Little Bluff cabin cam October 31 - a beautiful sunrise to end October - HAPPY HALLOWEEN MONDAY TO YOU!

Journal updated on the 30th

Our CANVAS GALLERY will be OPEN THIS SATURDAY, 11/05/22, 9am-3pm, also for appointments anytime - call, text, or email.

Nova Scotia Road Trip updated last on October 24th - added Road Trip Days 11 - 13 (see Nova Scotia Part B HERE). I will continue to add trip days when I can and will put a notice on this line when I do...

PRINT OF THE WEEK SPECIAL (above)

10/01/22 While driving to town I noticed a critter in the middle of the highway, and as I got closer I realized it was a cat with something stuck on its head - a very odd sight. Then I realized it was a soup can, and the poor fellow was staggering down the middle of the highway completely blinded by the can. I pulled over, turned on my flashers, and began to chase him down. Now you wouldn’t think that it would be much of a problem for a grown man to catch a poor blinded little cat, but oh my goodness that cat did not want anyone catching him! And when I did catch him I didn’t know how to get the can off his head - I tried several times, each time resulted in the cat clawing and escaping and running off - only to run into a tree or rock or something. As a last gasp I decided to brag him, then twist the can as I tried to pull it off, knowing it would not be pleasant for the little guy - but the alternative would not be good either. Thankfully it worked, and while the cat was not happy, I think he will survive. Poor little guy. Now each time I open a can of anything I’m careful too first rinse it out, then COMPLETELY REMOVE the top and push it flush into the bottom of the can. Open cans with food residue inside are not good for wildlife or pets!

This is Mom's old iron kettle that was brought to America in the 1800's and used at "the farm" in Waseca, Minnesota (mostly to make lye soap or really BIG pots of chili!) for more than 100 years. Then mom used it at our house in Fayetteville for decades - always filling it overflowing with mums each fall (and spring flowers in the spring) until her death. We moved it to Cloudland where my lovely bride continued the tradition with spring, summer, and fall flowers too - it always was full of flowers and life!. It's been empty for a while here at Little Bluff but now back to life again in the "triangle" of oak trees in our yard where we hope it will bloom everlasting....

10/02/22 This is a great time of year not only for being outdoors all day, but also indoors. It stays cool enough during the day to keep the windows open and not run AC, but also the extra coolness at night makes for wonderful sleeping temps.

Seems like oak trees are loaded with nuts and are already falling (Mia loves to munch on fresh acorns). A good “mast” crop means lots of goodies for wildlife, especially deer and other larger critters. Speaking of critters, we had a fox on one of our security cameras about midnight - he’s been sneaking around a lot lately and we enjoyed watching him while we were away. Saw some mysterious critter poop on the trail this morning - I bet it was Mr. Fox.

And speaking of nuts, we bought a jar of peanut butter at the local food CO-OP in Neil’s Harbor, Nova Scotia. It’s the natural kind that you have to mix up since the natural oils are lighter than the ground peanuts and rise to the top of the jar. While looking at the ingredients list the other day I discovered it said to “mix then refrigerate to help keep the oil from separating." And it WORKS! (How many ingredient's lists only contain ONE item?)

When I brought up the google map just now of Neil’s Harbor (to show the location of the Co-op), I just remembered that we FORGOT to visit the Chowder House there - heard it was wonderful - one of many dozens of places we never got to visit (we didn’t eat out much, trying to save cash).

HURRICANE FIONA UPDATE - Neil's Harbor was hit hard by the hurricane right after we left the area - here's a youtube video by a local TV station that shows some of the damage - the seafood factory they show is located just off the screen shot below - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AArEdrv4Kdk

I’ve also noted on the map the littlehouse where a lady woodworker makes lighthouses - she can see the actual lighthouse from her work area! We bought two small ones from her - one lights up and will live on the mantle or around our fireplace, and the other is a bird house!

10/03/22 Today was to be my first day of a two week visit to the high country in Colorado. I decided to save gas money and stay home. Of course Colorado is in full spectacular aspen color mode right now and I hate to miss that, but there will be other years. My main reason to go was so that I’d be able to paddle my boat in two or three different lakes out there near our campsite - they are already wonderful in the summer, but just imagine how spectacular a paddle there now in full fall dress would be!

But instead I took my boat to a beautiful little mountain lake in the Arkansas Ozarks today - Lake Leatherwood in Eureka Springs. I first found out about this lake last century when I was hired to build the original hiking trail around the lake - the Beacham Trail. It was a LOT of work, but getting to be around the lake all day every day for a couple of months was very nice. And of course I first met the love of my life at one of the trailheads a few years later when I led a hike there (and the rest is history). And, we later got MARRIED there - YIPPIE COYOTE!

