August is here. Let's do it!

The first two months of the summer have gone by and now it seems as if everyone tries to pack in as many activities as they can realizing that there's really only one month of summer left. 

Sunrise on Green's Ridge and Middle Mountain

I love the early mornings in August.  It is so cool and the air feels clean and fresh.  Here on the mountain it is so quiet.  As I was out on my deck taking some photos this morning, the only sounds I heard were of the hummingbirds as they dive-bombed me because I was standing too close to one of their favorite flowers, my fuchsia plants.  Once in awhile there was the crow of the rooster next door at the Steven's place.  (Another one of my favorite things - to wake up in the morning to the sound of a rooster crowing.)  Thanks, Mike and Teresa!

There's one leaf on the fountain.   A sign of the beginning of the end.  The early morning shadows are long in the garden.

Maggie is on guard watching for those pesky deer.  If she chases one out of the yard or garden, she gets a treat. 

It's time to pick blueberries again.  Really?

We are watering 24/7 or at least it seems that way. 

We have visitors arriving for the weekend and a family reunion soon.  Plus there's the rodeo, the festival and the fair.  There will be several August birthdays to celebrate and there might be huckleberries and/or mushrooms to hunt and pick.

Retired Mountain Man's Dahlia Daze have begun.

Yes, we are planning to pack in as many activities as we can.  I hope you are too.  Hang on!  It's August!

Monday Mushrooms

Retired Mountain Man found these Lobster Mushrooms (Hypomyces lactifluorum) near where he parks his pickup.  They must have popped up after that rain we had last Tuesday.  We were surprised to find them as we usually find them in mid to late August.

 A lobster mushroom really isn't a mushroom at all, but rather it's a fungus that has parasitized a russula or lactarius mushroom.   It's bright orange-red color resembles a lobster and while some say that it has a slight seafood taste, I think it tastes more like a mushroom than any seafood I've ever tasted.  It also has more crunch than most mushrooms with a very firm texture.   It makes a very good mushroom soup.  In other dishes I prefer to saute' them in butter first.

There were too many to eat fresh so I am drying a few of them.

I spent most of the day Sunday making some beet pickles.  It's a process that takes about three hours and I'm glad that we only need a few pints of these per year.   By the time I am finished I seem to have pots and pans and lids and canning equipment everywhere!

This is one of my favorite begonias.  Summer glory.

There are blueberries to pick and it's time to check all of the garden veggies to see what needs to be harvested.  Green beans, zucchini, summer squash, tomatoes, broccoli, basil, onions, beets, and carrots.  It's a happy, busy summertime in the garden.

There are only two more days and the month of July will have whizzed by.    Enjoy!

 

They're back and ready to rock n' roll.

Adam Mitton and his crew returned Friday morning to finish our deck repair job.  This time with a four-man crew, Adam and son, Garrett, Derek, and Jake.  I'm telling you that they flew at it.

Retired Mountain Man and I were barely up and moving when they arrived.  It takes at least three cups of coffee before I consider moving very quickly.  Honestly, I no longer really move quickly at all.  We just watched in amazement as these guys worked.  Each one knowing what to do and anticipating what would come next.  It was just plain fun to watch and very much appreciated by the two of us.

We have needed a concrete pad underneath the bottom stairway off the north side deck since we built it (1982).  It has finally happened ---July 2019.  There's no reason to rush into things....

The crew had the stairway off and the new pad poured in no time.



It was another hot day and they were happy to be working in the shade.

Next, they tackled installing new stringers underneath the decking (36' across).  It is now rock solid and it won't matter how much snow has fallen on it in the winters to come because it's not going to collapse. 

Nice!

The last part of the project was an add-on, which was to replace one of the posts holding up the barn roof.  The concrete block underneath it had started to come apart.  We are getting a new post and the concrete block replaced.

