Listening to our car radio we heard non stop stories about police and protesters in Toronto - these lonely protesters in front of the Huntsville Civic Centre were friendly and eager to chat - and underscored the small-town charm of the Huntsville G8 in comparison to the events pictured below in the Toronto G20.
A cameraman staked out Main Street and a CTV news truck parked behind Algonquin Outfitters in hopes of spotting someone or something important.
On our way out of town police stopped traffic in all directions to allow this motorcade through. We couldn’t see who was in the motorcade but whoever it was rated a helicopter overhead, soldiers in full battle gear in accompanying cars and motorcycles front and back. We watched from just outside the ice cream store along highway 60 just before the turnoff into town, so Carolyn and some police officers cooled off with some ice cream while we waited.
After the motorcade passed highway 60 was opened up and we were able to drive by Deerhurst. Security measures to protect the G8 leaders were in evidence everywhere.These fences by the side of the rode were installed for several kilometers in either direction. There were blue tarps every 110 meters that allowed guards protection from the sun and port-a-potties so that none of them had to go far from their posts.
OK, sign along with me....
Despite a weather forecast which predicted a day of thunderstorms and rainfall, the sun broke through the clouds mid morning on Sunday and turned this spiderweb into a gossamer sculpture.
While the water is a little lower than usual on Cache Lake, we’ve been lucky compared to other lakes on the east side of the Park. A winter with very little snow has left many lakes with record lows, including this one just outside of Madawaska. Normally there is a good sized houseboat tied up to this dock!
We were fortunate enough to cross paths with Anne Holford and two of her kids - Michael and Holly. Anne is now living in Ireland but was in Canada to see daughter Holly graduate. She and two of her kids managed to squeeze in a little cottage time before Anne headed back to Ireland.
That was the theme of our weekend. If it had wings, it dropped by our island this weekend. Through rain on Saturday and Sunday morning, and sun on Sunday afternoon we were visited by all things winged! Our first visitor was this seagull who squatted on the dock for awhile and then flew off to Ted Morris’ to dine on fish.
Rob Durnan emailed us in the middle of the week to let us know mama loon was nesting a few metres away from the dock so we spent the weekend tiptoeing around so as not to scare her. Here she takes a break from the nest to do a little fishing with papa loon.
While Mama was off the nest, I snuck over to see if she was sitting on an egg. Looks like she’s expecting twins!
But loons weren’t the only “breeders” on the island. We’ve found several robin’s nests on this ladder over the years, and this year was no exception. These little lovelies (actually not so lovely until they get a little older) were so newborn that they barely had any down and their eyes were still closed!
And last but not least, our final winged friend on Wahbahmimi this weekend. The air was practically alive with dragonflies, and this one touched down just long enough for me to snap a picture.
