Double Your Pleasure

Late day clearing after a rainstorm brought a double rainbow right outside our condo window.

The higher band was less distinct and only reached part way into the sky.

The lower band created a complete arch from north to south, peaking through the trees in the riparian zone behind us. -- Margy

Brighten Your Night

Even hospital rooms sometimes get a great view.

Here's the sunset Mom saw from her room on the third floor of St. Joseph Hospital's Rehab Unit.

It made her feel a bit brighter after a busy day of therapy. -- Margy

Clearing Clouds

Fall storms bring rain and wind, but they are followed by lovely clearing clouds.

Watch them in action.

Thanks for stopping by. -- Margy

Farther Up the Main Book Launch

Wayne has just completed a new book in his Coastal BC Stories series. It follows in the footsteps of his second book about backcountry exploration, Up the Main. Naturally, it is entitled Farther Up the Main and focuses on our favourite place on earth, Powell River, BC. In it you will read stories about the people and places that make this region so unique.

You are invited to join us at a free book launch event.

Farther Up the Main

Friday, October 22, 7:00 pm at
Coles the Book People
Town Centre Mall

Go to www.PowellRiverBooks.com for ordering information.

Print for $16.95
Kindle for $3.99
Ebook $3.99

If you already have a book from the Coastal BC Stories series, bring it with you. Wayne would love to autograph it for you. Hope to see you there! -- Margy

Wild Chickory

Last week I posted about the season's last fling. I went for a walk along the Nooksack River following an early fall rain. Blue skies were just a hint on the horizon, and along the trail there were some beautiful flowers reflecting their hue. I stopped to take some pictures. I even captured a buzzing bee gathering a last bit of nectar. I thought the flowers were a beautiful reminder of the summer just past.

I did some research and learned that Chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a weed that is native to Europe and the Middle East. It was later introduced to North America and has now become "naturalized" to our locale.

I've heard about Chicory from my parents who had to drink it as a coffee substitute during World War II. But I never made the connection to this lovely flower, or the fact that it is related to cultivated versions such as Belgian endive and radicchio.

So if you are out walking or hiking this Spring, keep an eye out for this lovely blue flower. -- Margy

Paddling for Salmon

Wayne went out on opening day to try his hand at salmon fishing. No luck from shore, so he thought maybe a kayak would give him a better chance. He found a Dirigo Angler by Johnson Outdoors at Wholesale Sports in Burlington, WA. And the timing was perfect. It was $759.99, but with a 30% off sale, plus a 5% military discount, not bad.

For his first paddling fishing adventure, Wayne picked the Skagit River. He already knew it from our kayak camping trip last August. He launched at Sedro Woolley's Riverfont Park boat ramp to float and fish his way down stream. But just after he got started, he snagged his line. The speed of the river ripped all the line off his real, leaving nothing to catch a big one.

This section of the Skagit is wide and fairly fast. When we paddled it in the summer, we rarely saw anyone in a boat or on shore. Now with salmon season open, there are lots of people everywhere. I met Wayne at Burlington's busy Roger "Gus" Tjeerdsma boat launch to give him a ride back to Sedro-Woolley to pick up his car.

For more information about fishing in Washington State, go to their website.

Do you have a favourite fishing hole? Is it secret, or can you share? -- Margy

Tally Ho Too!

Tracy is a blogging friend over at Home [in] stead: Voluntary Simplicity One Step at a Time. She did a recent post called Tally Ho! in which she summarized her annual preserving accomplishments. Using Tracy's example, I'd like to share my preserving successes for the season.

Canning:

This is my second year at canning. I was quite fearful at first, but everything came out fine and we enjoyed our products. This year, I bought more half-pints (250 ml) and pint (500 ml) jars to expanded a bit:

• 5 half-pints tomatoes
• 4 half-pints hot pickled beans with banana peppers
• 6 half-pints blackberries (wild)
  
• 2 pints and 4 half-pints blueberries (store bought)
• 5 half-pints strawberry jam (store bought)
  
• 4 half-pints blueberry/rhubarb jam
  

Drying:

I've dried herbs several times. This year I added Swiss Chard. My first try was in the oven at the condo. It worked fine, but I wanted a way to do it up at the cabin. I experimented with air drying and it was a success, if a bit labour intensive. So far I have three pint jars full ready for soups and stews.

Freezing:

My freezer space is very limited, both at the condo and the cabin. On my last visit to town I froze combo packs of tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, and celery (left over store bought) for winter soups.

Storing:

I cured and stored red onions and potatoes. The onions hang in the downstairs guest room for several months. I wrap my potatoes in newspaper and use plastic trays to store them under the guest bed (my cabin's cool spot) where they last all winter. Carrots and beets stay in the ground to keep them fresh and crispy.

I know this isn't a large stash of food for winter, but it's fun to pull out a few things I preserved myself. Each year my cache gets larger, so who knows what the future will hold. Did you do any preserving this year? How did it go? - Margy

Fall's Early Glow

Night is coming quicker this time of year. And with it, comes a warm early glow.

We don't often get sunset colours in our little aqua valley, but this night was an exception.

I love how the salmon coloured sky reflects in the water. -- Margy