KAUAI OCT-DEC 2013

BACK TO KAUAI

It took awhile to adjust back to our climate and routine after the summer in the mountains.  Gil had people waiting for him to help with their projects.  All those plans stopped short when he got sick and it took several weeks to determine he had acquired Valley Fever (a fungal caused pneumonia) while in Arizona.  We did manage to make it to the annual Halloween party.  

Hippy meets black belt

NOVEMBER 2013

            Gil went paddling several times during a  week of false remission – ocean and river – weather permitting.  One evening, young boobies (birds) flew alongside the canoe for many strokes, probably trying to figure out how to count coup.  They like to touch their bill to projections (like the spike on the lighthouse) as training for catching fish. 

            By the same token, when I paddled up the river late one day, I saw five buffalo along side grazing in the pasture.  Really fun after all the herds in Yellowstone.  Unfortunately these big boys are bound for the table.  Soon after, with lots of rain the river became chocolate color and was best avoided.
           One of the funny quirks of Kauai is that during heavy rains we get calls from the county warning us of flash flooding.  Our favorite is to be awakened at 2 or 3 or 4:00am with a warning to not go out.

            I attended a meeting at Kilauea Point Wildlife Refuge – the first in months due in part to the senseless government shutdown this country was subjected to. 

After the meeting, I went out for a quick visit to the point to see some moderate winter waves.

 Looking west from the Lighthouse area

This is a sleepy cove in summertime

Looking east from the Lighthouse area

The power of water!
            

 Juvenile boobies playing on the wind, teasing each other, the frigates 

and generally behaving like the teenagers they are
The top one is older than the lower one - getting closer to his adult colors - more white

Gil was grounded again with fever and lethargy and while he was recuperating I went back to California’s high desert two more times – to visit my brother and then to do deep body work on a favorite client (and to see my brother again).  We did find time in between events to be very grateful at Thanksgiving.

Snow in the desert 

More snow in the desert - behind an outlet mall 

Wind mills - there are now more than ever

Twice I had to drive through winds that were hazardous

 I'm not fond of the desert in general but I love the Palm Springs area

I finally figured out it is because mountains frame the towns

My beautiful digs in Indian Wells at the home of Mary Frances

the Jetta was OK, but had no cruise control for driving the windy freeway

Back yard - outside my bedroom

My temporary quarters

With great sadness my brother David George Bruffet passed away and I was so fortunate to be there for him.  My retreat was really important.   

On a happier note, I did get a chance to meet with our kids in Palm Springs for a short visit at the landmark Las Casuelas.

 Shawn, Stacey, Ian, Tutu (me), and 4 year old Chloe

She was supposed to be snowboarding but it was too windy on the slopes so they met with us

Chloe Deer 

from warmer days

Back Home, again

            Gil picked me up and of course we went to Duke's for a meal since it is one of the few island restaurants near the water. 

Stand up paddle (SUP) boards for rent

It's hard to beat the barefoot bar at Duke's for a good salad with a view

 You know you are back on Kauai when you can't read the road signs

And truly fresh produce from the farmer's market

            Happy to say Gil got over the acute stage of Valley Fever and he is getting back into both his work and paddling - with caution. 

The cattle egret have adapted to yard machinery large and small  

They find a feast awaiting in the new mowed grass

Between rain storms the mountain across from us is loaded with waterfalls

It is about four miles away so that is a lot of water!

Antler orchid

About the only antlers I see are in my back yard

 Pretty little guy in our lemon tree, loaded with yellow ornaments this time of year

Lumahai Beach

I borrowed these small fins to try out snorkeling later at Anini

They were great for the shallow water

          So the three things that make winter in Kauai are the waves, whales, and albatross.  First time ever, I didn't have the sandisc in my camera while I was taking terrific whale photos!  I will have to go back.  I figured it when I was shooting my favorite guys doing what they do, adults still on the nest and the youth in action. 

