Take me out to the ball game

What, two posts in one day? Just trying to catch up I guess.

Yesterday evening we took the kids to watch our local baseball team play. We sat on "the berm" because the kids admission was free and we were half price. I don't know why parents would ever pay for seats, this allowed the kids to run around and roll down the hill without bothering anyone. We just had to keep an eye out for foul balls.





Our team is made up of college and university players from all over Canada and the States. It was a good game and we only won by a single point. None of us were really watching though - the kids had more fun playing, the baseball game and energy of the fans merely provided an exciting backdrop.

When it ended, all the kids went out on the field and ran the bases with the team mascot. The weather was beautiful and they handed out free pies as we left the stadium, my kind of sporting event.





Here is a photo that Ella took of her brothers. I did a little editing, if only to convince myself that our seven year old can't take better photos than me. But I'm not sure why Tyson is trying to do some sort of gang sign - will have to keep an eye on that one.





- C

Bike trip

It's been almost two weeks since our last post so I should probably check in.

Last week Heather and the kids went down to visit grandpa and grandma, it sounds like they had a lot of fun and the kids came back a little less behaved, a sure sign of being spoiled. Heather will have to blog about their visit if she wants, because I wasn't there - instead I went on a motorcycle trip with Trevor...





This was supposed to be a motorcycle "camping" trip and we brought our Hennesy hammocks to hang between trees like we did last year. However, a friend and coworker offered for me to use her cabin in Nakusp, BC.

We left late in the day last Thursday and pushed all the way to Nakusp (about 700kms or so). It was dark by the time we made the last leg of our trip and we were concerned about wildlife jumping out on the road. The cabin was in the middle of dense forest, had an unfinished exterior, and the top floor didn't even have windows. It wasn't looking good for us until we checked the main floor and found it was developed and had appliances and running water.








We just hung around the area for the next couple of days. Our trip happened to coincide with the Nakusp Music Festival, which for them seems to be a pretty big deal - the 11th largest in the world according to a guy we talked to while watching a helicopter drop buckets of water on a house fire. I doubt the accuracy of that claim, but it was true that the population of the town had tripled at least. I have never seen so many hippies in my life.





One day we took the trip from New Denver to Kaslo on highway 31A, a ride recommended by the cabin owner (who is also a motorcyclist). We took a quick detour to the ghost town of Sandon. It was a neat place and has a fascinating history, it probably deserves a blog entry all its own. While we were there, we talked with a couple of BMW riders who had just made the trip. They had a fevered look in their eyes and one guy said, "I envy what you are about to experience, this is probably the best motorcycle ride in Canada". I am inclined to agree with the accuracy of that claim. I didn't get any photos because it took all my concentration just to keep up with the twists and turns and at one point, only moments after deciding to slow down, a deer ran right across my path and disappeared into the trees. Yikes, that was a close one.

There were a couple other close calls too: one evening, we rode though a small rock slide of shale that dislodged a couple large rocks that would have taken out a motorcycle had they hit us. It's funny because earlier that day I had seen a few of those "falling rock" signs and was thinking to myself about how I had never actually seen that happen. Also, one night we were turning down the road to the cabin when I noticed a pair of headlights make the turn behind Trevor. For some reason I didn't want the people in that car to know where we were staying so I drove past the cabin's driveway, hoping that Trevor would follow me. We turned at the next intersection and as the vehicle went past, the front passenger yelled something at us (there were people in the back too). Trevor pulled alongside and told me that when he saw them make the turn behind him, he was hoping that I would drive past the cabin too. Who knows?

