Bare Oaks News and Weather

February 3

2012-02-04T15:15:00.007-05:00

No snow yet! Yeah!

Photo: This is a photo of the back road in front of the shower house, taken November 26, 2008. Thanks Frank for the photo!!

Photo: This is a photo of the back road in front of the shower house, taken February 2, 2012. Not much snow this year.

Photo: The firepit near the Outback that Ulli built last summer.

Photo: One of the side roads is closed due to the ruts.

Photo: The side road that is closed is also covered in ice. Very dangerous to walk on.

The temperature is 40F / 4.5C. WARM!!! What a great winter! Not so great for the skiers... and people who actually like the snow.

Not much happening here. There is euchre tonight starting at 7:30PM.

I will leave you with this lovely SUMMER aerial photo of the park.

8 more weeks of winter... then we start to get mosquitoes... (sigh).

Halfway through winter ...

2012-01-30T13:43:00.006-05:00

The winter is just zipping by...

No real snowfall yet... which is very very nice. I remember shoveling every day for weeks last year.

Here are some photos from Wendy and Kim (thanks!). The Copeland Forest, the same location, one taken in the summer and one in the winter.

Also from Wendy and Kim... this is a weird photo. They said: It's a picture of twin unborn moose and the one twins has two heads. The mother killed by a car. This is an actual photo from their MNR days in Wawa District - 1973 - 1981. The Conservation Officers had never seen anything like it. It's totally unique. (Click on photo for larger picture.)

The temperature today is 37F / 3C. Nice and balmy.

No snow, no rain, the roads are very icy though, with a thin layer of snow.

Drive slowly coming into the park.

Speaking of the road in... this photo was sent to me by Steve (thanks!) and was taken after a snowfall last Friday.

It's very cool... looks eerie. (Click for larger photo).

The wave pool swim was last Saturday... did anyone go? How was it?

Sandy left a message attached to a former blog (Monday blog) that said: We've had 2-6 people show up for Darts on Saturday, and 2 on Sunday who stayed after the Yoga at 1 p.m. Wednesday's yoga has been getting 6-8 people participating.

Yoga on Wednesday is 8pm to 9pm.
Yoga on Sunday is 12 to 1pm.

Is the yoga still 'nude mandatory'? Does anyone know?

So... there are events happening at the Clubhouse on the weekend. I noticed a few cars in the parking lot when I left on Saturday.

Feb 4 at 2pm is Non-competitive Afternoon of Darts
Feb 4 at 7:30pm is Euchre Night II.II

Only 9 more weeks of winter. My winter ends the end of March when the weather starts getting warmer and then we have... SUMMER!!

Monday

2012-01-23T13:36:00.007-05:00

Wow, it is raining and the temperature is 42F / 5C.

Very nice. The snow is almost gone as you can see by the photo below of the Outback.

The yellow finches are very hungry. There are around 20 of them below the feeder (as always, click photo to enlarge).

This is a photo of the ski hill taken through the window of Wendy and Kim's condo. Very cool. Although the lights at night may bug someone who goes to bed early (not me). Thanks guys!!

Moose rolling in the snow. Well, almost rolling as my camera wouldn't recover in time to snap a good photo.

Photo: Okay, Moose says... what do you want?

Photo: Here you go...

Photo: path around the lake... which is GONE now due to the rain...

I have no idea about the condition of the roads around the park. Last time we had a thaw a nice member brought in a truck and sanded (or salted?) all the roads. Very nice of him :-)) I know of two people who fell on the ice this past week. I hope the ice melts as I'm sure a flash freeze may not be fun around here.

The lake is melting again. Someone was on it yesterday and walked to the raft which is in the middle of the lake. That... was... stupid. Of course, I'm not calling the person stupid, only the act :-)

No events to report. Not many people venture outside of their places during the day. It's very quiet here...

In case anyone is interested, Papa D's in Sharon (pizza, wings, salads) delivers to the park as does Pizza 777 (pizza) in Mount Albert. You have to meet them at the gate. Also, Chen's Restaurant (chinese food) in Mount Albert is very good. I don't think they deliver.

If anyone has any news... email me or post a message.

Tuesday January 17

2012-01-17T12:07:00.004-05:00

Wow the winter is flying by... there is so much more to blog about in the summer.

Temperature today is 38F / 3.33C. It is currently raining and the snow is melting. I hear the Boston area is shut down today due to the snow (snickering).

The roads have ice on them so drive slowly. If the rain keeps up the ice will melt. The parking lot near the clubhouse has been sprayed with salt and is less slippery.

Photo of the outback and all the snow around it... or lack of snow.

The past euchre night had three tables which is around 12 people. Lots of munchies.

S. has been walking a lot of dogs at once. I do NOT have any idea how he can walk three dogs down an icy road... when all three dogs want to run. Oh and how do you pick up p**p (can I say poop here?) when they are pulling at the leashes... ha ha. Good luck with that. Maybe he takes them out after their first walk...

Hey, there is not much going on here... if you want to know anything, email me.

Photo of the south end of the lake.

The road to the back is open (it would only close due to flooding or (maybe) mud... I think). It's been a great winter for snow, I've only had my place plowed ONCE. I've had to deal with slush freezing and creating a skating rink on my deck but... I can deal with that if I don't have to shovel.

Photo of the raft on the lake... do NOT walk on the lake as it is melting.

I could use some photos... Judy? Kim? Wendy? Oooo I need photos of the snow on the ski hill...

There was a water line break in the hot tub room but that was fixed quickly. I have no idea if it was in the floor or in the wall.

If you have propane delivered here, check your bills for the past 4 months (September to now). We get a bulk rate and it should be .3 cents more than last year (I'm not going to post the rate here). If it is more than that... phone the propane company and make sure you get a rebate. They transfered to a new system and didn't bring the bulk rate with them. I called them and they said everyone at Bare Oaks will be getting a rebate but... you want to make sure you are on the list.

Do you know that, in order to maintain your weight, you should walk 10,000 steps a day? That's about 5 times around the park. Phew.

New Year

2012-01-07T15:16:00.002-05:00

Well... Christmas and New Years are in the past.

Photo: Waving bye bye to Santa for another year. (Thanks Judy and your grandaughter for the photo!)

Santa and his helicopter and plane have been taken down for the year. Now if everyone else could take down the Xmas decorations (most of the people have taken them down)... then we can put up the Easter bunnies!! and the eggs, of course. I wonder where you can get an air inflated Easter bunny. Oh, is that the next holiday? Perhaps we should have a 'winter sucks' or 'it is too cold' holiday and put up decorations for that...

(Checking calendar). Okay we have the Chinese New Year on January 23 and it is the year of the dragon. Valentines day on February 14. Saint Patricks Day on March 17.

This is a photo of Moose at New Years... he looks content.

It was brutally cold here a few days ago but the temperature is 40F / 4.5C at the moment. That is nice. People were walking around in t-shirts in Newmarket yesterday (idiots).

No snow the past few days. I say good. We have slush around the lake at the moment as the snow is melting so it would be impossible to cross country ski in that.

Photo: a weird looking man peeking out a window.

So, how is everyone doing with their New Years Resolutions? The surveys say that the average time a person keeps their resolution after New Years is about 10 days. That gives you three more days and then you can give up :-D

The potholes are filled with ice so... there aren't many potholes. However, the ice is melting.

Photo: a colorful dragonfly on a tree.

Photo: a snowy scene across the lake.

Snow! Snow!

2011-12-28T15:19:00.005-05:00

It finally snowed last night. About 6 inches. The roads have not been cleared as the plow is not working.

Here are a lot of photos. I hope you have high speed internet.

Photo: During the storm last night. As always, click for a larger image.

Photo: The same tree this morning.

Photo: Winter wonderland - the Outback.

Photo: During the storm last night, Santa was having a bit of trouble with his helicopter. We brushed him off and got him going again.

Photo: However, it looks like he crashed again last night. (Thanks Judy for the photo.)

Photo: Roof top Santa did not make it. He looks the same now. (Thanks Judy for the photo.)

These Santa's are air filled and puff up when there isn't a snow storm.

Photos of Horseshoe Valley Ski Resort (I think that is what it is called)... on the day before Christmas. (Thanks Wendy and Kim for the following photos).

HA HA... no snow... :-)

Photo: this is the downhill run... you can see them making snow (click to enlarge).

Photo: the top of the Tubing (tubeing?) part of the park.

Photo: the Tubing area. Oooo, I want to do that!!

Photo: there is also a Nordic section (cross country skiing plus snowshoeing).

Photo: a lovely tree.

Thursday

2011-12-22T22:37:00.004-05:00

TWO DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS!!!

I hope everyone has finished their shopping. By 'everyone' I mean the women. The guys still have until Saturday night :-)

Photo: Spooky lake photo... it has been foggy here the past few days.

The roads are clear as there is NO SNOW here. Lovely. I like no snow.

o/~ I'm o/~ dreaming of a o/~ o/~ greennnnnn Christmas... o/~ o/~

(o/~ = musical note - in case you couldn't figure it out)

Photo: Baby Bambi! I think ... I'm not really sure what it is but it looks like a baby deer. Maybe it is a reindeer or a baby moose.

The office is closed on December 24, 25, 26. If you are a member with a key fob, you can still get into the clubhouse. If you aren't then I suggest you join so that you can get a key fob and get into the clubhouse :-)

The lake keeps freezing and thawing as we have had great weather!! It is currently 34F / 1C.

I found a calendar from 2008 and it snowed on November 15 for TEN STRAIGHT DAYS. Wow, that must have been an ugly winter although I really don't remember it. I'm still wearing my fall jacket and runners.

I hear it is in the 80's F in Florida.

I walk around the park often and there was no one (no cars) at the back (Beckett) yesterday. It was very quiet with just the birds singing. It was muddy though and the road was slippery (ice) as there is no salt/sand used on the roads.

The potholes are full of ice so they are a bit better.

No park events planned during the next few weeks.

Saturday

2011-12-10T15:15:00.004-05:00

Well... it's been a while since the last blog... I've been waiting for something to happen here ;-)

Anyways... it seems Dave and Judy are now in a snow belt (snickering).

Here are a few photos:

Ha ha ha.

Here is Maggs with her new booties! Not that you can see her with all the snow on her face.

We have about an inch of snow here... not much. The driveways are clear and there is packed snow/ice in the potholes so it is easier to drive down the driveways.

The only coming event is this coming Saturday the 10th, 17th and January 7.
Non-competitive Afternoon of Darts.
Come join us for a non-competitive afternoon of darts. Everyone welcome regardless of playing skill. No cost to play, bring snacks if you wish. Time: 14:00 - 16:00.

There is no Christmas party or New Years party that I know of... I just checked the Bare Oaks Events Calendar. (http://www.bareoaks.ca/)

The lake is beginning to freeze, it is making a weird sound... it sounds like high pitched singing. Perhaps it is the fish screaming :-) The ice is about 1/4 inch thick so do NOT go on it. Not that you would ... or could.

It was cold last night - 20F or -6C. It is now 28F / -2C. Brrr. Plus it is a bit windy.

Here is a photo (with permissions to post) of people skating on the front pond in 2004. Whoa, SEVEN years ago. Maybe this year we can clear it for a rink... if anyone feels ambitious. That day we had about 20 people on the pond with cider and hot chocolate!!

If you are looking for a great Christmas gift... buy a Nudie Toons Cartoon book at the clubhouse or email me and I'll leave one at the office for you or... buy one on the website 'Naked Laughter' (http://www.nakedlaughter.com/). Also available in ebooks for Barnes and Noble Nook Reader and Amazon's Kindle Reader. If ordered online now you will probably get it by Christmas.

I put Christmas snowflakes on my outside trees a week or two ago and they keep blowing off. Thanks Judy for picking them up ha ha ha. I would tie them all down but this is much more fun and it gives me something to do while walking the cat.

I'll post some Christmas lights photos if I get permission.

Lots of people have left in search of warmer climes... ho hum. Blah. Send me photos of the sun.

Jingle Bells !!!

2011-12-01T13:49:00.002-05:00

Well... it snowed last night.

Photo: we had a few inches but a lot of it has melted as it is sunny today.

Brrr... brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr... I don't like snow.

The birds are back though...

Photo: birdfeeder and chickadee-dee-dee.

It's 48F / 9C at the moment which is pretty good for December.

It's not snowing or raining...

The road into the park is very potholey... keep your mouth open while driving in or you might chip a tooth :-) It was fine a few days ago but we had a LOT or rain in the past few days which is probably why it needs to be levelled.

There are a lot of flooded farmers fields in the area which the birds are enjoying.

Lots of Christmas lights are out now... around Helios. I guess I should say 'holiday' lights or 'seasonal' lights. Nah, I like Christmas or Xmas so I guess I will be politically incorrect this season. :-)

There are no seasonal people around the back circle... everyone has left for the winter except one brave couple.

Coming park events... this coming Saturday.

Non-competitive Afternoon of Darts
14:00 - 16:00
Description: Come join us for a non-competitive afternoon of darts. Everyone welcome regardless of playing skill. No cost to play, bring snacks if you wish.

Actually the calendar says there will be darts on December 10 and 17 also.

Euchre night
19:30 - 23:00
Description: The Bare Bistro, along with Marc & Suzy B., will be hosting a Euchre Night following dinner. Please bring your own snacks and non-alcoholic beverages. Everyone welcome.

If you are going south this year, let me know and send me photos and I will post them here. Posting photos of a nice warm climate would be a nice change.

Time to put up my tree... and decorate the outside of the trailer.

Ho... ho... ho...

Hmmm, I wonder where my decorations are...

Thursday

2011-11-24T13:00:00.002-05:00

NO SNOW YET!!!

Happy happy :-)

Photo: Bare Oaks Sunset from 2008. Very nice. Sorry I don't remember who sent it to me ... feel free to tell me... and THANKS. Click photo for larger image.

You should have your site fee invoice(s) by now (or soon). Last year the fees did not go up due to the HST cost. This year the fees have gone up by 5%. HOWEVER, you can avoid the increase if you take advantage of the early payment discounts.

If you pay by December 16, 2011, you can take a discount of 5 percent.
If you pay by February 1, 2012, you can take a discount of 2 percent.

Payments are due by April 1, 2012.

I am looking out my window at a 6 foot by 10 foot red Santa helicopter, with spinning propellers. Very cool. There is also an airplane on the roof with a similar sized air compressed santa vehicle... however, one of the propellers is not spinning. It kinda throws me off. Must leave a note for owner (lol). I will take a photo today.

People are getting into the Christmas spirit by putting up lights, decorating trees... lots of stuff. Time to put out my giant Xmas balls :-)

FOUR WEEKS UNTIL CHRISTMAS. Can we say 'Christmas' now? I've always said Xmas but I don't care either way.

The grass is still green. No one has been in the lake. No one has been at the Outback tanning. I haven't seen anyone walking for a while... except the doggie walkers. It's quiet here...

Thursday

2011-11-17T20:03:00.003-05:00

Photos: Dirt/clay beside the road. It was put there to help stop the road from flooding this fall/winter/spring. In case you can't see the top of the dirt, I drew a line across the top in red. Not a very straight line :-) I printed 'Bridge' on the left side of one photo but it looks like the printing of a two year old. It's difficult to print with a mouse. (as aways, click photo for larger image.)

It snowed a bit today but the snow melted right away. Time to get your snow tires on. Holt garage (with appointment) will put them on for you while you wait for $40.

I saw a great looking HUGE blow up helicopter and airplane in front of S's place in Helios a few days ago but they are GONE! I guess he is waiting until it gets closer to Christmas to put up Christmas decorations. He had the HUGE Frankenstein in front of his house on Halloween.

A few of us have been walking around the park daily... trying to get more exercise. It's nice and quiet and we rarely run into anyone in the seasonal area.

The next park event is on December 3 - Euchre night starting at 7:30pm.

Now for a weird photo: the full moon a few nights ago... the left two are a normal camera shot with the moon reflecting in the lake. The right two are blowups of the left two moons. I spliced the photo together.

Photo: a sign near the river.

Photo: the pool is closed.

Thursday

2011-11-10T17:21:00.003-05:00

Photo: Sandy was the female winner at the Halloween party! It's a body bag :-) Thanks Sandy for the photo. I can't post the other photo I received as I don't have permission to put it on the blog... but it is a good one too. The male winner at the Halloween Party - Goddess of Autumn.

It's getting colder... but no snow yet. I hear there may be snow tomorrow - brrrrr. Temperature is 40F / 4.5C at the moment.

Not much is going on here. There is nothing on the park social calendar for this weekend or next weekend. The next event is December 3, Euchre night.

There was a LOT of wind last night. No rain though.

It was a dreary day today with no sun.

It is dark now and it is only 5:30pm... ho hum.

Is anyone doing anything exciting this winter?

I need a tan...

Sunday

2011-11-06T19:23:00.003-05:00

No snow yet... :-) Yeah!!!

Photo: Halloween bags blowing in the wind. Thanks Judy for the photo!

The clocks went back an hour last night which means... an extra hour of sleep for most of us.

The temperature at the moment is 46F / 8C. Not freezing yet although the frost is on the grass and trees in the early morning.

I saw the space shuttle go by a few night ago... it was very fast and very bright. Lots of stars.

Was there euchre last Saturday? Did anyone go? How was the turnout? Can you bring alcohol to those events? Not that I would EVER do that... I'm just curious ;-)

The big pile of dirt/clay is being moved from the back parking lot. It is being distributed along the south side of the driveway right before the bridge. Hopefully it will keep the flooding down even though we didn't have a problem last year with flooding. There was still a huge pile left after that was done so it is being consolidated into one pile.

The potholes were filled with gravel and they are still okay.

Is there still darts on Tuesday nights?

The signs are up around the lake stating that the ice is thin so don't go on it. The sign is up beside the creek stating it is fast flowing... although, at the moment, I don't know how a 6 inch deep creek could hurt you :-) The signs are a good thing as I still think there are a few people in this world who can't swim.

We are halfway to the defibrillator money goal (Royce said). I wonder where it will be located because it would be useless at the office for anyone who has a problem after hours. Interesting dilemma. If you leave it out someone will just steal it. (Oh please, don't give me that look... it is worth $1000.)

Thanks to all the people who picked up my small halloween bags and threw them on my lawn the past few days. Everytime I went outside, more bags. They are not expensive but finding them every year is fun. (not!) Now I can use this years, next year.

So, when do we start decorating for Xmas? Maybe I'll wait until Marc and Suzy start. They should get some sort of gold star for all their holiday decorations. Although I'm not sure about the sparkly Halloween underwear on the raindeer... heh heh.

The hot tub is getting a lot of use in the cold weather.

I think I'll make a path around the lake in the snow again this year. Exercise is good. Walk, walk, walk. Steve is wearing me out as he walks ... and walks... and then he walks half the dogs in the park. They like him.

I haven't seen any raccoons around... or skunks... or bunnies. Actually, I haven't seen many birds either.

My gardens are all snuggly under straw now.

6 months of winter, 4 months of bugs, 2 months of summer... sounds about right.

Tuesday

2011-11-01T16:39:00.002-04:00

Winter has started... it is below freezing every night now. No snow yet... phew.

Photo: this is the photo of the American Coot that I promised you last week (read the previous post to find out about this bird).

The Heron is still here. I think the frogs have gone to sleep... what is left of them... so ... it's time for the Heron to LEAVE.

No one has been swimming in the lake this week.

I hear the Halloween party was a hit!! All the tables were full... what is that... around 60 people? Prizes were won by Adam and Eve (don't know their names), Kevin was the male winner and the person I talked to didn't say anything about the female winner... or maybe we got off track and I forgot to ask her... that could be it ;-)

Batman (aka Rowie) was trick or treating around Helios last night ... he had a LOT of stuff in his bag so I think he is going to be on a sugar high for a few weeks.

Most of the leaves are off of the trees now.

This Saturday from 7:30 - 11pm is Euchre night eleven in the clubhouse.

No other club activities this month.

Not sure if the water has been shut off at the back but they said it was going to be done yesterday so I'm going to assume it was done... plus the pool was supposed to be closed yesterday.

The mini-putt features (windmill, etc.) have all be put away for the winter.

It's sunny and 62F / 17C at the moment. Ooo, that is nice. Time to go for a walk.

To those of you involved, the book club meetings have been put on hold for a few weeks because some of the participants are out of the country. To those of you who have read the book... read the second one in the series :-) I've read all three in the series and I think I will start 'The Help'... as it seems to be very popular. Or maybe I'll just watch the movie... heh heh.

Most of the people on Beckett have closed their trailers for the season... I think there is only one couple left who are staying the winter.

Well... as Jimmy Buffet would say... it's 5 o'clock somewhere :-)) Wait... it is 5 o'clock HERE. Time for a break...

Thursday

2011-10-27T19:52:00.002-04:00

IT SNOWED YESTERDAY... heh heh. No seriously, wet snow for a short period of time.

I know this as I'm trying to get my outside stuff done before it really snows and I was there at the time.

The temperature at the moment is 29.6F or MINUS 1.66C at 8pm.

Ho ho ho... that is a tad chilly.

Photo: American Coot. Now this is NOT a photo of the birds that were on the lake yesterday. I tried to get a picture but it was too far away. So... I goggle it and this is what they looked like. Thanks JL for telling me about them. Where was your camera? eh? eh? ;-)

Oh great. I just got this error: americancoot.jpg : This image could not be uploaded due to an internal error. Ho hum... I'll post it tomorrow.

