Well the inside of the canoe is pretty well ready for some cleaner and the final touch of Spar Varnish. he even has the replacement decals:

I was down at the lake today and I spotted some ducks I have never seen before. When I got home I discovered they were Long-tailed Ducks. They came right close to the shore and then put on quite a show for me. The water was so clear I could see them diving and swimming underwater.
What a beautiful bird.

This is a picture of one that I found on the web, identified as free domain. The photographer is Ken Billington.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ALong-tailed_Duck_(Clangula_hyemalis)_(01).jpg

We went over to  help Marty with his canoe yesterday. We got all the bottom planking put back on and covered up all the repaired ribs. Looks great Marty! You are a real craftsman.

I love canoeing so I find this website full of useful information.

http://blog.portageur.ca/

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If you look here, specifically at the Feb 19th 2013 blog (The Great Horned Owls of Sikome Lake) you will see some amazing pics:

http://www.birdcanada.com/

They also recommend a great book for birding. It looks very worthwhile to have even though it is not a field guide.

http://www.birdcanada.com/book-review-birds-of-canada/

I found it at Chapters and Amazon. Here are two previews of what can be found inside:
Anatomy and Flight

Blackburnian Warbler / Magnolia Warbler

Ran across this great invention called the Kelly Kettle. It can boil water really quickly and requires very little wood to do so.

http://www.leevalley.com/en/garden/page.aspx?p=43901&cat=2,40733,40996,43901

Here is a demo video showing it in use:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ujk_49pMMsg&feature=player_embedded

This year I am going to join the backyard Bird Count. It starts on Feb 15/2013

The Great Backyard Bird Count

Have you ever seen a European Goldfinch? I haven't which is no surprise considering where its habitat is. What a striking bird.

European Goldfinch

This is a great blog about cross country skiing in Algonquin Park. You have to check this out.

Photo Essay: Cross-Country Skiing in Algonquin Provincial Park – Ontario