Anyways, I found a video of highway 31A. It shows what the road and scenery were like but unfortunately the guy that filmed it went a little overboard with his video editing tools:





One evening we were headed up to the Nakusp hot springs when we passed an old-school motor home that was only travelling 40km/h up the hill. Shortly after passing him, we came upon a moose standing at the side of the road. It got spooked when it saw us and started running back and forth - turning suddenly like one of those barrel racing horses. We stopped and watched as it trotted down the middle of the road towards us - it was as big as a horse too. We started moving again when the motor home came into view but the driver caught up to us at the hot springs and struck up a conversation. He was an older guy and he started talking to us about mooses and ended up telling us about failed marriages and his children whom he hasn't talked to for three years. He told us that he just pulls over anywhere and sleeps in his motor home and that he had made the decision to just "live between the cracks". The hot springs were home to a flock of hummingbirds that flitted from poolside feeders. The guy told us that he had heard that hummingbirds migrate by riding on the backs of geese as they fly South. I wanted to believe the accuracy of that claim, because it would make for a neat story. Unfortunately a later Internet search revealed that hummingbirds fly under their own steam to California every year - and they make the trip alone.





The last day of the trip, we woke up early, locked up the cabin and headed to the ferry crossing. We stopped in Revelstoke for breakfast, Golden for a slurpee, and Banff for a gas-station pizza sub (I've always had penchant for them). We parted company at a weigh station outside Calgary (the scale told me that my bike and I weighed 340kg, 10kg more than when our trip began... that's weird that my bike would be gaining weight).

Anyways, the trip was a lot of fun and it was good to get home. Sure, Calgary looked kind of dull after all of the beautiful scenery we had travelled through... but at least we aren't up to our necks in hippies.

(OK, not really a moral to the story, but it'll do)





- C

Ferret Update. Are you kidding me?

I mentioned the alleged ferret-sighting in my previous post and, out of curiosity, I looked into it. I was not prepared for what turned up. The noise of the CHEMT Main Editorial Office faded away as I read further. Here are the main points of the article:


The black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) is the only ferret species endemic to North America and has been classified as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since l967. Within the genus Mustela, ferrets belong to the subgenus Putorius, from which there are only three extant species: M. putorius, the European polecat; M. eversmanni, the Siberian, or steppe polecat; and M. nigripes, the black-footed ferret. The European polecat lives in open forests and meadows, and is thought to be the ancestor of the domestic ferret. The Siberian polecat looks nearly identical to the black-footed ferret and leads a similar life on open grasslands and semi desert regions across Russia, China and Siberia.


In 1981, a black-footed ferret was killed by a ranch dog in northwestern Wyoming. This event led to the dramatic discovery of a small group of about 130 ferrets near Meeteetse, Wyoming in 1984 and offered a ray of hope for the species. Research conducted on the Meeteetse ferrets provided important new information on the life history and behavior of this secretive mammal. Tragically, outbreaks of sylvatic plague and canine distemper nearly killed all of the Meeteetse population. The remaining 18 ferrets were taken into captivity between 1985 and 1987 in an effort to save the species. At that time, these last known ferrets were probably the rarest mammals on earth.

The captured ferrets from Meeteetse were taken to a captive breeding facility in Sybille Canyon, Wyoming (now known as the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center). In 1987, a captive-breeding program was initiated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, and the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. This program has since expanded to include 6 captive breeding facilities in zoos across North America, including the National Zoo's Conservation and Research Center, Front Royal, VA; Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, NE; Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Colorado Springs, CO; Louisville Zoological Gardens, Louisville, KY; the Phoenix Zoo, Phoenix, AZ; and the Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Since 1991, federal and state agencies, in cooperation with private landowners, conservation groups, Native Americans, and the North American zoo community, have been actively reintroducing ferrets back into the wild. Beginning in Wyoming, reintroduction efforts have since expanded to sites in Montana, South Dakota, and Arizona. Proposed reintroduction sites have been identified in Colorado and Utah.

The Recovery Plan for the black-footed ferret calls for the establishment of 10 or more separate, self-sustaining wild populations. By the year 2010, biologists hope to have 1500 ferrets established in the wild, with no fewer than 30 breeding adults in each population. If these objectives are met, the ferret could be downlisted from endangered to threatened status.


