Oct. 28th: The mushroom post!

 While hiking in New England we saw many different types of mushrooms. I was trying to get pictures of birds but not having any luck. So I decided to go with mushrooms. There was an amazing variety, including some green mushrooms. I included a photo from a friend of a giant puffball, very good eating! Here are some of the pictures.

Giant puffball (Photo from a friend)

Coral fungi

Puffballs

Green Mushroom

Green Mushroom

Parasol mushroom

Probably more than you ever wanted to see but it was a lot of fun looking for different types in person on our hikes. We never found a purple mushroom which I know exists!

October 21st: More fun in Vermont

When I went kayaking with Christopher I had told him to stay after and I would make some salmon with dill sauce for supper. He said that sounded great. He told me he was the only one in his family that liked seafood so they didn't make it at home. It turned out great and we both enjoyed it. 

I suggested we have a seafood extravaganza at the cabin some night, clam chowder, swordfish appetizer and lobster.  In our planning we found that only Christopher and I were in for the lobster. No problem, Chris would make some specialty burgers on the grill for the rest of our group. Terri said she would try my grilled swordfish appetizer. I use a honey, butter, garlic, ginger and soy sauce marinade when I make it. I assured Terri she'd like it. Plans were confirmed for Sunday.

Annika, purple headband, center

We received word Friday afternoon that Annika's COVID test came back negative, so she no longer needed to quarantine. That meant she could play in her soccer match and we could cheer her on. I am learning it is very difficult to get good soccer pictures given the size of the field and where we sit. This is the best I have. It again was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the match. They almost won!

Owen - 2nd from right

In addition, I got to watch Owen in a basketball game. I had better success with the basketball pictures. At least you can really see it's Owen even though no action shots. Owen played very well and his team won. It was fun getting to see him play. 

Owen - Left

Deck and Grill - Owen

We gathered at the Lake house for the seafood/burger extravaganza and fun. Christopher, Scott, Annika and I enjoyed the clam chowder. Then we made the grilled swordfish. There is a very nice deck and grill overlooking the lake. Christopher grilled it perfectly. It was very good swordfish and came out tasting wonderful. I cut it into appetizer sized pieces and I was glad I decided to buy two pieces instead of one. Terri said she couldn't stop eating it. That was fun. There is a very nice deck and grill overlooking the lake. Next came the burgers and lobsters. It was quite the feast!

Stephanie provided dessert

Stephanie said she would provide dessert. She really knows how to go all out. The picture doesn't really show how great everything tasted. It reminded me of Kailyn's multiple birthday cakes, cupcakes, giant chocolate chip cookie cake, etc. Must be a family Skill? Addiction?

Left to Right - Steve, Scott, Owen,
Teresa, Annika, Stephanie & Terri

When we were in Lincoln, I introduced Terri, Scott, Christopher and Stephanie to "Up and Down the River". Christopher said he thought his family would enjoy the game. There is a great table in the Lake House for game playing. We played a couple games and had a fun time. I can't really remember who won so we'll just say we are all winners!

Chris unloading 3 kayaks
No help needed, just stay
out of the way!

The weather was still amazing so we planned another kayak visit to Stephanie's lake. Fortunately, Chris and Annika were able to join us. Chris did the heavy lifting and brought three kayaks so Terri, Stephanie, Annika, Chris and I would all have kayaks.

From left: Stephanie, Terri, Annika & Chris

The lake was perfect for kayaking. 

Chris towing Annika and fishing

It was a long ride and Annika decided to get towed by Chris while she read. It reminded me of the numerous times I towed Linda through some strong winds or currents so she could come along. Once I got us moving I hardly noticed I was towing her.

We went all the way to the south end where Christopher and Terri said the best chances were to catch fish. Chris and I both caught a nice bass. Chris also caught a nice sized Pike. 

Chris' Bass

The picture of the pike in the net just didn't look like much so here's the bass. 

I also caught a nice sized perch, but only one, or I would have been tempted to make a perch dinner.

Stephanie's house with the osprey pole

On the way back, we passed Stephanie's house again. The lighting was better than last time so I got a better picture.

Frog

When we got back to the dock we were getting the kayaks out and Stephanie said, "I didn't even see it sitting there." I looked and still didn't see anything. Finally I noticed a frog just sitting in the water on the other side of the dock. See if you can spot it.

So another great kayak cruise came to an end. Probably my last before going home. The winds were supposed to pick up. I wanted a tour of Stephanie's property. I'd seen it but hadn't yet walked around. She replaced a horse corral with wildflowers. They looked great and were attracting bees and birds. It was a huge area and Stephanie, Terri and Scott all worked to rotor till the area and plant the wildflowers.

