Wading in Beaver Creek

Truthfully *THIS* is prime real estate!

The highlight of thisweek was jumping in a freezing cold, snow-melt fueled creek.  Actually, you can't 'jump' in.  You must 'wade', which doesn't sound nearly as cool.  Although truthfully it's so much more challenging than saying 'let's do this' & plunging.  When you wade in, you have to get your feet all muddy whilst navigating over sharp rocks & branches.  You have to will yourself forwards and let the snow-melt, rush past & climb gradually up your legs one inch at a time.  Until it reaches your thighs and you think...nah, it's TOO COLD & run out of the water.  Knowing that you're just going to have to do it all over, because once you've got *that* wet, you're gonna do it.
Antoine went in first & he ran out first (Mediterranean blood).  i've had plenty of experience bathing in freezing cold glacial melt streams in the Himalaya - but in those moments, i remind myself how sacred & healing the waters are.  This time, i couldn't convince myself and i ran out straight after him.

Of course, once he'd actually dunked his head under, run out convulsing & claimed first dibs on the only towel we'd brought (damn...) - well, i knew it was my turn.

i stood up to my hips in the deepest part of Beaver Creek.  (i bestowed the name Beaver Creek 18 months before based on one brief sighting.  Because, as a European - who has neither 'beavers' nor 'creeks' - it always felt like an authentic Canadian name. 
**Footnote - my brother read this post & corrected me that we *DO* in fact have 'loads of beavers' in scotland.  i did not know that.  we probably have creeks too ;) 
The late afternoon sun on my face, i pleaded with my knees to bend, so i could submerge the rest of my body in this icy flow & have the whole thing over.  i reminded myself that all water is holy water.  i tried to call into memory how stinkin' hot i'd been all day as the yurt had transformed into a sauna.  My knees cooperated & i dunked my head under 3 times.

i came out of the water about 20x faster than i'd gone in & didn't even notice that our, thick, fluffy towel was wet.

***
Antoine and i sat with our backs against a tree, chatting & drinking in the last of the sunshine.  

"A beaver"  Antoine pointed.  i saw something moving downstream between the bushes submerged in the creek. it could've been a branch, so i tried not to get too excited.  

Next to where we'd been splashing was a small dam.  it's why we'd chosen that spot to 'wade in', because it's deep but not too fast.  i've sat there on many occasions for great lengths of time & i'd never spotted a beaver.

Antoine and i kept watching.  

"Keep still," said Antoine - with his 'i am wilderness guide, i've studied adventure tourism & about indigenous animals' voice.  As the knowledge acquired in his course had allowed him to un-dislocate my knee (which is AWESOME now, by the way!) - i intended to listen to him.  



The beaver reappeared in the

http://www.nicolasdory.com/2010/05/

water and continued downstream until he was in the spot where we'd dunked, just 5 mins before.  He was moving incredibly slowly, so we really had time to watch and enjoy his presence.  It's so special to see animals up close in the wild.  He seemed to be sniffing, then locked onto our location.  Most likely wondered why we're acting like statues:  he swam right over to us.  He stayed their a moment, directly in front of us (we were both whoop-whooping inside).  Then he turned around, so his back was to us & thumped that great big beaver tail into the creek, spraying water at us and swam off.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver

Feeling both dissed & honoured simultaneously, Antoine and i just stared at each other after. it's one of those moments where you're glad to have experienced it with someone else, because it's difficult to describe how magical & special it feels.

i broke the spell with a practical question.
"Do beavers bite?"  i was imagining Jaws.  But in a creek.  With a beaver.  Hey, those things have some teeth on them!  Antoine wasn't so sure.  i had it googled before my hair was even dry.  The answer seems to be - yes, but it's rare.  But all over google, is the story of the Belarusian fisherman who was killed after receiving 2 bites from a beaver!  i also discovered, that the tail splashing, it a display of territory & to cause fear.  Man is the only predator to beaver, so i can only imagine the guts it takes to swim right up to us & defend his home.