Is it possible that this seemingly unimportant detail of our trip, is in fact a significant conservational discovery? Maybe the most significant thing that happened to us? Or to the area for that matter?

Consider that history remembers fondly the northwestern Wyoming ranch dog that discovered the ferret in 1981. Will Dave Mulholland and Trevor and Carter Flexhaug be similarly recognized for discovering another ferret - this time in the unique, environmental oasis of Cypress Hills, munching on some Doritos that the Rauschs left out over night?

Dave, Trevor, and Carter: Take a good look at these photos. Is this what you saw?
If so, someone should probably notify someone.

The rarest mammal on Earth in 1981. This is huge.

Next year, I suggest we camp at Loch Ness - because FLMRR obviously gets stuff done.





- C

Home again

We just returned from our 8th-Annual FLMRR Camping Trip (Flexhaugs, Lauders, Mulhollands, Rauschs, and Rices - this year without the Rices).





Prior to the trip, we did our planning via a Facebook group that Trevor set up. It really helped to coordinate everything, but I was still stressed because this year I'd suggested the spot (Lodgepole Campground in Cypress Hills), and made the reservations. I had a nagging fear that we would get there only to find that they misplaced our reservation - I have ruined our own camping plans before, but it would really suck to ruin the trip for three other families too.





We got to the campground early and managed to get four spots together. It was a beautiful area but I started to get worried again when I saw that the bathrooms were just outhouses and the water taps had "boil before using" signs on them. The outhouses ended up being not too bad (the ladies might beg to differ). And as for the water, a kindly old French lady at the check-in office told me that, while they're not allowed to tell people they can drink it, she drinks it all the time. We drank it too. The other families arrived throughout the day and Mulhollands were the last because they got caught in a giant hail storm. Or rather, a storm of giant hail that dented their van up pretty badly.





It rained the first night (some water found its way into the tent) and it was still foggy and chilly in the morning, so we all decided to go in and find a swimming pool in Medicine Hat. We ended up at the Family Leisure Center which had a wave pool, looping river, kiddie pool, hot tub, water slide, and Olympic sized pool with diving boards and high platform. Predictably, seeing as all us guys were together, we dared each other to jump off of the high platform. When I did it, the force of the water was so great that it bent both spring bars on my watch and the bracelet came loose. Luckily I realized it was missing a few minutes later and I was able to retrieve it from the bottom of the pool. The water slide was great because it emptied into a shallow trough instead of a pool, and the kids could go down by themselves. Ella even shed her life jacket for water slide runs. Here is a picture from the web - it only shows the wavepool though.





The weather for the rest of the trip was perfect and we spent the next day at the sand beach and marina. The kids played in the water, the ladies visited, and the guys played boccie... a camping tradition. There was also mini golf, boat rentals, and ice cream.











The real success of this trip goes to Heather. Our camping menu was amazing. We had grilled salmon with dill, a salad, and homemade foccacia bread, Thai subs one day, and then eggs Benedict and sausage and pancakes for breakfast. Even our tinfoil dinners were special: rice, mixed vegetables, and homemade ginger beef. Oh and yes we did roast hot dogs, again in the name of tradition.





We tried to find a couple geocaches in the area but, this time a Rausch tradition, we ended up stuck in a bog, halfway to the cache. I found a pure white sea shell in the side of the hill and was sure I had made a significant geological discovery. Unfortunately my ancient-seabed theory was debunked by the discovery of more shells - this time with snails still in them.








Other wildlife we saw were a flock of wild turkeys, and a young deer that ran around the campsite acting all snaky like it just realized it was surrounded by humans.





