Where to even begin after the week we've had? I guess from the beginning... The Chickens march through the Snow... After being buried from a blizzard & humongous drifts, when the 60km/hr winds dumped all the snow from the lake at our little resort - we thought we'd be stuck here till Spring thaw! I mean, it took forever to create a path to the outhouse, and then find the chicken coop. From that afternoon, on through the following day - the wind howled some more, and moved the snow deeper into the woods behind us. The temperature dropped as the skies cleared, and the snow went from being fluffy…

Prepped wings! Mountain Man returned home without a hitch (or a ditch) this time! One of the few uneventful trips in and out that he’s had in a while. The week in town working on his plane had come to an end, for now. The wings for his plane are all prepped, and just need some black accent paint before the Oretex covering is put on, for his next trip in. MM's little spot in the snowbank. It had snowed the night before he left, and he awoke to 6 new inches of new snow. He waited for the grocery store to open and then purchased a pail of vanilla…

Here we are on this intercalary day, that will bring this year a total of 366 days. All in the purpose to synchronize our calendar year with the solar year, (or the length of time it takes the earth to complete its orbit around the sun). For me, I'll notch it up to another day being less crazy without the Mountain Man. Okay,...so I'm bored! It's what happens when that spouse of mine is not around. You may not have noticed, but he's been gone all week. I know, right?? This man gets around for someone who lives out in the middle of no where!?! He left on Monday to…

Mountain Man had arranged to help a neighbor with some plumbing installs last week, and we were just waiting for a call that their parts had arrived. We knew a trip to a few homesteads was in the works again soon enough. It was just trying to co-ordinate his upcoming trip to town again, so he could get more work done on the fuselage for his plane. When the weekend came, all in one night our plans were laid out before us. The Lamperts were heading to town with a load of cattle, (as last week MM had gone over to help get it running). Walt had called to say…

Hold on tight - were going to zip across the lake! The snow machine traveled across the lake, with a gentle rocking rhythm as it moved over the drifted snow. The 4 stroke engine of the Arctic Cat was loud, but the sound of the wind, and the speed that we rocketed at, helped mute it out. I was tucked in behind Mountain Man, holding on to him with one arm, while trying to take the wild whipping hair out of my mouth & eyes with the other. Sometimes I forget to tie those locks down! It was sunny, and mild – another above zero day, hitting 6C (F). Minutes…

A warm sunny Winter day,...well - several actually. Guess what popped up? Snow fleas. At first glance, snow fleas may look like motes of black pepper sprinkled on the surface of the snow but upon closer inspection, the pepper looks as if it's moving. While they're tiny (reaching only two to three millimeters in length) and jump around as fleas do, a closer look will reveal that snow fleas have a similar appearance to other springtails. As spring approaches, snow fleas make their way up through the snow, likely in search of food. It's when they gather in numbers on the surface, flinging themselves from place to place, that they…

Off Grid...The Importance of a Good Wilderness Dog. Storm When we selected our Australian Shepherd, ‘Storm’…it was for life in the wilderness. It was the first time that we researched a breed to suit our lifestyle. I mean, we took 5 years planning this whole off grid lifestyle change – I wanted to get everything right, even down to the breed of dog! Trustworthy, attentive and protective is what we sought for the jobs our dog would have out here. The size was important to us, a medium sized dog with the agility, stamina, endurance, and strength to fend off predators. I’ve seen big dogs succumb to wolf & coyote…

We spent a day, half lazing about in bed, as the magnificent sun rose over the mountain. Each few seconds it changed as it reflected wavy beams of light off the hanging icicles, painting the inside of the cabin with it's amber sparkling light. Our noses cold, but bodies warm under the soft billowy blankets. I lost the hand game of rock/paper/scissors, so coffee and fire was the chore to tend to. Running immediately back to bed so I could enjoy extra cuddles, and the sunrise on my face once more. Now a bed filled with dogs lazing about, a crackling fire, followed by hot perked coffee. It was decidedly…

Kluskus ends about 184km (North of Eliguk), but we can only drive to the 166.5km where our trail head starts at the driveways of Walt & the Carnegie's homesteads. After Mountain Man started walking away from his truck that lay on it's side at the 110km mark, thoughts raced through his mind. Will there be enough battery power when I get back? Are they leaking fluid? Am I losing oil? Are there anymore loggers in pick-ups left traveling this far down the Kluskus? The biggest stressor was finding someone as quickly as possible, to get the vehicle upright and get home! It was a ridiculous situation, that fell within that…

Morning Highlights... It started out as a quiet week. "I'm going to get lots of writing done", (I thought to myself as I rubbed my hands together).  A whole 5 days alone without my Mountain Man! That's a whole 5 days free from cooking 3 meals a day, that creates 3 loads of dishes a day, that requires 2 - 5 gallon buckets to fetch a day. All that worked saved by eating cereal & salads out of the same bowl! All of that equals so many more hours a day to do what I love to do...write! My first night alone, is when the generator died. Really?? The first…