The potholes are back... it's been raining every night. At least it isn't snow... yet.

I just got a newletter from Bare Oaks management. It said: "We've held out as long as we could but frost is now a possibility at night. So we will be shutting down the seasonal water (Beckett Circle) on Monday, October 31st.

If you have a trailer, this is also the time to winterize it otherwise you may experience damage. If you need someone to winterize your trailer, please contact the office for recommendations."

I think frost is a possibility TONIGHT :-)

I heard that someone was in this lake this week... that person is a tad crazy... but that is only my opinion.

-----------
This Saturday is the Halloween Pot Luck Dinner & Dance
When: 19:00 - 00:00
Tickets are $10/person and are available at the office.
Halloween Costume Judging at 7:00 PM
Dinner at 7:30 PM
Dance at 8:30 PM
Prizes for Best Male, Best Female, Best Couple and all kids.
Door Prizes.
-----------

It's now 29.1F ... getting colder...

Another new trailer just moved into Beckett yesterday.

I haven't seen a lot of people around except for the daily walker who also walks most of the dogs in Helios. He likes to walk so why not take a dog with you...

Still won't upload an image... oh well.

Friday

2011-10-21T16:20:00.003-04:00

This week has been cold and rainy. No snow yet.

Cold = 45F - 7C at night. It's 49F now.

Lots of people are winterizing their trailers and getting them pumped out.

Photo: just a reminder of how hot it was in June :-)

The potholes are better!! Someone filled them in.

I hear there is a good chance the water will stay on until the day after Halloween... UNLESS it gets really cold.

There is a GIANT Frankenstein in Helios... when I say giant I mean it is about 15 feet tall and full of air. Very cool. I will get a photo tomorrow.

The birds are back for the winter so it is time to put out the feeders... or in a week or two. I leave mine up all year which is how I noticed. Seeds were on sale a few weeks ago.

Rain, rain, rain, I'm getting tired of it.

I haven't seen many people out and about.

No activities planned for the park this weekend.

Oh and... time to get out the SNOW SHOVELS. heh heh.

Monday

2011-10-17T15:53:00.004-04:00

It is very windy today but I don't see any trees or limbs down.

Photo: A purdy picture of the lake... thanks Judy!

The potholes are bad. No, seriously, they are really bad everywhere in the park. Since the speedbumps have been removed, the usual speed is around 40kph... ha ha ha. Perhaps driving that fast over the potholes is better for your car?

It's rainy today too... off and on...

The sunroom being built in Helios has the floor completed and the sides are half up. Hope it gets done before it snows. :-)

The lake is down about a foot and a half from the start of the summer and very cloudy.

I hear the water MAY be left on until after Halloween but if it gets cold, it will be turned off on Beckett. The bathhouse may be left on after that though... but I can't confirm it as no one knows.

Is it time to put snow tires on? The weather is getting ugly. I need a few more days of warmish weather to finish closing things down. Based on what I have seen driving around the park today... there are a LOT of people who need a few more days of warmish weather to finish shutting down their places.

If anyone wants any repairs done to their trailer this fall or their trailer cleaned on the outside or snow removal done this winter, let me know and I will pass the information on.

Not much going on here... lots of people are out walking though.

Wednesday

2011-10-12T20:03:00.003-04:00

Whoa... what a weekend!!! It was hot hot... for October. I missed it as I have spent FIFTY THREE hours painting the deck/lattice/whatever... around my place but it is DONE now :-)) 20 hours this weekend... and it was 110F on my deck. Phew.

Okay enough complaining... hope y'all had a great weekend!!

After 5 days of NO rain, it rained today. Not a problem though as the weekend was sooooo niceeeeee.

Thanks Bruce for the following updates (He got permission to print names).

The participants in the 3rd Annual HAM AND TURKEY PLUNGE were:

Henry & Diane, Andre & Elena, Sandy & Eric, Ursula, and Outback Bruce. ;-)

Too cold for me. Those people need therapy.

There were many others but only permissions were given for the names above.

Most participated all 3 days of the weekend. There was a lot of screaming upon entering the water which prompted many waterfront residents along Helios to come out and investigate in case someone was drowning. I watched... crazy people. No drownings were reported, just a lot of shrinkage. (Bruce's words heh heh). Lake temperature Friday was measured at 58 F. They used my thermometer said it must be broken because it read 66 F, 16 C. on Monday. Only Ursula thought it was warmer.

People are invited to participate in next year's 4th annual plunge. I'll watch.

Swimming pool was open, 70.5 F. (even 1/2 a degree counts these days).

Lots of people working on their campsites to close up for the winter. Complaints were heard about the noise from power tools (leaf blowers, chain saws, etc.).

Even though the office was officially closed Monday, Sherry came in on her day off to open the office just in case a few non-members wanted to enjoy the nice day.

Another photo journalist was sighted wandering the park Sunday(?), this time without park staff in attendance, looking for subjects for her project (Ryerson photo journalism student). Many were not happy about the intrusion on a holiday weekend. I saw her too but one of the members was accompanying her for an hour or two.

The potholes are better :-)

People played petanque all weekend. J and D spent time raking up the courts after the games were over.

Two new trailers have moved into Beckett Circle.

There is an addition being built in Helios... quite a project, a LOT of work.

Okay... now this is important!!! There are little tiny flies (black with yellow heads) now... and they BITE. Two of the women here are COVERED in big itchy lumps all over their bodies from those bugs. I had a LOT of problems with them on the first two days of painting but I turned on my OFF lantern and they disappeared. The bug spray and 'skin so soft' didn't work. Actually the lantern has a candle in it and it heats up the 'bug wick' at the top. It really works!

The outside of a lot of trailers were cleaned this weekend and they look GREAT. A lot of work though.

I keep forgetting to take pictures... hey Judy, take some pictures for me ;-)

I do have one... a reminder to clean out your birdfeeder often. This is after one week of being up... I guess we had ideal weather.

The lake has a lot of dark green blobs of algae floating in it now... the blobs look like baby turtles. The aerator and fountain have been taken out for the winter.

A few more lawn cuttings left until the snow flies.

Tuesday

2011-10-04T22:34:00.004-04:00

Well... today was around 85F / 30C. Very nice weather for October but it is 46F / 7C at the moment. That is quite a drop.

There are a LOT of potholes on the main road. Drive slowly or you may lose car parts. Grading was done today on some of the road but it is very hard to keep up as it rains a LOT here.

People were tanning at the beach today but I didn't see anyone swimming. Cowards :-D

After seeing coats and ski jackets most of the week... there were a lot of nude people walking around today.

Article about Bare Oaks: Nudity not optional for photographer at naturist camp in Canada... and a lovely photo of JL.

http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/20/7859951-nudity-not-optional-for-photographer-at-naturist-camp-in-canada

Photos: We get a lot of rainbows here but this one is really nice. Thanks Judy!

The pool is still open but it is on the coolish side.

Has anyone played mini-putt?

Two new trailers are moving in ... in the next few weeks.

Not many people at the back today but the Halloween decorations are starting to show up. There is a Halloween Dance and Potluck on October 29. Tickets are $10 per person and are available at the office. Halloween Costume Judging at 7:00 PM.(NOTE: the flyer says the judging is at 6:30pm). Dinner at 7:30 PM. Dance with DJ at 8:30 PM. Prizes for Best Male, Best Female, Best Couple and all kids. Door Prizes.

Thanksgiving Potluck is on October 8th (Saturday) from 6pm to 8pm.

Monday October 10 is a HOLIDAY!!!

Newmarket Nature Bares Nude Swim is on October 15 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.
Swim is at the Aquacenter Pool on Stellar Drive in Newmarket. Please RSVP to Sandy at nnbares@fcn.ca to attend. Everyone must have a completed registration form on file with NNBares and show a valid photo ID on their first visit.

I hear (and see) that there is a lot of construction / home improvements happening this month. I've got a few on the go myself.

I had to fix the insulation under my trailer and THANKS GUYS for all the help. :-))

Photo: Very constricting space.

Photo: Bruce, me and Ken. Nice gear eh?

Photo: the aerator and wildflowers. Thanks Phil for the photo!

Tuesday

2011-09-27T15:24:00.002-04:00

Remember When Photo: remember this guy?? He was 'accidentally' broken about 4 years ago. Good... :-D He was given to the person/people with the 'tackiest' site. They had to display him for a few months. Then they just passed him around to... whoever or whomever. I had him once, I hung him upside down in one of my trees. I never got him again. Hah!

Not much going on... I would tell you the upcoming events but the Bare Oaks site seems to be down at the moment. Okay it is back up... the TENTH Euchre night is on Saturday... starts at 7:30pm... or 19:30 for all you military people.

Yesterday was fabulous!! Sunny and warm!! A lovely day for painting lattice. If you have a deck or lattice NEVER EVER PAINT IT. :-)

The gardens around the park have lots of colorful wildflowers in them now.

Remember When Photo: Ice rink on the front pond. We skated there a few winters...

Today it is/was around 74F / 23C. 'They' said it was going to rain but ... I haven't seen any.

There are fewer and fewer at the back these days (Beckett Circle). A lot of people are going south... or on vacation... or back to their homes for the winter.

The lake is cooling off but U. is still swimming. What a brave soul... or just crazy. ;-)

The potholes have been fixed... or most of them.

The frogs are gone, the Blue Heron is gone, the turtles are gone but there are LOTS of butterlies!!!

Note from Judy: Be careful of the "lazy" wasps and busy ants. They are aggressive even when you aren't bothering them. My little grand daughter was stung or bitten on the way across Strawberry Fields today (Sept. 24) and we didn't even see anything - except a yellow and black wooly caterpillar! It is possible she received the bite between her fingers while she was hanging over the bridge railing where I did see some ants.

I'd like to add that the wasps are becoming very annoying. Quite a few people have been stung in the past week. They just land on you and sting... without being provoked. Lots of nests around too.

Rain....

2011-09-23T15:46:00.001-04:00

Rain... lots... of... rain... send ark...

Saturday

2011-09-17T16:29:00.004-04:00

Wow, I can't believe it has been a week since I did the last blog. Thanks Frank for reminding me ;-) There isn't much to report... if anyone has any news, email me or post to the comments.

Photo: Fuzzy photo of two ladybugs on one of my milkweed plants ;-) I have a LOT of ladybugs on the plants as there are aphids on them. Look at the milkweeds closely when you walk by and you will see orangey-browney things on the stems. What a great snack for the ladybugs! It was very windy and the plant would not stay still.

COLD last night... 41F / 5C. Had to light the pilot of my furnace. In September... can you believe that? It is currently 72F / 22C... and has turned into a very nice day. Time to think about taking the tomatoes in. I brought all my inside plants in yesterday.

Not much news this week. There are only a few people in Beckett.

The next event is Euchre night number TEN, on Saturday, October 1.

The potholes are appearing again. Drive slowly.

Photo: black sky over the lake. That thingie in the foreground is my weather station... in case you are wondering. This was taken a few days ago... very bizarre weather and very windy.

We need to have at least FIVE people who have read the book: 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' before the book club meeting. So far, two of us have read it and another is (hopefully) reading it.

And on a final note... Frank cut his electric cord with his mower (snickering).

Sunday

2011-09-11T19:29:00.003-04:00

Hola people!

What a day!! It was sunny, not too hot, not humid, no insects, I like September weather. This weekend has been great with no rain.

As I don't have a photo today, I thought I would put one of my cartoons here. It's appropriate as there are a lot of big fish in the lake. Click for larger image.

Speaking about the lake... there have been two differnt sightings of leeches, one on a foot (or was it leg?) and one on a hand. They don't hurt you... they are just kinda slimey and icky. There's a lot of stuff in the lake, including swimmers. Brave souls... do they know how cold it is?

Thanks to Wendy and Kim for the 'thank you' party today! It was a lot of fun!!

Kim shovelled at least 5 tons of gravel around his lot in the past three days. That's wayyyy too much work. I watched him for a while ;-)

It's quiet around here these days... not many cars in Beckett Circle during the week.

This coming Tuesday the 13th, Darts in the New Forest Room downstairs... at 7pm organized by Sherri. Ooooo. I talked to a few people today who are going to be there.

The next door property, to the south, is for sale. It's a beautiful lot with lots of trees and trails, a huge clearing and approval to build a house. I think it is 40 or 50 acres. When it comes out on MLS, I'll post the link here. The owner reads this blog so if you post a comment, and IF he is around, he could probably answer you.

There is only one place for sale in Helios now.

Time to organize your winter holidays!!

Wednesday

2011-09-07T14:02:00.003-04:00

The temperature has dropped like a stone here. It is 72F / 22C at the moment but it was around 48F / 9C last night. Time to turn the heat on.

Photo: the beach being built/enlarged in 2008 and the gardens being built. Thanks Frank for the photo and click to enlarge.

Busy weekend here.

Saturday was the petanque tournament. I have no idea who won. It rained on and off but the pentanquers had the big gazebos so ... they didn't seem to mind the rain.

Illumination was on Saturday night and I heard it was fantastic. I was away most of the weekend so I have no idea who won that either :-)

Sunday was the chili cookoff and the guy who won it last year, won it again this year! Anyone have any details?

Monday was very quiet.

This coming Saturday is the ninth Euchre night from 7:30 to ... whenever. It is a big success with a lot of people playing. Nothing else is scheduled for this month.

There was a comment posted to the blog on Friday, August 19th.

It says:

Posted by: Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park...
Please see:
http://www.blog.bareoaks.ca/2011/09/recent-film-shoot-rumours.html
for the facts behind "management's" decision to allow the filming.

-----

I was hoping September would be warm.

So far I have three people for the book club. If you are interested, post here or email me. First book: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. The only prerequiste for the club is... if you are coming to the meeting you MUST read the book first... this includes spouses or other halfs.

Cicero once said: "If you have a garden and a library... you have everything".

Friday

2011-09-02T21:16:00.003-04:00

T.G.I.F !!!

It rained off and on today and when it wasn't raining it was REALLY HUMID.

The sand that was delivered for the Petanque tournament tomorrow has been wheelbarrowed to the two Petanque courts thanks to Stony and a bunch of guys. Great job!! They worked a bit in the rain...

(This is where I would have put the photo of the courts... if I had remembered to take one today) :-)

Trailers have been coming in all day.

The temperature is 74F / 23C. A very nice evening.

I heard a lot of yelling coming from the lake a little while ago (after dark) and checked... and realized that there were three KIDS in the lake. I don't know how you were brought up but who lets their kids play in the lake after dark ?? ... with NO parents in sight?? I didn't know if the yelling and screaming was someone in trouble or not. So... I watched for a while and then went back inside.

That is my rant for the week :-)

Photo: The peace sign in 2001. This garden is located right where you drive into Beckett Circle, where the road branches, right after the pumphouse. It is right at the branch, beside the farm equipment. Nice, eh? Thanks Frank for this photo.

Photo: The peace sign today. Can you see the peace sign? Not nice, eh?

Doing the gardens here is a full time job for one person and they have really been neglected. That said... thanks for all the work you have put into the gardens for the past many years Frank. (You might find one of your roses missing heh heh.)

Turtles have been spotting in the lake but I'm sure they are last years hatchlings as they are about 5 inches across.

Well... the walking club didn't get started this year as hardly anyone walks here so... does anyone read here? How does a monthly book club sound? The only pre-requisite is... you must read the whole book BEFORE the meeting. Anyone in?

How about a women's night this winter, like we did in the past? BUT, having it in a place where the men are not hanging around.

The pink bins are working out really well! If you have liquor bottles, beer bottles, etc... leave them in the pink bins that are scattered around the park. Royce and Farf (sp?) pick them up.

Thursday

2011-09-01T10:48:00.004-04:00

Raining today... rained last night too.

Temperature at the moment is 66F / 18C. Brrr.

The guys were transporting sand from Stony's lot (where it was dumped yesterday) to the petanque courts this morning... then it started to rain.

They were doing a great job... but I'll bet they decided to quit for a while when the thunder and lightning arrived :-)

The Happy Hour last night was fun and the elderberry pie/strudel? was DELICIOUS. Mmmmmm.

Photo: Heron on dock. Thanks Judy for the photos!

Photo: Heron getting into paddle boat. Okay it didn't actually get in but it looks like it did...

Photo: Frank's helper when he was doing the flowers. Frank said that his helper had all the design ideas. :-)

Not much going on today... or for the last few days.

Big weekend coming up with lots to do... see the last blog for information.

Monday

2011-08-29T13:51:00.003-04:00

Very nice weekend... in the 80's / 26's. No rain.

It is getting cooler at night. Last night at 11pm it was 51F / 10C. Brrrr.

It was very windy yesterday due to the tail end of Hurricane Irene... but it died down in the afternoon.

Lots of people here for the volleyball weekend but not as many as usual. I know this because the water went off in Helios ... only once on Sunday at around noon :-)

Photo: The two large gardens at the Outback being built. They have red mulch on them now... click for larger picture.

Events coming up this weekend (see the Bareoaks.ca website for more information):

Saturday - Petanque tournament from 9am to 5pm
Illumination night from 8:30pm to 9:30pm
Sunday - Chili cookoff and potluck 6pm to 8pm.

Note: If you plan to enter your chili, the deadline for the submission of the application and $5.00 entry fee is 4:00pm September 3. Your chili must be ready to submit by 1:15PM on September 4. Only 20 entries will be accepted so fill our your application early to ensure your chili will be judged.

Get your submission entry form online at http://www.bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/chilicooks_app_2011.pdf or from the office between Saturday August 20 through Saturday September 3.

Saturday, September 10 is the NINTH Euchre night. These Euchre nights are well attended.

On Saturday October 29 is the: Halloween Pot Luck Dinner & Dance

Halloween Costume Judging at 7:00 PM
Dinner at 7:30 PM
Dance at 8:30 PM

Prizes for Best Male, Best Female, Best Couple and all kids. Door Prizes.

----------

Not many people are swimming in the lake these days.

It's very quiet at night all around the park. We usually walk around dusk and, even thought there were a lot of people/cars here, ... it was very very quiet. Must have been a very active weekend...

My cross country skis are ready to go!!

Thursday

2011-08-25T22:23:00.004-04:00

Hey, tomorrow is FRIDAY!!! The second last weekend before the END OF THE SUMMER.

We have to get darts going this winter or... something.

It's getting chilly at night... down to 62F / 16C at the moment.

The weather has been nice all week... very little rain.

There was a fantastic thunderstorm last night... whoa... I love those storms. It lasted a few hours and the power only went off for a few minutes.

I have no idea who won the Bare Olympics last weekend. Does anyone know?

How was Happy Hour this week? Busy?

This weekend is the Volleyball weekend and Easter in August.

Easter In August is on Saturday 1:30pm to 4:00pm.
Description: The Bare Oaks Social Committee invites you to join us for Easter In August to decorate your bonnets, baskets and egg cartons with sparkles, beads, flowers, ribbons and bows. All ages are welcome to attend. An Easter Egg Hunt will be held from 3:00PM - 4:00PM. Cost $2.00 per person.

Coming up:
September 3: Illumination night and Petanque tournament
September 4: Chili Cookoff

Not much going on here this week that I know of... I worked all week so didn't get out much.

The gate reader was down most of today due to last night's storm but it is up and running again. Thanks Phil... and Andy who helped him.

The lake is cooling down, not many people in it now.

Photo: a picture of the Outback beach four years ago... very little vegetation.

Photo: pretty flower in Judy's and JL's garden... check out the leaves ;-) (Click for a larger image)

Friday

2011-08-19T21:11:00.004-04:00

Once again, it has been a lovely week. Very hot and slightly humid ... but nice!!

Photo: film crew on the beach

Well the filming is over. A film crew was taping here on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The film is called 'Prudence and the Sensuous Adventures of Bigfoot' ... 'Prudence Meets Bigfoot' or something similar. It was very 'interesting' especially the scene that was taped at 1:00 am on Wednesday night on the beach. I watched it as I was working late that night... the two naked women were ... 'very friendly' with each other... ;-). It's a good thing the park children were in bed.

If anyone knows the actual name of the film, let me know. There has been quite a few discussions amongst a lot of people about the film... the past few days...

Photo: film crew on the beach

The pool was closed Monday, the hot tub closed Tuesday along with the lake. There were a LOT of really annoyed people walking by my place on Tuesday wondering why the lake was closed for the entire day. It was HOT Tuesday.

---

The water was off at 6am on Thursday on Beckett Circle. One of the people phoned the office but there was only an answering machine so he found one of the staff. Not sure what happened but I'm going to assume that it was turned on or reset.

The Country Hoedown had an attendance of about 20 - 25 people. I haven't heard from anyone about the horseshoe tournament.

The potholes have been FILLED... by Andy. It is nice to drive around now as there are no bumps and you don't get whiplash. This does NOT mean you can speed... 11KPH is the speed limit.

There are baby snapping turtles in the lake and they are sooooo cute. They like the fish food.

The lake is brown... greenish brown... and very murky. It has been a very hot summer here and it is probably not getting oxygenated enough.

The grass/shrubs on the other side of the pathway around the lake have been cut. Well, about a foot has been cut on the lake side which makes it a lot easier to walk on the path. The weeds on the path have been sprayed also. Thanks Jordan for cutting the brush.

