Slow glimpses of spring

Spring is slowly creeping in, and I love it! It’s already light until after 10pm and it is light when we wake up!

A couple of weeks ago Jeff said, let’s go for a walk, a real walk! Let’s do 10km (6.2 miles)!

I couldn’t think of a reason why not, other than I just can’t walk that far in winter boots without getting sore Achilles tendons or blisters. But we were going out to Bonanza Road, a plowed road, so I pulled a pair of shoes out of my drawer where shoes go to hibernate all winter. I haven’t worn shoes since… well so long I can’t remember!

I put my shoes on, a pair of long johns under some quick dry pants, some layers, and strapped on a little backpack bag with a bottle of water. Let’s go!

Jeff and I have different paces, so we agreed to do our own thing. Hank and Jeff quickly went ahead and I popped in my earbuds in transparency mode so I could hear any vehicles coming and listen to a podcast.

The road was rough and sometimes really icy, but it felt SO GOOD to go for a long walk. I can’t think of a time I have ever walked 10km straight without stopping.

It took me just over 2 hours. Jeff and Hank finished 12 minutes before me. We both thought, we should do this again!

So we did!

About 10 days later, on Good Friday, the weather was cool and breezy but sunny, so we set off for another walk! We took the truck further out Bonanza Road so we wouldn’t have to walk past some really barky dogs behind a low fence. It had snowed since last time though, and the road wasn’t plowed, so the whole walk was like walking in a couple of inches of sand. My pace was slower, but we did it again! Another 10km walk!

What else is up?

Oh, the new motor for our new boat arrived. It is MASSIVE! It is a 40hp, so we can navigate the swift Yukon River current.

Jeff’s been building a stand for it. He tells me that boat motors store best upright, especially once there is oil in them. The boat we’ve ordered is an inflatable boat (like a Zodiac) that will be shipped up once the weather is warmer (early May likely). Look how cute and happy he is!

What else… Oh, we attended the Fur Show in March. I saw a wolf pelt that looked like the wolf must have been 9 or 10 feet long, nose to tail tip! We were there early when they were still being graded. There were squirrel pelts, marten, lynx, wolverines, and fox. Fewer than the last fur show we attended.

I’ve been up on the Dome often to look for video opportunities. Sometimes it can be calm in town and blowing like a cyclone up top! Now I’ve gotten smart and realized I can use my binoculars to look for the wind sock on top of the dome (for the paragliders) right from our back door!

I even started hiking up to the fire tower one weekend on the snowmobile trail for a video opportunity but bailed due to the deepness of the snow (I couldn’t leave the trail without sinking to my thighs, which makes it impossible to move around).

Sally’s been enjoying the increase in sunshine.

I have been helping out at the Dawson City Museum. I helped them pick out a new data server and set it up for them, with an unlimited power supply. Then I taught them how to remove hard drives out of the older computers they were going to recycle. They took me out to lunch to thank me. It was my first time in our newer Annabelle’s Noodle House restaurant. I had a delicious Japanese curry with rice and a pork cutlet on top. It was delicious! And the portion was way too big to eat all of it. Highly recommend!

Jeff had his birthday last week. He asked for banana bread with chocolate chips instead of a cake, so I made 4 of them so he could stash some in the freezer for another day. I tried a new recipe. It had so many chocolate chips! It called for sprinkling them on the top too.

We went out for supper on the night of his birthday to the Pan of Gold. I had Hawaiian pizza and Jeff had a burger and poutine.

For his birthday I bought him a food dehydrator – a big one! Now he can make some jerky with his moose meat. What else should we try dehydrating? I’m thinking mushrooms maybe? Vegetables? Definitely the herbs we grow in the summer! Anyone have any suggestions or recipes for us?

He did his first batch of moose jerky over the Easter long weekend. He took a moose roast out of the freezer and sliced it into jerky pieces and marinated it with a peppery jerky mix. It turned out really well! Here it is during the drying process:

Easter was a nice relaxing one for us. However, we had a blizzard! Probably the biggest storm of the winter due to all the wind! That meant more shovelling. We have had some melt over the last month though. The snow slid off the south side of the house a few weeks back, and some snow is rock hard and icy from the sun. But the fresh stuff keeps falling once a week or so to keep it fresh and white around here.

The forecast for this week is teasing us with +7C during the day on Saturday and Sunday! We only have a couple of more days to get our bets in for when we think the Yukon River will break up!

Oh! Before I sign off, you’ve gotta see the cute Easter treats my friend dropped off!

There were some bunny cookies on top but we gobbled them up before I could even take a picture! Thanks Janet!