Eliguk Outpost

Mushroom foraging Autumn arrived with a brisk cold front and lingering dampness, a phenomenon the media dubs an 'atmospheric river.' It's a grandiose term for what amounts to several days of rainfall. It's remarkable how swiftly the weather can shift; one moment, you're leisurely enjoying beverages floating on the lake, and the next, you're stoking the wood stove to ward off the cabin's chill. These temperature fluctuations often come in on the heels of a significant windstorm, with the wind itself—a force invisible, but for the ripples on the lake, the dance of leaves, and sway of branches—echoing the silent progression of time...quietly sculpting the contours of our lives. Its…

By the end of August, the Hoys had reserved a long weekend, providing us with a two-day window to launder all the bedding and tidy up both cabins after the previous five guests. We eagerly anticipated this visit, as spending time with friends and loved ones was something we needed, hoping it would restore our sense of familiar routine. In saving Mountain Man a trip to town for a supply run, Nadine did all our shopping and brought a cooler loaded with groceries to re-stock anything we were running low on. We always do our menu planning together and she always pitches in with bringing homemade treats like sourdough bread,…

DISCLAIMER: The content of this blog may be a trigger for anyone who is currently in distress; reading any further could be emotionally challenging and potentially traumatic.  We had a week to unwind, from the visit with the grandkids, and fishermen that followed; but at the same time it was all work nonetheless. Every bed in every cabin needed laundering, and there wasn't a fresh clean towel left at the resort. The glitch was the sudden change in weather, getting socked in with rain that persisted for days! It made working inside the cabins (scrubbing them down from ceiling to floor), easier to do knowing the weather would keep me…

Ground Cherries - a new plant for me this year. I couldn't help but start off with a metaphorical comparison. Every plant starts their journey as a tiny seed, nestled in the soil, waiting for the right conditions to sprout. Once the warmth of the sun and the moisture of the rain reach, it begins to grow. Roots digging deep into the earth, with leaves stretched out towards the sky. Pollinators are attracted to it's beautiful flowers, ensuring the survival of the species. The blossoms fade, whither and fall, eventually transforming into a prized possession: the fruit. The fruit is encased in a protective, papery husk, which keeps it safe…

Seeing our names as part of the cast was pretty cool while it lasted - but soon to be a part of the past.  Life at Eliguk Part 3 of a 6 page spread just released online today (Aug 1) August has arrived, marking the midpoint of the fishing season. Despite the exposure from Reality TV and several magazine stories, we've only received one actual phone call and one booking related to them. It's somewhat disheartening considering the time and effort invested. It makes one wonder about the impacts of everything happening in the world related to tourism, and where one might need to make changes within the industry. Once…

Early morning Eliguk crossing... The dusty trail to the Dean River Road All reasons why I don't put too much of a fuss doing my hair to go to town, and oh, how I needed a break from the bugs, birds and dogs! As frugal as we need to be these days, the distance to Bella Coola and back was do-able in a day. We could lock the dogs in the outdoor chicken run, leave the greenhouse open and take our chances with the hens and their chicks free ranging out and about. We locked down the resort in case lookie-loo's happened by; it's hard to leave everything you own…

The birds and things that buzz; yes, that's what I'm going on about today. All stuff to be expected when one lives off the grid, amongst the flora & fauna. This year is different however, somewhat like an avian sanctuary/breeding ground except the birds have all gone crazy! Each species seemed to fight the prior ones upon arrival - competing for nesting grounds and existing bird houses. I've watched a wood pecker pull all the dried grass and feathers from a bird house that a robin had completed, along with it's little blue eggs. It's been a battle ground since the first migratory birds arrived at the resort in April.…

Overlapping weather fronts, a rainfall warning below and thunderstorm warning above. Grateful for all the green, even if it came with hoards of mosquitos! The last time I witnessed this much saturated ground here, was in 2016 when I first set foot on this land. Our lake is finally up by at least a foot and on Mountain Mans supply run out a few days ago, he said the Blackwater river is only inches away from breaching it's banks over in Walt's field. It should be interesting to see if the precipitation continues - we've had no warm weather yet this year, and yes, I'm still lighting fires in the…

It feels like last month was April, how is it possibly the end of June already? I was feeling confident that we were ahead of things with our project line up this year, but now I'm not so sure. Our guests coming in a couple weeks were promised a washroom on the Hudson cabin, and it's been a struggle to get working on it. There's always distractions of company popping by (yes, even out here), or potatoes to plant, and the large patch of morels to check in on from time to time. I think the washroom looks amazing, and of course I'm totally jealous that it's the first cabin…

There's really no point in trying to explain how busy we've been, I'm sure the illustrations will blow your minds at how it was all possible! The amount of work a man in his 60's can accomplish all on his own has to be some sort of phenomenon, at least the sort of thing that's unheard of these days. In order to host our first guests of the year this past weekend, we not only had our docks to repair, but the neighboring cabin of our Californian friends were coming up at the same time. Not only did they need their dock in place, but Mountain Man was supposed to…