Anyway, it took me nearly an hour to get my blow-up canoe inflated and in the water this morning, and then spent a couple of hours paddling to the far end and back. Just a little bit of color in a few trees along the shore - reflecting in the calm windless water. Also lots of water lilies with small yellow blooms. There was only one other boat on the lake (all the lakes in Eureka Springs are “wakeless” so it’s always pretty quiet on the water). Even the dam was beautiful, reflecting in the calm waters.

At the time of construction this dam was the largest stone dam in the country - all of the limestone quarried nearby (I built the hiking trail right through the middle of this quarry - then it goes across the top of the dam). Unfortunately there are now issues with the dam and it’s been closed to hikers so you can’t go all around the lake now. But I was surprised and delighted to see and hear that many hikers were using the trail today (but only on one side of the lake). Always great to know folks are enjoying the fruits of my labor, and getting to spend quality time outdoors.

A couple of notes from my boat. First, I finally was able to get the tubes fully inflated and it handled much better than before (it’s a big rubber canoe, not a stealthy kayak, but for some reason I had always under inflated the tubes before - I know better now).

And most importantly today - I used a brand new paddle - a type I’ve never seen before anywhere - a Greenland Paddle. After an unsuccessful multi-month search for one here in the US last summer, I gave up and ordered one from a company far, far way - in fact on the other side of the world. I ordered it before we left for Canada in hopes it would arrive by the time we got home (and the shipping was FREE). In fact it only took A WEEK via UPS to get from the craftsman who built it in Estonia to Jasper, Arkansas USA. And it was in perfect condition too! (this also turned out to be the cheapest Greenland Paddle - and it is fully handmade even)

I won’t get into the details, but anyone who is interested can just google Greenland Paddle. But basically it is a piece of two by four lumber (usually western red cedar), shaved and shaped down into a most efficient paddling machine that was/is used by Inuit People. (Inuit 'the people', are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and Alaska.) And it is VERY lightweight, about half the weight of the normal kayak paddle I’ve been using in my blowup canoe.

Even though I’ve read dozens of rave reviews of Greenland Paddles, I’ve also seen many folks who could not make them work - it’s a little different way to paddle and with my low experience level I didn’t know if it would work for me, but I really wanted to give it a try. One of the reasons to use this paddle is to reduce wear and tear on your shoulders (I’ve had surgeries on BOTH).

So I finally got my boat all set up and pushed off into the lake. Did I say it was DEAD CALM and BEAUTIFUL?! Well, I’m no expert by a long shot, but from the very first stroke this new paddle and I were in sync. I was surprised how easy it paddled. It seemed to work every bit as well as the big-blade kayak paddle I also had with me and used (but only for a few minutes - I may never use one of those again).

A couple hours later I was still enjoying the Greenland Paddle and the lake, though the wind was blowing - which gave me a chance to further test the paddle under less than ideal conditions. The only issue was my big blue blowup canoe - it’s a great white-water canoe for rivers, but doesn’t do very well on flat water - like a small lake. (The photo below shows the new paddle - it's only 3.25" wide at the tip that you see here - doesn't seem like such a small "blade" could work so well, but it does for me...)

You don’t know this yet since I’ve been too lazy to write about it, but while in Canada I got to paddle an actual kayak for the very first time - on a calm lake in New Brunswick with a national park interpreter in another boat. AND Pam and I got to do a two-hour paddle in a tandem sea kayak in the North Atlantic!!! Not only that, but during our paddle we floated through more than two dozen caves and stone arches - all of this during a high tide of 41 feet!!! (this location has the highest tides on the planet - the sea level dropped 12 feet during or paddle) Much more about this later - it was day nine of our road trip.

Anyway, I’m not really a white-water person, but I loved paddling in a kayak/sea kayak in open water. Maybe there’s another blow-up boat in my future, one that’s better matched to the new paddle, and better for flat water...

10/08/22 The gallery will be open today, and we hope to be open for several Saturdays between now and Christmas - all will be posted here of course (also on Instagram, Facebook, and our gallery info page). And here's a look at some early fall color from the sumac and goldenrod that surround our yard at the cabin...

10/11/22 Turns out Colorado has had an EPIC fall color season this year gosh darn it- and I missed it all! But the other side of the coin is that I saved enough money by not going to Colorado that I was able to purchase another boat. This one is a 15’ tandem inflatable kayak so my lovely bride can be on the water with me - but it also has a solo setup. This morning was the first test drive.

I left home before sunrise for the 60-mile drive to Lake Leatherwood in Eureka Springs, then it only took me 30 minutes to get the boat all blown up and ready go (that will be cut in half next time). One concern I had was being able to step into the center of the boat without getting my feet wet when rigged as a solo since it’s a pretty small cockpit. And I DID IT! First try.

