Here are the two chicks we followed this summer. They are about two months old and very demanding. They are beginning to fish on their own but would much rather be fed. They have almost lost all the down on their heads and the patterns are beginning to show on their wings. What beautiful magical birds they are. This was taken from my kayak with a long lens. We try to stay a good distance away from them, but sometimes they come right up beside the kayak. Then all you can do is hold your breath and watch. The chicks are doing wing exercises all the time getting ready for their first attempts at flight. This won't happen for awhile yet. Often both parents work hard at feeding them especially in the early morning which is when we like to try to find them. On a cool crisp morning with no wind the reflections on the water make pictures doubly rewarding. There are also blue herons, many duck families and an occasional cormorant. Once in awhile an eagle appears. When the loon chicks are young the eagles are a real threat to them.

     Now the loons have left. First the parents leave. The chicks stay on for a few weeks growing and gaining independence. Then in mid or late October they finally take flight and start their life alone somewhere on the Eastern shore. It's  a sad time for those of us who have felt so connected to them all summer. The parents succeeded in raising two healthy strong chicks. That's as good as it gets in the loon world. 

As the water level rises, the beavers add more and more mud and sticks to the Lodge. They hollow out a larger chamber inside where they will spend the winter, safe from weather and predators. They store their food supply in the mud, submerged so they can make use of it after the ice freezes on the pond. They use underwater access to the Lodge so they can reach the food supply even when the ice is solid above. They live in total darkness all winter unless there is a thaw. Then they can find an open place in the ice and find some fresh bark as a winter treat.

    Peter has tilled the garden and planted winter rye. The asparagus has been fertilized. My gardens were a disaster this summer. It was so rainy that every time the sun came out, Tulla, the Weimaraner pup , and I went out in the kayak. We often went to the beaver pond to explore there. Our favorite place to go is a large pond nearby where there are loon families. We watched the loons feed their two chicks all summer long. Now they have left for the open ocean along the coast somewhere. Those chicks won't return for two years, if they are lucky to survive.

Long nights and short days

 October sunsets are the best. Here's the sun setting over Killington and Pico Mountains on its way south for the winter. The sun is setting now at five which makes for a short afternoon. It's time to come in, build a fire and  sit with a glass of wine, Peter and Tulla and read or knit and talk about the day. The beavers have had their apples and poplar branches though they will be busy all night getting ready for winter. The change in the temperature of the water makes them hurry and work harder. They are still trying to outsmart me by damming up the culvert. I tug on my high rubber boots each morning and wade into the stream to undo what they have done during the night. I can't figure out how they have time to do all that they accomplish.