Happy Thanksgiving from Powell River Books

For all of my Canadian readers and friends ...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

from
Up the Lake

the home of
PowellRiverBooks.com

If you are celebrating your Thanksgiving today, we both hope it is a joyous one. -- Wayne and Margy Lutz

Composting in a Plastic Barrel Step by Step

My former wire bin composter.

Three years ago I lost the location for my simple wire compost bin. I'd used it for years to compost my garden and kitchen scraps at our float cabin home. I had to find an alternative that could be handled on the cabin deck or in my floating garden. One method I learned about is called chop and drop.

Chopped garden waste for mulch.

Chop and drop works well for garden waste. As plants are trimmed or removed, the residue is chopped into small portions and used as mulch in garden beds and plant containers. The majority of my composting needs are taken care of in this manner.

Cutting a plastic 55-gallon barrel in half.

It doesn't work as well for kitchen scraps because the smell can attract critters. I decided to compost kitchen waste in a 55-gallon plastic barrel cut in half. Barrels in my town cost about $40. Check nursery, building and farm stores, or use a large plastic bucket or trash can that isn't too deep.

Now that last year's batch of soil is ready to use, I'm starting over.

Composting in a Plastic Barrel

Step by Step

A kitchen compost container.

Cut the barrel in half. Drill drain holes in the bottom. Make two composters or use the other half as a planter.

Place four inches of soil in the bottom to start.

Use a kitchen compost container for fruit and vegetable trimmings chopped into pieces.

Layering chopped plant matter, Rot-It and soil.

When the container is full, spread the contents over the layer of soil.

Add garden trimmings if you have them.

Sprinkle with compost accelerator. I use Rot-It.

Moisten with water.

Add 1" of soil over fresh items.

A cover cut to fit and a plastic mesh cage.

Cover with a porous material and surround with a cage to keep small critters out. If you live in bear country, enclose your composter.

When it's time to add a new layer, stir the ones below first.

Continue layering waste and soil until the barrel is full.

Let your composter rest with it's porous cover on for several months while the organic matter decomposes. Periodically moisten and mix to encourage the composting process.

Compost turned into rich soil in 8 months.

Your rewards will be less kitchen and garden waste going into the garbage stream, and free rich soil coming into your garden.

Do you do compost? What process do you use? Do you have any tips to add to my post? -- Margy

If you've ever dreamed of living away from town in an off-the-grid home, or in town with a simple lifestyle, you'll enjoy reading Off the Grid: Getting Started.

Print for $9.95

Kindle for $4.99
Kobo for $4.99

Smashwords ebooks for $4.99

Or go to PowellRiverBooks.com for more ordering information.

Hop on over to the Simple Life Mom and see some great ideas for homesteading and simple living.

Shared with Your the Star at Stone Cottage Adventures. And Tuesdays with a Twist at Stone Cottage Adventures.

Summer 2021 Cruising Season

Jeff from Valley Marine launches us.

Summer 2021 was similar to the 2020 cruising season. After our extended stay in the States, we arrived in Powell River in mid-July. 

Border crossing rules shortened isolation requirements, so we got our Bayliner 2452 into Powell River's North Harbour earlier for a longer cruising season.

The last 2020 trip ended in a damaged damaged sterndrive so Halcyon Days was raring to go with a new leg and propeller.

We did a sea trial then went salmon fishing. Didn't catch anything, but enjoyed our Sunday on the chuck (salt water).

For our first and last cruises we went to Campbell River on Vancouver Island. It's a favourite destination for us. We stay at the Discovery Harbour Marina next to a large shopping centre. Rather than cook onboard we eat at restaurants like Moxie's, the Riptide Pub and A&W for breakfast. When salmon are running, it's fun to watch the action at the dock's fish cleaning stations.

The Campbell River docks and large floating office.

This was the summer for favourite destinations. Our compressed season and more windy storms than usual kept us close to Powell River. We're so lucky to live next to the Strait of Georgia and its world class boating.

Our second cruise started with a stop at the Heriot Bay Inn and Marina. It's an older resort on the west side of Quadra Island. Usually the docks are full in summer and the restaurant packed. There were only a few boats and the restaurant was closed. It looked like the RV park and pub were keeping them alive. It would be sad to lose them.

Outdoor pub service and ferry watching at Heriot Bay.

On the same trip we motored over to nearby Cortes Island to stay at the Gorge Harbour Resort. Like Heriot Bay, they tap into the RV market. The resort is upscale with a market, entertainment and the Floathouse Restaurant. It's a great spot for boat watching, especially big ones.

Gorge Harbour is protected by a narrow waterway between high cliffs.

Back in the hangar for winter.

After three cruises and several fishing trips (none successful) it was time to get Halcyon Days ready for winter. We contacted Jeff at Valley Marine to come pick her up.

After Jeff winterizes her systems, she'll go back to the airport hangar where she has a runway view and can rest up for the next cruising season. 

Do you go boating? Wayne and I enjoy the fresh air, meeting people, sleeping on board, and eating in restaurants. -- Margy

Thanks for visiting part of my world this week. For more great posts from Our World Tuesday, click here.

Also visit Through My Lens by Mersad and Wordless Wednesday at imag-in-ing.

Go to Sky Watch Friday and for photos from around the world!

And Travel Tuesdays at Intelliblog, Tuesdays with a Twist at Stone Cottage Adventures, and My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand.

