in those conditions so I ducked into the woods on the left. Those woods are chock full of cross country running trails and extreme mountain biking trails. If you just duck into the shelter of the trees along the edge you can wait out any weather, secure from the winds and dry from the snow and rain. I was stunned when I ran into the trees. I could hear water pouring from somewhere and it wasn't the stream on the road I heard. Fearing a possible flash flood (not bloody likely), I whipped around towards the source of the sound and discovered:


How cool is that? The tree was kind of scary looking, but despite the onslaught of water, it was standing like a sentinel.



After a few minutes I popped out of the woods, feeling almost like a deer during hunting season. After inspecting more of the road and checking my watch, decided to cut through the woods back to Sandy Lake. I went into the woods at a different place, but very soon ended up on a familiar trail that the Wookie and I had discovered last year. Continuing on I was going up hill. At one point I got off that trail and onto another, going down hill now, and ended up at a dirt road. A road?! It was still snow covered, though melting, but I couldn't figure out what road it was. I knew if I kept on going I'd end up somewhere along Sandy Lake. I sat down to rest, have some water, and try to figure out what road this was. Once I sat down I could see blue water through the trunks of the trees. Aha! That's Sandy Lake, about 100 metres away. I laughed as I realized I knew exactly where I was, continuing through the trees until I ended up at the park on the shores of the lake. I had seen this path from the entrance of the park but had never ventured to travel it. The road I had crossed actually leads to two cabins close to the park that are privately owned.

From the park to my car was short 1 k walk on a gravel path/road, so the final leg of my journey was an easy one. At one point on my jaunt I frightened some large animal in the bush; I saw a flash of black and white run away. A feral cat? A skunk? Glad it decided not to stay. And the wind was causing the larger dead trees to rub against each other making creepy squeaky toy noises that made me wonder if I hadn't been followed by a demonically possessed baby. And of course, I found several signs of deer with tracks and poop. So every time I go on these walks I think of Linda at Braincheese when I see the deer poop.

When I'm out on these treks now, I almost always think of the MS blogging community, snapping pics for Diane and Herrad to enjoy from their homes, looking for little things that I want to put under the microscope for Linda, and interesting birds Joan may not have a chance to see in Delaware. Which reminds me, Joan; the Wookie, on his business trip had a seagull poop on him. That's supposed to be good luck isn't it?

S.

Easter Hike

I went for a great Easter hike yesterday, in the drizzle. There were many great finds including a cocoon of some sort. I debated leaving it on the tree branch, even taking pictures of it on the branch, but decided I needed to know what kind of creature would emerge from it. My thinking is that it's a cecropia moth, like the one I found last June after having just emerged from it's own cocoon, wings still limp. It's safely ensconced in my bug cage on the dining room table and I'm looking forward to this one coming out.


I also came across a couple of birds' nests, each only about 4 feet off the ground and very close to the start of the trail I was walking. I was surprised to find it so close to the start of the trail as it's very close to a major highway as well. It's not too often that you can get an up close look at a birds' nest though so I took advantage of it.


At one point on the trail I came across a small seasonal marsh with a whole lot of old cattails. When I was younger I would take apart the cattail and watch the fluff from inside spread in the wind. I haven't done that for years and this time I broke one in half and felt the fluff with my nose. Sometimes my fingers aren't as sensitive as I would like them to be and I really wanted to feel the fluff. Despite the rain we had for a day and a half and that morning, the inside fluff was bone dry. The picture is a little fuzzy, but I did that on purpose. Look at it really closely for a minute and then close your eyes and imagine bringing it to your nose to feel the softness.


I think the best shot of the day was at the very start of the hike. I rarely see pussy willow trees any more, but came across tons of them in bloom. I was like a kid on Christmas morning, but because it was so drizzly, touching them to feel their softness only got me wet. So I stood back to get the bigger picture, so to speak.


A neighbour on my floor put up an Easter decoration on her door. It's an Easter bag with a bouquet of flowers in it (they're in a vase). On my way back to the car I broke off a small branch of the pussy willow and when I got home I put it in the vase with the flowers. I didn't see her until today and she told me that her brother (long since passed away) used to send her a bunch of pussy willows from home every spring. She was quite overcome yesterday when she saw them.

Funny how things work out, eh?

S.

Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge them and really make out the drops on the pussy willow. And come back tomorrow for today's hike and pics of a surprise waterfall.

Fibre, Fish, and Fields

Here's the wood I took home Sunday from my hike on the land being cleared for an access road. The area was littered with pieces of this stuff, pine, that had tons of these little holes in them:


I took the wood with me on Wednesday to Heffler's Mill in Lower Sackville when I was going to check the fish ladder. One of the guys there told me it was made by one of many wood boring beetles or the spruce bud worm. The beautiful pattern left behind is devastating to the tree of course, if there are enough of the bugs. I put it under the microscope and could detect tiny spider-web like fibres which may be from a spider or other bug, though it may also be fungus. Anyway, up close it was pretty cool.


I also stopped in at the Sackville Rivers office and Steve showed me the salmon fry that had hatched March 23rd. There is a program for school kids, run by volunteers, where classes get a bunch of salmon eggs to keep in a tank in their classroom for the year. Once they hatch and they're big enough they're released back into the Sackville River by the kids. We had a handful of the eggs in the office aquarium and of course I wanted to share my excitement as well:

Once they hatch they just lie around at the bottom of the stream, feeding of the yolk sac (which looks like a fried egg) until that's gone and they have to fend for themselves.

