Beavers again

Apparently some of the beavers which are removed from sites where they are causing a problem are relocated into our rural parks. We have been watching such a family, two adults, young ones about two years old, and two kits which look to be from this year's litter. Like all baby animals, the kits are unbelievably cute.

Wildlife around us

Our creek is a summer haven for neighborhood children, with very few places deep enough to be dangerous, and many splashing pools for cooling off. It is also home to much wildlife, including muskrats, possums, and raccoons. Upstream is an marshy area which draws an occasional heron and now and then a common snipe. There was a beaver dam there, too, but the city sent workers in to remove it (can't dam up the waterway) and take the beavers out of town. We miss them.

Midsummer

Finally the garden is bearing, pretty well. Everything was late due to the cold winter and late spring, not very like our usual maritime climate. Cucumbers especially were reluctant to grow, but now we have a few beginning to develop.

Leave it to small boys to get the most out of summer. The nine-year-old next door spends his days exploring the creek with friends, imagining monsters in each deep, quiet pond. He has built a tree house and a pier over the creek water which will wash away with the first big storm.