Nehemiah Aftermath.

1 reg taking picsThe canoe blessing at Nehemiah has an aftermath!  The man in the picture taking (lots of!) photos is Reg Mess, a professional photographer, of Masters Touch Inc.  Unfortunately, I cannot give you a link to his site as, at the moment, when I google it, a message comes up warning me of spyware.  I wondered what kind of photos he would be taking at this point – here are a couple of them.

2 dodgs in canoe

3 dog in canoe 2And later, as we came to shore…

4 rainbowReg kindly gave me the photos when the canoe crew came to visit at the end of their trip.  They were supposed to stay at Nehemiah for 10 days, and come to Ginty Creek for an overnight stay at the weekend before going home.  But the weather was atrocious. The morning after Jimmy and I came home, storms had put fresh snow on the mountains.

5 fresh snow 1

5b fresh snow 2The sky rapidly clouded over and the afternoon was gloomy and raw.  The next day the wind was maniacle.  We had sun but on the Lower Mainland they had rain as well with hundreds of fallen trees and power outages.  The forecast looked dismal for the next few days and I received a phone message saying that Chris and the crew were going to abandon Chilko and come to my place early.  Here is that wonderful canoe parked in my yard.  My canoe looks very plebian beside it!)

6 canoe in yardSome of the crew slept in vehicles, but others erected tents among the trees.

7 camp(It is sunny at the moment of this photo, but by evening, it was gloomy and spitting with rain.  The wind blew all night.)

As they had time on their hands, the crew decided to spend two nights.  So guess what I did – I put them to work!

Some split wood…

8 woodpile 1 sylviaReg (the photographer) fished off some details on the cabin above the deck.  He even cleaned the attic windows while he was up there!

9 reg 1

11 ladder from inside

10 sloping ladder(Note the storm over the mountains.  We had mostly sun  until late afternoon, then the cloud flew overhead and we actually had a decent rain. The third of the summer.)

But the big job was collecting rocks.

12 collecting rocksI had hoped to finish the outdoor stone oven before my housewarming party at the end of this month, but thought that, with only Jimmy to help, that plan would have to be shelved.  Now I had a willing and energetic crew!  Steve, on the left, is from Leeds, Yorkshire, and has drystone walling in his background.  Jimmy (the volunteer) is immensely strong and was able to lift huge rocks alone.  Trevor and Sandy also both had a lot of power.

13 oven 1Most of the rock work to begin with was just making a base to the level of the baking stone, which is currently on top.  Then we were able to build the oven walls.  Mass is important, as large rocks hold heat much longer.

14 oven 2Now for the roof!

15 big rockThis one was very heavy.

16 big rock 2But they did it!

17 big rock 3When I came to write this post, I realized I did not have a picture of the finished oven, so I went down (after another heavy rain stopped this morning) to make the shot.

18 oven(Jimmy and I still have some refinements to do before we can try to bake bread.)

The chipmunks absolutely loved their new home!

23 chipmunks

24 lone chipmunkI wish the crew could have stayed longer.  But they packed up and left this morning.

19 packing upHere’s Harry supervising.

20 packingBefore they left, Reg decided we should have a group shot.  It was cold and raw, and Badger wanted to stay inside.  He is under the camera’s tripod, not moving a muscle.  This was a dog who had spent 8 months in the SPCA because he had been beaten by, and hated men – he would always growl at them.  He has no trouble with men now!

21 Badger and RegAnd here is the shot Reg took.  Thank you, Reg – hope your website is user-friendly soon.  And thank you all the canoe crew.  I LOVE visitors like this!

group (last)

 

9 thoughts on “Nehemiah Aftermath.”

  1. Love that your dogs have such a great life too. And chipmunks..
    And your home is coming along so nicely.
    You and your company appear to be having a whale of a time!

  2. Love all the pics, but most of all the interior of your house looks amazing. I want to see more! Also Happy Early Birthday and the dogs are so good looking..lol

  3. Thanks again Chris for sharing these great pictures. It looks as if everyone had a good time on the canoe and naming trip. Just sorry I couldn’t be there but I re-read Ginty’s Ghost to get into the spirit!
    Very best wishes and it sounds as if Happy Birthday is appropriate soon as well.
    Fred

  4. This was a special treat! That large painting is beautiful, as is your home. Spacious!
    Nice to see you in the photos, and the dogs ‘ posing ‘ in the canoe. I have seen voyager canoes,like in Canadian tourist spots. But this, why its like meeting one personally, and truly understanding what they are about. I enjoyed the link to Chris,having no idea of his expertise and experiences, I was quite “wowed.’
    Feel like I’ve had a free adventure vacation. Thanks!!

  5. really enjoyed these posts about the canoe and the group helping you out there at your place. That has got to be the most beautiful canoe I have ever seen …and so long. How many people will it hold?
    keep the posts coming, I do so enjoy them and just love your photos of flowers especially. Thankyou !
    barb

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge