Thursday, March 22, 2018

Counting Eagles


Photo by Vancouver Island Photographer, Rainer Willeke
In the morning when I sit at my dining table having breakfast, I look out over a forest of trees to a distant patch of sunlit ocean, backed by snow-topped ice-cream mountains. Often ravens are having conversations in the tall evergreens, and once in a while an eagle wheels overhead, just beyond my backyard. There is a little lake out of sight behind the trees, and I like to think that the eagle is swooping down to fish there, but more likely it is scanning the road at the back of our place, looking for roadkill. 

One of the things I love about being back at the BC coast again is seeing eagles. Lately we have been making regular trips to our local ski hill to go for an afternoon of skiing. This involves a drive up the coast, and then up into the mountains. It takes a little more than an hour. On the way I count eagles. (Note that I am not driving while I count. Rob drives to the hill, and I drive home.)

I always see at least one, and I have counted as many as six eagles on the drive. I have learned to look for their favourite perches, high up on dead branches. They like to position themselves where they can overlook both a stream and the highway. Open patches of field also are favoured. Sometimes I see hawks as well as eagles. I am speculating that the number I see on any given day depends on whether the tide is in or out. The Island Highway is just a few kilometers from the ocean in most sections, and when the tide is out, there is lots for the eagles to eat in the tidal pools.

This retirement gig is pretty awesome! I am grateful everyday that I get to be in this place and do the the things that I do. Skiing, for example. I have written before that skiing is part of my identity story. I love to ski. I have had some injuries that sidelined me from skiing for periods of a year or more, and nearly a decade ago, I even had one doctor tell me that I would never ski again. So now I ski much more cautiously, and am thankful for every additional year that I get to be on the ski hill.

A Happy Skier
We have met some new friends here who like to ski, and have had great fun meeting them at the hill. Later we debate the problems of the world in a bar or restaurant.

My Trusty Skiing Partner
Of course, not every day is a perfect day. Sometimes things break -- one of our toilets, to be exact, and we have been waiting for a week to get a plumber. Or technology decides to drive me crazy. For example, my mobile phone has decided that it no longer wants to communicate with my computer. So I can't upload my photos, just when I am trying to organize and edit my painting photos for my art website.

The sun does not shine everyday. This is the west (wet) coast. However, we put on our raincoats and boots, and out we go anyways.

Thursday Dog Walking Group

This morning most of the hardy members of my weekly dog walking group showed up despite the threat of rain. That is my dog, Kate, in the foreground. And yes! The smiling person on the left is Donna of Retirement Reflections.





18 comments:

  1. Hi, Jude - I hate to say I told you so....but retirement is a great gig. And....if I knew that you were going to post my photo on your blog, I would have taken my hat off!
    So true about our amazing eagles. They can also be found by the dozens on the path beside the PQ SPCA.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Donna, I think you look lovely — as lovely as one can look in west coast rain gear!

      Jude

      Delete
  2. I certainly agree about retirement, though mine will never involve skiing! And Donna was instantly recognisable, hat or no hat.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anabel, I don’t know why I am so surprised that I love retirement. For some reason I imagined that I would plop myself on the couch, gain 400 pounds, and be so bored that I would spend the whole day watching television. I guess I had absorbed the cartoonists’ stereotype as my destiny. I don’t even like watching TV!

      Jude

      Delete
  3. I'll never tire of hearing about your enthusiasm for retirement, Jude. May it never end, and may you never stop counting those eagles. Just don't bother trying to count the raindrops or even the number of rainy days. They're so irrelevant to your retirement life, especially when there's rain gear :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Karen, because I have lived at the coast before, I am used to rainy winters. They are just part of the package when you choose to live beside the ocean in a rainforest!

      Jude

      Delete
  4. I love how you continue to be thrilled with your retirement. I know many of us told you so, but one never knows until it is actually experienced. It sounds like you picked a lovely place to retire to - lots to do and people to do it with!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Janis, it is so true that you can plan all you want, but you only truly understand something once you experience it. I think we are really lucky that we relocated to Vancouver Island. It is beautiful here, the weather is great, and people are really friendly.

      Jude

      Delete
  5. Love to hear your enthusiasm for retirement, Jude. It's awesome to see eagles, ski with your hubby, or be outdoors to enjoy nature with friends like Donna. Enjoy!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Natalie, the landscape here is beautiful, and I love being outdoors enjoying it.

      Jude

      Delete
  6. All these lovely retirement pursuits! I long for the day and I'm quite sure it will be just as wonderful as everyone says. To sit and gaze over forests and ocean glimpses with breakfast........... must be bliss!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sue, thanks for your comment. Yes, retirement is great. However, I can’t say that I looked forward to it with huge anticipation. Rather, I felt a lot of trepidation about it.

      Jude

      Delete
  7. I've been retired so long now (7 years) that I can't imagine how I managed to go to work everyday. Everyday is an adventure and the only real routine I have is blogging in the mornings over a cup of coffee, and hiking on Mondays 🙂

    I'm sad to say I've never skied and thought that this might have been the winter I'd try, but it didn't happen. Maybe next year 😉. It will be me and all the 3 year olds on the bunny hills 🙂

    Nice to see Donna peeking out from another blog. Do the two of you live close?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Seven years of retirement, Joanne. That is wonderful! I am just in my first year of it, and learning the ropes.

      When I go to the ski hill, I see lots of adults who are just learning. The modern skis are so easy to learn on, and the ski instructors seem to be very good. Try it! It is really fun.

      Yes, it is Donna that you see in the photo. When we moved to Vancouver Island, we settled in the community right beside hers. It is pretty cool for a blogging buddy to become an IRL friend!

      Jude

      Delete
  8. That's great you guys are determined to walk, rain or shine. I really liked seeing Donna and Kate in that last photo! Skiing is not my thing - I love to look at the beautiful snow from a "safe" distance :-) - but I'm so glad that you are enjoying this retirement gig.

    As for the toilet breaking... it sounds like you have a back-up somewhere, so patience is probably the best attribute right now. The technology part I can surely relate to, unfortunately. I hope you get this issue figured out.

    I love spotting eagles - and other big birds of prey - as well. Such a beautiful part of the world you live in, Jude. We hope to share some of it this summer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kate is getting old. She is now more than twelve years old, but she still loves her walks and socializing with the other dogs and people.

      It’s funny about preferred climates. I know you love warm places, Liesbet. I am just the opposite. I find the heat hard to take, but thrive in our cooler Canadian climates.

      It is so great that you guys are planning a trip up here this summer! If I can find your email somewhere, I will send you mine so that we can keep in touch as your plans develop.

      Jude

      Delete
  9. Hi Jude. There should be a way to contact me through my blog via a form. That way, I get your email address and from that point, we can communicate privately. As far as our plans for the summer, as always, they are written in the sand at low tide... We never know what will work out and what will happen, until the last moment. :-)

    ReplyDelete