TICKS

       This morning I listened to an item on ticks on my favorite radio program on CBC. Ticks have been in the news lately as they have become more abundant. They were noted for passing on Lyme disease but now they pass on other diseases. They are annoying because they are sneaky little beggars that attach themselves and are on your body before you know it.

       The expert being interviewed suggested that ticks were moving about 50 km further north every year and that this was due to climate change.

     People remember when they've had a tick or when a pet has had a tick. One I remember is when I had a tick on my throat just below the edge of my beard. Luckily, my brother saw it and took it off before any harm was done. 

    I taught outdoor ed for a number of years. We took the students on 3 field trips a year. When you're taking out 35 kids for two nights and 3 days very strict  routines have to be set up. One of the routines was for each student to have a buddy to check for ticks. 

    One time we had  a couple of extra hours so we took them on a trail on the side of a mountain.. This was in late March and on a south facing slope where the snow had disappeared. So ticks were already active. 

     We got o the bus and one of the students found a tick. There was excitement and pandemonium and all the kids got off the bus. The checking was done and no more ticks were found. We loaded the bus and headed for home with an interesting event to tell about. 

     Whenever I go by I still look up on the mountainside and remember the tick episode 

I'm Back...

      I've taken a break for a week.

      Now I tell you that a took a break so that you will know. Some of you may not have noticed that I was away!

     I can tell you that a break from Hiawatha House was very worthwhile. Yes I miss it. I miss the posts you write. I miss the comments. I also miss posting.

     So what happened? I drove to the west coast...Vancouver , B.C. Canada. 

    I took the southern most highway, the Crow. This road is narrow and winding. Many curves have an 80 kmh speed limit , some 60 and some 30. So you get the idea that the road is interesting. The scenery is just as interesting. I've lost count of how many passes we went over.

    There's a large variety of naturescapes you pass through. There's even some northern desert around Osoyoos. There's also some coast forest with large cedar and spruce. These are all beautiful areas to travel though. 

     One of the passes provided us with lots of winter snow. For a further treat it snowed in the area. Snow plows had gone through before us and it also snowed for a few minutes.

I couldn't stop further back for a better shot of this valley lake

Deep winter snow.

It  really was snowing!

Nice power  pole Red!

    Since the purpose of my trip was to spend time with the grand kids I did not stop  for photos. Rather , photos were taken where I stopped so some of the best scenery was missed.