One Dam Fine Hike

The Ladies from Oakhurst Farm are here again for their Gal's Getaway.  We look forward to seeing them every autumn.  They get here early, and take advantage of some outstanding shopping opportunities in Huntsville and the local craft stores.  Jim, at the Oxtongue Craft Cabin always asks which weekend they are coming, so he can be sure to open early. He's on a first name basis with most of them now!

Saturday we go for a long Nature Hike. The weather this year was perfect. While there was a skiff of snow, it was a great temperature for hiking.  This year we headed up to Damalot, our collection of Beaver Dams.

On the way there, we stopped at the Hidden Lake, to check out pitcher plants  (eliciting the best line ever: "How will we recognize a pitcher plant?" "They are the ones with a frame around them.")  We then contemplating the mirror surface of the bog and wondered if it's true old Hyram Wilder's moonshine still is down there, somewhere.

Some deer thought about coming along with us, but when they saw Taffy, they changed their minds.

We played in the sandpit  -- it's all about staying in balance, and on your heels! (get those 'hocks' engaged!)

Beaver has been hard at it. He has spent much of the summer shoring up and putting the finishing touches on Dam #5, which is conveniently located very close to our ski/hiking trail.  We were able to admire the dam, and marvel at the 'canals' he has cut into the banks to move branches and logs, as well as his Skidding Path nicely worn in from the dragging of materials across the trail.

You can see how much water is being held back by this dam, and how the creek below has been choked off to just a trickle. A trickle which Taffy felt needed close inspection!  Why would we want a Polar Bear instead of a Beaver for our national animal? Look what Beaver has created, instead of just hanging out on a dwindling ice floe hoping for a seal to surface. We're impressed.

The hike took us about 2 hours, and worked up a great appetite for the lunch that was waiting back at the Lodge at Bondi.  It's always lovely to be out on our trail network -- the variety of terrain and eco-systems keeps it interesting, every step of the way!

Bondi Babes get Their Groove On

The theme for the Oakhurst Girls' Getaway Weekend this year was the '80s. The clothes were amazing -- we don't need to take you back there, through the headbands, punky hairdos, leg warmers, shoulder pads, but the Babes had it all happening! Hopefully they'll send us some photos!

Every year, we go for a long hike in the woods. This year the weather was clear and crisp, and we meandered past the solar array, through the cross country course, sugar bush and hemlock forest. We found a LOT of trees with bearclaw marks on them.

One hemlock that had been struck by lightning and almost exploded. Fungus, mushrooms, puffballs were all still out there, despite the lateness of the season. The deer were all on the lawn, however -- we didn't see any in the bush.

We did find some very endearing icicles, clinging to the northern mossy slope of the rocks. It's always beautiful in the woods, no matter what the season, and there is always something unusual, extraordinary and worthwhile to be found out there.

We look forward to their visit every year. It lets them take a breath after a long season of competition and training with their horses at Oakhurst Farm, before we all move into the hectic Christmas season.

Bondi Babes get their groove back on!

The Bondi Babes are back. The girls come over in November, from Oakhurst Farm, near Ashton. Oakhurst is one of Ontario's premiere eventing stables, and Ruth and Joan like to have this weekend to step away from all of that and have a Girls' Getaway.

Lots of games, challenges, chilling and good food is on the program. They vary the experience every year. This year Emilie, our on-call masseuse, set up in the library on Saturday to ensure those who arrived a little stressed soon were converted into being very mellow.

A nature hike is always on the agenda -- and this year we had lovely weather, with the sun breaking through, not very cold, and not too wet. The artists in the crowd - which was most of them - were quite taken with the abundance of the Artist's Fungus, and since there was so much in the forest, we brought home several. Nancy is looking forward to seeing what gets created on these!

There was a lot of lichen on display, too, including this lovely 'British Redcoat', and the plentiful 'Staghorn'. Both take their name from their appearance -- the British Redcoat is said to represent the British troops, in their bright red jackets, during the American Revolution, lining up in the green fields. The staghorn needs litte explanation - it looks like a tangled field of antlers.

Sunday the girls blitzed Huntsville - where they found great shopping, unique stores, and plenty of Christmas gift ideas.