When I approach a child, he inspires in me two sentiments; tenderness for
what he is, and respect for what he may become. -Louis Pasteur, chemist and
bacteriologist (1822-1895)
Dermot Shirley Rock of Dunamase, County Laois. The fortress ruins are near where my mum grew up. Happy St. Patrick's Day.
Patrick James Dunn Happy St Patrick's Day, Sara and Dermot! I was snow-shoeing at Apex with Whirlygig, Calamity Jane and Morita, their Border Collie. Unbelievable day, simply wonderful outing. On another matter, did you receive my message asking you to contact Harry the Younger about me not being able to attend the Emeritii luncheon? Cheers, Patrizzio!Chloe Alexis Dunn Happy St. Patrick's Day to my D!!! Patrick James Dunn it's your day!!!
Teela-Dawn Mann Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
Hi Gazebo! Thanks for the St Patrick's Day wishes! Terribly sorry we missed you at Miss Marp's on Sunday! Clarisse and Coat-Hanger spent a month with us, here in Penticton, from mid-Jan to mid-Feb. Had a wonderful visit and I helped Dusty with all sorts of home renovation projects! He remains unbelievable! Going to be 92 in May! Rosita is very well and we had loads of fun playing bridge while they were here.
Unfortunately, once back in Manitoba, Dusty's breathing became very laboured and after a series of tests it was determined that he will have to have home oxygen. As well, he is not allowed to drive so Rosie is now in the driver's seat, just doing local runs for milk, bread and such. George, Cora Lee's brother, lives next door to them so he takes them in to Winnipeg whenever they need to go there. Other than that they are intent on staying at Falcon. As Dusty said to Lady Darjeeling, (Cora Lee's new nickname since our trip to India, this past October-December.), "We don't want to rush into anything!"
We'd love to visit you in Robert's Creek but given our schedule that may not happen until the Fall. On the other hand, we plan to go to Europe, probably between February and April, 2017, (not set in stone as of this writing), so if you'll be in Ireland, watch out! Life is grand here. Fondestos from Lady Darjeeling to Di, Nickos and you, Gaz! Cheers, Patrizzio!
Hi Kids! From my cousin, Tim Dunn! In fact, no relation! Cheers, Patrizzio/Dad/Favourite Son-in-Law!
Again, if interested, a few "brief" jottings below:
Had to rouse the Freeloaders out of their cosy beds by 7:45 am in order to allow them enough time for java and a bit of breakfast before we loaded our snow-shoeing gear into car, along with Morita, to make for the HH parking lot. Here we rendezvoused with the rest of the hiking group. Many were going with Rick for a longer, more difficult outing so once it was established who was going where, Big Al sorted out his contingent and gave us directions and we set off for Apex, taking along Luigi.
Couldn't have ordered up a better day as sun was beaming down from the mostly cloudless heavens as if there was no tomorrow. Not much snow until we were about half-way to the Village. Was glad I had my snow tires on as there were plenty of slippery and icy spots, in spite of the obvious sandings. Passed a snowplow widening the road, carving off the snowbanks at the road's edge. This time we didn't park in the Village but near the end of Whitetail Road in a residential cul-de-sac. High, high snowbanks here and I had to park away from them as we couldn't open the door on the front passenger side!
Giorgio and Calamity very kindly tried to help me fasten my snow-shoe harnesses but Jane had quite a bit of trouble with her own bindings so while Big Al adjusted her fittings, St Kilian hooked me up. Once everyone was ready to go, Drill Sarge gave the order and we all headed up a snowbank close to where I'd parked. This soon proved to be far more of an obstacle, at least for me, than I supposed it would be. The initial three or four feet were almost vertical and purchase was extremely difficult. After floundering and flailing for a bit, I managed to dig in the toes of my snow-shoes and inched my way to the top of the bank. Once here, the going immediately became straightforward and most enjoyable as we followed what was now an almost groomed trail into the forest, wending our way between the heavily laden pines. Absolutely gorgeous and I thanked my ever so lucky stars that I was privleged to be included in the group.
Calamity and Giggster have a fair bit of snow-shoeing experience under their belts but had not been out in a few years so it took them a bit to get going. As well, Giorgio was in a pair of borrowed shoes, kindly supplied by Al. They were last to reach trail, in spite of Morita urging them on! This was her first time in the snow and she was in Border Collie Nirvana! She was simply beside herself, as you might imagine, dashing back and forth, herding her charges, stepping on the backs of people's snowshoes, "attacking" every small stump, beside the narrow trail, that poked up through the snow, bounding and leaping through near-bye drifts, well up to her chest!
Nevertheless, the three of us were very pleased with how she fared. For my part, I was worried that she might have had trouble with ice-balls building up between the pads of her paws. This did happen but she seemed to handle the situation very well, lying down in the middle of the trail, chewing away at the the frozen pellets, oblivious to the fact that she was holding up the humans! Then she'd tear off with an energy that amazed.