Stephanie's back yard looking toward the house and lake

Stephanie's wildflower back yard

Parasol mushroom

Top view

While we were walking through the back yard we came across this unusual mushroom. It had a long very thin stem with a round flat top. Terri used her identification App and discovered it's a parasol mushroom. Appropriate name.

The view from the house gives you a good idea how large the wildflower area is.

Terri & Scott's foundation

Having moved permanently to Burlington, the Scotts decided to build. Nothing they liked was available. The setting is very nice. So far it is just the foundation but I have heard from Terri that the framing has started. Hopefully, I can visit again in the Spring and stay in their new house. Stephanie tells me Spring is the best time to see birds.

Monday Chris was playing a championship tennis match at his tennis club. If they won, they were the champions for the year. Terri, Scott and I went to watch. Christopher and his partner played very well and became the club champions for 2021.

As you can see from the chart I saw in the clubhouse, Chris has been a frequent winner!

Snapping Turtle laying eggs

The previous owners of the property told Stephanie that snapping turtles came up from the lake, (quite a long way!) to lay their eggs. She saw numerous turtles in the spring.

Newly hatched snapping turtle

At some point during my visit, Terri and I received a message from Stephanie. She found a newly hatched snapping turtle in her back yard. She sent these very cute pictures. She saw numerous turtles in the spring. We don't know why these eggs were hatching so late. 

Stephanie decided that between the crows and the osprey this little turtle would never make it to the lake. She got him on her shovel and delivered it to the lake. He immediately swam away! Amazing what instinct can do for you! She no sooner got back to her back yard and there was another one. Another trip to the lake.

Even with this good camouflage, it could be a long dangerous journey out of the water.

Burlington City Marina

Terri and I talked about what to do next, before I flew back home Wednesday. It occurred to us that I never made it into Burlington or Lake Champlain. Turned out there is a nice hike along the lake that ends in downtown Burlington. Sounded perfect. Plus there was a great breakfast place. 

Burlington City pier & Restaurant

The weather again was wonderful. We had a good hike and a great breakfast. The Burlington waterfront on Lake Champlain is very nicely designed. There is a long walkway along the lake with numerous porch swing type benches. There is a nice very well protected marina and a fun little pier with a restaurant and viewing area.

I'll end this post with a couple really fun pictures. The first is a spectacular reflection in the water taken on one of our hikes. The other is a typical sunset at the Scott Lake House. 

The second is a typical sunset at the Scott Lake House. 

Oct 16th: Plenty of action with the Scotts

Confession: I don't know how 9 days can go by so fast. We packed a lot of fun into the 9 days I was there. As I am completing the blog, I realize remembering the order of our activities is sketchy, there was a lot going on. For those of you in attendance, I am not surprised if some events are chronologically out of order. But then "Who Cares". It was all great fun!

Toasting Linda's wonderful life

Monday September 20th was Linda's birthday. My sister Terri asked if I wanted to do something special. I had mixed emotions, it's still difficult to not think about wanting to have her with me. Especially when I am with friends and family having fun. My brain tells me it's been long enough and that I need to move on. Some days that works better than others. A good friend reminded me recently that although Linda is not with me in body, she will always be with me in my memories and to enjoy those. Terri suggested we go to Christopher's lake house dock and watch the sunset with Docktails in Linda's honor. I truly appreciate having such a thoughtful and fun sister! 

Randy Cindy, Linda, Gigit and Cricket - Bobcaygeon

What a great idea. We had so many wonderful gatherings with friends for docktails while boating. 

While I still miss Linda terribly, celebrations like this help me to appreciate the wonderful life we had together. 

We stayed well after sunset and enjoyed a beautiful evening! Toasted to Linda with our Manhattans, Linda's favorite drink, of course! Thanks Terri for a wonderful idea and Christopher for providing a perfect place for us to gather.

Pickerel

We checked the weather for the next few days to plan kayaking on Christopher's lake, Lake Iroquois. Turned out the next day looked good for kayaking. Christopher was working from home and he was able to join us. Christopher likes to fish so he had equipment for us. I left the dock and was waiting for Christopher. While waiting I saw a little swirl in the water so I cast my line out and caught this nice pickerel. Took a picture and released it. What a great way to start!

Pair of loons

The kayaking was wonderful. We toured a lot of the shoreline and even spotted a pair of loons. They are very fun to watch diving for fish and hearing their calls. Christopher was able to get this picture from a distance. The loons and the Lake houses really took the edge off my missing the summer in Canada.

