Take me Fishing

Abigail is four now and this year the Easter Bunny brought her a fishing pole. She was so excited and couldn't wait to try it out.

We went to our local store and purchased some hooks, sinkers, bobbers, etc. for her first fishing adventure. I thought you simply put a hook on the end of the line and a worm on the hook - not so. There is a lot of gizmos and gadgets need to hook those fish! My daughter is now the proud owner of her own tackle box filled to the brim with all kinds of things to catch the big one.

She even dug for worms.

She didn't catch anything this time around but she really enjoyed it, I told her we can try again next weekend.

While sitting on the bank Abigail looked at me and said:

"Do you know my favorite thing about fishing?"

I looked at her and replied: "No, what is it?"

"The Quiet", she said.

Eagles, Coyotes, Porcupines - Oh My!

The weather was fabulous here this weekend with lots of sun and clear skies. Actually, it is supposed to be warm and sunny all week - bring it on, and the sunscreen out - Abigail and I will resemble lobsters otherwise.

We went to the lake on Saturday and spent the night. We saw an eagle again this weekend although I have been unable to get a good picture of him because I am always fumbling for the camera as he is flying away! We also have a loon on the lake which we heard on Sunday morning while enjoying our first cup of coffee of the day.

I also heard the haunting bark of a coyote, watched a little brown bat catching its supper along the lake, and a porcupine waddle across a trail as we were out on our quads enjoying the beautiful weather.

We were again clearing land this weekend, I will be so happy when that task is finished. It is very labour intensive to clear land by hand. Normally we will cut a tree, chunk it up and burn the brush. Because it has been so dry the past week we didn't dare start a fire so we simply put the brush in a pile to burn another time.

We may have another weekend at the lake before the bugs are out of control. We really noticed that they were around but not biting yet. The plan is to finish up the clearing of the land this coming weekend and then start building over the summer if possible depending upon the black flies and mosquitoes.

The Cabin

Our family is in the beginning stages of planning and building a cabin. We are super stoked about it.

We are in love with the property that has been in the Day family for over 100 years. The acreage is on Ship Harbour Long Lake in Nova Scotia, a designated wilderness area. It is remote, quiet and perfect! We are building on land that has a brook on one side of the property and the lake on the front side.

The property is very rugged with boulders and rocks everywhere, and terrible black flies in the summer make the property practically inhabitable for several weeks of the year - but we love it. The peace and tranquility of the water, the wildlife such as moose, bear, deer, bald eagles, porcupine, fish, geese, etc., can't be beat.

Abigail is getting a hands on nature lesson every time we are at the lake! We enjoy hiking and four wheeling so we can hop on our quads or lace up our hiking boots and go all day and not be on the same quad or hiking trail twice.

We built a camp across the brook several years ago, and while it is the sweetest little thing (16 x 20) - it doesn't really suit our family. The existing camp is primarily a hunting and fishing camp. We want a place we can cook, swim, relax. Make s'mores by an open campfire, lay our heads in comfort and most importantly -  make memories as a family.

The cabin is being built with our own hands, and with a modest budget. There will be lots of DIY and flea market finds. I will be documenting the process and progress on the blog through written posts and video. I hope you will stop in from time to time!