One morning, people saw what they believed was a ferret browsing for food in our campsites. I don't know what part of the world ferrets come from but I'm pretty sure they are imported. Weasel is probably more likely but, who knows, this could be an isolated North American population of ferrets. If so, it represents a significant biological discovery. Like all great discoveries, no one got a picture. In the evening, at dusk to be precise, we took the kids to a large amphitheater where we watched the movie Cheaper by the Dozen. It was a long day and a late night and we didn't get a chance to stay up telling scary stories in the tent, despite the fact that the cougar notices in the area provided fertile soil for nightmares. Here is a video full of turkeys:





The next day, Sunday, was spent packing up, taking group pictures, and saying goodbye. Normally Heather would have insisted on a sacrament meeting and maybe the sharing of testimonies but she made an exception because we were on vacation. Vacation Heather is so much fun : )

An interesting fact about the town of Elkwater - it is the only Provincial Park in Alberta where people live in the park. There are 35 full-time residents and while we were there I met nine of them. They are all required to have addresses outside the park as well. According to the cranky guy at the gas station, the weather is unpredictable at their altitude, and "Medicine Hat has nothing to do with Elkwater".

After months of looking forward to it, the actual trip was over much faster than we expected. The weather was great, the location was great - an old guy at the docks called it "an oasis in the desert", there were only a couple mosquitoes spotted the entire time we were there, and - as always - the company was fantastic. We are already looking forward to 2009's trip.

You hear that Rices?

I like to end off my posts with a small photo. For this one, I chose the winning shot from the Elkwater Campground Nature Photo Contest. (Disclaimer: I didn't actually enter the contest, but if I had, I'm pretty sure I would have won)





- C

I'm Not a Hero...I Just Did What Anyone Would Do!

Ahh, something you've probably heard from Chad, but in this case I truly feel it does apply to me! We haven't blogged much about this this year, but we have a new bird's nest under our back porch. It has been interesting to watch again. When the babies were first born you could hardly tell. They were so small and quiet. Now they make quite a racket at dinner time! They seem to be getting so big--I just watched them earlier this evening reaching their necks up so high and chirping to get the worm their mother had brought them. A little later I came in to do something in the house. Mason and Tyson were still out playing and all of a sudden Mason came running upstairs yelling that one of the babies fell out of the nest. We have a wheelbarrow propped up against the post and supposedly it fell onto the wheelbarrow and then onto the grass right in front of it. Ella and I ran down to see and sure enough, there it was lying there. I may have said this before, but I usually am not a huge fan of animals--well, I like them well enough, but just don't like them in my house. Anyways, I immediately had this sick feeling--I was sure it was dead. I ran in to talk to Chad about what to do and fortunately he was able to get ahold of an animal emergency clinic. They told him it was okay to put the bird back in the nest (we had heard that the mother could tell a human had touched it and wouldn't want it anymore). So, with a little coaxing or guilting (I don't know if that is a word, but this is how this phrase made me feel--just pretend one of your kids are hurt and needs someone to help it--what could I do? I lifted it up and put it back in it's nest!

- H

Give this a read:

I just read the funniest post on my buddy's blog and wanted to share it. Follow the link to Josh and Jill's blog and read the "Thursday, July 3, 2008. Josh - That Guy is Not Too Bright" post. Guaranteed you'll laugh.

- C

Back in business

Yesterday the Paynes invited the Hardys and us to their lake. The weather was perfect and everyone had a lot of fun. We haven't seen some of our cousins for a while so it was good to catch up with them, especially the newer ones. It's amazing how much Dane and Oscar have grown. It's too bad that Tan and John couldn't make it, but we are excited for their upcoming adventure! I also want to give a shout out to Lorin for sending up his copy of The Long Way Round. I've already watched the first two episodes and I'm hooked!




Ella and Ava took the opportunity to convene a meeting of Super Group and address a few matters of business. I suspect that the main purpose of the club is to pick on uncle Chad. Still, I have to admit that it's hard to find fault with their newly-authored Charter. It reads:

We helped our friend in need
We did our Super deed
When someone's in trouble, we can do double
Yah! 1-2-3
Super Group to the rescue

(obtained and reprinted by the Lone Wolves)





Oh and guess who else is back this year:



I have a real soft spot for these feathered friends. We're two little families, sharing the same house and trying to look after our babies as best we can ('cept we don't feed ours worms).

- C