April at New Denver

Doco and I scrounged one April week to be at New Denver (April 16-23).  Not long, but very full and fun.  Here are some glimpses:

Day 1.  Ana is planning a wood-kiln workshop on May 1, so she and Christiane, with the "help" of Jeff and Chris, fired up the kiln to test many glaze combinations at cone 4.  Ana is cautious after last spring's firing at cone 6 when many of her large masks cracked.  At the lower temperature, with 2 hours of firing, she was pleased with the result.

So much productive effort on this ranch.  Here is Mick and Ruth's garlic crop, looking good.

This is new rooster #2, "Rusty", who crows in one corner of the yard while the much larger rooster #1, "Tiny" (from Ralph)  crows in another … and attacks Rusty for paying attention to "his" hens.

Chris was removing compost from the chicken run, but the chickens gobbled so many worms he needed to shoo them off - and eventually fence them out till he was done.  See "Tiny" in the rear, keeping an eye on his hens.

April is when we catch the jonquils blooming on the bank below the ancient pear tree ...

… and the yellow plums.  The tree is noisy with all manner of bees.  Anyone here in mid-August will likely be put to work!

Doco's week has been mostly consumed by his booklets - two new ones in his "Slocan History Series", one on the town of New Denver (buildings and people) between 1891 and 1901, the other on Slocan newspapers in the 1890's.  Still, a bit of time-out for weeding.  Oh, and walks and visits.

Several scrambles up into our vast, newly-acquired (last fall), logged-over portion of the Ranch.  Chris knows the elk trails all through it.  This evening, he, Cole and I went to find the deep hole at the Fidelity mine site at the north end.  The land is collapsing down into the workings of the mine.  Dangerous! (photo to follow on our next visit - but, maybe not, because Doco has reminded me that he has asked Ralph to fill it in.)  My one photo, on our way back down, is from a promontory we'd never been to before.  Lots to explore!

Fairyland, on the edge

Yesterday, as Kay, Mary Barnett and I walked down the Galena Trail, Kay spotted a "ladyslipper" (Calypso orchid) right on the edge of the path.  Since a child, I have considered them rare treasure and was more than a bit pleased.  "Oh", says Kay, "I know where there are LOTS."  Could that be?  "It's on a woodsy trail, on the edge, high above Carpenter Creek, below the Old Sandon Road.  I'll take you there tomorrow."  So, today we walked up the Old Sandon Road for maybe a kilometre to a small trail that slants off the road, parallel to the creek.  On the very edge of the constantly cutting-away bank, it winds along through the evergreens and moss and, in April, ladyslippers.  For half a kilometre it must be their perfect habitat because, as Kay promised, there were lots!  A fairyland.  

Beauties!

… more and more ...

… with "Echo" as accidental background.

To try to get some sense of our precarious position, I took a photo of Kay and Echo on the undercut bank( but with sturdy trees beside).  I skipped photos of the treasures on the very edge.

Mostly you see them only when you look right at them.
 I would guess we saw a hundred along this little path, all  with pinkish-purplish tops ...

… except, for geneticists, one white one.

Eight kids! - count 'em

Norbert, Julia and boys headed to the coast for the spring break.  When they left, they had three goats.  When they returned, they had eleven!  Two sets of triplets (to Xiao-Xiao and Yo-Yo) and one set of twins (to Vicki).  The neighbour's visiting daughter became the unexpecting midwife (and gave them all names).  Four boys, four girls.  All fine at three weeks, and such glorious colour patterns!   All different, but it's still hard to keep track of who's who.  Fortunately, their mothers seem to know.

"St. Patrick" and "Yo-Yo", framed

"Emerald"?

Ready for grazing, willful Vicki as lead goat

a perky bunch, already very keen to trot along behind Norbert

seems to be good stuff in the road