Spring Waterfalls are the Best!

 Hullo, today I am going for a little hike to check out one of my favourite waterfalls.

There are a set of dams here that used to provide water for the city (back in the day) and for the coal mines (back in the day). There's been all sorts of uproar in the last few years about the dams being an earthquake risk, cause if they ever failed... there'd be a wave of water that would wash away houses and people. So far... the dams are still here!

That's cause people like the little lakes above the dams! You can go swimming or fishing or just sit and stare at the water on a misty morning.

We came here a LOT during Covid, cause there are picnic tables where you can sit and journal or eat a chocolate brownie (ahem).

Someone has been carving little wooden owls and leaving them tucked between tree branches.

Lots of little owls!

Too many to take pictures of...

Alright... let's go find us some waterfalls!

Well, that's new. They have a fishing line recycling station, which is a BEARY good idea!

Alright, here's the overflow... and if we follow it down...

We come to this waterfall! It's pretty impressive. And in the summer, it's only a tiny trickle...

Now we'll wander up through the forest.

I love this forest... all the ferns and the cedars... and the mist makes it a bit mysterious.

This is my favourite part... all these boulders tumbled down...

You could almost think you were in Middle Earth...

Then we walk along the walkway...

And up some stairs...

And then under the highway...

Ooh... the creek is really flowing well!

We're almost there!

Whew... there is a lot of spray coming off of it!

And you can barely hear yourself think!

And yes, this was the stuffie olympics waterfall... when the water was barely a trickle!

Let's see if I can find a pic...

Yep... waterflow was practically nothing back then... and in the summers.

A spring stuffie olympics here would be beary different...

I'm not sure I'd even do it...

The current might grab our little barrels and whirl us away, never to be seen again. Yeah... no... not doing that!

A Bearbnb Host Improves their Paw-writing

Hullo! Soooo... as you saw last week, we leave a Welcome Note for my Bearbnb guests but... honestly... my human's paw-writing (more paw-printing) is not the greatest. And this little bear thought it might be good for her to learn some calligraphy...

We have to Sheaffer calligraphy pens...

And the kit came with a calligraphy booklet too! Let's get started!

Right... it's all about how you hold the pen... the angle to the paper (both vertical and horizontal)...

With some beginning exercises...

My human says "This feels a bit like Grade 3... learning cursive... who needs cursive anymore??? Nobody!!!"
Not true... a hand-written Welcome Note is more "personable"... or "bearable"... hmmm... not quite what I wanted to say. Anyhow... it's more friendly! Soooo... sit and practice!

Well... we have some "a's"... not bad. although the pen is apparently not the greatest...

Let's keep going... practice makes perfect...

Hmmmm... I wouldn't say it's great and... they are quite large... Our cards are pretty small... maybe we need a smaller nib?

Because at this rate, our Welcome Card is going to be the size of a table top!

Maybe getting the hang of it... still pen grumbling...

What do you think?? Do we need a fancy calligraphy paw-written note or is just a paw-printed note OK?

Cause at this rate... we haven't even hit upper case letters...

And it might be December before we get this off the ground... sigh... This is what happens when stuffies rely on humans! Beanie Mouse practices a lot of calligraphy. Any tips? Better pen? Different pen? Calligraphy felt pen/marker with a brush tip?

Mail and Pins!

 Hullo!!! I got some mail a few ***cough*** weeks ago!

First up... a postcard from Glacier National Park - that's in the USA, sister park to our own Canadian Waterton Lakes Park... I do believe.

It's from Cocoa and Navy!! They are visiting Little Fox and LF was decluttering old post cards. Cool!

It's nice to see that Cocoa and Navy are having a good time. They were going to Seattle!! I wonder if they went to the iconic Pike Place Starbucks?

Then there's a trademark envelope from Beanie Mouse!

With a cool card! Beanie is beary creative you know.

Ooooohhh... this is one the Mysteries of the Purloined Bullion (or something similar)...

And the price is a 50p coin commemorating public libraries in the UK... 1850 to 2000... not bad.

What's this?? Another card? That looks like the screaming painter guy... whassis name? Munch?

Yes, indeedy! It is an Edvard Munch! With another clue...

     Another heptagonal coin released for posterity

     To celebrate part of society's minority (that might be Stuffies!!!)

     An annual parade with rainbow flags flying (hmmmm)

     Promoting acceptance, there's no denying

What's the parade??

Well that's easy peasy... Pride Parade!!!!

And this is what the coin looks like! Coo!

Next up... some mail from...

Jerry & Ben!!!

It's a beary belated bearthday card!

Awwwww...

Thanks guys!!! Belated bearthday greetings are always welcome!

Oh... you're wondering about the green ribbon I'm wearing???

This little one?

Yes, well, it is coming up to June which is NPE awareness month... what is NPE? Not Parent Expected... it's when these silly humans get all excited and take an Ancestry DNA test and the results are weird and... well... usually... their father is not their bio father.

Anyhoo... I am wearing the green ribbon in support of a certain human of my acquaintance who had a "DNA Surprise"... sigh.

Oh yes... and I have a new pin!!!! This is a gold beeeee!! Nice, eh??

Oh... and another one...

A combined Canada and BC Flag pin. Beary nice.

All these pins make me feel a bit like a bear pin cushion but... I do like the bee pin!

...

Yes, yes... and the green ribbon!! (sheesh... humans are weird sometimes)...