The second day I was here Lizzie a long time friend of the family came over to take me on a hike around Long Timber. We descended down the steep hill that the house sits on top. Walking down towards the creek. I thought it hasn’t rained lately so hopefully, there won’t be any leeches dropping on me from the wet leaves like my mother had described.

We walked through the gate and across the paddock . The air cooled as we entered the bush surrounding the creek.

We followed the creek and carefully stepped across on little stones, Ascending into another paddock.

It was getting warmer but we continued onwards up and down across the fields and back up towards the long timber.

We marched onwards up and down hills. Lizzie found a stick and broke it off for my own walking stick. It was very helpful as we climbed yet another steep hill.

In the open fields I carefully stepped around the cow pies but for the mushrooms they were the perfect medium to create a village.

Finally, we headed back towards the damn.  The heat was intense as we crossed the open paddock.  But as we neared the damn, my mouth dropped open in joyful surprise.  Looking down on from the top of the rise where the house sits I had thought the green around the dam was algae like one sees on so many farms in Minnesota or Wisconsin, but no this damn was surrounded by water lilies

. Thanks, Lizzie for showing me around.  There is nothing like that equals walking with someone who has been there before, to begin to see one’s surroundings.  Now when I look across at the dam (which was created only 18 years ago) I can appreciate the little habitat that this dam created.  Butterflies flittered about the small water lily flowers.  The purple ones are edible and little white ones spread across the shallow water leaving the deep center clear of weeds.

I did find a spot of blood oozing from my leg.  I didn’t see him, a leech had secretly bitten me on our walk.  I wiped off the blood and washed the spot.  It left a little round hole in the back of my leg.  It itched for a couple of days, but a little dose of Aleo Vera eliminated the problem.