Late October

It has been a great month. We have had a bit of everything for weather. The past few days have been clear with frost and fog in the morning. I have been out in the bush and mountains a lot training Toast. Lola has been a big help with her calm presence. I couldn’t be happier with her progress. Here are a few pictures from October.

Finding her way around.

A waning gibbous moon in a brilliant daytime sky.

Following rabbit tracks.

Downey Woodpecker.

Toast has a rabbit under the log.

Columbia Lake.

Election Dysfunction

We have survived two elections. I won’t go into them too much, as things will remain pretty much the same.

Provincially, the bungling Conservatives dislodged the bungling NDP. The Conservatives will form a majority government. I was surprised, as the Conservatives were rife with infighting and had several members leave the party. The NDP, seeing this, called a snap election, thinking this was their best chance to secure another four year mandate. It was a colossal blunder and cost the NDP the election. It will be interesting to see if the Conservatives can get along and govern. Voter turnout was reported at 48%.

Municipally, the election was even less exciting. Voter turnout was reported at just under 30%. However, turnout was probably even lower, as people living in the bush, in trailers, or eight to a two-bedroom apartment wouldn’t have been counted. In other words, the workers.

Now, if the Mayor and Council were asked why there was such a low turnout, they would answer that everyone in town is as happy as clams with the direction the town is going.

More than likely, however, low voter turnout could signify distrust of local government, with voters thinking the candidates don’t listen to or represent their concerns. Whether they cast a vote or not, that was the attitude of many people I’ve talked to, and it is certainly my opinion.

I don’t worry about it too much. Regardless of the Mayor and Council, and what motivates them, I like to think the District has good people working to deliver the services and infrastructure we need. If you contact the Mayor and Council about these subjects, you will get some blank stares back, if they answer at all. These are not the concerns that motivate them. They are more motivated by business interests and tourism. In short, they are more an arm of the Chamber of Commerce, putting forth business concerns and attracting tourism. They function more as an elected Welcome Wagon. It is in this capacity that their allegiance lies, and it can’t be denied they do an admirable job in that capacity.

On a more serious note, unfortunately, Gerry Taft, who has been on council for half his life, decided not to run. I haven’t always agreed with Gerry’s positions in the past, but the one thing Gerry always did was get back to me if I raised a concern. Now, my queries will continue to be met with silence. It should be noted that the only questions I have are about infrastructure, not business or tourism. Silence is to be expected from the Welcome Wagon.

District of Invermere tap water.

Proof

Dark skies to watch Orion rise. The sky displayed interesting air glow that was detectable to the naked eye, though not as prominent as the camera captures it.

Got off the beaten track, where the bears are ready to call it a season, the elk are moving down and the snow will soon take over turning me on my spindly legs even more awkward then I already am. For now at least we all could get along and watch Orion rise to pursue Hyades and Pleiades.

It wasn’t too cold for a night of stargazing. Orion above is proof the cold is on its way.

The little dog stayed home. Lisa has her on a schedule of when to pee, poop and sleep while in training. Going out all night could set back the training. Lisa says the old dog never did get trained up properly and she doesn’t want to make the same mistake with the little dog. I said, I thought Willow was well trained. Lisa said, she wasn’t talking about that old dog.

Thanksgiving

A low-key Thanksgiving with all the kids in the city. As it turned out, I didn’t have to work much today, so Lisa and I took the dogs for a walk up Delphine. What a spectacular day! Frost in the morning, giving way to blue skies. The leaves are falling in the high country, and the tamaracks are already losing their colour.

Lola is good with Toast, putting up with her constant pestering to play. Toast follows in her footsteps through the bush.

Lola and Toast wanted to follow these tracks up the tree.

Toast is cautious, keeping her nose and eyes busy. She stops at unfamiliar sounds to listen intently. She is learning. She is not as adventurous as Willow was, and that may be a good thing. Willow didn’t have much backdown in her, and she paid for it on occasion.

Toast and I were caught in a pretty good rain the other day, and she wasn’t impressed. I don’t think Willow even recognized rain. They are different hounds.

Lisa and I are so grateful to have had so many adventures with Willow, and we are looking forward to all the adventures ahead with Toast. Having Lola’s calming influence on her is a real benefit.