As I settled into the seat and turned around to see how beautiful the calm lake with early fall color was at sunrise, I was feeling pretty good about it all - until I looked over and saw my Greenland Paddle leaning up against a tree - as I began to drift away from shore! (since this was just a quick paddle on a calm lake I did not take a spare paddle with me) OOPS! Got my feet really wet - up to my knees. Oh well - lesson learned, maybe.

The boat did well and I got a nice workout (the main reason for the boat) - especially for the return trip back up the lake against a very strong wind. I only did a total of three miles of paddling but it was enough to convince me the boat would work well for us. Everything fits in a large duffle bag and we’re hoping to get many chances to use this boat during future road trips.

Driving back through Eureka there was a lot of color, and that stiff breeze was removing a lot of those leaves in a hurry - I was driving through “leaf off” instead of hiking through it! So there IS some nice color in the Ozarks already, and I think lots more to come. But I bet the color won’t last long as it’s turning. It’s such a great time of the year to be OUTSIDE anywhere around here...

10/17/22 Spent most of the weekend on the road beginning with a trek to Little Rock to Ray Scott’s great print exhibit opening. 72 prints in all, including 30 of his special and AMAZING infrared photos. This is the exhibit that my lovely bride and I worked on for Ray last summer (I made 60 of his prints, and Pam matted and framed all of them - the three of us worked for almost three days - and then Ray worked another month or two to get it all together for the show). His exhibit will be open to the public for the next couple of months - until the end of December. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED (and free!).

Since I had another event to attend on Saturday down in the Ouachitas, Pam and her dad drove down in her car, then I continued on after the show in our camper van. Both of us got hammered by the heavy, stand-still traffic in Little Rock - something we’ve not seen in a very long time - nor do either of us want to experience again soon!

I ended up spending the night on a remote forest road in the Ouachitas, just in time to view a wonderful orange moon rising. I stood in the dark for a long time soaking in the sights and lack of any sounds - it was magical, especially after being trapped in the big city for a few hours!

Saturday I attended the annual Backpacking Arkansas gathering at Shady Lake. It was the 10th anniversary of their first such gathering, but my first time to be with them (here's their private facebook page). The very first backpack trip I ever led was in 1974 to the nearby Caney Creek Wilderness (as part of the Outdoor Recreation Center’s backpacking class at the University of Arkansas - my brother, Terry, and I helped create this series of non-credit outdoor classes that included hiking, canoeing, and rock climbing). Also nearby is the Little Missouri Trail where I spent a couple off summers working with high school kids building that trail (which is part of the longest loop trail hike in Arkansas - the Eagle Rock Loop).

There were several good speakers during the day Saturday, including one of the longtime manager/owners of the Pack Rat Outdoor Center in Fayetteville (Rick Spicer - he demonstrated some of this incredible primitive/bushcraft skills, which included building a fire right there in his hands!). They have a lot of clinics for these types of skills and MANY other great things - Pack Rat Clinics. When my time came I rambled on for more than an hour about some of the history of Backpacking in Arkansas, with a special tribute to the late, GREAT, Jim Rawlins, the grandfather of the Ouachita Trail. Later in the evening I shared an account of my very first backpack trip ever, and my final backpack trip (in 2021) - to a small gathering of weary folks who stayed up late by a campfire to listen (one of them got attacked by fire ants during my stories!). Group photo below was taken with a drone - great idea! I'm the one in the middle wearing a mask...

It was quite late when I left Shady Lake and started home - and I ran into a giant thunderstorm complex along the way. I only made it about half way home before stopping for a few hours sleep - it had stopped raining by then. Another round of big storms rumbled on through about 5am - it was GREAT to see RAIN finally falling in Arkansas.

On the final leg headed home I drove through lots of early fall color as I climbed up into the Ozarks and across the top - most overall vistas are still green, but I think there is a lot more color already than anyone expected this year (I’m always on the PLUS side when it comes to expecting color). With a cold snap below freezing expected tonight I bet we get a LOT more color this week - which might put this coming weekend and next week as the peak of color in the Ozarks - maybe even the week after, but I bet it will go quick.

I’ll have the gallery open next Saturday - and there are no less than about 100 events going on around the area also - so if you make it up to the Buffalo River country be prepared for crowds - and beautiful scenery! The gallery will be open from 9-3 on Saturday the 22nd. But you can also view nine of my canvas prints and more than 50 different Black Mat Prints at the Buffalo River Gallery in the little community of Gilbert, which is located on the Buffalo River in Searcy County (open Thursday-Sunday each week, 10-5).

10/18/22 Sumac are looking really good this year!

