Unfortunately mountain women don't change...

We'd hoped that spending time in the mountains would change Nola. Alas, she hasn't changed at all. ~B

For the Birds

For my 42 wedding anniversary I received 2 Japanese fine woodworking saws, a glue gun, extra glue and some acrylic paints to paint the little eyes peering out. Feathers were added for the final touch . . .

Mountain air changes men . . . ~N

It's About Time!

I'm spending my second night alone at the cabin tonite. I drove up here last night after dark and I've never seen dark in the woods so BLACK! (I don't think it ever gets that dark unless you're alone). I used a flashlight to walk all around before I unlocked it. I had a minor case of the spookies, but kept at it. No one else is out here and it feels like I'm dozens of miles from civilization - just me and the woodpeckers.

I guess I've always wondered if I could spend nights alone in the woods . . . now I'm finding out. Saturday was the annual picnic of the cabin owners association. We were introduced as the new kids on the block. It was very interesting meeting other owners - a woman who now owns the cabin her parents owned since 1950 - she used to trailer her horse up here every summer . . . a mother/daughter/grandkids group who own a cabin that isn't hooked up to the mountain's electricity. The grandmother told me her daughter doesn't want her kids watching TV or playing Nintendo in the woods.

I especially sought out women who spend time alone. Several stay up here armed, but most don't and don't feel the need at all. One woman told me the story of her neighbor who comes up armed and isn't afraid to use it. She heard noises in a shed - loaded up to see what was going on, and nearly shot holes in her son's wetsuit that was hanging to dry (in the dark) . .. Before I went to bed I programmed my cell phone with the emergency numbers I got from those who know. Now I'm 2 clicks away from help - but mygawd, how on earth will they ever find me out here?

The US Forest Service is the first emergency number to call. Everyone assures me, they know 'exactly' where our cabin is, LOL. We won one of the silly door prizes at the picnic. The box is labeled - "Glitterama Clock" - the silliest clock with some kind of oil in it. When it gets hot the glitter flickers and rotates counter clockwise around the dial - but it puts out a large dim blue light at night. I feel like a kid again needing to sleep with the lights on. ~N

A Golden Hike

We've been hiking a 2 to 3 mile hike everyday now, up here on the mountain. We keep finding fun maps of the area and discovering new trails to explore. Some of our hikes are through dense wooded canyons - some get steep and are still a lung challenge at the 6,000 ft altitude . . . but I think everyday we're getting more fit. Some of our hikes are through huge mountain meadows that were formed when this area had more lakes. The name here, Mt. Laguna is Spanish for lake.

I've been doing a small short second hike each evening when the sun starts to set. Behind our cabin is a hill with very few trails (one deer trail I've found so far) but the vegetation is low and it's easy to just bushwhack without getting too many stickers in my socks. The low dense setting sunlight sets over the mountain and if I time it right, the warm glow in the forest is just about the best end of the day for sure.

This is the dirt road that leads back to the cabin. ~N

Lazy Boy

And there are other ways to relax...looking out across our meadow. ~B

Lazy Girl

There's something about being on the mountain and relaxing in your own cabin. This says it all.... ~B

Chipper is dead!

Early every morning for the past few weeks I've been watching Chipper and his brothers and sisters, through our kitchen window. They seem to be living in the big wood pile about 30 ft up the hill from our cabin. They run, play, attack each other and wrestle while tumbling off the logs. Often one will perch at the very top, like a meerkat - a lookout to protect the rest. They're full of life and energy . . . they search through the grass for snacks - then soon they're at play again, chasing each other.

Wow, what an awful shock as I was walking outside this evening. I saw a little form under a nearby small bush and looked closer. Chipper, not too long dead was already starting to be found by some ants . . . so sad, their little family won't be the same now . . . and a mystery about what happened . . . ~N