Chasing Winter

We've hit a run of warm (ish) weather the last few days, blue skies and sunshine. Spring has very much arrived and Winter has long gone. Not content with Winter leaving of its own volition we chased it off this weekend by heading around 140 miles North East to Bluey Lake, which is still well and truly frozen at this time of year.

Jaime's dad invited us to try Ice Fishing, not something I've ever tried. As it sounds Ice Fishing is fishing through ice. In this case Bluey lake had an ice surface which was several inches thick. The ice is not only thick enough to walk on but easily thick enough to support the weight of a quad or much heavier vehicle. An ice auger is used to drill the hole through the ice before dropping a fishing line into the water below.

Like most fishing, from there on its a waiting game, and this being far enough from civilisation it gave us the chance to enjoy the view and be in the great outdoors. While the sun was out it was warm and pleasant but as we were sitting on one massive piece of ice when the clouds closed in a little, the temperature dropped. A fire to warm us through and a few Thermos flasks of warm drinks soon resolved that as a problem.

Unfortunately we didn't have the most successful fishing day, but it was of no matter, it was a chance to experience outdoors somewhere and something new.

Spring has not arrived yet.

March 2011 has rolled around and I'm led to believe spring is supposed to have started. To be fair the level of rain we're getting in the Fraser Valley is much like the wet springs I've been used to in the UK, but the pattern is all thrown to pot with the odd down fall of snow.

As of today we have 9 weeks to go until Stottie's (as we've come to call the bump) due date. Jaime is still doing very well and is very active. Last weekend we headed out for a hike up in the hills behind Mission. We planned to drive up towards Davis Lake on a disused logging road and hike down to the lake itself on a trail we'd read about.

We should have paid more attention to the 70 or so spent shotgun shells beside the car as we got out. We should have made more note of the sounds of shooting. We should have taken the number of tailers for 4x4s, ATVs and Dirt Bikes as a sign this was not going to be our usual wander in the back woods, but we didn't. We carried on regardless.

We parked the car, ignored the garbage, the sound of constant gunfire, negotiated a stream of dirt bikes, and found the trail, where we clambered around a burnt out BMW 3 Series. Onward and downward towards the lake, we found the trails well worn by 4x4s. From here things seemed to quieten, the gun fire was muffled by the closed in trees, snow on the ground made for a perfect playground for the dogs although a little slippery for us. We encountered the occasional train of ATVs and heavily modified Toyota 4x4, but for the most part had a not to terrible hike down to the lake shore and at first glance it looks amazing, but then the eyes focus and you can see a bunch of vehicles further around the lake, the ears pickup their country music blaring through the peace. Non the less out came the camera to catch a shot of a mostly picturesc and flat lake.

We managed three or four shots between us when the grumble of ATV motors behind us started to get louder and louder and down the tail came a four strong troupe heading straight for the lake, presumable to show their skill on all terrain. The first made a long sweeping semi circle around a bush and through the first few feet of the lake, the second followed in a more direct line straight into the lake and stopped and sank. Amusing to watch, more amusing to listen to, lots of advice was bandied about, to push, to pull, to rev. The best information of the day coming from the rider himself "Well my old quad floated!" Recovery was not swift but did make for and entertaining if brief rest stop.

The arrival of three more quads who's riders dismounted and fired up their own pre-recorded country concert, breaking out the beer and smoking up a storm spurred us on to bushwhack out way back to the car away from man and vehicle.