Hike Day 2013 Pictures, Links, Geocaching.

A little hot chocolate
A walk with friends in the fall!

The Garmin GPSmap76cs tells me :

Total Distance = 4.09 km
Time moving = 1.00 hours
Time stopped = 41 minutes
Average moving speed = 2.4 km

We found geocache :
GC24E4V read more
GC1K4XZ read more
GC3J2VX (water damage) read more
GC3E7V4 read more
GCNYZ9 read more

Geocache 101 read more

Timmins Times. Pictures and story read more

CTV News report can be seen when you click here

Mattagami Region Conservation Authority is on Facebook, follow for information

All the pictures I took can be seen when you click here

Note Ron's comment below that Hersey Lake is now an ebird hotspot.

Nature invented interlock flooring

INTERLOCKING LOG

I guessing this where the idea for interlocking flooring comes from.

White birch interlocking firewood.

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Fall Hike 2013

Timmins Fall Hiking Day
Sunday October 06

I will post pictures and after the event tomorrow. Come back again.

MRCA has the information. read more

Timmins Times read more

Porcupine Gold Reclamation add one more tree!

Tailings Pond Returning to Nature

Dave and I plant an eastern white cedar.

Google map where we planted. see the map 

The area looks a lot different then what the older photos that Google shows from the air. More like park land now. GoldCorp is working on connecting the trail systems that al ready exist to the trails that they have created on the site.

You can tour the area every summer read more

Ecpantheria scribonia is my guess

Black Wooly caterpiller

Ants wonder if they can turn it into their next meal?

Hey queen look what I brought home, can I keep it?

48.193557,-81.462814

Google Map of the observation location. see the map

BugGuide read more

Butterflies and Moths of North America read more

Hyalophora cecropia visits again

Cecropia Moth Caterpillar

3 on Denise street

What a huge caterpillar!  The kids were holding on to two, but were finding a place for them to feed and move onto the next life cycle.

Butterflies and Moths of North America read more about the life cycle

June 2012 blog post read more

September 2009 blog post read more

Back Yard is a Bird Feeder

I do not have a bird feeder 

in my backyard.

I guess the entire yard is a 

bird feeder.

Pigeons have been coming and eating the seed I have been spreading to grow some grass in the backyard.
The whole yard is their feeder.

I guess this morning while a pigeons was having it's breakfast, a little hawk also came for breakfast.

You can also see the video, just less than 2 minutes long, on youtube. I have the date wrong in the video. It actuall was June 19 not 17 - somehow I lost 2 days today???

AT 6:52am this morning, I heard a ruckus (yes ruckus) at he back of the house. Sounded like something hit the house and a couple of birds fighting over a worm. I got out and looked out the window, not seeing anything of interest, even with my glasses on.

AT 7:00am I headed downstairs and noticed this hawk sitting just outside the window. It was out of view range from the upstairs bedroom window. I ducked back so as not to scare it off and grab the little camera. I get a couple of pictures and some video.

AT 7:15 I am venturing outside with the digital video camera. The flip out viewfinder can be configured at the side of the camera. I was able to just stick my hand out around the corner to film the breakfast meal.

I hope the little buddy has developed a taste for well fed pigeons and comes for breakfast every morning. All that was left was some small feather, the two feet up to the knees and bottom beak.

OH What is it?

I am thinking a Sharp-shinned Hawk 

All About Birds - Sharp-shinned Hawk read more

High Falls Hike a Great Success!!

High Falls Hike

Even my tennagers had fun!!

Follow  for information on more hikes and events to come.

Map of High Falls Hike location is on MapsGoogle

All the pictures I took are here

The video I shot is now on Youtube see it now

The story of the hike in the Timmins Times, with more pictures. Take a look

Please suggest next hike location. Where have you always wanted to go?

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Timmins Hiking Day Spring 2013 Details

A Spring in your Hike.

See the Falls.

Listen, Learn, Love!

I hope the day is wonderful, but Timmins people are not affected by weather. Dress for the day!
We have great guides that will provide us with information.