Thanks dude for letting us wade in your pool, don't know if i'll be in such a hurry to come for another dip. 

******
Other yurt goings on have included...

Unexpected daffodils erupting outside.

* Making a trailer for our short film, Oeil-De-Mère:  
* Reading most of 'The Joy Luck Club' which is a fantastic book.
* Realising fried plantains (kind of like bananas) are an excellent accompaniment to veggie Mexican black bean stew.
* Collecting Labrador Tea in an adventurous, swampy, solo walk in the woods surrounding Beaver Creek.  (It is now drying in the sun.) 
* Giving Reiki to a stressed cat, who is a blessed and wonderful friend to their family for 13 years. 
* Getting my shoulders & legs sun-burnt as i basked in Spring sunshine.
* Hosted another meditation circle last night in the yurt...lots of fun!

* i've also finally come to terms with the fact that Dodo-Rouge was more of a couch-surfer than a long-term tenant.  Since we were gone over the weekend of the film shoot & didn't leave him any crumbs - he seems to have moved on.  i imagine him chatting up the squirrel-ladies telling them about the 'sweet pad' he lived in & how internationally famous he is & how there are over 500 photos of him!

hanging laundry outside!

This blog is dedicated to Grandma who celebrates her birthday tomorrow.  She had a picture on the back of her bathroom door when i was a child, of an otter (kind of like a beaver) waving & saying 'hi mom'.  Grandma also has the best names for pets...Thisby (black lab), Perriwinkle ('runt' of a black lab litter), Gargantua (tortoise), Bentley (grey macaw parrot), Seraphina (basset hound), Sally-Patches (adopted mixed dog, originally named Sally, from the local fishman), Tibby-Tibby-Tuskins (pet goat?!), Raggy bag & Peggy leg (2 cockatiels, one missing an eye, the other a leg), Magic (adopted, prenamed black lab), Duncan (pre-named predecessor to Bentley) & she'll be celebrating her 87th birthday with Tess, a pre-named, much loved lab rescued from a game-keeper.  After reading this, Mum has also added...

Finkle was a chipmunk. Frobisher was a terrapin. Nimbus was a budgie. Tupper was a cocker spaniel. Sunday, Flopper and  Pounder were cats. You would have to ask Grandma what they called the 8 black lab puppies cos I simply can't remember!!

It's an age thing but I bet Grandma at 87 will remember!!!!!

Grandma inspired me to travel, and probably regretted it, as i adopted to the feral, nomadic life!  She also asked me one of the most pertinent questions of my life 'what are you contributing to the world?' in 2005, which prompted me to pack my bag & head to Pakistan to volunteer after the earthquake there.

Grandma writes the best emails, tells great stories, has been doing yoga before i was born & quit a computer class at the local library, when they insulted her by trying to tell her which way round to hold a mouse - she already knew how to skype!

Thank you Grandma, you are a legend!

Sugar Shack Roadtrip

Road Trip

Martin opted for chewing on his aerial.

Our friend, Martin, invited us on a roadtrip for the Easter weekend. As all Canadians know, all good road trips are fueled by Tim Hortons (the Canadian equiv of Dunkin' Donuts...except better,  tastier and cheaper).

family breakfast

We bunked down at his cabin in the woods.  Breakfast was served at his Grandparent's nearby house.  Such lovely and welcoming people.

Local strip club  - hilariously out of place in this quaint town!

Sugar Shack / Cabin au sucre

Where the maple syrup magic happens!

One of the reasons for venturing out of this canadian yurt, was to visit a 'Cabin au Sucre' aka Sugar Shack.  A typical Québecois experience, where all the food is cooked in maple syrup.  As 'food' generally means 'meat' in Québec, it was fantastic that Martin had friends who not only run a Sugar Shack, but one which is vegetarian!  The owners, Mario & Carole, also grow in their garden a great deal of the goodies which they serve. 

inside the sugar shack

The tree-hugger in me had to ask...don't the trees mind?  The answer apparently is 'not if you let them just drip the maple water into buckets'.  As was the practice used where we visited (the alternative is a kind of reverse foie gras scenario, where the trees are drained using pumps & hoses).