I also paid a visit to the fish ladder. You can't even see the grate that covers the top because of the amount of water right now. We'll be going there to clean it out in May, removing leaves and debris clogging up the underwater grate. It's dirty, wet work, but it's fun and good exercise. And I'll be able to get myself a couple of caddisflies for my aquarium again this year.


You may remember from last May, I had a couple of caddisflies for a noth, until one was eaten by the other and the remaining one disappeared before I could set it free. When I move I'll probably find its dessicated remains under the couch, along with the diving beetle that escaped. Which reminds me, it's almost time to take the two cocoons in the fridge out into the bug cage in the living room. One is a luna moth that I took home as a caterpillar last summer, the other will be a surprise.

I tried to walk along the Bedford Sackville greenway but most of the start of it is still under water. Range Park is quickly draining though and at least most of the football field (and the bleachers) are exposed again:


I took a hike yesterday along a different path and am about to head out shortly for another walk. Pictures later. By the time I get on the bike, I should be able to go for miles and miles....

S.

Force 10 From Navarone...er..Kearney Lake Dam

I went for a short hike today around the Kearney Lake area. The lake crosses under a minor highway , forms a pond, and that has a dam at the end. Normally the water laps gently against the dam. There is an output pipe at the bottom of the opposite side of the dam and water flows at a slow but regular rate into a river that leads to Paper Mill Lake, which in turn has its own dam that empties into 9 Mile River (and used to be used to power the Moirs Paper Mill), which then empties into the Bedford Basin, which is the northern part of the Halifax Harbour. Whew. Anyway, the Kearney Lake dam, about 25 feet high, today was more like Niagra Falls.


I walked to the bottom of the dam and around the pool at the bottom and into the woods a little way. There I discovered another stream, partly formed by runoff and snow melt and partly fed from underground. It was rushing by a felled and decaying tree that made me think of some arboreal Hannibal Lechter victim. I know how to spook myself, that's for sure.


Another tree I came across looked like it should have a for rent sign out front to advertise a two level woodpecker home.
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I also took a short walk close to Sandy Lake and after a trek through the woods determined that I had enough exercise for the day. It poured again last night and this morning and it'll be cloudy and drizzly until Sunday at least, so the boots and jacket are drying out again. When I got home I decided to take a quick peek at the garden. First signs of life are the grape hyacinth:


Second signs of life are the rhubarb buds:


In case you're wondering, the Wookie is away on business. *sigh*

S.

How Dry I Ain't

Since Friday night we have received rain in epic proportions. The local rivers are swollen and overflowing and the woods are as soggy as can be. The rain won't keep me from exploring though.

There is a new construction site I wanted to explore where an access ramp to one of the local highways is being built. They're just at the tree-clearing stage and this is perfect for getting a look at the ground close up. My first discovery was deer poop.



Looking from the top of a cliff of sorts (don't worry Herrad, it wasn't the same sort of cliff I climbed before) you can see the clearing happening on both sides of the highway.



Looking behind me into the woods I could make out a larger body of water. I think this was my main reward for the hike as I had no idea this pond was there. I'm not sure anyone else was aware of it either until the clearing began and it may just be a temporarily as large as it is because of the amount of water that has come down, snow melt, and the effects of clearing. But if you look at the rock cliff on the left side you'll get an idea of what Nova Scotia is made of. That cliff is about 20 feet high and ponds like this are all over the province.



I also took home an interesting rock and a piece of a tree that had a really cool hole in it that I need to find out what creature made it. I'll post pics of those soon as I want to put them both under the microscope.

I took a couple of pics of the Sackville River to show how swollen it is:



The soccer field is completely under water, the bleachers almost covered. In the distance you can see a highway overpass that goes over the Bedford Sackville Trail which winds along the river. There was supposed to be a guided walk along the river yesterday, but most of the walkway is under water.

My boots and jacket are drying out and should be ready for another jaunt by Tuesday. It's going to be wet most of the week apparently, but that's ok as it means less people to contend with while I'm out enjoying nature.

Jam Packed Weekend

We had an exceedingly busy weekend, including two very long hikes. the first one was along a still snow and ice covered trail I bike often and where I saw my first insect of the season. It's just one of those little millers and I actually saw three of them.


Sunday saw us trek around my neighbourhood a couple of times and I took pictures of the old Moirs Mill building I mentioned previously. You can see the remains of the big water intake pipe on the right hand side.


Looking through the intake pipe you can kind of make out the inside of the building, and on the right is a window in the floor which allows you to see the river rushing by underneath.


Walking upriver are the cement pylons that supported the water pipe that came from the river which is fed by Paper Mill Lake. I'm standing on one to take the picture and each one is about 4 feet tall.


And along one of the ponds connected to Paper Mill Lake is a muskrat lodge. Close examination along the shore revealed footprints of something and an access hole in the ice. I'm not sure if the prints are of a muskrat or racoon; I did take a closer shot of the tracks but after searching the internet am unable to discern their source.


We covered about 12 k on the weekend as the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Of course we're paying for it now. The rain began late last night and continued in flood like proportions until this evening when it changed to snow. Halifax got off luckier than northern and eastern parts of the province though as they're getting much more snow. It is spring in Nova Scotia though, so it's to be expected.

We also went to the symphony Saturday night - they were joined by a rock band and the night was The Music of Queen. It was a spectacular show. Sunday afternoon we went to the last game of the season of the Halifax Rainmen and the guys were hot. The team they were playing really were no match so there was a lot of crowd pleasing show-off plays. Of course last night I was asleep almost before my head hit the pillow.

And today was my annual physical check up with my family doc. If it weren't for my brain degenerating as I type I'd be perfectly healthy. Them's the breaks I guess.

S.