further signs of spring
Mar. 10th, 2011 12:46 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kirkcudbrightFirst beaver of spring. Didn't actually see it, but a beaver tail-slap is very like a ten-pound rock being tossed in the water.
Pair of Canada Geese on the pond. They hauled themselves out of the little bit of open water to stalk away on the ice, honking at me.
The ice is still surprisingly sturdy. It's melted around most of the shoreline, but about a foot past the fragile edge it will still support my weight. (At least it did yesterday; I wasn't wearing the rubber boots today, and didn't feel like chancing it.)
Having the pond nearby has been a real boon this winter. In January, when the snow was chest-deep (or more) to the dog, the wind cleared nearly all the snow off the pond, and she could run to her heart's content. I got to visit spots on the far side that I don't usually get to, because the approaches are too steep, or too swampy, or just generally inconvenient. e.g. Confirmed that the odd brush pile is actually a beaver lodge, although I've never seen one built up against the shore before. OTOH, I didn't really do any pond skating; there was maybe one weekend of good ice before the snow started, and the one time recently when the rain had taken out the snow, I tried, but the ice was way too bumpy.
Time to put away the snowshoes, I think.
Pair of Canada Geese on the pond. They hauled themselves out of the little bit of open water to stalk away on the ice, honking at me.
The ice is still surprisingly sturdy. It's melted around most of the shoreline, but about a foot past the fragile edge it will still support my weight. (At least it did yesterday; I wasn't wearing the rubber boots today, and didn't feel like chancing it.)
Having the pond nearby has been a real boon this winter. In January, when the snow was chest-deep (or more) to the dog, the wind cleared nearly all the snow off the pond, and she could run to her heart's content. I got to visit spots on the far side that I don't usually get to, because the approaches are too steep, or too swampy, or just generally inconvenient. e.g. Confirmed that the odd brush pile is actually a beaver lodge, although I've never seen one built up against the shore before. OTOH, I didn't really do any pond skating; there was maybe one weekend of good ice before the snow started, and the one time recently when the rain had taken out the snow, I tried, but the ice was way too bumpy.
Time to put away the snowshoes, I think.
