A rare visitor

Update on the Freezer Cold Frames. They are working out splendidly. Last evening, we put the lids on just as the sun was setting, and the temp inside the glass was still at 20C (70F). The outside temp overnight was just above freezing, but when we opened the lids in the morning, the freezer had held at 12C (54C) all night. The soil is deliciously warm for these little transplants of spinach and lettuce.

We had a rare visitor this week as well. A Bald Eagle. They are considered regionally endangered in our are, mostly due to the destruction of habitat (i.e. the almost exclusive practice of clear-cutting to harvest lumber primarily for the pulp and paper industry). On top of that, we are a bit out of their range, too far from the coast and any major rivers or lakes. So it was a treat to see this one perched atop a dead fir tree right near the road. It stayed around long enough to snap this photo, but it was shy and flew further from the road, landing in a big white pine. They often nest in white pines, but it would be surprising to see a bald eagle make a nest here, the only nearby body of water is really just a seasonal bog.

Here it is flying, they are really amazing to watch, and such a wide wingspan! It took flight once more, and we got to watch it glide and soar away over the treetops before it disappeared from our sight. It truly is a beautiful bird.


Note April 6: A more common visitor, the first robins showed up today! Look forward to some more bird posts this spring, I get a bit bird obsessed. There was also some sort of thrush or warbler in the woods, it is a thrill to hear birdsong again, besides of course, our winter companions of twittering Chickadees, a pair of skwaking Blue Jays, and a hand full of giant Ravens who have claimed the tallest Spruce trees surrounding the fields as long as we have been here, and harass and hound any hawks who try and hunt their fields in the summer.