Lisa enjoyed Delphine Creek. It’s been a while since we last walked there. The creek was clear, the sky was blue, the light shining on Lisa. More than plenty for any man to be thankful for.

Saturn in Opposition

This is about as close as we’ll get to Saturn this year, as Earth moves between the Sun and Saturn. It’s a great time to have a look at it through a telescope.

I took this picture from the west side of Lake Windermere. I’ve labelled the stars that form the Great Square of Pegasus, along with the Andromeda Galaxy, about 2.5 million light-years away and the most distant object we can see with the naked eye.

Toast is still too small to join me on these walks under the stars. There are too many coyotes and other critters wandering around in the dark. By the end of winter she’ll still be small, but I expect she’ll be out there with me, giving Orion’s dog, Sirius, a bark.

Early October

It has been nice for Lisa and me to be enjoying the October air with a little dog cutting this way and that while she learns the smells and sights of the bush.

The garden is pretty much in, except for some beets and a heap of carrots. I am going to pull the carrots, trim and bag them up so Lisa can put up a notice on Facebook announcing free carrots. We have done this before with extra vegetables, and they go fast. We keep them out at the road for people to pick up.

The carrots are Royal Chantenay, short and fat, and look nothing like the carrots you buy in the store. This is why I trim, wash and bag them, so people will take a chance on them. It is surprising how some people will not take fresh garden veggies because they don’t look store bought. Once they taste the Royal Chantenay, they will be hooked. I don’t want a little dirt on them being the deciding factor in whether they are tried.

Only a few frosts in the valley bottom so far. I had a couple of tomato plants that were killed. It seems long overdue. It has been a long while since we have had a killer frost at the end of August.

Blue Skies

Toast gets a run in.

September is a good month. Still no frost in the valley bottom. Soon though, and I’m looking forward to it. Most of the tomatoes and the last of the cucumbers have been picked.

Toast and I piled wood this afternoon. I split a few so she gets used to the sound of the axe hitting a block. She will also have to get used to the sound of the chainsaw. So far nothing seems to scare her. She is a little reluctant with new people, but I don’t mind that.

These days the skies are blue. The tourists have receded somewhat. However, as I write this I can hear vehicles doing burnouts. There is a classic car rally in the valley that brings participants from far and wide. They can’t help it.

I expect the next month or so to be busy as people start realizing they have to get things done before the snow flies.

The trip to Quebec has renewed my interest in Canadian history and I have been reading some old journals and books in the public domain. I’m also rereading The Orenda by Joseph Boyden. Boyden was cancelled in the Canadian literary scene, maybe rightly so, however he sure can write. His books, based on historical events, are from the individuals perspective. That’s what I find interesting. I know dates and how it all panned out, I am interested in what people where thinking and how the world was changing in their eyes.

Boyden did this well in Three Mile Road about a man coming home from the First World War. Some of the stories within the book were similiar to the ones my father and grandfather told. There is an authenticity to his stories. So it is quite ironic that Boyden was cancelled due to his own lack of authenticity. Things change, soon people will be judged by their work or art. That’s not now however.

The moon is growing. I point it out to Toast. She gnaws on a piece of bark and doesn’t look up. I know she feels it though.

Off the ridge.

Quebec

Nortre Dame de Bon Secours Chapel, Montreal, Old Port.

Lisa and I are just back from a trip to Quebec. We spent time in Montreal, Quebec City and the Eastern Townships, where we picked up our new puppy, Toast. Toast is a Standard Wire-Haired Dachshund, the same breed as Willow and Slinky.

We met with the breeder, who runs a kennel at her home and breeds dogs for tracking and hunting; instincts that come naturally to the Wire-Haired Dachshund. We also met Toast’s parents. Her dam was a lovely, very affectionate dog, while her sire was one of the finest examples of the breed I have ever seen. He came from Germany and had won many awards for both tracking and show. He was spirited but kind with us, and I could easily imagine him loving every minute spent in the bush.

The breeder was exceptionally knowledgeable and completely committed to her dogs. She even allowed Lisa and me to stay overnight, which was a welcome relief after walking many miles through the streets of Montreal and Quebec City. We came away very impressed with everything we saw.

World Press Photo Exposition 2026, Montreal.