Available Online: "Up the Strait" by Wayne J. Lutz

A Great Book
for the Boating Enthusiast

Up the Strait

Coastal BC Stories

It's cruising time again. Jump in the boat and head up the Strait of Georgia with us to magnificent anchorages and exciting adventures. Drop your hook in world famous Desolation Sound, discover hidden coves and meet some of the locals. Read Up the Strait by Wayne Lutz and then join us for the cruise of a lifetime. You may never want to leave. 

Go to PowellRiverBooks.com for more information.

 Print for $12.95
Kindle for $2.99
E-book for $2.99 at Smashwords
(prices may vary in Canada)

To bed, to bed -- garden style.

Eating snow with Daddy while hiking.

Daddy would say this bedtime rhyme
to me as a little girl.

"To bed, to bed," said Sleepy Head.
"Tarry a while," said Slow.
"Put on the pot," said Greedy Gut,
"We'll sup before we go."

The last two summers have been garden disasters. 

We left our cabin in January 2020 expecting to return in March after an Arizona Snowbird RV trip. Our float cabin is in Canada. COVID turned pandemic and border crossings became difficult.

Summer 2020 weedy float garden.

When returned in July, my float garden was overgrown with weeds. It took days to ready my beds for the next growing season. Things had to be better by then. 

After what we thought would be another short RV Snowbird Trip in 2021, we were detained once more south of the border. Eased rules for fully vaccinated Canadians let us head home in July. I bet you can guess what I found, a float garden gone wild - AGAIN! 

Weeding the 2021 float garden.

Weighted soil cover.

Fool me once, shame on you me, fool me twice, shame on ME! It took days to clear the weeds, and more to eradicate new seedlings.

The writing was on the wall, or should I say in the soil.

It's time to put my float garden to bed. This year I covered the cleared beds with black yard waste bags. 

The only soil that remains clear is where spring bulbs and garlic need to grow in our absence.

The float garden put to bed with winter bulbs planted.

We are going on an Arizona Snowbird RV trip again this winter. We hope to return in March to prepare our beds for spring bulbs and seeds. Hopefully, we won't find weeds gone wild. 

Do you cover beds to discourage winter and spring weed growth? If not, what do you do to keep your garden ready for spring planting? -- Margy

Hop over to Simple Life Mom for great ideas about homesteading and simple living.

Visit Letting Go of the Bay Leaf for more Mosaic Monday.

Rock Painting for Cabin Decorations

Kobe in 2021.

Over the years I've painted several large rocks. When fall arrives and flowers depart, they brighten our lower deck.

Sometimes a rock tells me what it wants to become. The first one told me it wanted to be a turtle. Rocks sometimes tell different people different stories. Wayne saw Kobe Bryant's basketball shoe so I named it Kobe after the Los Angeles Lakers star. Kobe needed a repaint in 2016 and again this year.

The original rock that became Kobe the Turtle.

For my second project, I searched for a ladybug shaped rock. It was smoothed by Powell Lake's waves and easier to paint. It was so heavy I had a hard time carrying it from the Shinglemill beach to our boat. 

This summer I painted a rock I call Frogger after an old-time computer game. I selected the rock on a barge camping trip to Goat Lake. It looked perfect, but after painting I don't think it was best shape.

Frogger on the corner of the front deck.

Frogger has taken up residence on the other side of our front deck. Her weight will help hold the corner down when wind and boat waves wash through our front "yard."

I had lots of fun painting this summer. Do you paint rocks? Are they large or small? Tell us your stories. -- Margy

Hop on over to the Simple Life Mom and see some great ideas for homesteading and simple living.

Posting to Friday Favorites at Condo Blues.

For the artist in all of us, visit Paint Party Friday

Visit Letting Go of the Bay Leaf for more Mosaic Monday.

Returning to a New Normal

First time heading up Powell Lake in July.

Like for many of you, the last year and a half has not been normal. In the beginning, I tried to blog about throwback topics. But without the ability to get home to our float cabin on Powell Lake, the joy of blogging was lost. 

I even lost interest in reading blogs and making comments. You would think with time on my hands, blogging would be a welcome diversion, but that didn't turn out to be the case.

Our float cabin finally comes into view, homecoming is sweet.

I hope this interim period of a new normal finds you with good health and more joy in life. For Wayne and I, we are settling into a safe, vaccinated, masked and distanced existence.

On July 5, Canada lifted its mandatory 14-day quarantine for returning fully vaccinated citizens using land borders. We waited until July 12 to let agents get used to the new procedures. On September 7 restrictions were relaxed for fully vaccinated foreign nationals as well. These are huge steps towards a new normal for individuals and businesses.

A new coat of yellow paint and green trim makes a our home look new.

After an absence of eight months, getting back up the lake was a relief. We worried about what might have happened in our absence, but our good friend John kept an eye on things. By and large, everything was just as we had left it, except for a beautiful new exterior paint job. John and his brother Rick made our 23 year old cabin look brand new. 

Uh, oh. My float garden went wild with weeds.

Jeff from Valley Marine launches our boat.

Over that last month and a half Wayne and I have focused on cabin chores, boating and relaxing. There's no safer place than home, but at this home we can get outdoors whenever we want. I think that's what I missed the most, the ability to get outdoors and enjoy nature.

How about you? How are you adjusting to a new normal? -- Margy