If you do not have a ride from the Confederation Arena, please let Wintergreen know and arrangements can be made to get you from Confed. to the Falls.

Interactive map from Confed. arena to the falls. With distances. look at it now

More information on the Hike Facebook page read more

Mattagami Region Conservation information about the hike read more

Our last spring trip was to Archies`Rock you can read all about it and see the video too go now

Success Arbour Day 2013

New Faces

New Tree Planters

Did not see many of the usuals this year. It was great to many new faces, people who want to be tree planters. We provided, with the support of Millson Forestry Service, over 240 White spruce tree seedlings.

Wonderful to hear where you are going to plant your tree!

Picture and story in the Timmins Daily Press read more

All the pictures I took that day are here

See you next year = hey John where were you his year? We can talk about on hiking day this Sunday.

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Arbour Day Timmins 2013

Arbour Day Timmins

White Spruce Tree Seedlings

by donation

Donation support the work of the Wintergreen fund for conservation. Wintergreen must purchase the trees to make them available for Arbour Day, so please give generously.

Every year John Shaw comes and makes a donation and gets a couple of white spruce seedlings. 

The best time to plant a tree, is 100 years ago. The next best time is tomorrow!

I will be at Mountjoy Historic Park for 10am - noon, come visit me. Others will be at Gillies Lake providing the opportunity to get tree seedlings.

Want to read more about past Arbour Days click here

Wintergreen for Conservation read more see them on Facebook

Honey of a Mine Site.

Real Honey

Made right here in Timmins

On an old tailings facility

Here is my attempt to stitch together 5 sides of the jars label. You get the idea.
The label was the result of a contest the company held last summer.

The taste is not overly sugary, smooth and tasteful.

I got the little sample size jar at our last Porcupine Watchful Eye meeting, everyone who attended got one. Thanks! We have visited the bee hives during our spring tour the last two years. It seems to very successful. I am learning the they are not the only ones producing honey here in Timmins, and they is an active group keepers in the area.

Porcupine Watchful Eye read more
Timmins Ecological Beekeeping Association facebook page
Bees and Berries Farm Farm here in Timmins on Myzer

College Boreal / Renaissance Environmental Class

High School Credit and College Credit

Learning about the Forest, 

Trees and Work!

This class was eager learn about the forests and what we do at Millson Forestry Service. Too bad the mud had all dried up for the walk in the back, they did not get the full "Muddy Mark" tour.

No time to play in the mud anyway.

I put them to work. Their first task was to remove cones from branches. Their second task  was to replace jiffy pellets into an insert. Finally they got to work alongside Millson employees.

You can see the album of pictures on the Millson Facebook page.  see album

Great Earth Day 2013 Event at Timmins Honda

Earth Day 2013
Timmins Honda
CTV Jill Colton

Muddy Mark and Jill Colton

White spruce tree seedlings were handed out at Timmins Honda to celebrate Earth Day.

The continuous stream of people makes the event a lot of fun.

I get to talk to people about trees, I always like to talk about trees.

Jill has a huge following. So many people came by to "hi" to her.  

THVS high school turns to Millson to learn about Forestry.

THVS Delta Class

Learning about the forest

at Millson Forestry Service.

We put them all to work removing cones from branches. Most of them even participated. \

One young lad holds a piece of tree stem that came from a plantation that the Twains planted. Written on the bottom is Shania Twain planted this tree. I don't know if she actually planted the tree, but she was there. This tree is part of a display that was available for the Shania Twain fan club, they would tour the facility as part of the week of celebrating the Timmins star.

Follow Millson on Twitter click here

Millson Forestry Service FB album read more

Citizen Scientists plan to meet in Timmins, Ontario.

We are all

Citizen Scientists 

and 

Wildlife Photographers

The Timmins Naturalists are asking for the help of the public in their data collection efforts.

To that end we are having a workshop on 

Sunday May 05, 2013 2:00pm - 4:00pm 

at the Timmins Public Library 

in the Tembec Room.

