Category: Community Blog

Although animal sightings continue to be rare, evidence of animal movement may be detected now that there is some snow on the ground. Otters have been providing a lot of entertainment around the lake. Two residents described their mornings, watching a lone otter feeding on the edge of the ice in front of their respective homes on Boultbee Road and Highway 24. Another resident went through several otter-like antics on the shoreline to distract his dogs from seeing a large black otter about 150 feet from shore, at the ice’s edge.  A large otter is a certain enticement for even the best-behaved dog but the thin ice’s edge will certainly give way under the weight of a dog and the water temperature is zero F or very close to it.  Swans have been gliding along the shores in the quite bays, resting on their migratory journeys south and have also been enjoyed by several waterfront residents. One just has to keep their eyes on the lake to be rewarded with wildlife sightings.

The ladies of Boultbee Road will use any excuse, or none at all, to get together for a tea party. On November 16, a chilly afternoon was the perfect time for a get-together. All the full -time residents, and all those visiting part-timers on the road that day were in attendance. The coveted -and quite ugly- ceramic vase was resurrected as the tea party “mascot” (it had been misplaced for a few past parties) and was passed along to another full-time resident through a fun door prize draw.

 

Wendy Marshall is once again coordinating and leading the 2014 Christmas Bird Count (CBC) for the Bridge Lake area on Saturday, January 3.  This is Wendy’s twentieth year leading this particular group – thank you Wendy!  This is a day-long event that ends with a social gathering for warm beverages and goodies at Lac des Roches.  Everyone is invited and no experience is required although registration with Wendy at 250-593-2327 is a must for planning purposes. The Bird Studies Canada website has lots of interesting information about previous years’ CBC results. Wendy’s invitation included an update of bird sightings at Lac des Roches which may be of interest to many readers.  Her edited account is inserted here for your enjoyment.

There were a couple of interesting sightings during the fall. We had a White-throated Sparrow (not the first sighting here but exciting)! Also, in October, a Red-breasted Sapsucker was in our crab apple tree. Our loon population suffered this past summer as our resident eagles have developed a taste for both eggs and chicks! I, among others, were witness to the taking of both! The eagles’ only chick survived to learn to fly and was quite entertaining to watch.  How awkward they are, landing in tree tops! My love-hate relationship continues with the resident eagles! I started filling feeders again and providing suet a couple of weeks ago. We’ve been observing more chickadees and nuthatches than ever before! They’ve had a good year for nesting. Amongst the many mountain and black-capped, there is at least one Boreal. I saw the first pine grosbeaks this morning under one of the feeders.  I have observed the usual downy, hairy and Pileated Woodpeckers along with the Northern Flicker. Also, I saw the Am 3 toed woodpecker, not near the feeders but elsewhere on the trails. There were a number of reports a few weeks ago of American Goldfinches in the area, and oddly enough, we had a Dipper hanging around the dock!

(From Wendy, November 13, 2014)

 

Although our temperatures are not as chilly as that of our neighbours to the north, we got a rude awakening to winter’s cold when we were hit with the arctic vortex November 10th and our night time temperature dipped to -12 C.  Several protected bays as the west end of the lake have iced over with clear, smooth ice.  Although the ice is still too thin for use, if the cold temperature persist for another week as predicted and the snow storms stay out of the forecast, skating along the shore and in the bays will be the best ever.  Hooray for winter sports!