Once into the surrounding forest, the quiet, the virtual silence was delicious, the views, of the trees and through them, over/into ravines, stupendous. Pinch yourself time to make sure you are not dreaming. The course was undulating, generally always uphill but nothing overly taxing. And then we came to a Brobdingnagian fallen tree trunk, blocking the trail! Fortunately the hill slope was such that one could, with some difficulty, again, for me at least, clamber on top. Unfortunately, what awaited on the other side was a drop of about four feet, perhaps slightly more, but not a distance, whatever the measure, I wished to entertain, in the least.
I could only imagine my snow-shoes catching behind me and toppling me forward to land on my face or worse. Or flopping awkwardly, twisting an ankle, breaking a leg or dislocating my artificial right hip. I thought that crossing the icy foot bridge over the small creek on my first outing was bad enough but here was situation I had never dreamed about, let alone anticipated. Didn't help that many other, brave souls, had jumped without ill effect. The only other alternative was to slide down/over the trunk but this was far easier said than done, given the difficulty I knew I would experience getting down to position myself, atop the slippery, fairly narrow surface, to effect a slow descent. Somehow, I managed to accomplish everything without mishap and was almost euphoric when I was standing on the other side.
I must admit that the snow was reasonably, so-so deep and would probably cushion one's jump to a certain extent. Many of the group did take a leap, some falling, without hurting themselves, others remaining upright, a perfect 10! For my part, I could only imagine landing on a jagged stump or a large boulder inches below the snow. And I thought snow-shoeing was not an extreme sport!
After that my heart-beat and breathing returned to normal and we were rewarded, stunningly so, when we trekked into Secret Canyon. What a gorgeous place, steep sides, topped with trees and rocky outcroppings. We went smack dab down the middle and the situation was perfect to make snow angels so Luigi and Josinta played the part poifectly before we took a short tea break, while the Slovakian flag was raised on one of the slopes. What a wondrous sight to see clumps of snow fall from the heavily laden branches, near the top of the ridge, and roll down the slopes becoming mini-snowballs by the time they reached us, etching trails into the otherwise unblemished surface.
Refreshed and exhilarated, we continued until we came to a huge boulder, completely shrouded in heavy snow. Those who had been before knew what awaited and the dare-devils among them climbed to the top and leaped, lemming-like, into the fairly deep drifts below. I had nothing but admiration for Josinta and St Kilian but my amazement and respect centered upon our Fearless Leader, Big Al, who proved he deserves to be called our Fearless Leader, as he Geronimo-ed off Ski-Jump Rock without batting so much as an eye! I trust I'm still snow-shoeing when I'm 75, let alone sky-diving, for that is what the leap would translate into for me! Bravo indeed!
After the high-wire acts, we pushed on, encountering a number of reasonably steep ascents that though a tad demanding, weren't at all uncomfortable, to reach a gorgeous spot known as The Rock Garden. Here, in this picture-postcard spot, Eagle Al gave the order to stop and everyone found a spot to enjoy a sandwich or an apple or a sip of java. After drinking in the literally blinding sunshine, turning the drifts into carpets of flashing diamonds, we set off, retracing our steps, making for home. Took a slight detour, at some point, to avoid the gargantuan trunk, mentioned earlier, up the side of Secret Canyon, I believe, and we had a bit of work cut out for ourselves, zigging and zagging up the steep slope.
After that, we were, more or less, on much the same trail as before. I continued to be amazed at how high we had climbed as the change in elevation didn't seem as noticeable when we were heading uphill. Some of the coming descents were fairly steep and I took a number of falls, landing, unhurt but rather ingloriously, on my bottom! Calamity, Giorgio and Olga Polga all came to my rescue as the snow, in this situation, allowed little purchase and it was well nigh impossible to right oneself without a helping hand. Shortly after my second slither, Jane fell and came to rest with her feet pointing uphill. Morita thought this was a wonderful game and immediately pounced on her, filling the neck of her jacket with snow. Furthermore, she had a stick in her jaws and could easily have scratched Jane's face, or jabbed one of her eyes in the mêlée. Fortunately, no canine inflicted damage other than to Calamity's funny-bone as she was laughing hysterically all the while.
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1088882870#.VusynuqUgnQ.email
Sara Jane McGillivray Hi. Yes, got your message and relayed it to HTY, he was devastated, of course but will soldier on without you. Happy sunshine!!
wow....or rather, whooaaa
Hello OF'ies, My photos from an incredible day plowing our way up to the summit of Apex on March 17. Rarely seen such clear views of the mountains. I still have some accessibility problems with my computer but we'll take it one
step at a time.
Please click on the following Flickr link to view the photos, let me know if you have any problems with it:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/99264714@N02/albums/72157666201734035/with/25912440536/
Hi Aarturo! Really enjoyed these last two albums. In particular, the Apex shots were truly magnificent! I was reminded of our hike there with Kilian this past summer but snow certainly gives vistas an added majesty! Thanks and Cheers, Patrizzio!
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