The entire agenda can be found here

The short agenda is:
Welcome
Sturgeon restoration
Trail systems and Canoe Routes
Duck Boxes
5 minute break
Turtles, Snapping, Painted, Blanding's, Turtle Tally
Bats, and their Future
Citizen Science
Wrap up. Thanks you.

A note on Wildlife Photography. Everyone, well almost everyone, now carries a gizo that will take a digital picture. I carry a flip phone that will take a picture, but I have never used the camera. I also carry a small digital camera with me always and a digital video camera with me most of the time. My first reaction when I see something is to get a camera out.

One exception last fall. The dog and I are walking in the thick bush. I am being careful and watching my step. Suddenly I hear a low grunting sound and look up to almost face to face with a moose. It grunted while it's head swayed back and forth. It took a step towards me, I took a step back. Nose to nose ~5 meters. I was not thinking about my camera. When the dog finally joined me the moose moved off, only then did I think of the camera. Got a shot of the backside in the thick brush.

What we need is all of you photographers to take a picture and send me a note of where you took the picture. When I get a picture or a phone call I put the sighting on the Observations Naturally page and forward the observation to the information keepers. (Turtles to the Turtle  Tally etc.) I have kept this page up since 1994.


Previous Oxygen Grows on Trees entries for Citizen Science

111th Christmas Bird Count Results. read post
You are a Scientist - Citizen Science. read post
Timmins Checklist of the Birds. read post
You are a Scientist. read post
Butterflies in Timmins. read post
What We Do Citizen Science, Cornell Lab of Ornithology. read post

Hoya carnosa, what a great smelling flower!

My Grandmother had the plant 

My Mother had a snippet of the plant 

I had a snippet of my Mommys' plant

What a great plant! This plant has been with me for well over 25 years.  It has flowered many times over the years. In one house it climbed the wall and held tightly.

[sidebar : how old is my plant? is it 25 years or over 100? Just how does that work? Time, just how does that work?]

The Moms' plant has never flowered. Well maybe once or twice. Every time mine flowers I call her "Mom, how the hell do you stop this plant from flowering?"

The smell is strong and fantastic. The perfume smell while walking past the flower is exquisite!

Guide to houseplants go
Dave's Garden go
Moll's Tropical Plants go
How stuff works go

Busy Spring - Lots going on!!

Timmins Naturalists 

and

Wintergreen Fund for Conservation

Earth Day April 22, 2013
Earth Day Canada read more

Sportsman Show April 27th and April 28th, 2013.
I will be at the Wintergreen Booth Saturday 1pm - 4pm.
Poster at website read more

Citizen Science - Timmins Naturalists May 05, 2013.
Take a look at the Agenda. read more

High Falls Open House May 08, 2013
Poster read more

Arbour Day May 25, 2013
You can get a White spruce tree seedling for a Donation to the Wintergreen Fund for Conservation.

Spring Hike Day - High Falls on the Grassy River. June 02, 2013.

Mark and Lynn Clement are Awesome ! !

Photography By Mark and Lynn Clement

You just got to see the stuff they are working on, places they are investigating, pictures they are taking!!

Look at the pictures taken just a couple of days ago.

They wow me and have photo rescued me many times.

My little camera is great to carry with me every where, but is not the greatest. Lynn has seen my poor pictures in this blog and let me have one of her amazing pictures so you could actually figure out what I was pointing out.

Panoramio photos with google earth maps read more
Facebook Photography By Mark and Lynn Clement read more
RedBubble I love the woodpecker pictures!! read more

Big thanks!

Powwow WOW in Timmins

I want to learn to drum

I want to pound on my drum all day!

I enjoyed the few hours I spent at the powwow. Got to chat with some friends and meet some new ones.

I was impressed by the dancing circle, how the young ones and the elder ones where able to continue for so long.  The younger one may have been more energetic, but the foot steps of the elders where more thoughtful and precise.

The gal who did the hoop dance was great, too bad my camera in not. Her artfulness with the dance was interesting to watch, what a workout!

My mom took drumming lesson in B.C. She tells me it is a calming experience, I could use calming.

If you can hook me up with a teacher let me know.