With all the roads and trails amid the residential areas of Lac des Roches there is no shortage of public places to walk or hike. Walking through the bush during Autumn is particularly appealing due to the simple fact that vision is improved as the leaves fall from the branches.  Even though bear sightings have not been reported since this spring, it is comforting to have some extra visual distance between yourself and whatever might be out there when you are bushwhacking. One doesn’t have to walk far from their residence to find the unusual, disturbing and pleasing sights that turn a simple walk into an adventure at Lac des Roches. The number of beetle-killed pine trees that are discovered down on the trails now is boggling. Falling trees seems to be a daily occurrence on the more wooded trails, thus completing the devastating cycle of the pine beetle infestation. Although it is rare to find human garbage on local trails, those that skirt the highway are often littered with a surprising number of beer cans and disposable coffee cups which reappear annually, despite the clean-up efforts of several residents and the many warning signs along the highway. On a lighter note, there are some tasty gems in the woods, even this time of year.  Although somewhat dry and frozen, there are plenty of rose hips still hanging onto bushes which are a seedy treat if you have the patience to spit out the dozen or so seeds as you chew on it.  Or better still are the many clumps of high bush cranberries which have only a single seed. Despite their bitter taste, they are juicy and thirst-quenching and as a bonus, the tough skin will last for quite some time, kind of like nature’s chewing gum. Other sights out there will easily cause a second look and make yourself question what you are seeing.  Was that big dark brown thing there yesterday and is it a moose or the dirt on an uprooted tree? Below are two strange sights on a local path that, despite being passed on a regular basis, always stir an emotion, a koala bear and the hanging tree.  What an adventure playground we have at our doorstep!

 

Daryl Llewellyn, one of our obviously talented resident photographers, captured this cute little fellow in his yard recently.  The Downy Woodpecker is one of the hardy little critters that will stay in our chilly area throughout the entire winter.

 

 

 

The bidding starts at $1.00 and increases in 25 cent increments.  Add to that, twenty or so neighbours, friends and strangers, throw in a pinch of two generous hostesses supplying coffee, tea and comfy chairs and sprinkle with a whole lot of laughter.  Voila, you have the formula for another successful evening out for a “ladies only” auction. For the third time, the Boultbee ladies filled a car with themselves and their arm loads of “stuff” and set out for a Bridge Lake residence for a fun night of swapping unwanted items on November 8th. One never knows what they will sell or buy but the range and quality of items that move through the auction is astounding. One lady was certain she had accomplished all her “Christmas shopping” in just a few hours there.  While the hostesses continue to encourage others to take on the task of conducting an auction they seem quite happy to continue the tradition and plan to hold another auction sometime in March.  Notices are put up at all the local establishments along Highway 24.

Last winter’s unexpected logging on the south hills was a disturbing time. Not knowing and not being able to get definitive answers about the logging plan while watching the 24 hour harvesting speeding down the hill towards the lake was, for many residents, the worst of the ordeal.  For other residents, the new view of a clear cut mountain, directly out their front window, was the worst of the ordeal and will likely scar their enjoyment forever of living their remaining days on the lake. The most recent work on the south hill is not logging, but it stirs up a lot of emotion among residents, for different reasons.  On November 6th and again on the 11th, the forester lit dozens of gigantic slash piles on fire which burned during the day and then all through the night. Air quality was definitely an issue for a short time but watching such huge flames shooting up through the trees, particularly through the dark night, roused unpleasant memories of devastating forest fires for some people. Other residents are quite emotional about their opposition to burning slash piles at all and feel more wood should be salvaged for fuel or gasification. It will be a welcome relief when all the logging reclamation work is complete and mother nature is left alone to work for the next 100 years of repairing the damage.

 

 

Log hauling seems to have ceased on the Wavey Lake Forest Service Road.  As always, that does not mean resident users should let down their guard. This is a very active road. There may be equipment being moved or serviced, forestry and logging inspections in progress and more likely, hunters still out searching for deer and grouse. Even the many outdoor enthusiasts, using the road to access hundreds – no thousands – of kilometers of back road trails to the lakes, mountains and valleys, keep this wilderness road a busy one. An alternative and popular route, the Eakin Creek Road or “old highway” to Little Fort has been blocked during the month of November due to logging along the corridor. Motorists must detour by using Highway 24 and will see notice signs at the Opax Mountain Cafe turnoff.

Congratulations to Boultbee Road resident, Ken Porth, for having his photograph showcased on Global TV’s evening news on November 4. Like a picture right off of a calendar, Ken captured a beautiful scene of the leaves turning to autumn colours at Lac des Roches. Although the aspen leaf miner has stolen the colour from so many trees that grow all around the lake, the cottonwood trees have been untouched by destructive beetles and have provided residents and visitors with a breathtaking symphony of colours this year. Ken is well-known for his photography skills and has kindly provided pictures of neighbourhood sites for past blog items. Way to go Ken!