The mini putt is OPEN. Actually it is called 'mini golf' here. I think I will continue to call it mini putt. It's not really 'golf' as there are no 'tee' times :-). Here is some of the information from the Bare Oaks blog:

Everyone is welcome to play. Putters and golf balls are available in the office. The fundraising effort was managed by 5 people at the park. Over $6,500 was raised for the project with all but $480 currently spent on materials. The remaining funds will be used to complete the finishing touches. A lot of people volunteered for this project.

If you want more information, go here and sign up for the Bare Oaks blog: http://www.bareoaks.ca/

The hot tub and pool were closed on Wednesday and Thursday due to a water reading that stated there was E. coli in the water. A reading was taken again on Wednesday and today the results were: no E. coli in the water. So... who knows what happened. The pool and hot tub are open again.

Photo: A dahlia from Suzy and Marc's garden.

The site gardens are really blooming now!

There have been a lot of daily pentanque games ... you can hear the horn at around 10am... just come to Helios and join everyone! I think there are spare balls but I'm not 100 percent sure.

Next events:

August 20: Bare Olympics

----
Sunday August 21: Continental Breakfast Reception
11:00am - 12:00
Description: Bare Oaks Social Committee invites you to a Continental Breakfast Reception in appreciation of the support to BOSC events over this past year.
Food will be provided, but please bring your own coffee or tea.
Elections will be held for the 2011-2012 Bare Oaks Social Committee.
----

Bring your own coffee and tea? Eh? A few people have asked me what this means and ... I really don't have a clue. Is there no way to make coffee and tea at the Bare Bistro?

August 27: Volleyball weekend and Easter in August
September 3: Illumination night and Petanque tournament
September 4: Chili Cookoff

That's it for this week... if you would like any information, email me. Lots of people do... Also, if you have a comment, you have to log in and then you can leave a comment by clicking the 'comments' link at the end of the day's blog.

Hey Frank, I thought you were going to trim a few gardens... heh heh.

Sunday

2011-08-14T21:39:00.007-04:00

It's been a gorgeous week here. A tad humid but who minds? Is it snowing? No. There you go.

First off... Jim from Beckett Circle sent me this link of Bare Oaks about 5 years ago... I think. I forget the date he told me. Yes, but that is typical. I really should carry around a pen and paper :-) If that is wrong Jim, log in and post a comment at the end of this day's blog.

Anyways... when you click the link, zoom in and then click 'satellite' view.

http://www.heavens-above.com/LocationFromGoogleMaps.aspx?lat=44.150223&lng=-79.368422&loc=Bare+Oaks&alt=0&tz=EST

I thought they were extra roads down the middle but it is where they covered up the trenches when they put in the water and electricity.

Cool. Not many trailers on the property when the photo was taken.

Thanks to Kim and Wendy for removing a bunch of Purple Loosestrife from... wherever it was removed from ... probably near the Outback. That stuff is invasive. Two green garbage bags full. You have to get the roots of that crap or it will spread like wildfire. I posted a photo last year of the damage it can do.

Also Kim trimmed the corkscrew willow trees at the Outback today.

Here are some interesting shots. Thanks Sandy for the flashdrive but I don't remember who took the photos...

The photos are of Henry the Turtle. He has not been around for about a month now. I guess he has moved on. He liked the floating trout food that I'm feeding the fish (every day at 7pm) and came over and snacked a bit of it. Click photo for a larger image.

The size of Henry ... about 14 inches long. Swimming underwater.

Henry with his mouth open. The floating bits are the fish food.

An artsy photo of Henry in the water.

Euchre on Friday night was well attended. 6 tables of 4 ... with a few onlookers.

I haven't talked to anyone who went to the Horseshoe Tournament so if you have any details, email me or leave a comment.

Also, the Country Hoedown... I was visiting people on Beckett Saturday and a lot of people dropped by and no one said they were going to the Hoedown so if you have any details on that... let me know and I'll give you a report. I was working Saturday so couldn't make it.

I have heard a few people say that $20.00 - $25.00 every week (per person) is a bit expensive for the events. I know that the meals don't cost that much. Let's say... a meal costs $5.00 per person... where is the rest of the money going? I saw a flyer that said some of the money was going to the Social Committee, some of it was going to the Hearts and Flowers fund, and some of it was going to ... the Outback washrooms.

Okay... NO ONE I have talked to who has been ill, hospitalized, etc. in the past few years has gotten a card from the Hearts and Flowers fund so... perhaps that should be dropped. I'm all for getting people cakes on their birthdays though :-) What happened to the 'once a month' birthday cake fest? My birthday is in November, I welcome cake.

Temperature has been in the 80's this week... 26's to 28's C.

Not much rain. Chilly at night ... it is 67F / 19C now.

The lake is getting browner and weedier. I haven't seen many people swimming in it this week.

CRICKETS ARE HERE!!! I love crickets. The cicadas (sɪˈkeɪdə) are here too. A cicada is the bug who lives in the trees and makes a high pitched sound. You can hear them when the temperature is 80F or hotter. The hotter it gets the higher the sound they make.

This is a photo of one so don't kill it if you see it. They are cool bugs. This one looks like the one I found on my chair today. I, of course, forgot to take a picture of it.

Factoids: Male cicadas have loud noisemakers called "tymbals" on the sides of the abdominal base. Their "singing" is not the stridulation (where one structure is rubbed against another) of many other familiar sound-producing insects like crickets: the tymbals are regions of the exoskeleton that are modified to form a complex membrane with thin, membranous portions and thickened "ribs". Contracting the internal tymbal muscles produces a clicking sound as the tymbals buckle inwards. As these muscles relax, the tymbals return to their original position producing another click. The interior of the male abdomen is substantially hollow to amplify the resonance of the sound. A cicada rapidly vibrates these membranes, and enlarged chambers derived from the tracheae make its body serve as a resonance chamber, greatly amplifying the sound. The cicada modulates the sound by positioning its abdomen toward or away from the substrate. Additionally, each species has its own distinctive "song".

Average temperature of the natural habitat for this species is approximately 29 °C (84 °F). During sound production, the temperature of the tymbal muscles was found to be slightly higher. Cicadas like heat and do their most spirited singing during the hotter hours of a summer day, in a roughly 24 hour cycle.

Although only males produce the cicadas' distinctive sound, both sexes have tympana, which are membranous structures used to detect sounds and thus the cicadas' equivalent of ears. Males can disable their own tympana while calling.

Some cicadas produce sounds up to 120 dB "at close range", among the loudest of all insect-produced sounds.

Okay that is enough knowledge for one day. If you want to know more... Wiki it.

Beckett Circle is full, cars everywhere. I noticed a group playing Bocce yesterday down the middle of Beckett.

Next events:

August 20: Bare Olympics
August 27: Volleyball weekend and Easter in August
September 3: Illumination night and Petanque tournament
September 4: Chili Cookoff

This is a photo of a great looking frog on my 'beach'.

As always, if you see me and want to put something in the blog, let me know.

On a final note... only 3 more weeks of summer left :-(

We never did start the walking club this year... ho hum.

Tuesday

2011-08-09T14:36:00.004-04:00

Whoa... rain rain and more rain today. I'll bet the creek is topped up.

Last year I posted about stinging nettle which is a plant here in the park.

Photos of stinging nettle:

I posted this last summer but you might want to know about it again. You can find the nettle beside the bridge to Beckett, past the willow trees. You can also find it all around the pond behind the Outback.

Nettle Facts - in case you care. I've removed all the extra stuff so as not to bore you to death.:

Stinging nettle is a perennial, 3 to 7 ft tall in the summer and dying down to the ground in winter. It bears small greenish or brownish numerous flowers in dense cluster. The leaves and stems are very hairy with non-stinging hairs and also bear many stinging hairs (trichomes), whose tips come off when touched, transforming the hair into a needle that will inject several chemicals: acetylcholine, histamine, 5-HT or serotonin, and possibly formic acid. This mixture of chemical compounds cause a painful sting or paresthesia from which the species derives its common name, as well as the colloquial names burn nettle, burn weed, burn hazel. The pain and itching from a nettle sting can last from only a few minutes to as long as a week.

In case anyone touches it... just to see what will happen: Anti-itch drugs, usually in the form of creams containing antihistaminics or hydrocortisone may provide relief from the symptoms of being stung by nettles. But due to the combination of chemicals involved other remedies may be required. Calamine lotion may be helpful.

However, if you want to remove the nettles first, use the sticky side of DUCT TAPE. Now I know everyone has duct tape in their home.

I grabbed a plant with NO gloves on ... out of one of my pots about a week ago. Yes, it was stinging nettle. The stinging lasted for 3 days. I finally did an internet search and found that a paste of baking powder and water relieves the sting right away... sigh. I suppose I could have REMEMBERED that I posted about this last year.

Now for the good stuff. In the UK, an annual Stinging Nettle Eating Championship draws thousands of people to Dorset, where competitors attempt to eat as much of the raw plant as possible. Competitors are given 60 cm (20 in) stalks of the plant, from which they strip the leaves and eat them. Whoever strips and eats the most stinging nettle leaves in a fixed time is the winner. The competition dates back to 1986, when two neighbouring farmers attempted to settle a dispute about which had the worst infestation of nettles.

That's... just... sick...

Okay if you are still awake...

The Outback is surrounded with pots of petunias which are really purdy and colorful. Ursula brought those to the park so if you see her, thank her. She is usually tanning near the Outback... or ask Bruce where she is located. :-)

If you have a dog, please pick up the poo. There was a rather large pile of it near the Outback which at least one person tracked ACROSS the deck as they didn't notice that they stepped in it. Bruce cleaned it all up. (bowing to Bruce).

If you are driving into the park, the branches along the main road are overhanging the driveway so... watch your car. I wacked Bruce in the face with one, the other day, when we were on the golfcart as we were going to water the plants at the entrance to the park. Or... maybe I did it on purpose? Can't seem to remember ;-)

Not many people here on Sunday and it was a beautiful day!! Or Monday for that matter.

I heard the washrooms at the back were closed most of the weekend due to a septic problem. The notice on the doors said it would be fixed today... but it has been raining non-stop so... I'll get back to you.

Euchre Friday night!!

If you are reading this and use a wheelchair, be careful of the bump outside the main door of the clubhouse. The bump/ridge/hole is at the bottom of the concrete ramp, where it turns to gravel. Brett has fallen twice now.

The Happy Hour is at Paul and Barb's place this week. Lot 118, Helios. It is a Mad Hatter Party so 'make or bring your favorite hat'. BYOB - BYO treats. Hot dogs supplied by Paul. Prize for the 'best hat'.

Still raining and 65F / 18C. I think I like the heat and humidity a lot more.

I painted half my deck yesterday... ho hum. Rain all day today. I also removed a 9 - 10 inch high by 8 inch wide yellow jacket nest from under my deck. I didn't take a photo as they were a tad pissed when I painted a bit of their nest in the afternoon :-)

Sunday

2011-08-07T14:00:00.003-04:00

Busy weekend... lots of socializing with new and old friends at the park.

The FCN Festival was this weekend, however, it didn't appear to be busier than a usual weekend here.

The water in Helios was ON all weekend... well, when I was here. I have no idea about the water on Beckett Circle.

It rained on Wednesday but I hear the Hanlans Beach crew (2 busloads) didn't get any rain on the Island.

Thursday, Friday, Saturday were nice days with rain off and on but it was still hot and humid.

The Wednesday Hump Day Happy Hour party was rained out on Wednesday and was held on Thursday. Around FIFTY people attended... great party with lots of food! Everyone is welcome at these parties and there were Festival people there including the regulars. I don't know who is holding it this coming Wednesday.

The lake was busier than usual mid-day but, other than that, not many people used it.

I didn't attend the Festival as I wasn't around a few of the days but on Saturday there were a lot of body painted people walking around. Fireworks last night ... I arrived at the end of them but could hear a few of the empty casing hitting my roof. The fireworks casing are about 3 inches long and grey tubes... in case you see any of them on the ground. After a rain I find a lot of them on my front driveway ... I'm guessing they come out of the downspout :-)

A note from Bruce... if you can't swim, wear a life preserver when you go in the lake. You can borrow them from the office. He had to help a person out of the lake the other day... someone who couldn't swim.

Lots of tents scattered around the lawns. Lots of partying last night until 3am.

I talked to a few people last night who were disappointed that they couldn't go to the roast beef dinner, they couldn't afford it as it was around $22.00 per person. (I'm only passing on comments.)

I hear the mini-putt was used this weekend. Yeah!!

My thermometer says it is 90F / 32C. It's cloudy which means I won't be painting again today... ho hum.

Don't forget, put your alcohol empties in the PINK BINS around the park.

Photo: Butterfly on a cone flower.

Next events:

August 13: Horseshoe tournament and Country and Western Hoedown
August 20: Bare Olympics
August 27: Volleyball weekend and Easter in August
September 3: Illumination night and Petanque tournament
September 4: Chili Cookoff

Monday

2011-08-01T20:17:00.003-04:00

It's been hot this week, rained for about an hour on Sunday morning and a few campers got a tad wet.

The lawns are growing again. Baby turtles have been spotted in the lake. Please do not touch the turtles and they will not touch you. Remember, a turtle has a very long neck and can reach his tail... so don't pick one up. U. was swimming in the lake and bonked into one... it didn't hurt her but she thought she hit a rock. ha ha ha.

Lots of dogs here now, seems like every other person has one. There are a few cats that roam around the park ... and taunt the tied up dogs and kill birds and chipmonks. There are also a few unleashed dogs that chase rabbits, I've been told. I'm pretty sure that ALL pets are supposed to be leashed... unless it is a bird or turtle.

Photo: we grow 'em big here!! One of JL's zuccinis. (I got permission to put him in the blog.)

There are PINK plastic bins around the park now. Put your alcohol empties in those bins. The money will be used for a defibrillator, perennials... and something else... and I've forgotten what it is.

Oh, an update on the 'fee for the use of the mini-putt'. I really hate asking people about it now as they go off into a rant ... ha ha ha. It happened twice yesterday. I haven't found ANYONE who will pay a fee and, if they have to, they won't use it. Lots of people have suggested a buck rental for the putter and you get the buck back when you return the putter.

Oh and I'd like to extend a warm thank you to the person who wippersnipped the garden down beside the Beckett showers... and the person(s) who told him to do it. That was sarcasm. I won't mention names but the person who did the gardening for the MANY years previous to this year, and I, are VERY ANNOYED that this was done.

We (mostly him) have spent HOURS AND MONEY doing the gardening at the park and TWO of the gardens have been decimated (aka killed). There is one by the Outback that has been cut to the ground too. If the garden looked a little rugged... WATER IT, DON'T CUT IT DOWN. If anyone here sees someone whippersnipping a GARDEN, feel free to tell him to stop. Thank you Bruce for watching out for the big Outback gardens that we have been caring for these past weeks when you noticed it was about to happen there.

I usually blog about what people have told me but this one belongs to ME (and past gardener). I was going to send an email to management but, it seems, that no one cares about the gardens or they would have asked a staff member to WATER THEM during the drought. The gardens beside the front office are really suffering. Ah well... that is the end of my rant... and this was done for the previous gardener too as I bet he is still steaming :-). I know he was a tad pissed off when he stopped me on my golf cart the other day...

Moving on... the park is FULL of new people... which is nice to see. Lots of couples walking about, swimming in the lake and basking in the sun by the lake.

There are a few tents around the lake at the moment.

The serviced sites are all taken for the festival but there are still a lot of tent spots left.

There have been no raccoon incidents at the garbage for weeks, just stand to the side when you open the garbage bin and you will remain unharmed.

There are two buses going to Hanlans Beach on Wednesday. I have no idea when they leave but it will probably be early. Check the Bare Oaks website for details (http://www.bareoaks.ca/).

The Ribfest had an attendance of about 70 - 80 people and that is all I heard about it. Feel free to post in the comment section if you have any more details.

This Wednesday's Hump Day Happy Hour party is at Kevin and Jose's place... from 4:30 - 6:00.

The fire ban is off... of course I should have posted when there was a ban but ... I forgot :-)

If you want me to post about anything... email me.

And a final note... thanks for emailing me to post a blog... ;-)

July 28

2011-07-28T16:37:00.003-04:00

Whoa, it's been almost a week... someone should remind me to do the blog...

It has been hot and humid all week during the day. First thing in the morning it is around 70F / 21C... which is nice but then it gets a tad hot.

Wendy and Kim's trailer was moved into Helios yesterday. Started at 9am and finished at noon... then the utility hookups began. During the whole move process a few phones went down, hopefully that will be fixed soon.

So... the last lot in Helios has been occupied...

The water hasn't been off in Helios for a week now. I'm not sure about Beckett but every time I go by the tanks, they are full.

The FCN Festival is the second week in August, starting with the Hanlan's beach day on the 3rd. There are two buses and I don't think both of them are full yet, so, if you want to go to the beach, call the office and get your name on the list.

All of the serviced lots for the Festival have been taken but there are still quite a few unserviced lots available. Unserviced means no electricity or water.

The petanque ball holders were fixed this week. Outback Bruce and I repaired them on Tuesday by removing the rotten wood and putting in new pieces. I filled the holes on Tuesday then sanded and painted them yesterday. Here are the before and after photos.

Before, a blue one which was almost completely rotten:

After: the same blue one.

Before: a red one which had lost most of it's paint.

After: the same red one.

Nice eh? They came out well. Cost: $50. for paint and materials... donations accepted (grin).

One of the reasons they were rotting was due to the towel holder on the ends of them. When the towel(s) got wet, they draped across the wood on the ball holder. I put in two large sticks to hold the towels and hopefully the (white) paint will be dry on them by tomorrow. Old towels welcome as I don't have any.

It has rained quite a bit this week and the gardens are all looking a bit better... the lawns will take a while to recover though.

This coming Saturday is the Ribfest from 6pm - 8pm.
The meal includes ribs, corn on the cob, beans, salad, bread and dessert. Please bring your own plates and cutlery if possible - beverages will not be served so bring your own. Cost is $20 in advance or $25 at the event for adults. Advance tickets may be purchased at the front office from June 26th through July 21st. So... July 21 was last week so it will cost you $25. a person if you wish to go now.

People are still driving really fast on the roads, including the golf carts. It seems the cars race between the speed bumps too. :-)

The mini-golf/putt poll so far.
In favor of not charging to play: 15
In favor of charging to play: 0

Another question was... 'should the kids be charged?' (if there is a charge). Most of the people thought the kids should be charged as they would do the most damage and cause the repairs ... ha ha ha.

More poll results later.

A few people have approached me about Bruce's comment regarding people bringing cameras to the lake. If you see one, the phone is there, just call the office.

There have been a few thongs and bikinis in the lake this week. That was ended quickly.

One trailer in Helios sold a few weeks ago and there are still a few for sale.

I haven't heard the petanque horn all week... it usually goes off at 10am every morning. Why aren't people playing petanque? Eh?

Seems like we have had very few events all summer but if you look at August there is an event every weekend:

August 6: FCN Festival
August 13: Horseshoe tournament and Country and Western Hoedown
August 20: Bare Olympics
August 27: Volleyball weekend and Easter in August
September 3: Illumination night and Petanque tournament
September 4: Chili Cookoff

Busy. Very busy.

I think I have forgotten a few things so I will probably blog tomorrow.

Don't forget to read the comments at the end of the blogs... just click the 'comment' link and a window will pop up. For example, at the end of Wednesday July 20th, there are 9 comments from people who have read the blog.

Wednesday

2011-07-20T22:05:00.006-04:00

Hot again today. It rained yesterday for about 10 minutes. Whoa. The rain helped with the dust on the roads.

Photo: Two of us went for a walk on the trail beside the Bunny Trail today. There is a nice road leading to the back of the property.

Photo: Walking along the path to the back acres... quite a few trees have been felled. Hey, I want some firewood :-)

If you are walking along the North East side of the property, along the river... the vegetation ... and a lot of trees... have been cleared for quite a distance along the river bank. (Click for larger photo). Feel free to wander along the river bank at any time as that area belongs to the next door neighbor.

To all the petanque players... if you feel you need to wear something while playing petanque... for example, if you are sunburned, need to cover up due to doctor's orders, have your period or are cold... you should be aware that you may suddenly see an office staff magically show up and ask why you are wearing clothes. This has happened many times. Many of the people here would really like the person who is phoning the office to KNOCK IT OFF. :-) Yes, we know this is a nude park but sometimes there are reasons people wear t-shirts. (Note: the people who have asked me to post this in the blog were not as polite.)

I missed the Hump Day party tonight... as I forgot... sigh. I'm blaming the heat.

Did I mention it was HOT and HUMID today?

My thermometer on the front deck at around 11am said: 120F. I have NO idea what that is in Celcius but it is going to be hotter tomorrow.

I heard that a pump part/switch/something in the pumphouse in Beckett Circle was replaced last night and I don't think the water was off today... at least I didn't hear it was off.

I was out most of the day but, as far as I know, the water wasn't off in Helios either.

I went for a walk around 10pm tonight and there were many people swimming in the lake and about 10 people swimming in the pool. It is still hot out!

I don't think the mini-putt is up and running yet. I heard a rumor that there will be a charge to use it. The people and visitors of this park contributed around $5000. to $7000. towards the building of the mini-putt and I doubt anyone will want to PAY to use it after contributing so much. Does anyone know the exact figure of the contribution/donation?

