Month: May 2019

Winter Storm

Winter storms last week remind us that Colorado’s variable weather is a fact of life.

This is what my commute looked like on Tuesday, May 21st:

Jumping ahead in the time line a bit, my Sunday trip to The Lot (to begin opening the RV trailer for the season) had a mix of good and bad weather. On the way home it was raining in Fairplay but snowing in Alma and on Hoosier Pass. I made it home without incident.

The Box

Up in the high country at Sanderling, the RV trailer (The Box) was in pretty good shape. No mice had made their way in over the winter, quite a relief! I reinstalled the batteries and LP tanks, put my chain saw and fuel in the storage shed, dispersed some chipmunk food (odds and ends of bread products we save for this purpose) and walked The Lot to determine this year’s cleaning strategy.

It’s still early spring at The Lot. Aspen are just beginning to show a blush of green. It will be a few weeks yet — late for us — to really get this year’s activities under way. Still, I was glad to be back on the Sanderling property and enjoyed my walk about and time spent there.

Hoosier Pass

I’ve mentioned Hoosier Pass a few times, as we cross it to get from Breckenridge to Fairplay on driving trips to The Lot. Here are a couple photos taken at the top of the pass:

Cats

Pam has been taking cat photos and I thought I would share a few of them here.

Sunny (long hair Marmalade cat) and London (part Siamese) take in some sun on a bright afternoon.

Sunny (background) and Mr. Bibbs (curled up on his towel under the fire pit) enjoy a mild afternoon outside this past week.

ATV Ride

Last week I took a short ride west of De Beque on Wild Horse Mesa. I have ridden this area many times as it is so close to home; I enjoy getting out.

A few wildflowers are starting to bloom, probably due to the wetter-than-average spring we have been having on the high desert. Here’s a flower I had not seen before, white with bottoms of the petals in gold.

A type of paint brush was also blooming in many places:

Since the high country trails are still closed, lower elevation trails (like Wild Hose Mesa) are the only places open to ride at present.

Motorcycle Registration

I had to take a photo of the registration fees the County charges to register my motorcycle. I wonder who is in charge of making up ways to charge more for license plate renewals? 13 separate line entries!

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny

Finished the embroidery project. Now starting a few yard cleanups before the temps soar. Still monitoring houses for sale in the Midwest. I think we’ll end up with a “quirky” one; I seem to be attracted to those. Next house hunting trip will likely be later this year, possibly via Amtrak.

Happy Trails.

Yard

Spring is well along now. The lilacs are on their way out and tulips and daffodils are done for the year. On the other hand, iris are starting to bloom and we had a few yellow columbine open this past week. The blue flax is putting on more flowers, making a nice show of blue in the flower bed. The lawn has been mowed a couple times and, due to rain, is looking nice and green. While we had a couple days near 80 degrees, a front has moved in that will give us 60s and 70s for the next week, which is about perfect for us. 

High Country

The one drawback to a wet spring is that it is still snowing in the high country. Normally we “open” The Lot and begin our summer trips to continue the clean up effort about this time. This year it looks like it will be a late start.

I had planned to go up to Sanderling this weekend and set up The Box, which includes reinstalling the batteries, propane tanks, and getting water. (The batteries are in my garage on a maintenance charger and the propane tanks are kept in The Lot’s storage shed over the winter.) A couple nights this upcoming week will hit below freezing temperatures up there, so I decided the “opening day” will not be until Memorial Day weekend. I’ve taken an extra day and a half off over the holiday to get The Box set up for the season. Hope the weather cooperates!

Spring Cleaning

Big Boy Toys

This weekend I did some maintenance on a couple of my “big boy” toys. The chipper received an oil and filter change and the Ford 8n tractor had the air cleaner system rebuilt.

The 8n uses an oil bath air filtration system, quite common on tractors, construction equipment, semi trucks, and older farm equipment. This filtering system is considered to be more efficient than systems using paper filters but requires more service and maintenance.

In the case of the 8n, it looks like the air cleaner had not been serviced in decades. The cup, located at the bottom of the air cleaner, had almost no oil in it as it had filled with dirt and crud over the years. I had to scape out the junk with a putty knife then clean the cup with solvent.

I had expected the filtering media to be in bad shape, and it was. I had ordered replacement media (which is woven stainless steel) to have on hand before I started this job.

I removed the old filter material, installed the new filter material, and put the unit back on the 8n. I filled the oil cup with oil and put it back on the filter, installed the battery (which had been in the garage on a maintainer) and started the tractor. It seems to run much better now that it can get a good supply of air!

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny

Due to the still-winter conditions in the high country, Fields will be opening The Box solo over Memorial Day weekend. After our snowy visit to Rice Lake (WI) in April, the dogs and I are “so over” doggie coats and leashes.

Happy Trails.

Our white lilac has attracted a variety of flying critters to its blossoms. While this is expected, this year the numbers and variety of flying critters is above average.

Increased insect activity may be due to the wetter-than-normal spring we are having — almost 50% more rain than usual for the year so far. Lawns are nice and green and more flowers (including iris, blue flax, and peony) are blooming a bit earlier.

Here are a few photos of some of the critters visiting our lilac:

It’s safe to say that dozens of these critters visited the lilac bushes this spring, far more than I’m used to seeing. One critter that I didn’t get a photo of is a “hummingbird moth” which is smaller than a true hummingbird but is similarly shaped and with similar flight movements.

Pam spent a few hours Saturday weeding flowerbeds while I weed-wacked and mowed our yard and the neighbor’s yard. Pretty typical for a spring weekend. I also began a project to improve our back deck, which is not in the best of shape. I removed some pickets (that Pam never really liked) and rebuilt a weak section. Needs paint and other work yet so this is a work-in-progress. At least a start has been made.

The weather report for The Lot looks promising; for the upcoming week night time temperatures are above freezing. I would like to get up there before Memorial Day weekend if possible and start this year’s clean-up. I have quite a bit of brush to chip from last year, plus a small corner of the aspen grove area still needs attention. It will take a few trips to get everything in place and I’m eager to get started. If my healing elbow will cooperate!

Thats it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth

While cleaning closets late last year, I happened upon a box of my old craft projects. One such project I had started 34 years ago — a 12 Days of Christmas embroidery project — and it was about a third completed. I almost threw the whole thing out. But, in homage to my previous self, I decided to complete the embroidery and make the ornaments. I began [again] in March. It’s been awhile since I’ve done this type of handwork, but I kept at it and recently completed all the panels. Now to put them into the ornament format and finish the project.

Happy Trails.

Well. There’s not a lot of “new news” to report on this week so I thought I would mention a few miscellaneous items.

My Commute

This time of year is generally good for commuting. The weather has improved and western Colorado is as green as it ever gets. However, occasional snow flurries remind us that full spring is still a few weeks away.

Here are a couple photos taken this last Friday on my way home from work. Note the bare trees and snow – that white stuff on the peaks – has high country trails still closed.

The later sunsets give rise to “purple mountain” effects on the way home as well.

Lilacs

Closer to home, our white and dark purple lilacs are having a banner year. Most years a spring frost nips the buds but this year we made it through without any freezes. The scent from these on the cool and still evening air is great.

It is also time to start thinking about getting The Lot set up for the year. I try to have everything in place by Memorial Day weekend but late high country snows may delay me this season. (Breckenridge ski area, for example, is staying open through Memorial Day weekend. I drive right through Breckenridge on the way to The Lot.) We’ll have to wait and see what the weather holds in store.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny

Nothing new here. A little yard work, a lotta elder cat care — the usual.

Happy Trails.