Wawatay News read more
Timmins Press story read more
Nation Talk read more

Bald Eagle Back!, maybe never left?

Picture of Bald Eagle

Stories of the one that never left.

This is about where I saw the bird. see the map While I traveled down the road I could see on the side of the highway a bigger bird then you would usually see. I slowed right down and parked beside the tree the bird was in. It did not fly away.

The last 2 years Bald eagle has been present at the Deloro Landfill. I am hearing that it was present all this year also. When I was there last winter I scanned the tree line, many crows sat in the trees watching, at the end by itself was a much larger bird. On closer observation it is a Bald Eagle.

We added the Bald Eagle to the Christmas Bird Count in 2011, when we saw a pair at Sandy Falls.

Timmins Naturalists read more

Earth Hour 2013 - What a difference a year makes

What a difference a year makes

2012 a warm and fast spring.
2013 a normal year of snow.

 This year on Earth Hour we planned an outside fire, with hot dogs and pop.

The trail to the shed had to be kept open this winter. Our blanket around the fire was almost a meter deep.

No lights on in the background. Even the neighbours are participating!

Last year for Earth Hour the back yard was empty of snow.

This picture is taken the week after Earth Hour, but the yard looked the same.

Last year all the power was off in the house, but we decide to have our fire in the wood stove.

It is a good idea. The kids never really think about energy use. Glad to have the kids participate!





Earth Hour org

Earth Hour 2014

Saturday March 29th!

 Hope you will join all of us!

Earth Hour Timmins Ontario Canada.

2013 Successful Winter Hiking Day

Nice Weather

Nice People

Nice Fire

Nice Trails

Another successful hike.

MRCA page read more and they have more pictures on their FB page facebook

Timmins Times read more see more pictures

2012 winter hiking day story, links and pictures. click here


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The Lost Art of Snow as Insulation

Warm yourself - Warm your basement!

Beer Fridge is a BONUS!!!

When I lived in Whitehorse, YT everyone did it. Free winter insulation! Just like firewood, insulating with snow warms twice. First, when you work at piling the snow, second by keeping more heat in the basement.

Here in Timmins, ON I talked to a gal who told me her Dad always piled snow on the side of the house. When did we lose that art?

Some say it puts more pressure on your drainage tiles, but actually it reduces the pressure. Since the wall stays warmer the snow is melted along the edge of the house. The snow along the wall under snow will melt after the snow further away from the house has melted ensuring no water along the wall will be part of the quick spring melt.





Laplander's Natural Lore Blog read more

Mother Earth News read more

New World Encyclopedic - Igloo read more

The insulation properties of snow read more

Basement window once covered in snow will melt into a little fridge. At -40C outside, the temperature in the little igloo will be about -4.  The window will never feel the -40. The side of the house at the sill will never feel the -40.

Since the snow is piled the highest on the north side of the house the snow will stay longer then the other sides. The water will melt very slow and the drainage tiles will not become over full, I hope!

all the pictures at my house are here




NO beer was consumed during the writing of this blog. NO beer was consumed during the taking of the pictures or researching this natural event. In fact I do not like beer.


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Timmins 2013 Winter Hike Day

Sunday February 24th, 2013

Hersey Lake Timmins

Winter Hike Day 

read more on the MRCA page

Pictures and more read now

Biggest Spruce Burl I have ever seen!

WHITE SPRUCE BURL

want this at the office!

How the hell an I going to get this home!

This burl is here see the map

2012 Christmas Bird Count Announced!

Saturday

December 22

Birds can be counted during the 24 hours of Saturday December 22nd.

This is roughly the count circle.

There is a field watch and a feeder watch data collection opportunities. Come join us.

Details and information read more

Growth on Cedar - HELP

What is this? 

What is going on here?

It is huge on this cedar.

I will have the section removed and will bring it to my lab.

And by lab, I mean my office. And when I say office, I mean in the office for a day until it must be removed. I need to measure, but the tree is about 70cm in diameter so the growth is very big.

In this area I did see 2 or 3 more with much smaller similar growths.  How does this happen? what is this?

This is where the tree is  view map

Help me out.

