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Hidden Gem

I visited a trout stream today I hadn’t been to in a few years. If you were on the road to this place you likely wouldn’t know it was there. Yes there is a bridge but the stream is so far down from the bridge into what appears to be an impassible canyon, you can’t even see the water as you drive by. There is a parking area and there is a trail.

DSC06683You can get down the canyon in two or three places (depending on how agile you are). If you follow the trail, you emerge at the bottom end of the canyon stretch. Below is a deep pool followed by riffles. Above are some slow deep weedy pools. This morning the trout were rising, as they do, just at the edge of my ability to reach them with my fly. I edge upstream and the water deepens, close to the tops of my waders in spots. The rises appear further upstream at the same pace. DSC06689DSC06691The water is very clear. Even where it is deep you can see bottom. Of course that doesn’t necessarily mean you can see the trout. Once, several years ago I fished in here and sat down to eat my lunch overlooking the stream. As I sat still, eating my sandwich, the trout which were invisible to me a second earlier began to materialize. I counted 21 in that pool, mostly small ones,  along with two chunky brookies.

DSC06695DSC06701The cliffs are fantastic, with caves and crevices carved out of the rock, and ferns and trees growing with no soil. Countless colours.

DSC06706DSC06717Walking this steam is difficult at best. In the slow water below, the pools are guarded by mud which makes movement next to impossible. Further upstream, log jams block the stream in many spots. There are springs gurgling over mosses, working their way to the stream, providing the cool fresh water the trout love. DSC06740 In all this stream is difficult to access, difficult to walk, difficult to fish for trout that are at times difficult to catch (I confess I have had a few banner days in there over the years, when I’ve found some of the bigger trout in the stream).

I found this stream many years ago. That is I knew the stream existed and I followed it upstream for miles, checking out possible access points. If I hadn’t been looking for it, I never would have found this spot. It doesn’t get fished much. Really,  you have to be kind of nuts to try it. It is also one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to in Ontario, a hidden gem.

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Look what I found…

I drove a couple hours north of the city early this morning in search of some brook trout in a particularly gorgeous and challenging trout stream I know.  As a bonus I found a few edible mushrooms.  These are “milk caps” or Lactarius mushrooms.

DSC06745When you break them, they exude an orange latex-like substance.  These are Lactarius thyinos. If you can identify these mushrooms as Lactarius, you will know you have L. thyinos because they are the only one of the milk caps with orange milk that does not bruise green.  I found them right where they were supposed to be – in a cedar forest. DSC06744  More common in our area are L. deliciosos, which look similar until you bruise or break them, when the bruised area turns a greenish colour.  In my opinion, L. thyinos is a much superior find.

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Beautiful day for a bike ride

IMG_1950What a beautiful day, sunny with a light cooling breeze. Perfect for a bike ride. The Waterfront Trail is a treasure that runs nearly past our door, as Lake Promenade at the bottom of 27th Street forms part of the trail. We headed west, through Marie Curtis Park, into Mississauga, and west still, through the Adamson Estate grounds and over to Port Credit. IMG_1931IMG_1944IMG_1954

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Thanks but….

We’re fairly well-known in the neighbourhood for hosting the 27th St. Book box in front of our house. The other day, somebody made the generous gesture of leaving a heaping big bag of books on our porch. Given that the book box is more or less self-maintaining – books come in, books go out, I’m not sure what is expected of us.

Maybe the idea is that we store these books until by chance the book box becomes depleted, and then re-up  from the bag.  The problem is that the book box rarely becomes depleted. Some people take books and leave books. Some just take books. Others just drop books. It all works out to a fairly full box most of the time.

Unfortunately, we have plenty enough stuff cluttering the house without storing an extra bag of books. I rebuilt the book box this season so it will hold more, but I don’t plan to add a second box. Unfortunately I think I’m going to end up driving this bag of books over to the Goodwill and donating them there.  I don’t think that’s what the person who dropped them off had in mind.  Sorry about that. We appreciate the gesture, but we just can’t use them.

 

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Moon Phase Waxing Gibbous Long Branch Aug 8

27th Street cutting down from Lakeshore

The Moon is in Zodiac Capricorn tonight (98%). Full Moon is on Sunday. It will then be 99% in Aquarius. Check it out: unaf.com/english/astrology/moon-in-zodiacal-sign/capricorn/

Racoon Longbranch Aug 8

Going Vertical. This is what happens to racoons that see Georgie and Memphis..

LongBranchnight1

Lakeshore, near Long Branch Animal Clinic

George Aug 8th Lakeshore

George. Lakeshore treat stop!

Membles Aug 8 on Lakeshore

just being a dog…Memphis on the Lakeshore

NightBuddies Aug 8

unison….lifemates….on our way back home… with George and Memphis.

 

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Good morning from Long Branch Aug 7th

GEORRRRGEE

Here’s how this song goes:

The hand-bone connected to the Georgie-the Georgie (“G”) connected to the table- G’s tongue connected to the table- G’s drool connected to his biosphere- the biosphere connected to our whole house.. (repeat for a lifetime..)George drooling

 

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The Brett Cardinal off to new home

Kim in yard with Cardinal

This Cardinal is ready to fly! Kim with his new bird in the back garden.

The Brett Cardinal mosaic is off to its new home tonight. I posted some detail shots of this mosaic over at the Long Branch Mosaics site. This mosaic contains a number of little details not obvious at first glance.