HOT HOT HOT

2011-07-18T23:15:00.004-04:00

Well... it is HOT here, humid and hot. Temperature was about 102F / more than 38C... my scale only goes to 100F :-)

The weekend was very busy here... lots of new members, lots of kids in the lake. Someone put a HUGE raft in the lake which held many people throughout the day. At one time I counted about 6 floaties in the lake.

I sat at the Outback for a while with Bruce under the umbrella and it was still too hot to sit there. He kept going in the lake and out of the lake and in the lake and out of the lake... exhausting. Well... it was exhausting to watch (grin).

Bruce said to mention that there were a lot of people at the beach this week WITH cameras. Not sure what the policy is now...

The plants around the park are suffering a bit due to the fact that it hasn't rained in weeks. Oh except for the 5 minutes of rain/hail at 5am this morning. I thought my roof was going to come down. I asked a few people about it and ... most people slept through it.

Photo: Wendy and Kim's lot is coming along nicely. It now has three loads of dirt on it...

The grass around the park is brown and crispy but the gardens at the Outback are doing well due to the fact that Bruce watered them for 8 (I think it was 8) hours the other day.

I hear it will be hot again tomorrow... and the next day. It is currently 71F / 21C outside... and it was 74F about 10 minutes ago. Time to open windows.

The water in Helios was off a few times on Sunday as it had to recover the tanks. I phoned the office and was told the Clubhouse water was off too. Okay, everyone who believes they turned off the Clubhouse water put up your hand... I don't see any hands. ;-)

The water in Beckett keeps going off due to a switch that keeps overheating... perhaps the pump is having a problem... as the tanks are full most of the time.

So... if you don't have water, go to the Clubhouse to shower as they will probably have water there. I saw a few carloads heading up there at about 8pm tonight from Beckett.

A reminder... if you take your dog to the beach, please have some shade and water for him/her/it. It is HOT out there and they have fur so they overheat quickly. Or maybe throw them in the lake every half hour :-)

There are snapping turtles in the lake. They won't bother you if you don't bother them. No one has been harmed by a turtle yet. In fact, not very many people have seen them. They don't like people. They also like the river and the ponds.

I hear some people were working on the mini-putt this Sunday. Pick the hottest day of the year to work in the blazing sun.

It's very dusty here... please drive slowly. This includes golf carts.

If anyone out there is whining about the heat... here are some photos of the park for you ... enjoy!!

Thursday

2011-07-14T23:32:00.004-04:00

It's been hot and not humid the last few days. There have been new people wandering around the park. Still not many people swimming in the lake.

Photo: the lake at 7am. Thanks Phil for the photo. Click for a larger image.

Nothing is on the Bare Oaks Events calendar for this weekend or next weekend. After that, on July 30th, is the 3rd Annual Ribfest.

The meal includes ribs, corn on the cob, beans, salad, bread and dessert. Please bring your own plates and cutlery if possible - beverages will not be served so bring your own.

Cost is $20 in advance or $25 at the event for adults. Price is $5.00 for kids and $10.00 for aged 12-16. Advance tickets may be purchased at the front office from June 26th through July 21st.

Photo: the lake at 7am. Kinda spooky. I bet the frogs like it.

The parking lot has about 20 cars in it each day and there are a lot of regulars sitting near the Outback. Visit with them, they like company. While you are there... feel free to water some plants :-)

Don't forget the Wednesday Hump Day Happy Hour. Next week it is at Kevin's and Maryanne's (sp?) place on Beckett Circle... I have no idea what lot it is but it is the lot on the other side of Peter across from Dean and Dorothy.

The lawns are crunchy to walk on as it hasn't rained in weeks. There has been NO problem with the water system in Helios but the Beckett water has been off a few times this past week. The tanks seem to be full so maybe it is a switch. If there is no water, you can knock on the door of any of the trailers with the green and white signs in front of them. :-)

Wendy and Kim's lot is coming along.

Photo: the trees are down, the brush is cleared and the first load of fill came in today.

The current temperature at midnight is 58F / 14C... that's a bit chilly.

I hear the petanque horn go every morning at around 10am. Wander up and play a game.

I have no idea what is happening with the mini-putt. I think I'll start a lottery as to when it will be finished :-)

On a final note... only 6 more weeks of summer left ... until the September long weekend ... ACK ACK.

Summer is here!!

2011-07-10T22:22:00.011-04:00

Finally, it is hot out. Whew, and humid.

Today it was in the 90'sF / 32+C. At the moment it is 72F / 22C. You can actually go outside naked at night now. I know this as I just turned the sprinkler off. The lawn is nicely watered for the night.

Photo: This is a flower on Moose's parent's lot. I have no idea what it is although someone told me the name today :-)

Photo: closeup of flower, very very pretty. (click for larger image)

This has been a very eventful weekend. Well for me anyways.

The water leak in Helios was in front of MY place. This is how they found it.

Photo: At 9am Friday my walkway outside my place was a tad wet. The round whitish circle to the left of the post is a hole that I dug for my Wisteria. Behind is my driveway. When I dug the hole I went through the topsoil to sand... and the water just found a natural path out. It was pouring out.

Photo: the digging of the first hole begins. It was very hot Friday.

The digging of the second hole begins as they didn't find the leak there.

Well they didn't find the leak there so the digging of the THIRD hole begins. It was found beside the shutoff valve. This is the problem being repaired.

The second hole was filled and packed down today.

The first hole needed a valve box put in the ground in case anyone drove over the spot. The filling of the first hole, with the gravel, bricks, topsoil etc. took SIX HOURS today. Thanks to Larry aka Gummy for helping me :-))) It was very very hot out today.

This is the hole with the gravel, bricks and levelled box.

This is the finished box. It has a lid too.

Phew, what a day. I figure there are about 3 more hours of work left in order to do the topsoil, sod and level the bricks along the driveway. So ... 3 hours on Saturday, 6 hours on Sunday for two people, 3 hours on Monday... a total of 18 hours to repair the holes in the front. My back hurts :-)

Also thanks to Judy/JL/Herman for topsoil, Frank for bricks, Suzie and Marc for the sod, the park for the gravel, me for the valve box, Larry for the entertainment and ALL the people who stopped by to chat and watch. It was like a government job ... one or two people working and about four watching at any given time. ha ha ha.

I hope you liked my story about the leak.

On a final note. I made a comment in the last blog saying the gardens look great this year. I meant the site gardens, not the park gardens. The park gardens are being looked after by a few of us and are slowly coming along. Frank maintained the gardens for FOUR years before this year. This year he is too busy to do them as they consumed his weekends, which was his time off. I'll bet NO ONE has any idea how long it takes to do the gardening here. I can tell ya, it took me THREE DAYS to do the red mounds near the Outback. They still aren't finished. (Thanks to Bruce for watering them). The gardens are a lot of work so if you see Frank you may want to thank him for all the work he put into them year after year.

Oh, on another note, the pool was closed today due to a leak ... I think. It had to be drained (a bit?) and refilled so it is cold and the chemicals have to be stabilized. I didn't get the whole story as I was digging all day but that is close enough :-) It was closed, the reasons aren't important.

And the hot tub has lost a pump so I don't think that is working either.

But... WE NOW HAVE WATER!! Yeah!! As it was on my site, you can blame me for having no water if you want, I have a thick skin as most of you know ... ;-)

I wish all this nonsense would stop though as I really have to paint the outside of my place this year.

Thursday

2011-07-07T21:54:00.003-04:00

This is turning out to be a very hot summer.

Temperature now is 66F / 19C. Today it was around 85F / 30C... and a tad humid. No rain in sight. It rained a bit for about half an hour yesterday.

Photo: In the front garden there are plants called: hen and chicks. I think the hen got away from the chicks in this photo. :-)

It's been busy here this week. Lots of new people. The back is fullish. A few people at the beach but not many in the lake.

There is a leak in the water system at Helios and they have been trying to find it this week. Due to the leak the water has been going off and on, off and on... all week, day and night. Thanks to Herman the outside water at Helios is now on so if you see us watering grass and plants... it is NOT from the Clubhouse water system or the Beckett Circle water system.

Photo: Near the door to the office is a roped off area. This area contains turtle eggs which will hatch in September.

There is yoga every Tuesday from 1pm to 2pm, Thursday from 8pm to 9pm, Saturday from 11:30am to 12:30 ... at the Outback.

Volleyball is scheduled every Saturday and Sunday from 2pm to 3pm.

There doesn't appear to be any other events scheduled for this coming weekend.

Photo: a moth on a coreopsis...

Lots of socializing around the park these days...

Nancy is collecting the wine bottles / beer bottles now to pay for the supplies for the gardens. She will take them back to the store, get money and buy supplies. I forget her lot number... but if you go into Beckett Circle and keep going straight, it is the first lot on the left (just past the road that goes up the middle). There is a blue bin on the site where you can put the bottles. It is the lot with the gardens around the trees, last year there was a train track in the garden... I don't know if it is there this year or not.

So leave the bottles IN the bin, not all around the site. We need flowers so any donations would be appreciated. Too bad we didn't start this before the long weekend as there were a lot of bottles left behind...

The gardens are looking GREAT this year!!! :-)

Sunday

2011-07-03T19:29:00.003-04:00

Photos: There are fireworks photos in this blog... thanks Judy M.!! As aways, click photo for a bigger picture. They are very cool.

Wow, what a great weekend! It was sunny and HOT all weekend except for late Saturday night for about half an hour when it rained. Also, there was thunder and lightning. Very pretty show.

The volleyball started on Friday, lots of teams... and it ended Sunday around 4pm. I have no idea who won.

Lots of socializing on Friday night and bonfires.

There was also fireworks on Friday night which started at around 9:45 and lasted about 20 minutes.

On Saturday night there was a dance where all ticket sales would go towards the purchase of a defibrillator for the park. I hear just over $400. was raised. I think lots of people (like myself) bought a ticket just to support the purchase as I know there weren't 80 people at the dance... tickets were $5.00 each.

Also on Saturday night there was a euchre tournament with (I hear) 6 tables so that is 24 (or more) people who attended that event.

Plus a roast beef dinner on Saturday night which was well attended. Roast beef sandwiches were served on Sunday for lunch :-)

The pool was overflowing on Friday, not on Saturday, but I counted about 45 people in the pool area on Sunday afternoon... whoa. Busy.

The parking lots (front and back) were full all weekend.

The water was off and on most of the weekend, mostly off, in Beckett Circle and Helios Circle. No water all day Sunday in Helios. However the water was on at the clubhouse most of the weekend. There was a shower set up for the volleyballers which pumped water from the front pond so that conserved a bit of water.

There was a lake snorkeller today checking out the 'stuff' on the bottom. I wonder how clear the water is... better watch out a fishie or turtle doesn't nibble the wrong body parts. heh heh. I know you are reading this.

Bruce and Dennis cleaned the grass out of the beach last week and it was very busy on the beach this weekend. Not many people in the lake though, mostly just the kids.

Here is something to note... if you have young kids, DON'T leave them alone at the beach to swim and play. There was a 7 and 8 year old that were left at the beach ... who went swimming... with no supervision. I don't think the other people at the beach should be responsible for watching them. The office was informed but the parents never did show up. This is what I was told. I didn't see it but I did hear a few irate people talk about it who said... put it in the blog! So here it is. Also, I've noted people swimming alone. There are TWO big signs that say 'NO SWIMMING ALONE'. Perhaps we should have the signs translated into a few languages? ;-)

My thermometer at 8pm right now says it is 90F / 32C out. Still hot.

Lots of people walking and biking around the park. Not too many pink/red people this year. I have NO idea where they got their tan as it has been a really crappy spring.

A final note, the water is back on so... time for dinner.

Tuesday

2011-06-28T11:00:00.003-04:00

Photo: pretty flowers - choreopsis (yellow daisies or tickseed). Bloom all summer!!

It gets cool at night but yesterday it was sunny and hot!! Okay, not HOT but warmish. I spent the afternoon gardening the red bumps over at the Outback. Thanks to Bruce and D. for taking the grass (or whatever it is) out of the beach. It is a longggggg process as the roots are about 8 inches long and it has to be done by hand and pitchfork.

I volunteered to look after the gardens at the Outback as they were... pretty bad. I can't believe the number of people who have thanked me for doing it this week. Thanks to all those people :-) Stop by and chat anytime, I won't put you to work.

One of the gardens is ready for mulch and the other one... still needs a lot of work but that should be done by the weekend. Please don't weed the garden as I am leaving a lot of the 'weeds' with flowering ends in that garden. Not that you would weed it but I'm just saying...

Thanks to DaveW for clearing room for me to walk around the garden.

Thanks to SuzieB for offering to pay for half of the mulch. I think Phil and Larry are going to 'volunteer' to pick it up heh heh.

Thanks to Frank for the bricks and extra flowers. Oh, wasn't I supposed to take that rose bush out of your garden?

If anyone wants to donate short flowers, just leave them there and I'll put them in. I'm taking some out of the front gardens too as they are a bit busy.

Photo: moths and butterflies like the flowers.

Volleyball is coming up this weekend and it will be VERY BUSY. The parking lot at the back has been roped off. The portapottys (sp?) delivered. The furniture in the Outback is being sorted around so people can use it. It's already been painted and is looking GOOD.

If you dump off your garbage, stand clear of the sliding door as there 'may' be a raccoon inside. Both Phil and Paul have run into them again. If you are short you may not be able to lift the lid of the recycle bin and put your recycle stuff in. It's over my head. As I am short I have solved the problem by pulling up close to the bin and standing on the floor of my golfcart :-) ha ha.

Lots of people seem to be on vacation this week as the beach is popular. Lots of kids here too.

Some of the old wood picnic tables at the back have been removed and the steel ones put in their place.

There is a NEW firepit being built at the Outback... made of bricks and concrete.

Hump Day Happy Hour is at Terry's near the Bush Bunny trail from 4:30 - 6:00 on Wednesday. Everyone welcome!

Carry on tanning!

Turtle !

2011-06-24T18:05:00.003-04:00

This is a snapping turtle, I finally got a photo of one!!! It was on my front lawn beside my firepit at 7:30am trying to lay her eggs.

This is a closeup of the snapping turtle. Cool, eh? (click for bigger picture)

Do not try to pick them up as their head can reach their tails... and you may lose a digit :-) If you see one, it is probably trying to find a place to lay eggs so... she will be quite mad if you don't leave her alone. I know this as I pushed her down the hill back into the lake and she kept trying to bite the stick I was using. Strong jaws. She's fast, I'm faster :-))

She swam off... she couldn't get through the grass on the lawn so... a dog may have lost it's nose if curious.

Weather has been cool today around 65F / 18C. It rained off and on. Last night we had a LOT of rain. The grass is green again! Yeah! The lawns are a bit long but... they would be difficult to cut until they dry up a bit.

Tomorrow is Ports of Call... lots of people are cooking today! I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow ...

The outside water is still off in Helios, no idea why.

The aerator has been moved closer to the bay and the water is starting to clear up.

Hump Day Happy Hour is Wednesday between 4:30 and 6:00 ... everyone is welcome!

Have a good weekend!!

Wednesday

2011-06-22T21:19:00.004-04:00

Rain rain and more rain... it rained a lot of today, mostly just spitting.

It was cool, then it got humid, then it rained and was cool again. This summer has not been nice when it comes to weather. It is 68F / 19C at the moment.

The lawns are looking a bit greener after the rains.

The black flies are AWFUL!!! Bad bad bad. My neck is a mass of bites... so I have been wearing a mesh bug hat. I get tired of the hat so just go inside. The deer flies are bad too... and the mosquitoes come out around dusk. I hear the horse flies are out about an hour north of here and they take chunks out of you and try to drag you away.

There aren't many dragon flies so if you see them, be nice to them as they eat deer flies. If one lands on you, keep still for a few minutes and you can watch him (or her) catch a deer fly in mid flight... ah... it is such a nice picture.

The bunnies are out and about but I hear the cats are NOT being kind to the bunnies. If you see a stray cat, feel free to scare it away... or maybe report it to the office as ALL animals are supposed to be leashed.

Not many people swimming this week. The weekend was very busy as it was hot.

The back circle was without water for a while on Sunday and Helio has been without outside water since Friday. The tanks are full today so I have NO idea why the water is off.

There is Happy Hour once a week on Wednesday from 4:30pm to 6:00pm. This week was supposed to be at the Outback hosted by Bruce but... I didn't see any people at that time. We did walk around the Park at around 5:30 and there were a bunch of people at one of the sites on Beckett... so maybe it was moved?

I'll post the location of the next one as everyone is welcome. Bring your own beverages and munchies if you want munchies.

Last week it was at Moose's place with a lot of people... a great time was had by all.

Photo: a complete rainbow ... click to enlarge. It was dusk so is a bit difficult to see.

Photo: okay see that ripple in the middle? that is a turtle that just ducked under the water... :-) I have 6 shots of the turtle like that. Hey, I tried to get a shot of him but... he was not cooperating. So, you get a nice photo of the lake with waves.

Next Bare Oaks event is on June 25th - 1pm to 4:30pm.
Ports of Call Progressive Pot Luck Lunch
Description: Join us for our annual Ports of Call Luncheon and enjoy cuisine from Canada, Jamaica and Hawaii. If you were unable to join a group and prepare a dish, you are welcome to attend by purchasing a PASSPORT from the front office (available NOW) for $10.00 up to June 23, that is tomorrow. After June 23, you will only be able to purchase a passport prior to take-off in Canada from 1:00 - 1:30 on June 25 for $13.00.

The roads are still nicely graded so please drive slowly.

The mini-putt is nearly finished. I think it only has to be levelled and the carpeting put down.

That's it! If you want to know anything else, or want an update on anything, email me.

Sunday

2011-06-19T11:21:00.003-04:00

It's been a great week!! A tad chilly at night but the days have been hot.

Photo: Daddy's little helper moving lumber. (Permission given to put this photo on the blog).

Lots of people up this weekend, the parking lot is full at the front with a lot of cars in the back parking lot.

The summer solstice party was excellent! We saluted the North, South, East and West... led by Kim. It started getting cold around midnight... but there were very few insects (mosquitoes).

The bugs have been really bad this year, black flies and deer flies. I haven't seen many mosquitoes but I hear they are out in full force too.

Photo: Evening primrose in bloom. This is a very pretty weed.

Next Bare Oaks event is on June 25th - 1pm to 4:30pm.
Ports of Call Progressive Pot Luck Lunch
Description: Join us for our annual Ports of Call Luncheon and enjoy cuisine from Canada, Jamaica and Hawaii. If you were unable to join a group and prepare a dish, you are welcome to attend by purchasing a PASSPORT from the front office (available by June 18) for $10.00 up to June 23. After June 23, you will only be able to purchase a passport prior to take-off in Canada from 1:00 - 1:30 on June 25 for $13.00.

It hasn't rained here for about a week and the lawns are looking a bit dry, however, they are still green.

Turtles have been laying their eggs all over the park so if you see one, don't touch her. There are spots near the outback, a roped off spot beside the front office door, spots on the beach, lots of spots.

The main roads have been graded!! There are very few potholes now... which makes driving easier. However there are a lot of people speeding between the speed bumps. SLOW DOWN. It hasn't rained and the dust is incredible. This includes golf carts. Yeah, I know, I'm not the cop of the park but the speed is 11KM. The only excuse for going over 11KM is... if your car is very old (say 1969) and it stalls under 20KM. (grin)

Photo: the lake is very quiet when the fountain and aerator are off between 6pm and 9pm every day.

I hear the pool is very warm and very nice. The mini-putt is coming along nicely. It is painted now and should be ready by... August ;-) Okay, a bit sarcastic but I think Stony is the only one working on it at the moment so... if you wish to help, ask him.

The volleyball weekend is coming up on the long weekend. June 30 to July 3. There is also volleyball from 2pm to 3pm EVERY Saturday and Sunday.

The petanque horn blew at 10am this morning (and yesterday morning). There are a lot of people playing petanque at that time so come on out when you hear the horn. It is two blasts of the airhorn.

If you are at the beach and are bored, there are a lot of weeds in the two gardens that need to be pulled out. Plus there is a lot of grassy weeds ON the beach that need to come out. They are on the right side as you FACE the water, with the Outback at your back.

Monday

2011-06-13T14:02:00.004-04:00

Today is cold... well maybe not that cold but it is 66F / 18C. That's cold for me.

It was warm and humid this morning, then the bottom dropped out.

I heard that the gravel was arriving for the potholes today but it hasn't arrived so far.

It was cool all weekend... still only a few people have been in the lake.

For those of you who put your garbage out at night. When you open the garbage bin, stand to the side. Sherry has been emailed so there may be a sign on the bin soon. The following photo is what happened to Phil when he opened the bin ... a twenty pound raccoon landed on his chest, pivotted and ran away. The pivot was right on his chest as you can see by the long scratches. Sorry I missed it but S. (who was also there) could not stop laughing. :-)

Holes in the shirt:

Long scratches and bleeding:

He said it didn't hurt but if his face had been in that location, I bet it would have hurt...

So... not sure how you can prevent the raccoons from getting in the bins but... you might want to know that they DO get in.

Raining a bit now... where is the summer?

The flowers are doing well though... and the weeds.