If you look closely you can actually see the maple water dripping from the tree into the bucket (look for the 2 shadows).

A forest full of buckets collecting the maple water.

It takes 40 litres of maple water to make 1 litre of maple syrup - that's a lot of buckets of water to be lugging around the snowy forest!

Martin, his Mother & Gabriel

They put on a great spread - lots of different kinds of tarts, omelet, salad, potatoes, beans & quiche.  Plus instead of gravy, there was a huge JUG of maple syrup with which to drown every item on your plate.  y.u.m.  

Mario dripped caramelized maple syrup into the snow.

We got lolly-pop sticks to twist the syrup onto.  It was a sticky, sugary, warm yet snowy delicacy!

After the crêpes with...you guessed it, maple syrup - when we'd eaten so much that we could barely move - came the REALLY cool part...

Super happy me (new favourite crocheted fingerless gloves i made!)

Strawbale House
The owners of the sugar shack, who are living an inspiringly sustainable life, are also building a straw-bale extension onto their log home.

Building is still in progress, so we got a nice clear view of the straw bales.

Most of the joins were made with wooden bolts (excuse my lack of terminology)

Straw bale yurt?  Just putting it out there!

Doorway to Antoine's heaven.

Microbrewery Beer

Of all the moments in the whole adventure, i believe Antoine was the happiest in this shop... 

Part of the selection of micro-brewery available.  Beer from all over Québec.

Écossaise = Scottish & btw, what's 'Scotch Ale'?

indeed if we could alchemise something it would be water into alcohol

Visiting Sherbrooke



We spent a couple of nights with Martin's Dad in the city of Sherbrooke.  What an amazing host!  He welcomed us into his home, treated us to fine beer, best maple syrup ice-cream, we cooked delicious meals & received chauffeur driven guided tours!  

Maple syrup ice-cream. Maple syrup overdose? No chance! This is Canada.

Martin cooked vegetarian poutine (national dish of Québec)

Poutine:  thick cut chips, (veggie) gravy & local cheese.

He had an incredible vinyl collection & generally a house full of cool stuff.

Antoine kickin' it with Hendrix

Planning for another adventure (some of his friends even call him 'Tonio!)

Cowboy Photo Studio & Dog Sledding

Cowboy Photo Studio
i mentioned before that we were setting up a photo studio for a cowboy themed party (with about 300 people attending). We created a great studio, using things we found along the way.  Like the saloon doors, which we stumbled upon at a talent show a few days before the cowboy party (synchronicity & manifestation in abundance!)

We took photos of the revelers all dressed-up, together with their friends, then printed them instantly using technology unimaginable in those bygone days!  Smiles all around!

At the end of the party, we remembered to take a couple snaps of ourselves, which looked like this:

our bad ass cowboy faces

Dog Sledding
i also went dog sledding...for free: a perk of being the girlfriend of an adventure tourism student!  i'd heard that it was lots of fun, but was reluctant to hurt dogs in any way.  From what i experienced, the huskies absolutely LOVE it - they can't wait to get out and start their 'walk', and whenever we stopped they would just stare at me, wanting to start running again.

It was both cool and scary having the responsibility of driving the sled...

This ain't no Xmas deco!  Real icicles on the tree.

This week the reality of living in such a small space with another human also truly hit me.  (Imagine taking all your essential personal belongings into your kitchen & camping out there with someone else...except the toilet, for that you have to put on snowshoes & go outside!)  My introverted tendencies dancing with Antoine's extrovert-nature.  But it's okay, everything can be treated as a lesson in love.  And we're learning all the time :)

As i read an earlier version of this post to Antoine (which kicked off with a more detailed account of the week's challenges), he listened and encouraged me to post whatever i liked.  But he also thought it strange, because he said he'd had some of the best ever yurt moments this past week & had already forgotten the brief chats about the need for time alone.  So, once again i'm reminded it's all about what we put our focus on in the present.  Thanks, Antoine, je t'aime!

