A Day of Firsts.....Week 31

    I could have shown the picture from last week of the hail on the chairs because another
Sunday morning greeted us with a combination of snow and hail...snail, which had fallen during the night. Snailing happens a lot here. I've never seen so much snail in all my life, in fact I can't remember ever seeing it before.

          I've had it confirmed from others that it indeed has been a colder spring than normal.
          Colder, windier, rainier. How lucky an I too have experinced this.

By 1 o'clock the SUN came out and melted away the snail. The "princess" as we're calling her this week, has already staked out her chair until the deck is dry and warm enough to take a snooze on.

First time I've seen an eagle on the beach. He was busy with something, which is why I was able to get as close as I did.

Watching for a while it become clear that what was so interesting was a bird. Throughout the winter I have come across half a doz. dead birds, washed up with the tide. The saddest of these was a large eagle. One step to many, he notices me and takes flight, bird in hand.

This is a Red-Breasted Sapsucker. Another first for today. Birds flutter throughout the forest and their song is heard where ever I go but I can never catch their imagine with my camera, until today.
He was busy at work drilling holes, his own little wells of sap, and didn't seem to mind my presence at all.

                                           Like me they are giving thanks to the 'sun god'.

 Awhile back in a post entitled "The Effects of Isolation" I said we needn't worry about our appearance on a day to day basis because it's not as if anyone would just drop by for a coffee and a chat.
I stand corrected.

To say we were surprised to see this two fellows would be an understatement. The coast guard vessel was anchored around the corner in another bay of Port Louis, guess I missed that one coming in.
They are out looking for the herring spawn, which so far they haven't come across. They think this may be due to the unusually cold ( see, even they think it's  cold) weather.
As I sit here writing this the herring may have just shown up. Four eagles have been feeding all day right in front of the lodge, along with 3 seals. It's been a great show watching them soar and dive.

                   Another first. Company, conversation, coffee and cake on a Sunday afternoon.

An hour later they are heading back to their ship. From here they will travel up to Masset, needing to refuel and do a bit of reprovisioning. How nice of them when they asked if we needed anything since they would be back down this way Thursday or Friday. In fact they were back much earlier. It was only several hours later that we see them skimming across the bay. Mike and I race down the dock to greet them... again. A pile of magazines! Thank you very much.

          For a morning that didn't look very promising it certainly turned out to be a wonderful day.

Till next week from the "Outpost",
Heather & Mike