 What a beautiful nest in a perfect location

The chick (not hatched yet) will be able to run right off the hill toward the ocean next July

Laysan Albatross are so unbelievably charming practicing their moves

The one on the right is already on tippy toes, impressing those around him

It is really good to be home

PS: Many people have asked us about Midway.  If you want to keep up with the nest counters there, check out Marilou's blog:

kauaimarilou.wordpress.com

            

MAINLAND - CABIN

RETURN TO THE CABIN

3 MORE WEEKS

SEPT 2013

            Leaving Denver to return to the cabin, we were in terrific hail.  Within a couple days we started hearing about the floods on the other side of the divide.  People that had planned to visit could not get out of their towns or across Trailridge Pass, now closed.  Boulder shut down and Lyons was literally an island.  Denver had 3 feet of hail and basements were flooded even where roads weren’t closed.  Our river rose 18-20".  We were very lucky to have the severe storms miss us. 

 The river before we left

The river after the rains

Tonohutu is usually a stream – going pretty hard and fast now.

             Amazing how much change occurred in just a couple of weeks while we were gone.  It had been so hot before we left and now we were seeing frost on chilly mornings and could work outside all day.  The aspen were in varying stages of changing color.

Chill before the sun cleared the mountain 

Pleasant once it was up

The frost disappeared the minute the sun touched it

 Strange to see the aspen in this variegated state

            We saw our deer but they had shed their summer coats and were sleek and brown.  The fawns had shed their spots.

Doe & fawn in winter coat

The yearling - a little shedding still needed

  

            Only the big bull moose was around now, frequently close to the cabin.  Hikers spotted the female occasionally but the younger bulls were gone.  All the velvet was off the bull’s rack.  We have watched moose through their velvet shedding season in the past and it seemed impossible he could have bare antlers in such a short span of time.

Gorgeous George

see previous post on cabin for the velvet antlers

            We happened to catch him have a tantrum and his power and speed were awesome in a literal sense.  He was rubbing his antlers in a willow and possibly got a branch in his eye.  He attacked the bush, stomped it, jumped back and did a split second 180.  We felt the earth move as he jumped and stomped in frustration.  There are ridiculous numbers of stories of moose attacks and we felt it was all media hype blown out of proportion.  We got some respect for distance in that moment.  While we were wary from then on, he was never anything but docile as he nibbled and napped near the cabin and just up and down the trail.

 Directly behind the outhouse and shower

Audience

This guy was watching the moose intently as he wandered by

            Gil continued working on sealing the exterior log siding with grandpa’s secret recipe.  He got the entire cabin sealed before we left.  It was glowing once again.

            I continued clearing slash from the mountainside until we had some clear lines of sight from our main vantage points.  We will never have it clear – the steeper mountain sides look like someone played pick up sticks.  But we made room for new growth around us.  I also continued to spiff up the interior.

 Living room looking into kitchen

Grandma's rocker on left, the victrola with Mom's painting over it, 

the old ice box just inside the kitchen

We still stopped at the ice house on our way up in the 50s

 The front bedroom, now the "ancestor room"

The back bedroom, now the "Indian room" 
just off the kitchen, it is the first to get warm in the morning

            We spent a day at Hot Sulphur Springs to soak in the mineral waters.  On the way, we saw a young osprey with its parent.  These are man-made platforms built near, but higher than a spot that is getting scouted by the birds.  They will choose the platform over a utility pole and it is a preservation measure.

Osprey nest on man-made platform

Chick on right begging for food

            We also happened to see a group of pronghorns on a ranch and stopped to watch.  Two groups, one lying down and the other climbing the mountain behind.  One rascal started chasing another (I’m guessing imitation mating behavior).  Pretty soon they were all running – really fun to watch, too far away for pics.

Family / Memorial

            We had lots of family during our last week.  Gil’s brother and his wife – Dennis and Darlene came in from Alaska (before returning to Oregon).  The memorial for Mom brought my niece Laurie from Montrose and her kids: Courtney from Seattle, Chelsie and Jadyn from Utah, and Colin from N. Dakota.  Jackie’s son Jeff made it up from Denver plus friends from Grand Lake.  It was great. 

 Left to Right

Front:  Jeff, Michelle, Chelsie & Jadyn

Middle:  Courtney, Darlene, Laurie, Sharon

Back:  Richard, Colin, Dennis, Gil

Colin and Jeff 

Laurie with Jadyn pushing her

We all grew up on the swing (or another version of it)

Courtney contemplating the mysteries

Others in attendance

            As a group effort we dug up blue spruce from the back of our property and planted them where we had lost tall pines.  Mom was distraught over the loss of trees, it will be richly rewarding to watch them grow.