10/24/22 Relentless high winds continued all day yesterday and all night last night (30-40mph with gusts up to 50mph). We spent a good part of yesterday replacing several long pieces of siding/trim on the edge of our tall roofline, requiring use of a pair of tall ladders - sometimes both at the same time. I’m somewhat of a scaredy cat when it comes to being blown off of tall ladders so was unable to successfully attach the last long piece at the end of the day, even with my lovely bride’s help (could not have done any of them without her). I kept thinking about being in a hospital bed with so many broken bones that would snap if this old geezer hit the ground from 20’ in the air. That dang last piece of metal trim (more than 20' off the deck) slammed and banged into the end of the house all night last night, but finally the wind bent it up and over and against the top of the roof - where it will remain, mocking me, until our expected rain event today and tonight has passed (predicting up to two inches - YEA! Though not holding my breath it will happen.). Then I’ll attempt the fix again with a reseted body. I suspect the hours during and especially just after this rainfall will bring out some absolute gorgeous fall color - perhaps I should be on top of a bluff then with a camera instead of on a shaky ladder!

10/30/22 It’s been a long week, but quite COLORFUL and WET here in the High Ozarks - so very nice to see both after such a long drought, which I think now has been broken. And while I didn’t get out much or take but a handful of photos this week, it has turned out to be one beautiful fall.

We had more than four inches of rainfall Monday night and Tuesday morning, so of course I was headed out the door well before daylight, and drove over towards our old Cloudland Cabin and headed into the woods - hoping to get some spectacular light and color at Hawksbill Crag.

The radar showed an opening in the rain clouds for a little bit before another batch swept through, though they also issued a HIGH WINDS warning. It was foggy and not quite light when I arrived at the Crag, and much to my surprise there was NO ONE else there! I’ve heard so many tales about crowds there for sunrise, even during the week. AND the wind was not blowing, yippie!

There was a problem though. When I started to set up my tripod I realized something was missing - one of the LEGS had fallen off somewhere back in the woods! Hint for non photographers - tripods don’t work well with only two legs. But I managed to lean the remaining half leg against a tree and that turned out to work OK.

As daylight crept in I could tell the magical color combinations I was hoping for were not there - too much rain perhaps? I don’t know, but I hung around for almost three hours waiting, but never got THE shot. (In all my decades of shooting Hawksbill Crag in the fall I’ve really only gotten three or four great color keepers, also had many, MANY days there without keepers, but all were delightful trips.)

Before I gave up and headed home (for an appointment, otherwise I might have stayed there all day), I returned to a neat highbush huckleberry (aka farkleberry) bush I’ve been conversiting with for more than 30 years. I spent about 20 minutes in further conversation and managed to get a really nice picture of it.

Three hours alone at the Crag, and a good photo of my buddy the farkleberry bush - it was another wonderful trip to the woods for me!

A couple of days later Wilson and I headed out in the dark - he was having some leg surgery in Fayetteville and had an early appointment. After I dropped him off I went to Lake Fayetteville, paid my $3 day pass fee, then spent the next hour trying to get my inflatable kayak blown up! I think I have too many parts becuase it should only take me about ten minutes to assemble and get it ready for the water. Wilson would not be ready until 3pm so I wasn’t in a hurry.

As I stood there ready to get into the kayak, I looked around and realized this was most likely the very same boat dock where dad used to take my brother and I fishing back in the 1960’s. I’m now a year older than he ever made it to, but those memories on the lake will live on forever.

One funny note from my paddle time on the lake this day. I was trying out a spray skirt for the first time on my kayak - I’m unable to paddle without drenching myself and the inside of the boat, so I got a spray skirt. The wind was blowing pretty hard but I managed to get the skirt attached without issue, and son of a gun, it WORKED!

Well, at least it kept the water off me - but lots of water was pooling up where the skirt sagged, and I’d have to stop paddling every now and then to pull my skirt up and drain it out. And I remembered a comment I read online someone said to use an inflatable beach ball in your lap (under the skirt) and that would keep the skirt from sagging. Oh if I only had a beach ball out in the middle of the lake...

Here comes the funny part. As I paddled into the far back end of the lake - along the shore where our Ozark Highlands Trail Association volunteers had built a hiking trail back in the 1980’s - I noticed something green and round along the shore. Yup, you guessed it - not exactly a beach ball, but it was a basketball-size yard toy, fully inflated! Soon I had picked up this bit of shore trash and had it in my lap for the return paddle to the dock. IT WORKED!

One other note from this two-hour float (not counting the hour it took me to blow up the boat). The wind was blowing pretty hard with small whitecaps in the lake, and after I crossed the main body of water I stuck pretty close to the shore, out of the worst of the wind. Many hardwood tree branches were hanging low over the water and were in full fall color dress, and it was just magical to paddle through these leaves - being totally surrounded with peak fall color while being still in the boat! If only my dad could have been with me, though I bet he was...