By noon they were finished.  We are just waiting for the concrete to cure and the stairway will be in place.  I sure hope they got to enjoy the afternoon off.  Somewhere cool, like the lake.

We played music Friday night for the awards dinner for the Thistle National Regatta.   The Thistles are a racing boat with a three-man crew and most of the boats and the sailors came from the East coast.   It was a really warm evening but the crowd didn't seem to mind.  There were 244 of them and it was impressive to watch the waitresses and waiters at Trinity taking orders and serving salads, a main course and dessert in the span of about two hours.  Everyone was was having a good time.

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2019/jul/28/sailboats-take-to-the-shores-of-lake-pend-oreille-/

We have a bit of a cool-down this weekend and it's time to get back to the garden.  There are blueberries to pick  and maybe some beets.

All in one day.

Yesterday our neighbor and building contractor, Adam Mitton, and his assistant, Jake, were here to repair our deck on the north side of the house.   I think it has been 38 years since the deck was built so it's understandable that the posts need to be replaced. 

All of the handrails would have to be removed and some of the decking.

The decking and siding looks like it needs another sealer and stain treatment.  I really don't want to think about that at the moment.  Ugh!

Jake, it turns out, is P.J. Allen's son.  P. J. and our son, David, were good friends in high school and both played on the football team.  He graduated from high school last year.  Adam and Jake were very efficient and worked really hard, as they barely took a break all day long.  When they stopped for lunch, they were back at it in twenty minutes - on a really hot day.

Retired Mountain Man ended up with a hammer in his hand.  Many years ago during the summer months he worked for Kenny Walraf, (also one of our neighbors) building houses.   

Adam and Jake had it all repaired and everything back in place by 4:00 p.m.  Amazing work.  They will be back on Thursday to finish by adding some concrete to the stairway off the deck and to replace another post on the barn.

My flower pot that was on the deck rail needed to be moved while the construction was happening.  I think I like it on the table.

A thunderstorm rolled through here around 10:30 last night and the wind was blowing so hard that I went out on the deck to set some of my planters off the handrails.  This morning everything seems to be okay.  In the past I've had them blown right off the deck onto the ground.   I'm so glad there is no damage. 

It seems we get to enjoy a cooler day and then we heat up again on Thursday. 

Summertime, summertime....

On July 23rd...

...some old photos and trips.

July 23, 2008, sunset.

On July 23, 2005 we hiked to Lake Estelle with our friends, Neil and Ann.  Retired Mountain Man and I have gone camping many times, but it was always car camping.  This time it was to be an overnight trip and we would hike to the lake, packing in only what we would need. 

The planning for the trip was intense.  How much weight could we each carry at our age?  What items were essential for an overnight trip and most important, the meal planning.  What if we didn't catch any fish?  Were we really fit enough to make this hike?

 After all of the planning and concerns about the trip, it actually seemed to be an easy hike.   We found a fairly level spot to camp, but I do remember that Retired Mountain Man and I had a difficult time sleeping through the night.  There always seemed to be a tree root or a rock jabbing us.  We caught plenty of fish to eat and they were very tasty. 

It was one of the many hikes with Neil and Ann, which included Mt. Pend Oreille, (a couple of times).  We would rent Lunch Peak Lookout at least once every summer and explore from in many directions from the lookout.  There was a hike on the Green Monarch's and last but not least, a bushwhack hike up Middle Mountain to Trail 120, which we look at every day from the north side of our house. 

Lake Estelle

Yesterday we drove up Lightning Creek to one of our favorite places on Wellington Creek near what used to be the Elk Camp.  As you can see the roads and trails are getting really overgrown with brush and trees.

We were looking for some of these....

Unfortunately, there weren't many and some of those that we did find were not ripe.  We did come home with about a pint and they will be fine in some hotcakes. 

Forest artwork

First zucchini.  It's time for Zucchini Patties, one of our favorites. 

A photo taken from Lunch Peak Lookout in 2008 using my old Olympus camera.