Turning over a new leaf!

So, I've finally turned over a few new leaves actually! The first is that I'm hopefully sucessfully posting a new photo on my blog for the first time in several weeks. I finally got it moved to www.bog.araska.org. You'll note that none of my photos are visible in the archieves. Give me a few weeks, since I have to individually change the html in each post twice. If there is a particular picture that any one wants me to get up, let me know (i.e. by comment) and I'll prioritize that picture. So, hopefully I'm back to blogging.

I also did my my first field work this summer. Amanda MacIvor (who also deserves credit for the picture of the monarch catapiller) was my volunteer field assistant (I may need more soon - if anyone is interested in taking notes and helping me out.) We had amazing weather (generally sunny, not too hot or cold and dry) and a fair bit of fun on my pretty little stream. Lot of the local people stopped to talk to us, including two or three that took part in the Wilmot "Check your Watershed" event. Like all first run field work, some things went better than planned (actually this is rare) and other things of course were monkey wrenches - like my laptop battery only lasting 1 hour and the map of the site being completely not representive of what the river looked like (a lot more meanders than expected) or me simply not having the experience or knowledge to confidently identify bedforms.

We stayed at Sandaraska Park - a privately owned trailer/camping park north east of our site on a 200 acre sandbox. We had a nice site and there was even a pool, although it was too cold to swim that evening. The owners were great. We checked out the other nearby park which turns out to be a bit cheaper. It was a totally different setting in an old growth cedar wood, but it also looked nice and the guy running it was really nice too. Nice part of the world actually - everyone was interested in what we were doing and very helpful in telling us how the stream normally is etc. Its been a great opportunity to discover a part of Ontario I likely would have overlooked since it lacks provincial and national parks.

I'm starting to really look forward to taking Gabe to Algonquin for the first time. I hope the wolf howl works out. I can't explan my spiritual connection to Algonquin - but it is home to a part of my soul that isn't quite at home anywhere else. I also love that the end of summer camping trip has become a family tradition - down to everyone dozing off around the campfire and our annual trek along the bog walk with me exclaiming over the leather leaf and pitcher plants.

Anywho, hopefully I'll be back to daily posts on the excitement of my rather mundane life. I'm eagerly awaiting Robin Hobb's next book "Forest Mage" after finally reading Shaman's Crossing. Certainly, it isn't as amazing as the Assassin's Aprentice - but its still miles beyond most other books I read.

Cheers and thanks to Amanda.

Jennith