The well at the back was rehabilitated last week and there is more flow. The outside water was turned on in Helios Circle Sunday evening.

Lots of people were up this weekend and despite the rain, there were BBQ's at the back on Saturday and Sunday. Not sure about the bonfires though as it was wayyyyy too cold for me.

The tadpoles are in the lake around the beach area and are soooooo cute :-)

No geese on the lake for a while now.

No events scheduled for this weekend but there are Yoga classes now... Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Check the BareOaks.ca website for details.

Volleyball from 2pm to 3pm every Saturday and Sunday. Yesterday there were about 10 people who played volleyball.

The people who are out and about today have pants and jackets on :-)

I leave you with a photo of a chicken that has just laid an egg...

Wednesday

2011-06-08T21:35:00.003-04:00

Today the temperature was in the 90'sF, low 30'sC. Phew. It was VERY humid too.

Around 7pm the sky got very dark, winds picked up and it rained for about an hour. The lightening storm was great to watch! Then it cleared up. It is still humid though but the temperature is now 67F / 20C.

Photos: a kingbird has taken up residence nearby. Thanks Judy for the photos! (As always, click photo to enlarge.)

The pool is nice and warm these days. The Bare Bistro is open during the day now so you can have lunch here, as well as dinner.

The mini-putt is coming along nicely. I hear that it will cost a loonie to play a round of golf. I thought we had raised enough money to pay for the mini-putt? ... so correct me if I'm wrong about that... no seriously, if anyone knows the details, let me know. I don't know of any naturist park that charges to use their facilities... including mini-putt, shuffleboard, petanque, volleyball courts, swimming pool, or hot tub. It is included in the day fees.

The water was supposed to be off in Beckett Circle for 24 hours starting at 8am this morning. Due to circumstances beyond the control of the park, it was not off but will be off at 8am tomorrow (Thursday) for 24 hours. They are doing a 'well rehabilitation'.

That means (according to Sherry) the people in Helios Circle will have outside water by the weekend! Yeah!

New posts have been put up to mark the camping/RV sites, and where they are located. Follow the signs to your site.

The lawns and flowers are looking good!!

Sunday

2011-06-05T21:18:00.003-04:00

Today was a GREAT day. Lots of people in the park... it was very busy. The parking lot was full but that was probably due to the FCN meeting today.

Temperature was around 85F / 30C. No breeze. No one was in the lake though...

Photo: welcome to the park!!

There are also a lot of pink people walking around tonight :-) Yes, you know who you are. I think taking a bath in aloe might be in order for some of you.

I carted (golf carted) around today and noticed that some of the gardens are looking great! Lots of flowers and color.

I hear the mini putt is being worked on ... I haven't seen it recently but I'll wander over in the next few days and get some photos.

The potholes are still there ... drive slow. I hear there is gravel coming in but that was last week's rumor.

I was told the euchre had 5 tables / 24+ people who attended and they were very loud. Loud is good!!! Parties are good! We need more parties / events here.

Photo: the woodpile is stocked for bonfires.

So summer is here!!! The deer flies are very annoying, the mosquitoes are out at dusk and the black flies are still biting!!! Insects are starting to annoy me.

The World Naked Bike Ride is in Toronto this weekend! (From the website) Date: Saturday 11 June 2011 Time: Gather at 12 noon for socializing, body painting, bike decorating etc. Bring food to share if you wish. Ride starts at 1 pm, following a route along several major streets in the downtown core. Location: It starts at Coronation Park (west of the foot of Bathurst Street; by the waterfront at the centre of the park).

Next Bare Oaks event is on June 25th - 1pm to 4:30pm.
Ports of Call Progressive Pot Luck Lunch
Description: Join us for our annual Ports of Call Luncheon and enjoy cuisine from Canada, Jamaica and Hawaii. If you were unable to join a group and prepare a dish, you are welcome to attend by purchasing a PASSPORT from the front office (available by June 18) for $10.00 up to June 23. After June 23, you will only be able to purchase a passport prior to take-off in Canada from 1:00 - 1:30 on June 25 for $13.00.

What is a progressive luncheon? This is a pot luck with a twist – there will be three ports situated around Beckett Circle, offering hors d’oeuvres, main course and desserts (at the Outback).

TRAVEL ITINERARY
1:00 pm
Prior to Boarding your flight, you will be enticed with an array of tastes, scents and sounds from the finest chefs in one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world: CANADA. Sample HORS D’OEUVRES and have the chance to meet your fellow travellers before boarding your flight to the next port for your main course.

2:15 pm
Your Captain will take you to the Caribbean Island of JAMAICA where you will indulge in the music, culture and culinary gifts that only this small island has to offer.

3:30 pm
You will be jetted from the Island of Jamaica to the Island of HAWAII to get leid and sample all the delicate desserts the Island has to offer If you would like to contribute a dish to the potluck, please contact Heather at potluck@bareoaks.ca or drop by lot 236 Foxy Haven to select the port you would like to join. Deadline June 18.

I hear it is going to be HOT this week...

Cold

2011-06-02T23:54:00.003-04:00

Well, this is tonight at midnight... who knows what it will go down to...

My furnace has been shut off for the year... methinks that was a tad... stupid :-)

Tree

2011-06-02T18:17:00.005-04:00

It has been HOT here for the past few days. There is a cold wind today and it is cooling down. At the moment my thermometer says it is 80F / 26C but with the windchill it is more like 50F / 10C.

Photo: two days ago.

No rain this week. People are using the lake now.

The potholes are still here and you MUST drive slowly. There have been reports that some cars are suffering damage from bouncing in and out of the holes.

It's been a busy week for me so I apologize for the lack of blog :-) I had to replace my water tank YET AGAIN as it started spewing water Monday night. If you recall the blog 9 months ago, I replaced it then. This is becoming expensive AND time consuming.

Beckett Circle had no water on Monday... the hottest day of the year. I don't know why there was no water but it looked like the tanks were full. Helios has had no outside water for weeks. No indication as to when it will be turned back on.

The brass thingies that you see at the end of your water spout are backflow preventers. Google it. (grin)

Just a reminder that the lake aerator and fountain are off EVERY NIGHT between 6pm and 9pm. It is very quiet so you can walk around the lake and listen to the birds and frogs.

The following photos are 'the felling of a rotten tree'.

The Tree...

Man up the tree (professionals were hired to fell this tree)...

The tree is topped and a notch is cut...

The tree is on it's way over...

The tree is down...

Cool eh?

This weekend's event:

All members welcome to a night of cards, snacks and friends
Co‑hosted by the Bare Bistro and Marc & Suzy B.
Euchre Night VI - June 4, 2011 8:00PM
In the Bare Bistro Dining Room. Come out for a night of cards, bring your own non‑alcoholic drinks and some snacks or appetizers to share, and have fun.

Oh, the most important event of the week!!

We had a white swan land in the lake!! Photo below (click to enlarge) but it is fuzzy as it was over near the dock. It left after a few hours. It is on the left of the photo. So graceful.

Friday

2011-05-27T10:34:00.004-04:00

Photo: fountain and raft in lake. It looks warm, doesn't it?

Well, it rained all night and it is still raining.

Temperature is 52F / 11C. A tad chilly.

I turned my furnace off 4 days ago... perhaps it was a mistake? :-)

I see a lot of people outside with coats on. May 27... I thought 'they' said it was going to be an exceptionally warm summer? I never listen to 'they'. ;-)

Thursday

2011-05-26T15:05:00.005-04:00

What a lousy week!! It has been raining all week... and COLD.

Tuesday night the temperature went down to 38F / 3C. Three of my plants had many leaves that were frozen. Boo hoo. Too early to put them out even though 'the weather people' said it was okay. Maybe they will buy me new plants? Eh? :-)

Last night the temperature was around 48F. Still cold.

Photo: Green frog in the front pond.

The pool is open!!! Last time I heard, it was 84F / 29C. That's warm. The solar panels are on.

Photo: Apple tree in blossom in the front yard. Volleyball court is to the left.

It's difficult to keep up with the growing grass in the Park as IT HASN'T STOPPED RAINING. There was another thunderstorm last night for about an hour.

The mini-putt is being built.

Photo: Some of the hazards are primed and ready to be painted.

Photo: Two dudes (Paul, left. Stony, right.) working on the mini-putt. (I have permission to print their names.) Background on right is the pool.

Photo: More holes on the mini-putt. Background on left is part of the kid's playground.

Someone needs to weed one of the petanque courts... :-)

The outside water has been off in Helios for the week. I guess if you need outside water you will have to hook up to the front water system.

There are still potholes on the roads so drive slowly.

There is nothing on the event calendar for this weekend... so... have a few bonfires but bring a ski jacket :-) Actually I haven't seen the weather report for this weekend but it may be nice. At the moment, my thermometer says 72F / 22C.

One of the trailers in Helios was sold and there is a new trailer on site... beside the walkway. I had a photo of the empty spot but it was somehow delete by my camera. That's my story... I'm sure not blaming the operator. :-)

Question of the week... why isn't anyone swimming in the lake?

Saturday

2011-05-21T21:35:00.003-04:00

What a day!! Hot hot hot. Okay, the temperature was in the high 80's / high 20's.

Naked people everywhere. It took me about an hour to get pink and then ... on went the t-shirt. There are people who should have put on t-shirts... but didn't. I hope they have soothing lotion for tonight :-)

It rained at about 8pm for half an hour. That cooled everything off and the temperature is now 67F / 20C.

The aerator and fountain were started today. If you wish to have some quiet time to walk around the lake and listen to the frogs and birds... you can do it between 6pm and 9pm as the aerator will be off for 3 hours. This 3 hour silence did not happen today as the timer is not set correctly on the aerator (a few of us checked). According to the timer, the aerator will go off from 2am to 5am. Hey, who gets up at that hour!! :-)

The water was off in Helios Circle for the day (around 11am to around 6pm). It was off at the clubhouse for about half that time as they have a tendency to shut off Helios Circle early if the water is getting low, in order to keep the clubhouse on for a longer period. The water was on at the seasonal lots (Beckett) for the entire day.

As I drove in today, I noticed people on the volleyball courts.

The Bistro is open, so wander in and have some food or beverage.

Time to plant your plants!! The tomatoes and cayenne peppers will be going in tomorrow. The squash is in!! One plant fried today due to the hot sun and heat but it may recover.

The hummingbirds are here and very hungry. If you feed birds on the weekend and need your feeder topped up during the week when you are not here... let me know and I'll do it for you.

Photo: Remember winter?

Photo: This was today on my deck.

Hopefully tomorrow will be nice and sunny too!

Summer is finally here!

2011-05-20T13:40:00.003-04:00

It's hot out...yesterday my deck was 100F / 37.7C... today it is 80F / 26C.

Tanning weather!! Wear sunscreen.

Photo: The Black Creek had a lot of water in it this week but it has gone down. Thanks Judy M. for the photos!

Today is the start of the Long Weekend. A few trailers are moving in. No rain today. The black flies are out though... and a few mosquitos. They are biting today.

The only event on this weekend (from the Bare Oaks calendar) is 'Getting Ready for the Ports of Call Progressive Pot Luck Luncheon'. Description: If you are interested in participating on a team in this year's Ports of Call Luncheon, please contact Heather at potluck@bareoaks.ca or drop by Foxy Haven, lot 236 to indicate your interest. Deadline for commitment to participate is May 28th, 2011. The actual Progressive Ports of Call Luncheon is on June 25 from 12:30 - 4:30.

That isn't really an event so... I guess we are left with getting a tan all weekend.

There will probably be a few bonfires at the back.

Photo: Stawberry fields was a tad underwater... the creek was up to the bridge. This is taken on the bridge looking towards the Outback.

The potholes are really bad (or were last night) so drive slowly when you come into the park.

The lake is warmish... time for the raft people to start. Lots and lots of little fishies this year. The frogs are spawning and are very noisy at night. Also, we have ONE bullfrog. If you see him, please leave him alone. There are fewer and fewer around these years and it is nice to hear him at night.

All the lawns have been cut.

Photo: Rainbow!

IT'S SUNNY OUT.

Monday

2011-05-16T21:21:00.004-04:00

Well... I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it. Last night at around 11pm... it SNOWED for 10 minutes. That means it is cold.

The temperature has been around 50F / 10C all day. At the moment it is 46F / 8C... brrrrr. I had a ski jacket on today.

Don't plant your outdoor plants yet or you may regret it. The hardy stuff like pansies are okay but not the young seedlings.

Photo: the edge of the lake. There is a bit of green popping up, hopefully more will come within the next few weeks. Thanks Judy M. for the photos!! More to come tomorrow or Wednesday.

Photo: One of the couples at the park has had babies!! This is a red wing blackbird nest with eggs.

Photo: a leopard frog... good picture! He is sooo cute. Leopard frogs spend most of the time in the grasses and brush. Mostly nocturnal creatures, these guys tend to take cover in the water when startled. Your lesson for the day.

Skip the rest of today's blog if you don't want to know about frogs, toads and protected species. :-D I thought I'd post something that might interest a few people... about the wildlife around the park.

One of the most common questions is, "What is the difference between Frogs and Toads?" I have been asked this recently. All Toads actually are Frogs! So, an 'American Toad' is a frog. (Google it yourself, I'm not making this up).

Generally speaking, when we think of frogs, we picture what are called "True Frogs".... members of the family Ranidae, containing more than 400 species.
These frogs have the characteristics of:

two bulging eyes; strong, long, webbed hind feet that are adapted for leaping and swimming; smooth or slimy skin (generally, frogs tend to like moister environments);
Frogs tend to lay eggs in clusters.

Frogs from this family can be found on every continent except Antarctica. They are referred to as the "true frogs" because of their generalized body form and life history: the so-called generic frog. Members of this family include the bullfrog, common frog, green frog, leopard frog, marsh frog, pickerel frog, and wood frog.

At the park we have: green frog, leopard frog, wood frog, spring peeper and gray tree frog, american toad (so far).
-----------------------------

The term toads tends to refer to "True Toads"....
members of the family Bufonidae, containing more than 300 species.
These types of frogs have are characterized by:

stubby bodies with short hind legs (for walking instead of hopping), warty and dry skin (usually preferring dryer climates), paratoid (or poison) glands behind the eyes, The chest cartilage of toads is different also, Toads tend to lay eggs in long chains. (There are some toads (genera Nectophrynoides), however, that are the only types of anurans to bear live young!)

True Toads can be found worldwide except in Australasia, polar regions, Madagascar, and Polynesia, though Bufo marinus has been artificially introduced into Australia and some South Pacific islands. Besides Bufo, the family includes 25 genera, all of which, like the frogs, are anura! (Definition of anura: Anura is the clade of living frogs and their close fossil relatives. The name Anura refers to the lack of a tail.)

Did you know that it is illegal to take bullfrogs, northern leopard frogs, green frogs or snapping turtles from provincial parks.

It is illegal to catch/kill bullfrogs in certain counties too. They are declining at a rapid rate. So if you see one, please leave it alone. We had ONE in the lake last year.

This is a list of SPECIALLY PROTECTED WILDLIFE. That means... you can't catch or harm the creatures below.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED AMPHIBIANS:
Northern cricket frog, blue-spotted salamander, eastern tiger salamander, four-toed salamander, Jefferson salamander, northern dusky salamander, northern two-lined salamander, redback salamander, small-mouthed salamander, spotted salamander, Fowler’s toad and gray treefrog.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED BIRDS (Raptors):
Bald eagle, golden eagle, peregrine falcon, northern goshawk, gyrfalcon, northern harrier, broad-winged hawk, Cooper’s hawk, red-shouldered hawk, red-tailed hawk, rough-legged hawk, sharp-shinned hawk, American kestrel, American swallow-tailed kite, merlin, osprey, barred owl, boreal owl, burrowing owl, barn owl, eastern screech owl, great gray owl, great horned owl, long-eared owl, northern hawk owl, northern saw-whet owl, short-eared owl, snowy owl and turkey vulture.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED BIRDS (other than Raptors):
Brewer’s blackbird, rusty blackbird, yellow-headed blackbird, blue jay, gray jay, belted kingfisher, American white pelican and common raven.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED INVERTEBRATES:
Karner blue, monarch, West Virginia white, mottled dusky wing, bog elfin, frosted elfin, black swallowtail, giant swallowtail, Old World swallowtail, pipevine swallowtail, spicebush swallowtail, Canadian tiger swallowtail, eastern tiger swallowtail and zebra swallowtail.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED MAMMALS:
Big brown bat, eastern pipistrelle bat, hoary bat, small footed bat, little brown bat, northern long-eared bat, red bat, silver-haired bat, eastern chipmunk, least chipmunk, northern flying squirrel, southern flying squirrel, arctic shrew, masked shrew, least shrew, northern short-tailed shrew, pygmy shrew, smoky shrew and water shrew.

SPECIALLY PROTECTED REPTILES:
Eastern foxsnake, Butler’s gartersnake, smooth greensnake, massasauga, milksnake, queensnake, blue racer, gray ratsnake, common five-lined skink, eastern hog-nosed snake, spiny softshell, Blanding’s turtle, eastern musk turtle, midland painted turtle, northern map turtle, spotted turtle, western painted turtle, wood turtle, Lake Erie watersnake and northern watersnake.

I tell ya, if I see a snake, I'm not going to stop and check the species... :-)

The last thing I'd like to say is... please leave the frogs alone, their chorus is beautiful to listen to at night.

I hope you liked your lessons for today... there will be a test :-)

Blog has been down...

2011-05-13T20:37:00.002-04:00

Well, I would have told you this earlier but the blog site has been down. You could read the blogs but not post.

The Volunteer day at the Park has been CANCELLED. That is tomorrow. So if you were coming up to volunteer tomorrow ... well... you can still come up and enjoy the rain... or sun. Not sure what the weather will be like tomorrow.

Also tomorrow is World Naked Gardening Day. Thanks Bruce for letting me know... I had no idea. I will pull some weeds.

Hot weather today. It was 100F / 38C on my front deck today... phew. The sun came out off and on. There were a bunch of people in the lake today !!!

There were thunderstorms predicted for last night... that didn't happen. There was rain predicted for today... that didn't happen. My guess is... it may rain tomorrow ... or it may not :-)

Summer is here!

2011-05-11T21:55:00.000-04:00

Well it has been a week since I did the last blog. A lot has happened... the most important thing is... it has finally gotten WARM !!

Today it was around 80F / 27C. Right now it is 52F / 11C. It is still too early to plant new plants outside. It only takes one night to freeze everything.

I started my plants early this year as I have a mini-greenhouse set up inside. My moonflower plants are a FOOT long (they are vines). I really have to get them planted before they take over my house. I have about 20 of them. The speghetti squash and melon vines are doing well also :-) But, enough about gardening... I'm sure I'm boring you.

The Park rented a wood chipper and all the piles of sticks and such are now gone. Everything is being cleaned up nicely. The lawns are all mowed. There are still potholes in the roads but they are not as big as they were a few weeks ago.

Last week the water temperature in the lake was 58F / 14C. Today it was 70F / 21C about a foot out in the lake. Whoa. Bruce wants everyone to know he was swimming in the lake. He talked about shrinkage, I'm sure I don't know what that means ;-) He also said: "I think the water was colder at the end of last year than it was today." (which was Monday). I've seen a few people in the lake so... it must be warmer!

Our past gardener is not doing the gardens this year due to a busy schedule... but we now have two new gardeners (husband and wife team - I won't mention their names here as I don't have permission). Soooo, the gardens will look nice again soon. Save up your bottles (wine, beer, etc.) as they will be turning them in and buying garden stuff with the money. I don't know where to leave the bottles yet but when I find out, I'll let you know.

Lots of people are up here now, RVing, camping, cleaning up their sites. It's getting busy!

Photo: marigolds in the Park. These are on the left just after the gate.

Photo: trilliums!! These are on the left when you drive into the Park, after the dumpster.

This Saturday is volunteer day at the Park from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

A reminder to please DRIVE SLOWLY. A lot of dust is kicked up when you drive fast ... the speed limit is 11.

Lastly and most important. The American Toads are mating and they are very loud! It is really cool to hear and they go on all night.

The raccoons are on the prowl too...

Rain, rain, and more rain

2011-05-04T13:05:00.003-04:00

Well... it has been raining a lot for the past few days.

The temperature goes down to around 40F / 4C at night. At the current time it is 58F / 14C. That's a tad chilly. The wind chill makes it cooler. That said, there are people walking around nakkid. :-)

The grass has been fertilized but not cut yet. It is growing well.

An update on the Wedding Breckie starting at 3am on April 29. There were about 8 people who attended. That's all I know. I didn't get up early. Phew. Although I may have still been awake from the night before :-)

Photo: the new solar lights at night! It makes it much easier to walk along the road and the paths. Thanks Judy for the photo. Thanks Suzi and Marc for the lights!!

The new lights are not charged yet as it has been RAINING.

Volunteer Day is May 14- 10am to 5pm. There are no ground fees if you volunteer (check with the Park first as this is not mentioned on the description). Description from the Bare Oaks website: "We really appreciate the multitude of people willing to give up their time to make Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park a better place. While there are many people volunteering all year, this is the day we set aside for a massive volunteer effort to get things ready for the season. We are told that it is also a fun day that many people look forward to. There will be projects suitable for all abilities and levels of ambition. Lunch and refreshments will be provided to all workers!"