This Canadian Yurt

A LOT of Snow

i love the more traditional snow shoes.

i’m not exaggerating when i say there was A LOT of snow yesterday.  i know i'm telling the truth because we had to put on snowshoes to go to the toilet. 

The snow was almost halfway up our door when we woke up, which meant *climbing* out of the yurt, in snowshoes, in order to go to the toilet!

How many steps to the toilet?

Wet feet!  Next time put on snowshoes AND gaters to go to toilet!

i've omitted the image of me peeing.  But i tell you squatting over a bucket full of sawdust, whilst wearing snowshoes & brushing snow from the toilet paper *is** a pretty amusing image!

Antoine rocking the snowy look.

there be icicles on these here prayer flags!

We donned our neon ski suits/all in ones (that some may remember from our 2 idiots in Québec bollywood film!) and went for an epic adventure in the forest. 

We took lots of great photos, but we're attempting to do something different with them.  If it works you'll get to see the results, otherwise i'll post the photos here.

Thought this Canadian yurt looked like a cake, so i added a cherry to it!

Photos from This Canadian Yurt

i realised that living in this canadian yurt is a bit like camping in a circus big top...at burning man.  Except without any other people around.  

We take the best of both worlds: a wood burning fire, peeing outdoors (hey, i LOVE it!), the feeling of satisfaction from the 'honest hard work' of living close to nature, like fetching water...

Antoine invented a system to pull the 25 kilos of water on a sledge.

And our big-top-camping-life is mixed together with western luxuries:  wi-fi (which last week i discovered is weather dependent!), electricity (admittedly the lights dim when we use the oven - but compared to the 17 hours EVERY day without power i got accustomed to in Nepal...) and we have a fully equipped kitchen - this week i made veggie sushi, 

veg sushi

bean burriots

mexican bean burritos, veg lasagne, marinated tofu stirfry with pak-choi & shitake 'shrooms.  We baked bread & made a spiced apple crumble.  Plus... blueberry-raspberry-banana-chocolate-chip-vegan muffins (yeh you read that right!  i got slightly overexcited & added extra ingredients!). 


 THIS CANADIAN YURT PHOTOS....
The yurt finally looks homely enough to share photos...

We melt snow (in a pan on top of the stove) to prevent the yurt getting too dry.

The wi-fi connection is strongest by the door.

i'm making notes about props for a cowboy themed studio we're going to take photos at in a couple of weeks. (Antoine's experimenting with b&w for the shoot.)

i love the design of the yurt...it's like living in sunrays!

On the left is our (single) bed, beneath a HUGE yin yang hanging.  Antoine won that 'discussion' and it's still there...giving me trippy dreams!

Taaa-daaa!  The kitchen!  Behind the curtains is all our dry food & veg.  We have a proper italian espresso machine, oven/grill, kettle, 2 gas hobs (gas cylinder under the yurt), blue jerry can full of water above the silver bowl (which sits on nails in a hole cut into the counter) - it's not a sink & all water must be emptied outside but the birdies pick the food scraps from where we pour it!  Mugs hang on nails (top left).  There's compost, recycling & a bin.  Our fridge is on the right with one of the best views in the world - the Annapurna range!

Welcome to my office.  I love working with Le Petit Prince looking on.

The heat from the chimney melts the snow from the transparent plastic, so we can see the blue/stary sky.  Sometimes the difference from indoor/outdoor temperature means there's ice on the inside of the roof.

A WALK IN THE GARDEN 

Surrounding the yurt are miles of gorgeous, quiet forest.

baby christmas trees!

Yesterday it was warm & i took a walk...

sun-bathing is essential even in subzero temperatures

Antoine likes looking at pictures of himself on the big screen!

...and one night we borrowed a projector and so the yurt was converted into our very own circular circus cinema:
Thanks for sharing in and caring about our adventure! All comments & 'likes' appreciated...fuels my motivation to update each week :)