Lake House from the dock

Christopher had offered the Lake House for me to enjoy. Terri and Scott had errands to run the next day so I decided it would be fun to stay at the Lake. Besides, it would give Terri and Scott a break from their "house guest", not that I was concerned about it. All was going smoothly.

Lake house viewed from
the road to the lake

Front yard and screened in deck

The lake house is very comfortable and located in a nice wooded area. There are very large oak trees that have many acorns. The acorns falling on the steel roof made an amazingly loud sound, especially at night! Still, it was a great place to sleep, a nice little getaway.

As forecast, it rained during the night and into the next morning. It was very peaceful and I enjoyed hearing the rain on the steel roof. Fortunately, it cleared off and I was able to go for another Kayak ride around the lake. It was somewhat windy so I went to the end of the lake paddling into the wind. I stayed close to the somewhat irregular shoreline so the wind really wasn't a big issue.

I was watching for the loons, hoping to see them again. I spotted them diving for fish around a small rock island. The wind was very helpful. I paddled upwind of the loons so I could drift toward them without paddling. They let me drift pretty close. It took several drifts but I finally got some fun pictures, and I got to see them up close.

The loons were losing their summer feathers which are a distinctive black and white. They eventually turn a dark gray for the winter. They do migrate and we have seen some in Florida. Learn more about the Common Loon here.

Great blue heron

As I was almost back to the Lake house I spotted a great blue heron on a dock. It was pretty far away but I took a picture before trying to get closer. It's too bad my phone was not set on video, I could have gotten a great one. The Great Blue Herons are fun because they are very large and make a very raucous sound when disturbed.

Annika's Chocolate Chip Cookies

It turned out that I benefitted from Annika's quarantine. She had to remain home and likes to bake. She made some chocolate chip cookies and Christopher delivered some to me. They were great! Here is a picture of two, there were more before I thought to take a picture!

Terri received a call from my niece, Chris' wife Teresa, with a wonderful offer. She had made reservations at a unique Vermont restaurant for an annual gathering with her friends. Reservations need to be made many days ahead of time. One of her friends had a problem so they had to reschedule. Teresa offered the reservation to us. Coincidentally, Terri's name is Theresa Scott and her daughter-in- law is also named Teresa Scott. We showed up and Terri said "Hi, reservation for Teresa Scott".

We enjoyed a nice setting, great wine with appetizers. The food came and it was very good. I neglected to take a picture of the meals. The wine picture is all anyone took. I thought we were finished and ready to leave. But Stephanie said, "What desserts should we get?" After some discussion I believe a blueberry cheesecake and some kind of a chocolate dessert were order with four spoons. The Scotts know how to enjoy life! Thank you Teresa for thinking of us.

I copied a description from the Kitchen Table Bistro website because I thought you'd appreciate it.

Welcome to The Kitchen Table Bistro, and thanks for checking us out! We are a Chef-owned bistro cooking seasonal Vermont fare in an historic brick farm house. Food, and the dining experience, excites us and we appreciate being able to share this labor of love with our friends and guests.

As good Vermonters, we are very proud to live, work and be a part of our community. We do our part by buying as much as we can from our neighbors and all of our local Vermont producers. We base our menus on Season, changing things often to reflect our constantly changing weather and our far too short growing season. We also base our menu on Personalities. We like the farmers and growers, foragers and producers that personally come to our kitchen, and we appreciate being able to support these personal connections. In summer and fall, we grow lots of fresh herbs here in our gardens. We try to extend the seasons by preserving lots of our beautiful summer fruits, vegetables and foraged mushrooms.

Clearly, we are excited to be here doing what we do. We are even more excited that our guests want to be a part of this, and we are pleased to be able to share our enthusiasm with you. Thanks!

Steve, Lara and the whole KTB Team

I also include this link to the photos since we neglected to take our own!

Photos: The Kitchen Table Bistro 

Stephanie lives 30 minutes away and our dinner reservation was at 7:00 PM. I offered, with enthusiasm, to stay at Christopher's lake house again so Stephanie could stay in the guest bedroom. I truly enjoyed staying at the lake. Terri, Scott and Stephanie dropped me off at the Lake house. There was some question about my being there without transportation, but not from me!

There is more to come but I'm going to post this now. I am sorting through many more pictures from Scott, Stephanie, Terri, Christopher and me. It's fun to see them all. but I know I shouldn't include them all! Next on the agenda were more athletic events, another kayaking visit to Stephanie's and hopefully a family get together after Annika got her COVID test results.