The sun is out now... Oooooo... pretty ! It won't last...

Sunday

2011-05-01T15:52:00.003-04:00

It's been raining off and on today. The sun came out for a while this afternoon but the wind came up and... more rain.

Photo: visitors to the lake.

Moose was at the spa yesterday so wasn't here to chase the visitors away... but they didn't last long as Moose's parents took over.

There was a big campfire last night as people were arriving after the winter... lots of socializing yesterday!! Come on up, the water is on.

The water in Helios and at the Clubhouse was off (and on) most of yesterday, mostly off. It was working well today.

A few trailers pulled out today. I think they were just here for the day yesterday.

Thanks to Suzi and Marc for the solar lights along the path by the lake, they are not charged yet but should be ready to go in a few days. Now you can see where you are walking at night. I put solar lights along the road to the back so it would be easier to walk. There are 3 lights with rocks in front of them so people won't mow them down with cars as they are not easy to see in the daylight. They can be moved if they are in the way. There are people here who walk at night, I'm one of them, so it will be nice to be able to see.

If anyone has any solar lights that they aren't using... dump them on my lot. I will put them along the walking pathways.

As I stated this week... I would check the temperature of the water in the lake.

It is a BALMY 60F / 15.5C. Now that is warm enough to swim!

Yesterday (Saturday) was HOT. The temperature on my deck went up to 82F / 28C. Whoa... I got a bit of a tan until I got bored. I don't understand how people can lay out in the sun for hours.

Time to come up and rake your lot.

Catherine... your trilliums are almost blooming!

A reminder... the pathways are there to use!! I have two benches in front of my place, sit down for a while and watch the birds :-)

Windy

2011-04-28T12:59:00.003-04:00

Wow, windy today. Blew one of my chairs right across the lawn!!

The upside is... there are no bugs :-) Time to finish the gardening before the critters arrive.

Photo: the petanque courts need to be weeded. I did a small section, as you can see, but it is a LOT of work. If you are in the area, feel free to pull out some weeds. Wendy and Kim did the courts last year a number of times and it takes HOURS. It will take more than two people this year.

Photo: the Outback ... the weather is dreary looking these days.

I haven't seen anyone in the lake. I will find my thermometer and post the temperature. Cowards :-)

Moose and parents have been doing a FABULOUS job at keeping the geese out of the lake. I picked up a bunch of poo this week but there isn't much. It's very funny watching parent one flapping her arms like wings while running but it WORKS and the geese get very agitated. Goose One made it's first run a few days ago and drove right between the geese so... between all of us... they took off and didn't return. (Goose One is Phil's radio controlled jet boat which can make it halfway across the lake and has very good batteries.)

Get out and walk... you will feel a lot better :-)

Tuesday

2011-04-26T16:41:00.003-04:00

I thought summer was here on the weekend but it is cool again.

58F / 14C at the moment.

It rained most of the night and this morning. Thunderstorms this morning too... cool. Ugly clouds but not windy.

Today's photos are from Wendy and Kim, taken in the Copeland Forest near where they live.

Photo: Waterfall from a beaver pond

This past weekend was weird. On Saturday the temperature rose to 80F / 27C. Sunny.

Sunday it was a tad cooler and very windy with a bit of sun off and on.

Monday it was not sunny and about 45-50F / 7 - 10C. Brrr.

Photo: Wild Leeks in Hardwood area

A few trailers moved into the camping area on the left, just past the bridge.

The raccoons are out on the prowl. I haven't seen any skunks yet. There are a few 'swimmers' in the lake at dusk. Could be a muskrat or beaver but it is not an otter... they have gone.

Photo: Round-Lobed Hepatica (white flowers). Wild Leek foilage and a single Trout Lily leaf - speckles on it.

Photo: Close-up of Round-Lobed Hepatica

Royal Wedding Breakfast is on Friday morning... read the Bare Oaks website for details.

Bunny Day

2011-04-22T12:36:00.004-04:00

No snow in a few days now... phew. No rain either. It's been windy.

It went down to 19F / -7C last night. Now that is cold for April.

It would have been a nice day to sleep in and relax if a helicopter hadn't found it necessary to fly REALLY LOW over the park early this morning ... back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, a LEAST 20 times. It was only about 120 feet up. I could SEE right in the cockpit.

It looked like they were spraying as there was a sprayer mount attached at the bottom. Why on EARTH would anyone spray on a holiday.

It is currently 52F / 11C out. The sun is shining.

A few season trailers arrived for the weekend.

Photo: there was a full moon one night this week. This is a photo of it behind the trees. Cool, eh? (as always, click photo to enlarge photo)

Time to clean up your gardens!

The frogs have been very quiet this week. Probably because it is FREEZING out so they want back to the mud.

Lots of maintenance going on around here... the lawn chairs are all out (make a note of this Bruce ;-) )

The roads have been scaped down a bit so some of the potholes are better. They aren't gone but they are better.

All the roads are open.

The green stuff is beginning to peek out of the gardens so, despite the weather, things are growing!!

I have a greenhouse which is full of starter plants and the moonflower plants are now 3 inches high!! They were supposed to take TWO WEEKS to germinate but only took 4 days... ho hum. Time to re-pot.

Coming events:

Royal Wedding Breakfast April 29 05:00am - 12:00
That is FIVE AM... that's early. Info here: http://www.bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/breakfast_with_the_royals.pdf

April 30. Poker Tournament 13:00 - 17:00 Info here:
http://www.bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/poker_april_2011.pdf

Have a nice weekend and don't eat too much chocolate!!

Monday

2011-04-18T17:43:00.003-04:00

Whoa... it is warm today, a balmy 46F / 8C. ;-)

Photo below: sigh, snow. It snowed last night but today the snow is gone.

Right now the sun it out and there is very little wind.

Photo below: the cover is off the pool, the frogs are out of the pool. This was a few days ago so I will post an update at the end of the week. There is a big heater for the pool but it still gets very cold at night so it would be a waste of propane to heat it now. Perhaps when it warms up a tad ... like... TWENTY degrees.

The frogs have gone back to bed (mud) for a while.

According to the latest official Bare Oaks Blog (http://blog.bareoaks.ca)

"Our water is drinkable!

Until now, we could not say that our water was safe for drinking. That's despite the fact that it was filtered, chlorinated, tested daily for adequate chlorine and pathogens. Since the Walkerton tragedy of E. Coli contamination in May 2000 that lead to 7 deaths and thousand of illnesses, the regulations for drinking water have become incredibly rigorous in Ontario. (some say excessively so)

But after several years of work and many thousands of dollars in expenses, we now meet the regulations! So rest assured that you can safely drink the water at Bare Oaks. Two wells supply water into our treatment and distribution equipment. The system is registered and inspected by the government and must meets very strict standards. The water is filtered, disinfected with UV light, chlorinated and tested daily for adequate chlorine. Further tests are conducted periodically, by an independent laboratory, to ensure the absence of a multitude of biological and chemical substances. The system was designed and certified by an engineer. Finally, it is operated and monitored by people who have been trained and accredited."

So... you can drink the water anywhere in the Park!

No progress on the mini-putt :-D Hey, I have my putters all ready to go...

Snowing

2011-04-17T13:02:00.003-04:00

Well... it is SNOWING at the moment... and has been snowing for an hour but the snow is melting as it hits the ground.

41F / 5C so you would think it would be raining. It rained quite a bit last night.

It's also very very windy out. Had to retrieve a few lawn chairs this morning.

Blog tidbit... I started this blog on Thursday, December 3, 2009. Wow, time flies.

Photo: the marsh beside the road coming into the park is full of wood frogs. You can hear them when it is sunny and warm. I haven't heard them in the past few days during my walks around the park.

Photo: the wood frogs quack like ducks.

The spring peepers are out too. They are little tiny light brown frogs. I picked a bunch of them out of the pool this past week.

In total my frog pool count was 26. They are now in the front pond.

The ice on the lake went out at 5pm on Friday April 9. No one has been in the lake yet that I know of. Cowards.

Thanks to P. and B. for the fire on Thursday night!! It's nice to get back into the summer activities.

The pool cover is OFF but the pool has not been filled. Photo of that next time. I don't want to overload the blog with photos today.

No activity on the mini-putt yet.

Time to start your indoor plants and put grass seed on your lawn.

The little circle at the back is still closed, I think. The big circle is open to vehicle traffic.

The next Bare Oaks event is the Royal Breakfast on April 29. "Come join us to watch the happy and momentous Royal Wedding festivities while enjoying a pot luck breakfast. Participants are expected to bring a food or non-alcoholic beverage contribution. Food items should be of a breakfast nature. Everyone interested will gather around 5:00 AM in the New Forest Room. Coffee will be on and we'll watch the event of the year on the big screen. If you choose to wear clothing, make it regal!"

If you look at the event online on the Bare Oaks event page you will see a google map photo of the New Forest Park... which is in England. Ignore that photo ha ha.

How many people here are awake at 5am? I'll be taping it.

I will leave you with a photo of the flowers that are coming up in Catherine's garden. I was going to do some gardening today but it is a tad chilly :-))

Monday

2011-04-11T13:31:00.002-04:00

The photo speaks for itself :-)

Very warm today.

The frogs are back!!! The ones you hear quacking like a duck in the marshy areas beside the road are wood frogs. The whistling ones are spring peepers. We just came back from a walk and picked FIFTEEN frogs out of the pool. 5 peepers, 1 american toad, and 9 leopard frogs. There are more and I will get them later today.

Here is the list of Ontario frogs: Spring Peeper . Chorus Frog . Wood Frog . American Toad . Northern Leopard Frog . Tree Frog . Green Frog . Bullfrog... and a few other rarer frogs.

It rained a bit last night and it is very windy today.

There are two geese in the lake at the moment. Need to do a Moose run :-)

The lawn chairs and tables are being distributed around the park and the cover is off the pool. Ooooo. Tanning and swimming time.

Sunday

2011-04-10T13:05:00.003-04:00

Yesterday (Saturday) was FABULOUS up here.

At one point my outdoor thermometer registered 80F / 26C. Whooo.... hooo. SUMMER!!!

Lots of people wandering around nekkid. People walking through the park and others sitting at the back beside their trailers... in the sun. There were about 15 cars in the parking lot so... lots of day visitors. The roads are open except the little loop on the north east end.

This morning we had rain... and thunderstorms. The rain appears to have stopped at the moment and it is only 50F / 10C outside. :-( Not tanning weather.

The good news is... the ice is GONE from the lake so it's time to get out and start swimming!

While walking around the park I found a few groundhog mounds. This was about 10 days ago. Photo below. There is NO new evidence of groundhogs so they have probably moved on. I put my foot in the photo to show you how big the mounds are. You may have to enlarge photo.

The miniputt course (photo below) is still waiting to be built :-) Hopefully it will be finished this spring. I think the amount contributed by all the members was around $2,000. (is that right?) so... lets 'get er done'. If anyone has any information about it, feel free to post a message to this blog item.

Visitors to the Park

2011-04-08T11:46:00.008-04:00

Lots of photos today. Sorry to all the people who have dialup. As always, to see a larger picture, just click on the small picture. You will want to enlarge some of these.

It was hovering on freezing this morning but has warmed up to 50F / 10C.

No snow the last few days or rain.

The ice is still on the lake, sort of, as you can see by the two photos below.

Photo below: a goose on the lake... between Moose walks. I was talking to Moose's parents and they say Moose scared away four geese so far today. Yeah!! There is a bit of goose poo between the lake and the pond so watch where you are walking. It's a tad fuzzy due to the telephoto.

Now for the exciting photos!!!

Woke up this morning and something was either dead or sleeping on the raft... I was hoping for the sleeping part. I quickly took a photo via telephoto so it is a tad fuzzy.

Then, after clapping and making a bit of noise... two things stood up.

Then they started walking around.

Aren't they the cutest things?

River otters... they are carnivorous and eat fish, small birds, muskrats and FROGS!!! Consider keeping your cats inside for a few days. They appear to be just passing through. If you see them, scare them away. I'm sure Moose will do a great job of scaring these guys too :-)

I'll leave you with another photo of two other visitors to the lake today. Taken with a telephoto and, again, a tad fuzzy. Sorry about the fuzzy stuff but... feel free to send me (small) photos if you have any.

A Mallard duck couple.

Snowing today

2011-04-05T18:22:00.003-04:00

Well... today it snowed for a while but it didn't stay on the ground.

Photo: A frog on the ice... it is a bit early for him.

It is a tad chillier today... 44F / 6.66C ... Oooo, the sign of the devil.

The road to the back is still closed. The photo below shows one muddy spot with a lot of ruts. That part of the road has already been repaired a bit too. I was going to blog last Friday morning that all the roads around the park were being PAVED... but I figured it would only take one person to NOT figure out that it was an April Fools joke... :-D I can't take credit for that idea either.

Did you see, and hear, the torrential rain we had last night??!! No? That's because there WASN'T any. Record rainfall... HAH! NOT!

Not much going on here... however, I have seen a few people sitting on their sunny decks getting naked tans.

No one has been in the lake yet. Cowards. There is about a foot of water around the perimeter.

Moose is doing a fabulous job at keeping the geese away from the lake. He has been given permission to chase them, off leash. (All other pets should be on a leash at all times as per the Licence of Occupation that you signed.)

There are a few places for sale in Helios Circle, some have been reduced in price.

Well, it's April 5 and it is still COLD OUT. Wasn't it warm in March last year? Ho hum.

SPRING!!!

2011-04-02T11:55:00.003-04:00

Photo: The lake is melting...

It's been a week since the last blog... but now that it is SPRING... more people will be here and there may be more activities.

It's warm today... 60F / 15.5C. Whoa. Time to start cleaning up all the old growth in the gardens. Keep in mind that it will probably get cold again so NO planting until mid-May and, if you have fragile plants, leave the old growth on them for a few more weeks.

As far as I know the road is still closed to the back circle. I will post later today if it is open. Don't forget to read the 'comments' at the end of this message (if there are any).

The groundhogs or moles or voles disturbed, created piles of dirt on, a few lawns at the back a few weeks ago. They appear to have left as there hasn't been any more damage this week.

On March 31, Montparnasse was featured at the Theatre Passe Muraille. I hear there were 133 tickets sold and it was a hit!

Next event at Bare Oaks is: Euchre Night Four tonight at 19:30 or, for the non-military people out there, 7:30pm.

There is a Royal Wedding breakfast on April 29th at 5am. As the flyer is a graphic you will have to go to the flyer for details: http://www.bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/breakfast_with_the_royals.pdf

Volunteer day is on May 14th this year. From the website: "Non-members who volunteer will not be charged any day fees. (please register at the office) We really appreciate the multitude of people willing to give up their time to make Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park a better place. While there are many people volunteering all year, this is the day we set aside for a massive volunteer effort to get things ready for the season. There will be projects suitable for all abilities and levels of ambition. Lunch and refreshments will be provided to all workers!"

WINTER!!

2011-03-23T21:26:00.003-04:00

Photo: it's winter again. It snowed last night. Ho hum.

The temperature dropped this week... it is currently 27F / -3C.

It snowed on and off all day with a bit of a wind.

Update on Saint Paddy's dinner and dance. There were about 17 people who attended and that is all I heard. If anyone has any comments, feel free to post them.

The road is still closed around the back circles. I have no idea when the road will reopen. The potholes were graded a bit coming into the park. It is a bit easier to navigate the road.

Photo: before the snow, the river overflowed it's banks in a few locations. This was taken on the north east side of the park. I think the river is down a bit today.

The next event is the FOURTH Euchre night on Saturday April 2.

Description: All members welcome to a night of cards, snacks and friends. Hosted by the Bare Bistro in the Bare Bistro Dining Room. Come out for a night of cards, bring your own non‑alcoholic drinks and some snacks or appetizers to share, and have fun.

Not much to report.

WHERE IS SUMMER !!??

Thursday

2011-03-17T21:41:00.002-04:00

Photo: here is a different shot... bird through a wet window...

It was warm today!! ... and it is still 53F / 12C !

The snow is melting... spring is here!

Anyways, enough of that. :-)

The reason I'm posting this message is to tell you that the road is still closed around the back circles. You can drive to the parking lot but have to walk to your trailer. If it is open tomorrow or Saturday, I'll post another note here.

I just heard thunder. Haven't heard that in a long time.

It rained the past few nights which is a lot better than snow, eh?

St. Patricks day dinner and dance on Saturday night. 19:00pm. Come join us for an Irish Feast with corned beef brisket and cabbage, salads, breads and desserts. Cost is $25 per couple and $15 for singles.

Newmarket Nature Bares swim is on Saturday night too (6:30 - 8:30). If you are going to the swim and want to go to the dance afterwards... it is $5.00 for the dance for half of a couple... $10. for a couple. Based on the prices above, perhaps it is $7.50 for a single for the dance? Oh I am so confused... ;-D

Final note: when you read the blog, don't forget to read the COMMENTS at the END of each blog. For example, at the end of the blog: 'Wednesday, March 9, 2011', it says: 10 comments. Click the '10 comments' (which is a link) and a window will pop up and you will be able to read all 10 comments at once. You can't post a comment unless you log in though. Also you have to enable popups on your computer.

If you don't know how to enable popups on your computer... either email me with the name of your computer and operating system and I will tell you how to do it or... take your computer back to the store :-D

Groundhogs lie

2011-03-15T16:41:00.008-04:00

Groundhogs are annoying. Usually they tell the truth. However, this year... not so much.

It is below freezing every night but, due to the time change, it is lighter later!! Yeah!!

So today I have photos. As always, click the small photo to see a bigger photo.

The spring thaw has started. These photos were taken yesterday, March 14.

Photo: the road to the back. It is very muddy due to the traffic. The road coming into the Park (no photo of that road) is very rutted (I bottomed out my car). Go slow... there are potholes and big ruts. It is very difficult to fix them now as it is muddy and the machinery would make more of a mess. I think in a day or two it will be much better. At least by the weekend.

Photo: the road is open back to the back parking lot. After that the road is CLOSED to vehicular traffic. If you come up you have to WALK to your place. This will save the road as it still has a few mud ruts from the last time it thawed. Quit whining, you need the exercise and it is not cold during the day. I will ask at the office if the road will be open on Friday for the party on Saturday.

Photo: the main bridge is NOT flooded, so far. If it floods, I will post here.

Photo: The bunny trail is a bit flooded but the 'backyards' of the places along the east side are NOT flooded. Good news as last year they were a tad underwater. If anyone who has a place there is reading this and wants a photo of their place, email me and I'll send it to you via email.

Photo: Stawberry Fields has less water than last year but you will still need high boots to get to the bridge, which is NOT underwater.

Sunny today and yesterday... no wind so ... you can ALMOST lay/lie out in the sun.

March 9

2011-03-09T11:15:00.004-05:00

I hope everyone enjoyed pancake Tuesday yesterday :-) Carbs, sugar, carbs and sugar... yum. Oh, and probably a bit of fruit on the top. Fresh strawberries are here!! 2 pounds for $1.97. Can't beat that. Smoothies.

Today we have scenic photos of Wendy and Kim's walk last week through The Copeland Forest. They live right next door to it. It is about an hour north of Bare Oaks, I think. It is the beginning of spring!!! They also said: 'Had a wonderful ski today and Rogers TV was out to tape snowshoeing (Kim is in the tape) and cross country skiing (another guy is in the film).'

Wooo hooo, he will be famous eh? :-D

Update on the Euchre night: "We had about 20 players attend. Maybe a dozen or so for the dinner before. Some new faces, new members, rookie players too."

Hey, new members ... that's nice to hear.

Temperature is 39F / 4C at the moment. Not bad. The snow is not melting though. I'm tired of winter already... ho hum.

I checked the Bare Oaks Events calendar and there is a Bare Oaks Event on March 19: St. Patty's Dinner & Dance, 19:00 - 00:00. Description: Come join us for an Irish Feast with corned beef brisket and cabbage, salads, breads and desserts. Cost is $25 per couple and $15 for singles.

Whoa, nice discrimination against singles. Why would it cost less to feed each person in a couple then one person in a single? Or $2.50 more to feed a single. I thought everyone was equal here. So if a single person in the park knows another single person in the park ... can they go as a couple... even though they aren't a couple? heh heh. I don't think so. How about if only half of a couple shows up... do they only pay $12.50. That's my rant for the week. :-D Feel free to comment.

Last photo, a twig with snow on it. I will leave this to your imagination... (click photo for larger image)

So... tomorrow is my summer, March 10. However, when I look outside it is snowing AGAIN. Stop with the snow already!! What is the matter with that groundhog!!

I need chocolate...

Snow... and more snow...

2011-03-06T17:21:00.003-05:00

Well... it snowed last night and it snowed a LOT.

Photo: It doesn't look like much snow but it is... (click for larger photo)

The temperature at the moment is 40F / 4C. Above freezing but it is not melting the snow. Well... it was that temperature when I started this blog but it is now 6 hours later and the temperature is 19F / -7C. Very nippy and slippery on the decks.

All the roads have been plowed.

It's no longer icy on the roads but it is a bit deep to go walking in any place other than the roads.

Photo: Moose and parents out for a walk... all bundled up.

I haven't heard about the Euchre night last night. Did anyone go and how was it?

