Beasts and butterflies.....

 March 6, 2023

The latest snow storm on March 3, that came up across the States, dumped about 6 to 8 inches of snow on us. It seems like that may have been Winter's last hurrah, (but we won't count on that!!) as we are now being blessed with gorgeous sunshine, just below freezing temperatures at night, and just above freezing temperatures in the day...perfect for maple sap to run. There is a different feel to the air...it is balmy and soft...the sun so warm. There are degrees of Spring, and we are in the first degrees of Spring here in the north woods. 

Wherever snow has been ploughed away, patches of bare ground are quickly appearing. Snow banks along the road are high, but the strength of that sunshine will soon have them melting down. 

Camera was held at eye level for this shot.

The first job after a snowfall, is to clear the panels, to get whatever light is available.

March 4

Clearing the lane is next, ploughed into a middle ridge, then blown off.

Photo bombing Chickadee

We have been seeing Marten tracks around the house on a daily basis, and they often appeared going across the back step, visible in any new skiff of snow. One day we actually saw the critter bounding across the garden area, coming toward the house, her face stuffed with what appeared to be leaves. On back-tracking her later, it seems she has been helping herself to leaves out of a bag stored in my garden shed. Being curious about what she was up to, we looked around carefully, and discovered a tunnel going in under the back step, heading under the back porch. After the dump of snow on March 4, the tunnel was filled in, then a little later....ta da! 

You can even see the bits of snow on the step that has come off of her paws. We think we have a female marten who is bringing in nesting material in preparation to raising her brood under our porch. Martens give birth in March-April. In the fall, Hubby had positioned thick hemlock planks around the base of the porch, so we could bank the perimeter with insulating snow, so under there is a clear, dry space. We usually remove the planks once the snow has melted away...but.....

On a recent snowshoe hike, we discovered our neighbour's property riddled with moose tracks, some very fresh. The moose had been stripping the bark off of soft maples, pushing over young poplars and browsing their buds.

Hubby is just over 6 feet, and is on snowshoes on top of 2+ feet of snow, so one can see how far the moose can reach up and bite strips of bark. It is amazing what food sustains that large animal throughout the winter.

On the needlework front, the Papillon shawl is finished. It really was so much easier to do than it looks. Basic knitting skills are all that is needed, L and R increasing, and doing wrap and turns....and being able to concentrate and count!!