The Free Radical

Sometimes I’m a bit stupid. For the past few days I had been lamenting the end of onion season. Of course, the reality is that onion season never really ends. It’s just that my preference is for consuming the flowers, (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

Grasshopper season is well underway. As a little side note, it is dangerous to walk into a strong headwind during grasshopper season! You will be pelted… mercilessly. And if you’ve never had the unique experience of having a grasshopper cling (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

Ever since the summer solstice, when Dutch Creek flooded its banks, I’ve noticed that the River’s voice has remained gruff and loud. Each day as I approach the river valley I’m surprised by its still-excited tone. In many, many places (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

As raspberry season comes rapidly to a close I was beginning to wonder what wild treat might come next in the seasonal procession. Wild choke cherries are now coming ripe, but it is challenging to find outcroppings that are minimally (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

The fear of nature is endemic in our culture. It seems that whenever I attempt to explain to others what it is I “do,” there invariably follows the shocked and trembling voice which says “Aren’t you scared being by yourself (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

Richard (Turkey Vulture) has passed along the New Vision to Hawk… and his other high flying cohorts. “But Niels, how do you really know that that’s a hawk and not a vulture?” you might ask. Once airborne, you will rarely– (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve been meaning to take a microphone and audio recorder out to the woods for some time already. Sometimes I simply can’t get a picture of those “speaking” to me… or if I do, it’s so far away that it (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

Good ol’ reliable Juniper! Even in times when there’s really nothing else available, you can always seek out Juniper, even in the middle of winter if need be. To hear Juniper pipe up in the midst of the season of (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

I guess the main staple of my foraging activities has been alfalfa blossoms. I have found their varieties of colour absolutely stunning! Each variation in colour seems to have its own unique flavour too. They constantly grab my attention as (…)

Read the rest of this entry »

Hey, sorry about the shitty picture. Ha! Once again, this communique from the Invisible Bear was left directly upon the path I tread every day. It was placed in an area very close to the Dutch Creek Community, but a (…)

Read the rest of this entry »