Partridge -where, I do not see it???

Partridge vs. Grouse

When I came to Timmins, a southern Ontario boy, I spent a lot of time in the bush. It was my work with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources that allowed me to spend so much time in the bush.

One day a partner tells me "oh look, a partridge there on the side of the road" Knowing I was a southern Ontario boy he expected I had never seen a partridge. In fact I had never seen a partridge.

My response "I do not see it, where point it out to me"
Him "Right there I am pointing to it, see it"
Me " Ok I see the grouse, where from there is the partridge?"
Him "uuh"
Me "what?"

Him "That IS the partridge"

So as it turns out in Northern Ontario both the ruffed grouse and the spruce grouse are called partridge!

Ruffed grouse is a white partridge and the spruce grouse is the black partridge.

They do not scare easy.  I walked up to this bird and it just sat their "you don't see me"

Picture does not show very well, but this bird is about 3 meters, maybe less, from me. As I walk past it, it just watched and did not fly. It was convinced I was no threat.

Found a GeoCache today.

Christmas Tree Heaven

Geocaching 101

The information specific to this cache. read more

Tree Plant, Arboretum, who knew?

Turns out there is an arboretum at  École secondaire catholique Thériault.

I will have to find out more. Wonder what trees they have so far. What other species are they planning. Just where are these trees?

Thériault tree tribute | Local | News | Timmins Press

Another Owl Released

Great Horned Owl

Seven Helping Hands

It took seven different rides to get this owl home where he belongs.

Hiding under the cover is an owl.

The owl foundation learn more

April owl release on youtube watch now

April owl release, Matheson and Kap.  read more

Archie's Rock Pictures and Video

With Archie Chenier

 @ Archie's Rock

Great field trip!

I could tell you more, much more, but you can see pictures and read more from the Timmins Times here

Archie tells his story, at 88 he is going strong. You can see it on  youtube.

All the pictures I took that day you can see here.

We also found a geocache on the trail to the top of the rocks.

Learn more about geocaching, start at the page that describes the
Archie's Rock geocache. learn more

Mully's Musings with Mike Mulryan includes a note about the trip too. read more

This picture to the right, is just another example of the tenacity trees. This tree is growing on rocks 5 meters in the air.

Made a quick google map so you can see exactly where the rock is located and how to get there.

Join this page to keep up to date on Timmins Naturalists events, or send me an email so I can add you to the distribution list.

keep in touch

Timmins Times talks Archies Rock

Archie Chenier 

leads Timmins hikers to Archies' Rock

Len put up some great pictures too.

read more

This Week in the Forest

Between the rain days

Great walking days

This week had a couple of really nice days to be in the bush. These days are the days that blur work and recreation. I just love to be able to walk and talk my day away in the forests.

Talk? Yes. I talk to the birds that fly close chirping me. I talk to the squirrel that screams at me 'cause I am too close to it's trees.

Today a stood still as I could hear an animal trotting on the forest floor, not running, just moving a good pace. It was a rabbit just making it's way along the forest floor. I stood still, soon a martin followed in the tracks. 

He lost the scent, I think the rabbit went past me too close and my scent covered the track. The martin circled a tree next to me. It climb the tree and nattered at me. I did take some pictures, but my little camera did not produce for me.

This week in pictures:

Very big Cedar must have burn years ago

only the very big stumps are left in this young (~90 year old) stand

Where is the martin?
Maybe you can see him, the camera I carry with me everywhere is small and light,
but it is not the greatest wildlife camera.

I got here just after it started to burn. Buddy told me the engine lost power,
started to smoke and within minute the whole motorhome was up in flames.
No one hurt. He did save his guitar!
Turned around and the thing was up in flames.

Roll'n still comes to the bush, but only on days where I do not walk.
He has wore himself out and can not come on the 1km + walks, his legs can't take it.

Road building. My truck is the first on the new bush road.

Class trip to the Millson Complex on Dalton Road.
I am looking fat in my jump suit,
I think it is the jump suit and the way I am standing - ya, ya that's it.

What will next week bring?

It was a good week.