Indeed, it was a very nice afternoon at Glaciers End! We visited this place at the right moment because of the nice weather and taking pics, about 2 weeks later it was only white we would see because of the snow and ice chrystals...(see link) Dave, thanks for having us at your beautiful gardens! Some comments to the pics: Dave mentioned that he will cut off one leader of the Abies procera 'Rat Tail' in Spring. 'Rat Tail' is often seen as only 'Rat' but it's clear that this cultivar is named after it's tail and not the animal itself... Calocedrus decurrens 'Maupin Glow' When we were at Jason Hupp's nursery he told us that this one was found in Maupin which is a small town which is also in the Oregon State. Picea mariana 'Blue Teardrop' This one was found by Bob Fincham as a faster growing mutation on a Picea mariana 'Nana'. Somethimes you see it also under the wrong spellend cultivar names 'Blue Tierdrop' and 'Blue Tear Drop'... Picea abies 'Gold Dust' This is a big specimen indeed, but we saw a much bigger one which was at least 4 times as big at Don Howse from Porterhowse Nursery. 'Gold Dust' was found 30 years ago between understock seedlings by Talon Buchholz and I guess that Don's specimen was one of the first propagations... Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Drath Hexe'. This cultivar was found as a witches' broom on a 'Drath'. All nurseries are selling those as cultivars of Chamaecyparis obtusa but it was me who discovered that those are cultivars of Chamaecyparis lawsoniana because of the cones that the 'Drath' will produce. 'Drath Hexe' was found by in 1990 my German friend Guenter Eschrich. @ Sam, pizza, girls and conifers is the most ideal situation you can wish for. All this with a couple of beers and you feel like you're in heaven :0) @ Josh, unfortunately our photo camaras were left in the car but I bet Dave will go back there and will make a nice pic of her. He's a regular customer of that bar (I guess I know why now) and the only thing he has to tell her is that this pic will make her famous all around the (conifer) world. Well Dave, jump in your car and accomplish this mission so everybody here will know what I'm talking about :0) Here is a link that might be useful: bad weather for taking pics...

My husband and I just returned from a weekend getaway with just such a situation as you describe..."fully equipped" kitchen and with us in the mode of hanging out watching the sun set over the ocean rather than driving into town to eat etc. We do this twice a year, for a long weekend, and I've gotten quite expert. The accouterments of the "fully equipped" kitchen tend to change, so I always bring some basics. The important thing is to remember is kitchen items can play double roles in situations like this. A frypan can double as a lid for a large pot, a mixing bowl can serve as a serving dish or a soup tureen. Ziplock bags are your friends. And a roll of saran wrap and foil can save you in any number of problem situations. I find it helpful to write out a menu listing for all meals. Saturday breakfast, Saturday lunch, Saturday dinner...etc. Once this is accomplished, it is much easier to think about what special utensils or seasonings you might need to bring. The menu, once written, is not chiseled into stone by any means, but it gives you a framework for packing. When you visualize making any given meal, you will find yourself suddenly remembering that you would need this or that which you hadn't thought of. I have also found it a good idea to pack a few food items to cover, "just in case." Tins of smoked oysters, sardines, pate, Vienna sausages, crackers, a can or two of fruit, olives, pickles,some cheese, a few Top Ramens or Cup O'Noodles, cans of Campbell's soup, chili or pork and beans. Whatever quickie foods your family would eat without mutiny. These come in handy for the unexpected incident or the instance where the one whom everyone depends on to cook gets a bad headache or something.

I have spent several vacations on the Winipeg flowage out of Minaki, Ontario. My parents-in-law had a cabin on an island 5 miles from town. The only way in was by boat or swim. The terrain is similar - no sandy beaches. Just a rocky shoreline to bang the bow of the canoe. Landing can be tricky in wind and waves. That country is a stunning place to visit. Once you are out on the water, it hits you. This place could be dangerous. There are lots of ways to mess up, so one takes care not to do those things and then along comes a situation you did not think about. It keeps you alert. Mosquitos can be bad or not so bad, but are ever present. During the day, if there is a breeze that is faster than the flying speed (5 mph) of the buggers, they tend to stay parked on the underside of leaves. When the wind calms at nightfall and the relative humidity rises, they come out. To survive and sleep, you must have good mosquito netting on your tent and you should have a repair kit. However, we noted an interesting phenomonem. If you get in a canoe or boat and move away from shore, you will find a distance beyond which they will not venture. Its in the neighborhood of 30 ft. Those waters are populated with muskies and pike. When these fish are about, you do not sit on a dock and dangle your toes in the water. These fish have a teeth and a ferocious strike. A story circulated one year about a boy who dangled his toes, a muskie struck and stripped most of the flesh off his great toe - unpleasant! The guys made sure they did not go skinny dipping for obvious reasons. They wore suits and had no problems. And now it is story time. There were two young fellows who worked for the "Lands and Forest" during the summer. They had the job of moose survey and tagging. How do you place an ear tag in a wild moose?? It was their practice to go out in a small helicopter to spot the moose. When they found a moose swimming in water, they could swoop down, look for the ear tag and if none were present, tag the moose without much fuss. The moose was terrified however. The guy doing the tagging would climb out on the runners - regular modern cow - no - mooseboys. On this fateful day, they are 30 miles away from the station when they spy a moose in water. The water is almost over the shoulders. Now, there is one predictable thing about moose and that is they are unpredictable. This happless pair swoops down over the moose with a man riding the runner. The moose did not move. Just as soon as the tagger reached out to tag, the moose stood up! It was laying in a couple ft of water. The moose in getting up tips the helicopter over and it wrecks. The rotor hit the water. One person got a broken bone and the other one was knocked around a bit. There they were sitting in water with wrecked machine, one person significantly injured, and the radio shot. The storyteller stopped and never revealed how they got out. Needless to say, the accident was written up and the provedures revised.

Lovely photos. The food looks yummy. I've been to Kyoto but not to the bamboo forest, it looks like you had a chance to see many interesting places during your visit. Are you planning a return trip.