Saturday, July 1, 2017 – Happy Canada Day
When we went to bed last night, the forecast for the holiday weekend looked spectacular. Unfortunately, it is only a forecast and reality is very different. I woke up to one of the densest fogs yet on the island and the NOAA Marine forecast did not offer much hope for visitors today but we are ready to greet anyone who comes to visit.
As I was sitting at the computer this morning, there was a flash of movement out the window, I figured it was a bird capturing any left-over bugs from last night. Not quite, the movement was a chickadee trying to eat something but the food item was bigger than the bird, it was a giant moth. It is a Polyphemus Moth, a member of the giant silk moth species and it is a female (thanks for the information Google). The moth was hanging on to the window frame and the little birds were ready to celebrate with a giant feast. The moth had different ideas and tried to fly away. It most likely had just hatched from its cocoon and the birds were very opportunistic, no matter if I interfered, mother nature was going to prevail.
As sailors over the past few years, we have met many Canadians and we knew July 1st is Canada Day and this year marks the 150th Anniversary. Brian found a small Canadian flag which we proudly displayed for our northern friend’s day of celebration.
After breakfast, we walked the trails and were very surprised to still find nests with eggs in them, one was just hatching as we walked by. The hatching period for the seagulls is far broader than my research has showed. We are seeing hatchlings that are sporting feathers and are ready to look like birds and then there are still eggs being incubated. Good news for me because it gives me many more weeks of entertainment. There is also this one seagull that seems to want to be part of our family. It is always hanging around the yard near the cottage, sits on the rail of our porch or up on top of the chimney so I can see it when I give tours. And he seems to like Brian more, probably because he tends to eat more frequently outside. We have an agreement never to feed seagulls on the boat and supposedly he insists he doesn’t feed them here!
There isn’t much to do on the island at this point for projects to keep us busy and we are looking forward to the summer crowds to come visit us. We don’t do relaxing well when it is cold and wet. But as we were walking down at Cobblestone Beach, Brian found what looked like an overgrown path to the South Cove and area that is beautiful but as of now you can only access over a very steep rock climb. Brian decided to change that, off he went with pruners and the weed whacker to clean up what looks like an old trail. This should keep him busy for the afternoon.
11 o’clock came and went and no visitors were brought from the mainland but there was one sailboat on the moorings, most likely as a safe haven from the dense fog and the predicted thunderstorms for the afternoon. Hopefully they will put their dinghy in the water and come for a visit.
I ended up cutting back some young trees near the helipad to square up the landing area in my hope of still getting the USCG Helicopter to land sometime this summer. And of course, on a yucky day I bake, today was a new bread recipe, nothing better than a house that smells like fresh baked bread.
Brian finished the first cut of the path to the South Cove and wanted to show it off so with camera in hand, back down the trails we go. He did a lot of work and it will be another nice vista off the Cobblestone Beach Trail, he still has plans to widen it and try to make a safe stopping point for it. Tomorrow is another day and if no visitors again, I am sure he will have this done in no time.
As we headed back to the cove, another sailboat came in to the mooring field as the wind picked up. We went from light and variable one minute to wind speeds in the 20’s. Not the calmest of places to ride out a storm but if the wind directions don’t change it is a much safer spot than out in Sheepscot Bay in dense fog and a thunderstorm rolling over you.
Tonight, I had extra time to experiment with dinner, we defrosted a pork loin roast for dinner and I have a lot of fresh spinach from the garden. Also, it was an oven dinner because the weather was not the best for grilling out. I ended up making a spinach/cheese stuffed pork loin for dinner and even Brian suggested I post this as a recipe. So, tomorrow in the fog, I will write up the recipe and post it for everyone to give it a try.
Guests today – 0
Guests total – 225
USCG – 6 (I have cleared the helipad for more to visit, and I will bake for them if they come, would love to see this number get bigger!)