Well I said it was going to be MY official summer on March 10... or this Thursday. I think we'd better have a bit less snow before that happens. However, if it melts... I'll be celebrating.

I have heard rumors that a few people are going to start going over to the exercise room and doing a bit of exercise. I've been thinking about doing that too as it is becoming very difficult to walk around the park due to snow, or ice, or cold. It's difficult to pick a time as most people work and can only do something on the weekends or in the evening...

The BOW Club will probably not start until the snow is gone. (BOW = Bare Oaks Walking) Club. Or it could be the BOM Club ... Bare Oaks Mosey Club. Mosey - walk or move in a leisurely manner. Ho ho, I think that is a better name. :-)

March 1

2011-03-01T20:20:00.003-05:00

It's been a week since I last posted a blog. Not much has happened in a week.

It snowed once ... it was sunny two days... still cold today. A few days ago the temperature hovered on freezing.

The temperature now is 29F / -2C. Brrr.

It is still wayyyyyyy too cold to lay out in the sun although the deck boxes at the side of my place were HOT today. The wind was a bit nippy (read=windchillof-10).

I haven't seen many people out and about but I DID see one set of cross country ski tracks 6 days ago. Whoa. Ambitious. You can't ski now as there is a thin layer of snow over a thick layer of ice.

Do NOT go on the lake or ponds. However, I hear they are still driving cars and trucks on Lake Simcoe.

The roads are very very slippery and covered with ice (I found this out tonight) so walking at night is NOT a good idea. Walking in the day is not a good idea either but at least you will be able to see where you are going to fall :-D Hey you have been warned.

No salt or sand are put on the roads for environmental reasons.

There have been a few people up for a hot tub and sauna.

Photo: This is from the... quit yur whining about the winter... category. The following photos were all taken in Lead, North Dakota, a few weeks ago. (Click photos for bigger pictures)

Cleaning off the front walkway.

Next Park event: March 5 ... this Saturday... Euchre Night 3 starting at 7:30.

Summer is in NINE DAYS. My summer starts on March 10. Hmmm... Most of the major snowstorms will be finished with... and you may be able to lie/lay out in the sun at least ONCE before the 10th so I am declaring it summer. HAH!

Thanks for the cookies Bruce they were delicious :-))

Photo: Oooo Oooo I want one of these, although if that cliff doesn't hold they may not find the body until spring. (No, he didn't get hurt.)

The roads are all plowed and open. There has been NO flooding so far this year, which may be a first.

The Blue Heron is back looking for frogs which will be difficult as the lake is still frozen solid (but unsafe to go on).

Photo: I cleared my roof off this winter... he should have started earlier.

Geese have been spotted but none have landed. Not sure how they are going to keep them off the lake this summer. I'll bet a border collie could herd them... :-)

Photo: I would NOT travel on this road.

Daylight savings time starts 11 days from now... LONGER DAYS !!!

As you can see there is not much news.

I'm thinking of starting a walking club in the spring / summer. Any takers? Email me.

Family Day

2011-02-21T16:35:00.004-05:00

Photo (click to enlarge): 'Tis a dreary day today. The Outback and lake. On the right side of the photo is the raft, submerged in ice. There is only a few inches of snow left.

We had a thaw last week... temperatures went up to 56F / 13C. I think it was Thursday or Friday. DO NOT go on the lake as there was open water on it last week. It may look safe but it's not. There are signs beside the lake.

Was it ever WINDY on Friday night... whoa. I was outside for a while and could hear trees cracking near the clubhouse ... which probably means some of them fell. No trailers were damaged though.

As of yesterday most of the snow on the ground (not the big piles) had left us. Then it snowed last night. Ho hum. I'm tired of this.

I haven't heard from the Arizona people so I hope their weather is better than ours.

Lots of people were up visiting yesterday. We actually sat in the sun on the south side of my trailer and soaked in the rays. Summer is coming!!! Thanks to Bruce for the butter tarts!! Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Next Park event: March 5 - 19:30 - Euchre Night III
No other events scheduled in March.

Not much going on around the Park. Very few people are out walking ... except for D. and Nikki... who were just visiting. They are braving the cold. It is very cold at the moment 16F / -8C. I was going to go for a walk but I think I just changed my mind :-)

Hope y'all had a good Family Day. Personally, I would have preferred another long weekend in the summer.

Speaking of summer - 18 more days until SUMMER!!! (which is March 10). Start stocking up on your SPF lotion!

February 15

2011-02-15T13:18:00.003-05:00

Well... it has been warm here (above freezing) for the past few days and then it got cold again, slightly below freezing. No snow for a while and the snow is melting off the roofs.

In case you didn't see Catherine's comment on the last blog entry... here is an update on the Valentine's Dinner and Dance (around 35 people attended): "It was a fantastic night, well run by Dean and Dot !! Cudo's The food was fantastic and plentiful, music was good, the members appeared to thoroughly enjoy themselves. The ladies wore appropriate items, some staff were in attendance and just maybe were monitoring the enjoyment of the crowd. Just wondering out loud, how can you be ladies in red without wearing 'clothes' ????? just my question."

Maybe you can wear ribbons? or paint body parts? or red socks? :-)

I hear the rink on the front pond is not freezing well. I haven't seen it but I was sent an update in email. Doesn't sound like there will be a skating party this season but I'll post if I hear about one.

The next Euchre night is March 5 - 19:30 - 23:30.
The next park event after that is Euchre night IV on April 2.

Not many people around these days. I go out for a daily walk and the only people I run into are Moose and his parents. It's been a tad windy but the sun is shining today and there is NO wind. My thermometer says 35F / 2C.

Wendy and Kim spent a LOT of time this past weekend making a snowshoe path around the park. It goes wayyyy back on the Bunny Trail so if you are inclined to do some walking, check it out. They told me there is a well used deer path at the back of the Bunny Trail (far east end of the park). The trail also branches out around different areas in the park which makes it much easier to walk around.

As summer starts on March 10 (for me)... there are only 24 more days to put up with winter!!! Yeahhhhhhhhhh. Get out your towels and suntan lotion!

Photos: Taken at the Horseshoe Condos. Thanks Wendy and Kim for the photos! (click for larger photo.)

Below: This girl (turkey) was walking along the sidewalk near the condo one morning. This is at the end closest to the wooded area.

Below: Jan: She seems to be quite tame. They usually travel in packs... I wonder where her pack is...

Below: We had a big dump of snow last night (Feb 09), about 20 cm. You'll notice the snow volume by the car in behind the turkey heading off. (Jan: I think the turkey is that big black blob in the snow on the right)

All in all this winter hasn't been too bad.

February 8

2011-02-08T11:48:00.004-05:00

As always... click the tiny photos to see bigger images.

Photo: We've had a bit of snow... 14 inches on the tape and that has been mostly this past week.

Photo: The picnic tables look like big loaves of bread!! Thanks Judy for the photo.

Photo: Black Creek... frozen. I think this was taken from the bridge. Thanks Judy for the photo.

It's been a while since I've done the blog as... there hasn't been much to report.

Thanks to all the people who have emailed asking me to update the blog... now I know a lot of people read it... and yes I still have power so that is not the reason I haven't done the blog... ha ha ha.

As you can see from the photos above, it has been snowing here!! Nearly every day we have gotten a bit of snow.

Watch yourself driving into the park (past the bins) as the road is very slippery. As of last night, there was still a lot of snow on the road and it was getting very rutted. So, drive slowly.

I was sent an update on Euchre night: "The snow on Saturday did not deter the enthusiastic euchre players. There were 4 full tables (16 people) with 3 extras who filled in when some people left later in the evening. Judging by the boisterous chatter everyone had a great time."

The temperature hasn't been too bad... just below freezing... except for a few really cold nights. Only one trailer had frozen pipes but that was fixed quickly.

(waving to all the people who are in Florida at the moment) ho hum...

I think there are a few people going on the nude cruise starting on February 14. HAVE FUN!!

No one has made a snowman this year, no one is walking. Oh, except for Moose.

I guess the exercise room in the basement is busy ... heh heh.

If you have any other news or if you want me to report about anything, email me or leave a message attached to this blog.

----
This coming Saturday, February 12th is the Valentine's Day Dinner and Dance.
This year's theme is "Lady in Red". ( http://bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/valentines2011.pdf )

Start at 6:30 with social time and get caught up on all of the news. Dinner ordered from a local Chinese Restaurant will begin around 7:15PM with Dessert by DOT (aka Dorothy, not the Department Of Transport). :-D

Afterwards, dance your feet off with music provided by DJ DINO.

Tickets are $25.00 per couple, $15.00 single and are available in the office. Sale cutoff is 6PM on Friday, February 11th.
----

Around 30 days till summer... YEAH!! (that is March 10th for me).

Arizona

2011-01-28T16:06:00.003-05:00

This solar cooking blog comes to you from Arizona from Dave, Judy and Maggs.

They have a sun oven and says " it is a wonderful thing. It is a dry camper's best friend. It is so environmentally friendly, all you need is the sun to cook, no fossil fuels at all. As long as you get lots of sun the outside temperature does not make any difference. I put the oven out in the sun in the morning to preheat and around 12:30 I put the bread dough into the oven to bake. In approximately 40 minutes the bread is done. Temperatures in the oven vary but usually it will get anywhere between 300-375 degrees. Cooking in a black vessel gives the best results. The other day I did chicken pot pie in the sun oven with only one hitch. I didn't start it until 1:00 so by 5:00 when we got home the sun was going down. The oven temperature was down around 200 degrees so I had to finish it off (biscuit topping) in the oven for 1/2 hour. Yummy!"

Hmmm... it might work during the ONE WEEK of summer that we get... :-D

Here are some smallish photos.

Photo: This one looks like it is pre-heating. The reflectors on the solar oven give the illusion that there are more than 4 reflectors.

Photo: The bread cooking. A close up inside the oven (bread is out of the pan).

Photo: Fococcia bread on the rack cooling on the counter.

Mmmm, I could eat that entire thing...

-------------------------

Park update

-------------------------

We are in the midst of the January thaw!!! It has been hovering around zero, or just above, for days now.

I haven't seen any ice skating so far this year or cross country skiing or snowshoeing. Methinks there is a bit of hibernation going on here.

It snows nearly every day here... not a lot, most of the time, but it still snows.

---------------

Events Update

---------------
February 5th is the second Euchre night organized by the Bare Bistro. ( http://barebistro.ca/flyer/euchre_night_110205.pdf ).
----
February 12th is the Valentine's Day Dinner and Dance.
This year's theme is "Lady in Red". ( http://bareoaks.ca/social/flyers/valentines2011.pdf )

Start at 6:30 with social time and get caught up on all of the news. Dinner ordered from a local Chinese Restaurant will begin around 7:15PM with Dessert by DOT (aka Dorothy, not the Department Of Transport). :-D

Afterwards, dance your feet off with music provided by DJ DINO.

Tickets are $25.00 per couple, $15.00 single and are available in the office. Sale cutoff is 6PM on February 11th. A 50/50 draw will be held at the dance.
----

Plus the Ontario Roaming Bares and the Newmarket Nature Bares continue to organize swims; January 29th (wave pool), February 12th, and February 19th.

Check out the Bare Oaks event calendar at http://www.bareoaks.ca/index.php/en/events.html which includes the ORB and NNB calendars.

Monday

2011-01-24T13:45:00.002-05:00

Photo: It's COLD here!! minus 20 F and minus 30 C. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr. The windchill makes it seem a lot colder!!

Every day we get a bit of snow but nothing to shovel.

Did I mention it is COLD here? Things are cracking and snapping at night. Lots of propane is being delivered.

Not much happening here in the past week. No skaters (I don't think the lake is frozen enough yet)... no cross country skiiers, no walkers. Nothing.

One of the used trailers that is for sale on Helios Circle... has had a price drop. See the Bare Oaks website (http://www.bareoaks.ca/), used trailer section for details.

The Wave Pool swim is this coming Saturday! 19:30 - 22:00. Location: The Wave Pool - 5 Hopkins Street, Richmond Hill.

Also, there is a Valentines Dinner and Dance on Feb. 12. 6:30 - ? Check the Bare Oaks site for details.

Next Euchre night is Feb. 5 - 19:30 - 00:00.

That's it... it is very quiet here in the winter. Maybe I'll hear from the Arizona or Florida people and can post some of their photos... as it is probably a LOT WARMER there :-)

Saturday

2011-01-15T16:36:00.002-05:00

No photo today... it's winter, there is snow. Ho hum.

This morning it snowed... and snowed... but the afternoon was very nice and not too cold with no wind.

A bunch of us got together around two fires this afternoon... and ate... and drank... and chatted. It was nice seeing people who haven't been around since this summer!!

Temperature now is 27F / -3C.

The roads are all plowed but remember, there is no salt or sand on the roads so drive slowly as they are a tad slippery at some of the corners.

Euchre tonight in the clubhouse... I think. I haven't checked to see how many people have signed up but I talked to a few people today who were going.

As far as I know there are no planned Park events for this winter. Anyone planning anything?

54 DTS (days til summer)

Whoa... time is flying by!!

Thursday

2011-01-13T14:04:00.004-05:00

Photo: meandering river... tres pretty.

Photo: wouldn't this be great to skate on!! Too bad as it has snowed since this photo was taken a few weeks ago.

It's been very very cold for the past week. Currently it is 25F / -4C. Last night it was 12F / -11C. Brrrr.

The only person (although he is not really a person) who is enjoying this cold is Moose... but then he has an R300 fur coat on.

Visited the clubhouse in the early evening a few times recently and there are usually people in the basement watching TV or upstairs in the hot tub or sauna.

I haven't seen anyone skiing... no one can skate as the ice is still thin... no one walks except for Moose and his parents... ho hum. Is it summer yet? I think I will start a countdown. I think spring should start on March 11. It is sometimes warm in March so... that means there are only 56 more days of winter. Now that sounds a lot better :-)

The next Park event is this coming Saturday: Euchre after dinner (7:30 - 11:30) in the clubhouse. Bring your own snacks and 'beverages'. (see the Bare Oaks event page for more information). I don't know how many people have signed up.

No other events scheduled for February or March as far as I can tell. The social committee page on the Bare Oaks site has nothing listed (that page always displays) and I'm still unable to get the calendar on the Bare Oaks page to display (it never displays). Perhaps it is linked to another site... which is slow.

Outside of the Park... this Saturday, the NNBares will be holding the next monthly nude swim at the Aquacenter, 1215 Stellar Drive, Newmarket. Swim time is from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM and the cost is $12.00 per person (Children under 16 FREE with parent/guardian). Please confirm your attendance for the swim with Sandy via the website: http://nnbares.fcn.ca

56 DTS (days til summer)

Wednesday

2011-01-05T23:21:00.003-05:00

Photo: Scenic river shot in the park.

Photo: 6 inches of snow. The photo is cloudy as it is snowing at the time.

Photo: There are very annoyed birds when the birdfeeder is this full...

The temperature is 10F / -12C. Not too bad. We had about 6 inches of snow last night and today but it was fluffy snow. I took a walk after that really bad hockey game. 3 - 0 in the second period for Canada. 3 - 5 ending score for Russia. Boo hoo. Ah well, the Russian team played REALLY WELL in the last period.

Not much happening here, so I'll post photos when it is quiet. I saw some cross country ski tracks this afternoon so... I'll be going out tomorrow and will try a bit of skiing. The snow is fluffy so it should be nice.

The next event is the Euchre game on the 15th of January (see the Bare Oaks event page for more information). So far only one person has signed up for it so if you want to play there is a signup sheet in the office.

Quiet winter... we need more events.

January 2011

2011-01-02T13:28:00.003-05:00

Photo: Yesterday... it rained and the snow melted. Now if it doesn't snow that lake would be fantastic to skate on... but it snowed a bit today.

Photo: The tree over the creek near the bridge has been removed so there is no danger of losing the bridge this spring due to ice backup. The tree just fell over one day :-)

It was warm yesterday... 50F / 10C whoo hoo.

It is cold today 27F / -3C. Nice while it lasted.

The roads were very muddy and rutted yesterday but you have to drive on them in order to go to and fro...

New Years Party report (thanks Sandy). Eight people were in attendance. They watched the movie SALT. A few people brought food and they all had a fun time!

I don't think they walked around the park as it was REALLY muddy that day.

A note for anyone who wishes to stay overnight at the park. There are only two rooms available this winter, a king room with your own washroom, and a queen room. The other four rooms are in use for the winter. So... phone the office early if you wish to book a room.

Frank wishes everyone a Happy New Year (grin).

If someone wants to get me a gift... this is what I want :-)) 4 minutes on YouTube.
http://www.flixxy.com/honda-u3-x-personal-mobility-device.htm

People are leaving for vacation, people are arriving back from vacation.

Only 357 more shopping days left to Christmas!

Only TWO more months of winter left to suffer through. I consider March... spring.

Next Bare Oaks event: Euchre Night
January 15 - 7:30 - 11:30pm
Description: The Bare Bistro will be hosting a Euchre Night following dinner. Please bring your own snacks and beverages. Everyone welcome.
For more information, please contact the Bare Bistro at info@BareBistro.ca or check out the flyer at http://barebistro.ca/flyer/euchre_night.pdf.

Now comes the important question of the week... how are you going to work off those extra pounds you put on over Christmas ;-)

It's very quiet here in the winter. If anyone wants me to post any comments / opinions / information... just email me at jancnn@gmail.com. As always, you will remain anonymous as I know some of you don't want your names posted on the net.

Christmas!

2010-12-27T18:40:00.001-05:00

Photo: the headless snowman...

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!! ... and didn't spend too much money at the Boxing Day sales. :-)

Not much happening here... it is cold. 25F / -4C at the moment and windy.

There hasn't been any snow here in quite a while. No rain either.

The lake is not frozen yet so don't venture onto it.

There is a Bare Bistro Euchre party scheduled for January 15th. 8pm to 11pm. Description: The Bare Bistro will be hosting a Euchre Night following dinner. Please bring your own snacks and beverages. Everyone welcome.

New Years event: New Year's Eve Social Gathering
When: Dec 31 4pm - 1am
Description: Join your friends at Bare Oaks to ring in the New Year.

Starting at 4pm, we will have a candle light walk (snowshoe, ski) around the park. We will return around 5pm to warm up with Peter's People's Choice Award Chili and play some games in the New Forest Room. Later at around 9pm we will order pizza and watch movies until midnight when we will watch the ball drop at midnight and ring in the New Year together.

All are welcome. Feel free to drop by when you wish. Cost is $5.00 per person.
-----
Another event coming up is The Winter Nude Volleyball Tournament
When: January 1 09:00am - 17:00pm
Description: 3rd Annual tournament in London, Ontario
Sunday January 2nd, 2011 – Signup 9 am, play 10 am to 5 pm
Spikes Indoor Beach Volleyball, 120 Weston Street, London (www.spikes.on.ca)

More info at: http://www.BareOaks.ca/files/NewYears-Tournament-London-2011.pdf
-------------

There is a path shovelled around the lake so feel free to get out and walk :-)

Eclipse

2010-12-21T20:17:00.006-05:00

In case you missed the eclipse... below are some photos... (click to enlarge) taken from a very small camera but... this is what it looked like at the park at 2:30 am. It was cold.

Photo: The actual size of the moon with the naked eye.

Photo: the moon before the eclipse started, zoomed in, at about 1:30am.

Photo: a small bite out of it.

Photo: a bigger bite out of it and brown in one corner.

Photo: Half gone.

Photo: Three quarters gone... and slightly red. I like this one. About 2:30am. Click photo to see the red.

Photo: One quarter of the moon remains ... then the clouds arrived. It is blurry as it was taken through the clouds. That's it as it was impossible to do a closeup through the clouds.

There you go :-)

Nothing else to report...

Santa will arrive after FOUR sleeps.

Six sleeps until Christmas

2010-12-19T14:10:00.003-05:00

Photo: the clubhouse at night. Yes, it is a bit dark so... turn your lights off :-)

Photo: Christmas lights in the park.

Well... it has snowed every day for the past five days. Not much, but it's still something that has to be shovelled.

Ho hum.

As I heard a few people talk about the path I shovelled around the lake, I decided to make another one... or dig the old one out so ... I did that today. I HOPE to see a few people walking on it... other than Moose. He can walk on it but you humans get out there too!

I haven't done the blog this week as there is not much happening ... other than a few Christmas get-togethers in the park.

The lake is not frozen yet... so don't go on it. The rabbits have gone on it... they are light.

There has been talk about the skating parties (or at least one) on the front pond in January so ... stay tuned for information on that. We have to wait until the pond freezes first.

Temperature last night was... 15F / -10C. Brrrr.

Today it is hovering on freezing... which is the same in F and C... ho ho.

If you wish to buy a 2011 Naturist calendar created by Mike and Ruth (they have a trailer in the seasonal section) ... go here: http://mikesphotographix.blogspot.com. PayPal only. If you don't have PayPal, email me.

If you wish to buy a naturist Nudie Toons cartoon book called 'The Funny Side of Going Naked' go here: http://www.nudietoons.ca/ I accept PayPal, credit card, check/cheque, money order... cash... :-D

This week's news:
-----------------------------------------------
The Four Seasons Nudist Resort, in Freelton, Ontario, has announced that they are going textile on May 1, 2011.