 Chelsie and Gil digging up the largest of the spruce we moved

Probably 15 good sized rocks were removed to get it out

Three new blue spruce where two pines fell

Cross your fingers they will thrive

            Darlene generously offered to cook up the fixings for fajitas – great fun turning out food from the wood stove.

The last load of chicken and peppers, the platters were already full

Dennis and Darlene

             D&D had a couple extra days with us after everyone else headed out.  We took of advantage of their wonderful company playing cards at night and being outside all day.

Warm & fuzzy (or blurry)  

We didn't care

            We drove over to Estes for lunch.  Trailridge Pass through Rocky Mountain National Park had reopened.  We were treated with colorful aspen and snowy peaks.

 Near the Grand Lake entrance to Rocky Mtn. Nat'l Park

 The visitor center was closed for the season

We were just glad they opened the road in time for us to use it

 It is cold up here mid summer, even colder now with winds coming up the slopes

Geared up - I hadn't worn this jacket since the Alps 

The big horn sheep that we often see up here must have already moved to lower elevations

Two magical glacial lakes

             In Estes Park there was still evidence of the flood; businesses closed, buildings with mud flows coming out the door and debris still in the river that runs through town.  We lucked out finding the Overlook Bar and Grill – just not ready to be indoors.

 I'd seen the restaurant as we were driving through town, we were pretty pleased with it

Good food and pumpkin beer (for me)

We started seeing elk as soon as we were on the eastern slope.  By end of day we had probably seen 10 bulls with their herds –on both sides of the divide.  

Bull elk bugling to his herd

He followed them down this slope and across the hiway

Magnificent creature 

 Same guy with his herd (about 3 times this many females and calves)

He had a pretty good limp so he had paid for the privilege

This beauty was the only bull we saw that was solo 

We stopped to watch every chance we got, 

This one was coaxing his girls to follow him 

 And they did follow him between bites

Another bugling - gorgeous coloration

            The day D&D left it was 22 degrees when we woke up.  We hiked to the falls and then went to Grand Lake Lodge for lunch.  Hard to let them go.

The snow didn't disappear quite so fast this time

This is the same stand of aspens where I saw the moose laying in the tall green grass 

(see previous cabin post) 

Sun shining now on D&D 

 A lot more water than last time I was at the falls

 Too fun

Time for alohas

            Gil and I had only hours left and we couldn’t get enough.  Back to town I needed to launder linens before packing up; Gil went to the library to read and while he was there, a young bull decided to eat the bushes on the grounds and then nap a little.  

Gil took this from inside the library

            We planned to leave in the afternoon but it alternately snowed and rained and we decided to spend one more night.  We woke up to snow but it didn’t last.  It was chilly locking up. 

           

 It's always hard to say goodbye, but we've committed to coming back next summer

Aspen confetti

            Our buddy came by; we hadn’t seen him all week but he harrumphed his way all around us while we got ready to go.

 He was across the road from the cabin then wandered up the side past the well 

and around behind the logs

We had seen him nap in this spot once before

Note downfall "pick up sticks"

The pump wrapped, the shutters shut, we left the mum for the deer to eat 

The cabin is part of the family and it is hard to leave it to face the winter alone

  

            We met Colin for breakfast and watched a female moose with two calves lying on the boardwalk by the mini golf.  When we were done, one of the calves was busy eating the flowers of a restaurant.  Colin assured us the stories about moose attacks were real (when he is not in N Dakota, he is on call at the firehouse in Grand Lake).  The moose get startled by human behavior and react.  The stressed rangers were keeping moose and people apart in town.  My zoom is blurry but this was cute.

Baldy or Mr. Craig with sun and snow

            We got to Denver and unloaded Lucille.  We repacked a small bag and went downtown for a night in the city.  Jeff’s girlfriend Tracy booked us a night at the historic Brown Palace Hotel built in 1882.  It was really fun after the Old Faithful Inn.  Things were done so well once in America.

 The Brown Palace is a Denver landmark

Upper center is now the entry to the spa but it was originally the fireplace with onyx pillars 

Ornate and beautiful

            We fast tracked acclimating to urban life.  Next day dinner at PF Changs and the movie Rush with Therese and we were ready for Denver International Airport.

On our way home

Gotta say I got my big animal fix on the mainland