Over the past few years we have been housing little brown bats in our bevel board siding. At first we didn't think it was a problem. There were only a few and there were only a few droppings. Well each year they seem to multiply and this year it feels exponential!
The sonar repellent seems to be working but I need to get probably 3 or 4 more of them since they just move over a little bit to avoid the noise. It's a serious problem and we may have to tear down our siding and do a different type of siding. The bevel boards are a perfect home for them! Thankfully they do migrate, so in the fall we'll try to seal everything up as best we can. Then I'm hoping that they will choose the bat houses that I will have made for them.
This will take time, but it's worth a shot. I'd love to live with bats all around me. But not pooping all over our front deck and in behind our strapping.
These hotels should work as long as they find them! Going to look up an attractant. Any ideas? It might be hard to dissuade them from their already perfect home in our siding. But hopefully with the noise and sealing it up better we can encourage them to use the hotels. We won't even charge rent!!
A few things I've been up to the last two weeks. I've been really trying to get into the spring spirit with taking advantage of the plants that are blooming. I'm finding I can't keep up! It's one thing to harvest the plants, but then to take it home and clean, chop, infuse, hydrosol, dehydrate, can, jar etc.. It's a lot of work!! Needless to say I have been standing in my kitchen a lot lately!!
My new favorite spring project (besides oyster mushrooms!) had got to be making rose water! It's a very uplifting, refreshing light mist after washing my face on a sweaty afternoon. I got about a liter of distilled water and then half a litre of the left over extraction in the pot. Next year I'll have to collect more! I just need a harvest partner!! (Cough* Dave*- he has definitely been making old lady jokes with my rose water haha. It's funny because it's true!)
Some people have asked where we've been and they need another dose of Hank.
I've been laying low on the social the last couple weeks because I'm focused on experiencing life through a local lens. I'm taking a 5 week pottery wheel throwing class that I am loving thanks to @greatwhitenorthpottery and my stellar instructor @sporesceramics
I've been making all sorts of wild infusions and made my very own rose petal hydrosol is "rose water" yesterday that is divine!
We put up the gutters on our new garage and are working towards getting our rain water catchment system refined.
My new bees are humming and I'm almost finished recovering the honey from my fallen bees of winter.
Lots going on and I'll be sure to update with photos soon 😊
Untill then, here's Hank taking it all in on a peaceful walk last night. I also get a nice shower from him 😁
#pondlife #connectwithnature #diylife #doglover #naturelover #
The Blackflies are out in full steam and so I've been keeping busy with my spring harvesting and salve making! I will be making dandelion Mead as well as a soothing salve! Any other suggestions?!
I've just picked Balsam buds and Yarrow leaves to go with my poplar bud oil to make a first aid cream for Hanks hot spots.
I'm baking sourdough, kombucha, ginger bugs and of course continuing my pottery obsession. All of this is a grand distraction from the black flies. I've put my time in enough to not feel the need to be out in them all day I reckon!
What are you doing to stay away from the bugs?! Or are you embracing them full force? I do have a few bloody bites to earn my stripes, but for Hanks' sake....
Food security is top of mind for a lot of people and one of the most under estimated meats I believe is the beaver. Beavers are trapped in a sustainable way by a heavily regulated industry and yet a lot beavers go to be used for 'bait' for trapping other fur bearers. Eating beaver was a staple food for trappers who livelihood depended on living on the land. It was and still is an important food source for First Nations all across the country.
Not only is a delicious meat, but it is healthy, organic and sustainable. I encourage you if you are a trapper yourself to think of the beaver as a meat source for your family, and if you aren't a trapper, to reach out to one you know and ask them if you can trade for some.
If you'd like to learn about more ways to cook and use all parts of the beaver, consider signing up for our Life on the Trapline course followed by our Brain Tanning and Butchery course!
Times they are a changing! With an ever evolving company and life, we are going to be making some changes next year for our winter courses. We are excited about having the ability to mold and shape our company in the direction we want to go, but that also means that you need to stay on your toes!
If you want to do our two week intensive course combining the Life on the Trapline followed by our Brain tanning and butchery course this will be your last chance!
We aren't certain what it will look like next year so if you love the idea of a deep dive from start to finish, sign up today! Head to our website and check out the calendar to book now. https://lureofthenorth.com/calendar/
This is a fantastic course and I would hate for any fence sitters to miss out because they waited too long!
I have made many salves throughout the years but this is the first time I've actually made an infused oil salve with Balsam Poplar. I love it so much! my hands and feet feel so soft and the natural smell is intoxicating! I originally wanted to make a cough syrup with the buds I picked but wanted something I could try right away as well (since I'd have to wait 6 months for the syrup to be ready).
A massive thank you goes to Nicole Dancy for gifting me this book after taking my summer survival course. This book will become dirty in no time (a sure way you know it's well loved).
Made with my own bees beeswax, olive oil, vitamin E and poplar (Populus balsamifera) buds this salve is an anti-inflammatory, analgesic, astringent and of course super hydrating! Ready for the harsh winter trail!
#oilinfusion #borealforest #natureheals
As a company that takes pride in our adaptivity and ability to overcome obstacles that are thrown our way, we thought it prudent to do a little product development for our good friends over @lotn.outfitters .
Introducing the "no snow" edition of our winter toboggan fleet. Have ice but no snow? We've got you covered! With our two state of the art wheeled toboggans we present you both the double and single wheeled toboggo-carts. Perfect for at home or on the trail. These carts will take you far and wide!
In order to order the right number of carts this season, we are taking pre-orders starting today! Just connect below which you would prefer: single or double wheeled and why (still in the r+d phase). Orders placed now will be ready for spring where hopefully this will be the only other time we'll need them this year!
........
****Always check your local ice conditions before traveling on the lakes and rivers. Conditions drastically vary from location to location. This has been a very unusual year for ice formation.****
#productdevelopment #alwaysinventing #genius #singleordouble #icesafety #havingsomefun #makinglemonaid
Yesterday and today have been very gloomy days. The temperatures have been above freezing and melted most of the snow. It created a thick layer of water on the ice and makes it look like fall again. I always try to take Hank for our walk together before it gets completely dark and as we started, I noticed a tiny speck of light through the clouds.
I got to the lake and was blown away by even just the grey clouds rushing low overhead. I stood there mesmerized. I felt very connected to the wind and the sky.
But what I wasn't prepared for was what happened next!
These videos are not filtered. These were the actual colours that came out and honest to goodness my soul opened up and could feel this so much. I took my mittens off and sat on them and watched until the brief but incredible show completed.
Mother nature does it best. No filter required.
Bring it sourdough!!! Let's Gooooooo! This is kombucha sourdough. I don't think you can get much more hippy than this. 🤦🤦🤦🤦 #worththeteasing
What can you do when you can't quite get up a hill with your toboggan? Go for reinforcements!
We use the 3 wrap technique frequently with our @lotn.outfitters trail toboggans on our expeditions. It's a great way to try as best you can, and when you get as far as you can, tie off and either great back in the line to grab the next toboggan and wait for someone to help, set up a pulley, or lighten the load if needed. We rarely if ever do the latter, but in this circumstance it worked beautifully!
...
#getcreative #winterwonderland #climbthathill #worksmarternotharder #harwoodsareheavy
@sitkagear
