Colors....Colours....everywhere!

Last weekend we decided to take a ride to Gatineau to check out the fall "colors". The park was completely packed which meant we couldn't get to the places we normally go. That turned out to be a bonus for us because we stumbled on a nice hiking trail.

When we first started out on our hike Zada was complaining that she was cold and she needed her hat but once we started on our hike she quickly forgot about being cold. The trail we chose was extremely hilly and tricky at times. We probably should have brought along a map or looked at the one at the beginning of the trial. Who needs directions anyway!

Not only did we not have a map we didn't have a watch to keep track of how long we had been walking. We decided that we would just keep going on our trail as it had to wrap around at some point. Plus Zada wasn't complaining about being cold or bored so we took advantage and kept going. It wasn't until we saw a sign pointing to our parking lot that said "3.5 KM"...that's about 2 miles for those who don't' know... we had already been walking a while so we weren't too happy about the extra... but we kept going and enjoying the scenery.

I was wearing a pedometer and when we finally got back to the car we estimated that we walked about 7-8km (4miles) that day....I was so impressed that Zada made it with minimal complaining. I didn't give her a piggy-back-ride the last km as she was moving slow and we were "pressed for time"....hockey game was on. Priorities! :)

We did enjoy many of the lookouts over Gatineau Park and looking into the city. Very colourful! I was able to go again last Wednesday and the colour was even more amazing! I however didn't bring a camera...silly silly me.

Happy Thanksgiving to All my Canadian Friends and Family! Gobble Gobble!

Formation

The time has come. It's the time of year our feathered friends make their long journey south for the winter. Last night on our walk we saw a group of Canada Geese making their journey. We watched them put on a show for us - making their letter V. It's pretty neat to see.

Zada came blasting down the stairs as if the ice cream truck just delivered 10 Tons of ice cream on our doorstep she says "DID YOU HEAR THAT DID YOU HEAR THAT?" Startled by her excitement I stopped doing my domestic duties (drinking tea and watching tv).

What? I asked. What is outside? As she's putting on her shoes very frantically to go see she says... The geese are doing their dance in the sky!

So out we went and she was so excited to see that all the geese were in their "V" formation. Then she explains to me why they are doing that - they are going to go to the south to be warm.

So winter is on it's way! Winter. Is. On. It's. Way. I guess that's hard to imagine if you're in Missouri and still experiencing heat. 

Below are some fun facts about Geese:

• As each goose flaps its wings it creates an "uplift" for the birds that follow. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone

• When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.

• When the lead goose tires, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies to the point position.

• The geese flying in formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

• When a goose gets sick, wounded or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.

 

Doing My Part....

Today was grocery day. YIPPEEE. The grocery store we go to is selling these very stylish cloth grocery bags for .99 cents. I decided that we needed to pick up at least two of these neat bags especially after seeing them up close. Like most people we have an enormous mound of plastic bags building up. Sure we use them for our garbage cans in the bathrooms but I'm sure we currently have enough for the entire year. I know we will still get plastic bags but at least we will be getting LESS of them! The bags are quite big. They probably hold 5 bags each of groceries. It was nice to carry only a couple bags in tonight. 

I personally think it's a really good idea global warming or not... Are you doing your part?