Before visiting the breeder, we treated ourselves to a holiday in Montreal and Quebec City to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. We had to pack very light so were not able to take our camera which would have been phenomenal. Subsequently all photos were taken on our phones.

Our first stop was Montreal, where the highlights were almost too numerous to list. The restaurants, history and welcoming culture were wonderful. We stayed in Old Montreal and spent our days walking through the Old Port, marvelling at the architecture, historic buildings and churches.

Montreal City Hall

On our first day of exploring, we unexpectedly came across the World Press Photo exhibition in Montreal. I knew the exhibition was taking place in the city, but I hadn’t expected us to stumble upon it. Lisa and I are both big believers in letting things unfold rather than planning every step of a trip, and this was one of those fortunate moments.

Downtown Montreal from Mount Royal. A keen eye will spot Leonard Cohen.

We spent several hours looking at some of the finest press and documentary photography in the world. The presentation was exceptional and, at times, heartbreaking. It was impossible to walk through the exhibition without being moved.

Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal.

Another stop was Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal, where we took in the nighttime light show and learned about the history of this remarkable Gothic Revival church. The light show itself was quite an experience. Lisa and I both agreed it was probably a good thing we weren’t tripping on any substances while watching it.

On another outing, we realized we were close to the cemetery where explorer David Thompson is buried. Again, it wasn’t planned, so we set off to pay our respects to a man whose name is so closely tied to the Columbia Valley and whose journals my father and I spent so many hours studying.

David Thompson’s monument in Mount Royal Cemetery.

We first managed to go to the wrong cemetery. I hadn’t expected two enormous cemeteries to be sitting side by side, but after being pointed in the right direction, we headed farther up Mount Royal. Before long, we were standing in front of David Thompson’s monument. For me, it was certainly one of the highlights of the trip.

Duc De Lorraine French Patisserie & Bistro. We bought a few things here and they were fabulous!

From Montreal, we travelled by train along the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City. We stayed just outside Old Quebec and once again spent much of our time walking and taking in the history around us. It is certainly a very touristy area, but we thoroughly enjoyed it. We gravitated toward the museums, historic buildings and churches. One museum, in Montreal, even took us underground, where we walked through part of the city’s early sewer system and saw the remains of one of its earliest settlements.

Feast your eyes on a petite, curvy beauty, whose feisty retort can really go boom when you light her fuse . . . and to the left of Lisa a canon, Quebec City.

There were so many wonderful sights and experiences throughout the trip that I know we will remember for years to come. But what made it particularly special was experiencing it all with my best friend and the woman I have loved for more than 40 years.

And then there was Toast.

It is wonderful to have a puppy in our lives again. Lisa and I have missed Willow terribly. My excursions into the bush and my nights spent out under the stars simply haven’t felt the same without her beside me.

Training a new dog will be a lot of work, and I expect Toast will be different from both Willow and Slinky. She will have her own personality, her own quirks and her own instincts. We aren’t looking for another Willow. We are looking forward to getting to know Toast for who she is.

And I am especially looking forward to the first time I take her into the bush, let her put that dachshund nose to the ground, and watch her discover a world that already seems to be in her blood.

Stay tuned for Toast.

Late August

Partially eclipsed moon through the clouds.

It’s feeling cooler. Lisa said she feels the change. The change is when you can feel fall.

I am looking forward to fall. It’s been a long, busy summer.

Lisa and I were ready for the partial lunar eclipse a few night ago but the weather failed to cooperate. We did spot it between holes in the clouds. It was nice to catch a glimpse.

Red Sturgeon Moon.

Along with the cooler weather the smoke is clearing. It has been a hot dry summer. The garden has suffered, but’s still trying. Lots of tomatoes and cucumbers.

Smokey mountain majesty.

Cloud and Smoke

Tamaracks

A few drops of rain this morning. They were welcome, as they helped clear some of the smoke. Unfortunately, the Perseids will likely be hidden tonight by smoke and clouds. It’s disappointing, as it seems to be becoming a regular thing to have them obscured by smoke.

This year they fall during a new moon, so under good conditions they would be quite a sight in a dark sky. That’s the way it goes sometimes. Will keep a look out regardless. A hole in the din may develop.

Here are a few pictures of wildflowers from the other day. The names I use may not be proper. Just like creeks and mountains I tend to call them by the names I learned long ago.