In a letter dated December 10th, 2010, Paul Colvin who is the president of the Four Season's owner, Castle Vacations Parks, blamed some of the members for the change. He says "The lack of co-operation of some members in welcoming new managers, staff, guests of the resort and most of all, new prospective members of The Four Seasons Resort has been both disappointing and discouraging. This goes to events as simple and unkind as challenging partially clothed guests in the pool area, making it difficult if not impossible to enrol new members."

The letter explains that clothing will be required starting on May 1st and that this new policy will be "strictly enforced". It is the resort owner's plan to change the zoning to allow for a residential community and a seasonal trailer park.

The tone of the letter suggests that a great deal of animosity has built up between some of the members and the management. A paragraph titled "Security Issues" talks about thousands of dollars of damage to the clubhouse by a resident. It then adds that "even though we know some members were witness to these events or have information that would assist the police, no one has come forward."

In the fall of 2009, Hans and Lisa Steins sold the Four Seasons Nudist Resort to Castle Vacation Parks. It has been for sale since 1999.

--------------------------------

Christmas joke: Just before Christmas, there was an honest politician, a kind lawyer and Santa Claus travelling in an elevator of a very posh hotel. Just before the doors opened they all noticed a $50. bill lying on the floor. Which one picked it up??

Santa of course, the other two don't exist!

Monday

2010-12-13T11:33:00.001-05:00

Photo below: Snow

Photo below: My cat's television

It's been snowing here for a few days. There is about 6 - 8 inches still on the ground. In centimeters that is... I don't have a clue :)

Yesterday it was freezing rain leaving a layer of slush on everything. Then it turned cold. Do you know when slush freezes it takes about half an hour to scrape the ice off the windows of your car? Ho hum. My arm hurts. I bought a Magna Shield to put on the front window of my car and it is GREAT. It goes on with magnets, and you just pull it off, along with the snow and ice and ... no scraping!!

It's 10F / -12C at the moment... and still snowing.

The road to the back is open and plowed.

For those of you asking, no, the garbage bins have not been emptied yet ... or the recycling. The bins have been full for around 10 days. I know they were full on the 4th as I tried to put a bag in. If you throw the bags on top of the bin(s) the raccoons will make a mess so... keep your garbage. You can always phone the office and ask when they will be emptied. You can also go to the region? dump at Ravenshoe and Warden (just north on Warden on the left). It is a minimum of $10. for a load (that is usually the maximum too) ... they weigh you in and out.

I shovelled a path around the lake... then it rained (sigh)... then it snowed... a LOT. So now I will be shovelling it again. It is nice to walk on a path, less slogging.

No cross country skiiers yet.

You CANNOT skate on the lake yet as it is not frozen. I hear that there will be skating on the front pond when it freezes. I remember about 10 years ago we all had skating parties on the front pond. Skating, hockey, hot chocolate. Fun. Fun.

---------------
The New Years Eve event is now on the Bare Oaks website:

Join your friends at Bare Oaks to ring in the New Year.

Starting at 4pm, we will have a candle light walk (snowshoe, ski) around the park. We will return around 5pm to warm up with Peter's People's Choice Award Chili and play some games in the New Forest Room. Later at around 9pm we will order pizza and watch movies until midnight when we will watch the ball drop at midnight and ring in the New Year together.

All are welcome. Feel free to drop by when you wish.

Tickets are $5.00 per person
-----------------------

Cool.

Last week there was one room available but they may all be taken by now. Phone the office if you are thinking of staying over.

The usual person is not jogging around the park anymore... I hear he has moved to the basement gym to exercise. Wuss ;-) A little frostbite won't kill ya ...

I think this is the first day of Christmas...

I had originally posted the 'first day' but removed it as I realize the language in it is not child-friendly (grin)... or Christmas-friendly either. So... I removed the 'first day' from the original post. Perhaps I'll find another 'first day' and post it tomorrow...

Thursday

2010-12-09T23:11:00.003-05:00

Photo: A festive sign in the park.

Photo: The lake is not frozen yet. There are springs in different places in the lake so it will be a while before it freezes solid.

Tuesday night it snowed a LOT. Today, it doesn't seem like a lot of snow. Maybe some of it melted?

It is ZERO F outside or minus 18C. That is cold. The snow squeaks when you walk on it... brrrrr. It is 29F under my trailer which means ... the pipes are not going to freeze.

No one is venturing out much other than going to work. It is dark at around 4:30 now. Remember the summer when it got dark at 9pm? Yeah, I barely remember the summer either. ;-)

Nikki is putting on a New Years event !

I read the details in the office today but don't remember most of them as I didn't write it down and the Bare Oaks website does not have the event listed yet.

Sooooo... I think it starts at 5pm with a candlelight walk and showshoeing? wait, how can you snowshoe in the dark? ... and then games... and then something else (grin) and then at 9pm there is pizza and a movie. Okay okay, but at least I told you there is an event. I'll have more details when they post it on the Bare Oaks site or when I get the details from Nikki.

The birds are very hungry these days, it's really cold for them and they take a lot of food to keep warm. If you have feeders out, fill them up. I noticed a few feeders at the back today (seasonal area) that were empty and the birds keep buzzing around them. I just bought 50 pounds of peanuts and have two woodpecker feeders but if anyone has any woodpecker feeders (not the suet kind) lying around that they are not using, you can leave them on my deck :-) The woodpeckers would like you. I have FIVE woodpeckers so far, two cardinals, many juncos and chickadees and THIRTY TWO mourning doves. In the morning the doves sit in the sun on my deck beside the CAT cage and sleep. Fools.

Enough about birds... I have probably put you to sleep :)

------
'Twas the night before Christmas...

Jingle Bells !!

2010-12-05T22:00:00.003-05:00

Photo: Snow at the Outback

Photo: Snow across the lake

Photo: Merry ChristMoose!

It's snowwwwwiiiinnnngggg !!!

I have shovelled twice today but then, I like to shovel the LIGHT stuff.

We have gotten about 6 inches of snow so far. It's still snowing. Lots of car tracks though so people are still coming and going.

It is 23F / -5C but it doesn't feel that cold when you are shovelling. There is no wind.

This is not snowman building snow so... no snowmen this time around.

Friday - TGIF

2010-12-03T15:15:00.003-05:00

Photo: the lake is freezing. This is from a few days ago...

Photo: a rock on the ice.

It's still warm(ish) out!! Which means it is not below freezing. Temperature at the moment is 41F / 5C. Ooooo. Suntanning weather! Okay it would be suntanning weather if there was sun... but there isn't.

There is NO SNOW here. We did have some but it was a few days ago and is melted now.

The potholes are back due to the heavy rains a few days ago... all day and all night.

I just finished my Christmas shopping... na na na na na. I suggest you go out and do it now as there were NO crowds, NO lineups, no one in the malls, no one in Princess Auto!! yikes. Parking was good too. If you are looking for DVD's, sets, books... and the like... I suggest you try Amazon.ca. (http://www.amazon.ca/) Delivery is 5 days and they have a sale on now for up to 65 percent off. They are reliable as I've ordered from them for years. Hey, I just thought I'd save you money as BestBuy, Chapters, and similar are wayyyyyy too expensive. Email me if you want more information.

Oooo, the sun just came out.

Not many people walking around the park these days except for Moose and his parents... and me. I will need to do it more often due to Christmas parties/open houses/general eating Christmas goodies. I'm sure a lot of you are going to similar events so get out and walk everyone. :-)

I haven't seen any trailers come or go recently so I guess everyone is settled for the winter.

Karen asked me to post this: The Naturally Nude calendar is also available at the Bare Boutique, which is the Bare Oaks store, and online here: http://www.bareboutique.ca/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65&products_id=208

Have a great weekend and, if I remember, I'll post some photos from Judy and Dave from Arizona!!

CUBA SI !

2010-12-01T22:16:00.003-05:00

Photos: Cayo Largo in Cuba this year. Click photos for a larger picture.

Snowing here today, nice there today...

Ho hum.

November 29

2010-11-29T17:40:00.003-05:00

Photo: At the Mandarin ... the birthday boy Marc and Suzy the organizer.

Photo: Marc had a small accident. (There are a lot more photos but I don't have permission from the people to put them on the blog.)

Around 30 of us went out on Saturday for Marc's 50th birthday party!! It was a blast. We went bowling and even though a LOT of people had not bowled before... we all gave it a shot. Hey, I got a strike and two spares :-))) It is not as easy as it looks throwing a 3.5 pound ball down a lane. However, the good news was... it was ALL electronic, no manual scoring which was a good thing as there were drink tickets handed out... heh heh.

Then on to the Mandarin... great food!

No, it was not a nude event. Although we ran into about 50 Glen Echo people who were there for their own party. Small world.

Someone was talking about having a nude bowling night in the future.

The lake is freezing over ... photo's tomorrow as I don't want to put too many photos on the blog as it would take too long to load for some people.

Today it was about 43F / 6C all day with no wind. Temperature now is 32.3F / 0.1C. Underneath trailer it is 41F.

No snow or rain in the past few days and the snow we did have (about an inch on Friday night)... melted.

I woke up Saturday to my walks being shovelled. Very nice. If anyone wants their walks/deck/driveway cleared this winter, email me. Or, if you are coming up on any weekend and want your walks/deck/driveway cleared, let me know and I'll let the shoveller know. You will arrive to a nice clean entryway.

The Bare Oaks events calendar is loading now. I just checked and there are no park events planned for December.

I know I promised some Cayo Largo photos last week... I'll get to them... soon.

Advertisement: If you wish to buy a 2011 Naturist calendar created by Mike and Ruth (they have a trailer in the seasonal section) ... go here: http://mikesphotographix.blogspot.com. PayPal only. If you don't have PayPal, email me.

Another advertisement: If you wish to buy a naturist Nudie Toons cartoon book called 'The Funny Side of Going Naked' go here: http://www.nudietoons.ca/ I accept PayPal, credit card, check/cheque, money order... cash... :-D

Both of the above items would make LOVELY Christmas gifts. Order soon for delivery before Christmas. Order two and give one as a gift. ;-)

Travelling Home...

2010-11-25T13:48:00.008-05:00

Here are some photos from Judy and JL. They are making their way from BC and travelling across the top of the USA... through Washington, South Dakota, Iowa, and on.

Below are some photos (as always, click photo for larger photo). Sorry for those of you on dialup... these may take a while to load.

Below is Snoqualmie Pass on November 21, the trucks have chains on the tires. Oooo, snow. It is nice here.

Below is taken before Missoula. I have no idea where that is but it looks like fun :-)

Below is taken after Missoula. Heh heh. Imagine going through here with a trailer...

Photo below is Wyoming in the morning. Looks a tad boring there.

Photo below is Wyoming in the afternoon. Still looks a tad boring. Snore. Does anyone live there?

Photo below is South Dakota. Judy: South Dakota red soil topped by snow - like meringue on a layer cake!

Then they ran into freezing rain in Iowa... and so it ends... and that was last night. More photos when they get back.

Did I mention it is nice here with no snow??

Wednesday

2010-11-24T22:12:00.003-05:00

Photo: trees are removed to make way for a few more lots.

Photo: the other side of the lot.

Photo: some limbs have been removed to open up another lot.

I was asked for photos of the new drive through (drivethru?) lots so... here they are! Last I heard they were drivethru lots but things may change...

The weather has been very nice these past few days... 50 - 60F / 10 - 15C. There is a cold wind at times.

Tonight it is 28F ... that is below freezing. It's 39F under my trailer... Ooooo... climbing down to the freezing mark.

It snowed last night but only a bit and it melted today.

Since I posted about the potholes... they have been fixed!! The road is really nice to drive on now. Guess it was not too cold to grade.

There aren't many people around these days... but then... most people who are here work so they aren't around during the day. Leave in the dark, come home in the dark. Winter sucks eh?

I think I'll post a few photos of Cayo Largo tomorrow :-))) I haven't been there but it looks like one of the nicest beaches I have ever seen. Probably still has sharks though... :-(

Sunday

2010-11-21T16:44:00.002-05:00

Photo: a memorial bench beside the lake, in memory of Karyn Chase.

Photo: the tree that fell beside the bridge has been cut down. It is across the river now and it will be very interesting in the spring if it is not removed. The bridge area floods every spring.

Wow, it is Sunday already!!

It snowed on Thursday night... about an inch but it is gone now. No need to put away the golf carts yet :)

There was a poker tournament on Saturday, not sure how that went so if anyone has any details, email me or post it as a comment here.

A few fires at the back on Saturday (which I attended) during the day and into the evening. It was a tad (read = a LOT) chilly but we persisted!! Just because it is cool, you can still come up and have fun!! A few events are being planned for the winter months.

There are two areas of potholes left ... one by the hut at the front and one just after the gate. Other than that... it is clear sailing on all other roads. For those of you asking, I have been told that it is too cold to grade the road. Wait until the snow fills them.

Lots of Christmas lights are going up around the park. Unfortunately, as this is a trailer park, they will probably stay up all year long. There should be some sort of rule on the planet that lights should come down a few weeks after Christmas... except for the lights on the really tall trees... but I ramble... I'll stop now. :)

Sorry, one of my pet peeves. I have a few... ;-)

Now, where was I. The temperature here is 34F / 1C. Under the trailer it is 41F. Not bad... still not freezing underneath.

No rain or snow Saturday or today. I don't have a clue what the weather was like on Friday. I should do the blog more often...

The birds are hungry and a few people are feeding them around the park including Beckett and Helios.

The free range cats are hungry too as I keep catching a few in front of my place chasing birds and mice. I thought 'all pets' were supposed to be on a leash? Yes, I've brought this up before and I guess I'll keep doing it :-) Wow, it is one of those 'opinion' blogs...

Coming events... none. I can't get the November calendar on the Bare Oaks events page to display (actually not for the past few weeks) but if you click the Social Committee link on the events page and then click the next event link, that page displays.

So... there are no park events planned for the rest of November and December... or January.

Lots of people went to Cuba this month!! It is very very cheap... between $400 and $600 per person ALL INCLUSIVE. Two groups went from the park... plus a couple went to Jamaica. I need a tan.

For all the USA turkey day people out there... have an extra helping!! You can never get enough stuffing... or pumpkin pie. Mmmmmm.

Email me if you want any other news...

On a final note... get your snow shovels out!!

Tuesday

2010-11-16T13:51:00.003-05:00

Photo: sky over Bare Oaks. (I'll walk around the park today and take a few pictures without people)

Temperature is 55F / 13C. Not bad for mid-November. In case anyone is interested, it is currently 48F under my trailer. I am monitoring it to make sure my water line doesn't freeze this winter as I have removed the 'box with a light in it' and am only using heat tape.

No rain or snow recently. 'They' say it is going to rain tonight. Hah. 'They' have been wrong a lot.

Lots and lots of trees are being cut down in the seasonal area to make room for more trailer sites. 25 to date is what I have been told. It looks like they are currently working on the tree that fell over near the bridge. Good plan, if that sucker is not removed and falls into the creek there will be one major flood in the spring.

No trailers have changed hands recently so if you are looking for a trailer here... check the used trailer link on the Bare Oaks website.

If you are a walker, it is around 500 steps around the lake. If you want to maintain your current weight, you should walk 10,000 steps a DAY. Yes that is a DAY. I'm not making this up, ask Dr. Oz. :-)) So... get out there and WALK. Volunteer to take Moose for a walk.

The water has been off 4 days this week. Not all day but for a while in the mornings, once in the evening.

Not much else. If you have news, email me.

Friday

2010-11-12T13:28:00.002-05:00

Photo: the petanque court is growing weeds again... (as always, click photo for a larger picture.)

Nothing much happening these days.

A few new 'pull through' sites are being created at the back in the seasonal area.

Temperature is 61F / 16C at the moment, sweatshirt weather. Ski jackets are not necessary ... yet. It goes below freezing at night though.

No rain in a while. No snow in a while.

Not many people around these days... ho hum.

Dave, Judy and Maggs have arrived in Arizona!! So they have a nice warm(ish) winter to look forward to. I will post photos of their area when the weather gets very very cold here :-)

Monday

2010-11-08T14:57:00.002-05:00

Photo: an angry spider cupcake.

Photo: an army of angry spider cupcakes.

Shelley made these cupcakes for the Halloween party. The eyes are cinnamon hearts, the fangs are marshmallows, the legs are licorice and the cupcake is chocolate. Mmmm, delicious.

It snowed all day Friday, the weekend was sunny at times but chilly. Today it is NICE... and sunny! 60F / 15.5C.

I just finished the last of my outdoor chores today... phew.

It probably won't snow until December... which will be great.

Not much to report on, there are only a few people in the seasonal area now. Some people have gone south for the winter, some have gone to Cuba for a week... it's really cheap at the moment. $400 - $500 including air, taxes, accommodations, food and alcohol.

Still no evening Park events for November and December.

There is a day event on November 20 at 1:00 pm (until 5:00 pm), Poker Tournament. Actually it is at '13:00 - 17:00'. Does anyone use the 24 hour clock other than military and medical people? (Note: the 24 hour clock on the Bare Oaks calendar was discussed at the Halloween Party so I'm bringing it up here.)

Thursday

2010-11-04T18:47:00.003-04:00

Photo: the first snow this week!!! It didn't stay on the ground long.

Photo: A few spiders left over from Halloween.

It's been nice this week... for November.

At the moment it is 45F / 7C but it has gone down to well below freezing at night this week. One night it was 18F / -7C.

Not much rain all week... or snow.

One trailer at the back has changed hands this week. No other trailers going in or out. Most trailers are winterized now. There are a few trailers for sale in Helios Circle, listed here: http://www.bareoaks.ca/index.php/en/trailer-sales/used-trailers-for-sale.html. The first one on the list has been sold, I hear.

No swimmers in the lake anymore but Dennis is still running... around and around and around... he tires me out just watching him.

Do you know we can get Pizza delivery here from TWO places? One in Mt. Albert called... Pizza 77 Phone: 905-473-7700. One in Sharon called ... Papa D's Phone: 905-478-2018. If you order, you have to go to the office area to wait for it. Cool eh? Pizza 77 has fabulous pizza and I like the wings at Papa D's. Takes about 45 minutes for delivery.

The next event at Bare Oaks is November 20th at 1pm. Poker Tournament in the New Forest Room. $5. Bring your own snacks and drinks.

Nothing else is listed for the park for November or December. There are two swims listed, one on the 13th and one on the 20th.

Halloweenie...

2010-10-31T19:35:00.003-04:00

Photo: A very well decorated Halloween place at the park.

It's been a very busy October for me so ... I'll be posting the blog more often this winter... and thanks to all the people for their photos. I don't usually post the blog unless I have photos so, shrink them and send them to me. Preferably only a few per email... and less than 100kb each.

It's been a tad chilly this week and it SNOWED TODAY... and hailed, and the sun shone, and then it snowed again, and then sunny... a very confusing day.

It is 35F / or just above freezing C. To those of you not from Alaska... that is COLD.

Not nice for the trick or treaters tonight but... not raining either and I'd rather take cold then rain.

It's been raining off and on all week.

The water at the back was turned off on Tuesday (or Monday?) but, as far as I know, the showers and washrooms still have water. Due to the cold, I doubt they will be on for much longer but... who knows...

The potholes are back in force but the roads are getting a LOT of use from a few people so that is probably the reason for the potholes. I can't believe the small amount of rain can cause that much damage.

The Halloween dinner / dance was sold out. 65 - 70 people attended. I have never seen such a great quantity and variety of food. The pool table (aka buffet table) was still full of food at midnight. Phew. I ate a lot as did everyone else.

The dance was still going at 2am with DJ Dean. Thanks Dean for the music!! And thanks Dorothy (and helpers) for decorating!

There were spot dances, door prizes, prizes for best male costume (he was dressed as a female), best female costume (fancy costumes) and best couple (corpse bride and groom). I can't tell you who won as I don't have permission to blog their names.

50/50 draw was for $77.

The only complaint/problem I heard about the dinner/dance (and I have heard this before in the past about the last few dinner/dances) was the way the tables were arranged. It is not conducive to socializing. When the tables are arranged in the 'church dinner' fashion (in long rows) it is difficult to get between them and difficult to talk to any other people other than your direct neighbors. When the round tables were arranged all over the floor with six chairs around them, it was much easier to get between the tables and sit and chat with people. I heard the excuse ... you can't sit 65 people when the tables are arranged that way but... we have had parties with over 80 people in the basement and there was never a problem with seating. Note: Don't yell at me, I only report what people have told me and if I hear about any particular problem more than once. If you wish to officially complain or ... discuss it with management... approach them. BUT, management will state that they don't arrange the parties so speak to the people arranging them :-) I agree with that.

The next event at Bare Oaks is November 20th at 1pm. Poker Tournament in the New Forest Room. $5. Bring your own snacks and drinks.

Nothing else is listed for November or December for the Park.

I'll try to post if (and when) the road to the back is closed this winter. It would only be a temporary thing due to high water levels (grin) or mud... etc.

November starts tomorrow!! Winter!!

We need some events like: skating, skiing, snowshoeing, euchre, darts, port tasting, beer tasting, wine and cheese social. Remember you do NOT have to go through the social committee to organize an event but you may want to check the calendar on the Bare Oaks site to see if an event they have scheduled will conflict with an event you have planned.

There are a lot of people reading this blog so if you want anything advertised or any questions answered either email me or post a comment to the blog.

Carry on...