September 26, 2020 - Saturday morning

60 degrees/cloudy/calm winds

Pentoga Road

Thankfully, the severe storms that blew through the Upper Peninsula last evening scraped by to the north. We received some fairly strong winds, but just .1 of an inch of rain. I wish no bad weather on our neighbors, but we've had enough of our own this past summer.

Our trees are quickly being shredded of their beautiful leaves by the latest wind and rain.

It was quite noticeable during Friday morning's walk.

Still, there were plenty to enjoy.

Once home, I used the high pressure washer to remove any loose paint from the south side of the storage shed. I wanted to spray it early in the day so the wood would have a chance to dry.

Sargie and I had our big meal for brunch, leftover stuffed squash, before we took a long afternoon drive.

We were really shocked at discovering the damage caused by a tornado last August around a lake ten miles west of Iron River. 

Assuming the side of the storage shed was dry, we returned home to begin painting. I did the overhead work while Sargie painted the trim and sides down below.

Finished with the storage unit, Sargie went ahead and painted the trim around the rest of the barn.

While she was busy, I began cleaning the flower bed by the barn and taking the refuse into the woods.

The canna and dahlia bulbs will be lifted and stored in the basement over the winter months.

I'd noticed the Wolf River apples were dropping to the ground in an unnatural number. Upon closer inspection, I found that the partridge are using our tree and fruit as their daily buffet.

The apples are huge and ready to be harvested.

Even with the partridge damage, there were plenty. We'll dehydrate those and the rest of the Macintosh in the days ahead. Of course, a few will be stored for the coming winter months.

Finished picking, I used the two wheeled weed trimmer to cut the asparagus fronds and haul them away.

The calendula flowers have spread over the west end of the garden during the past two years. Self seeding, I'll have to begin limiting their growth next spring.

Fishing? Did someone say they wanted to go fishing?

The lake looked like it should be featured in a calendar.

Here's a question for you. Two people are sitting together in a boat, using the same lure, and fishing the same water. The fisherlady hauls in one large crappie after another while the poor poor fisherboy can only sit and watch, his lure largely ignored. How's that work?

Thank goodness one of us knows how to fish and obviously, it's not me. I caught one little bluegill and a small crappie last night. Master Angler Sargie Pants caught a nice mess, enough to provide us with a good meal of fried fish later this winter.

It was getting on in the evening before the fish were cleaned, showers taken, and we had a bite to eat. Neither of us had any problem dropping off to sleep last night.

It's light enough that I can go for my walk. Otherwise, I'm not sure what's on the agenda. We've talked about taking a ride up north to look at the leaves, but I'll leave that up to the master angler. Otherwise, I'll continue cleaning the garden and/or working in the shop.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

An eagle taking flight

With the two inches of heavy rain that fell the night before last, along with the storms that are forecast for tonight, I'm fearful our leaf peeping season may be coming to an end.

September 25, 2020 - Friday morning

56 degrees/cloudy/calm winds

Pentoga Road

It happens every year. Just as the leaves are reaching their peak colors, a storm, accompanied by heavy winds and rain, blows in and just like that, the leaves are pounded to the ground.

If this fall is like any other, Sargie and I will be in the yard raking, blowing, and gathering leaves whose depths can measured in feet within the next week or two.

Thursday dawned wet and miserable with 1.9 inches of water sitting in the rain gauge. I fiddled around on the internet until a break in the rain happened, then strapped on my hikers for my daily walk.

I was nearing home when I saw a beautiful woman dressed in red, well, her coat was red, walking towards me. Sargie had come to walk with me.

After enjoying a big brunch, we drove to town for Sargie's daily Coke and enjoyed a short drive after.

Even with the water dripping from the trees and a heavy mist in the air, the scenery was still beautiful.

I'm wondering if the geese know something we're only assuming. Birds, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, are streaming south before cold weather arrives.

The large flocks must be serious as much of the honking we heard yesterday came from far above the clouds. They weren't messing around.

We stopped at one of our local lakes on the way home to check on fishing conditions.

Back home and in a very lazy mood, I reclined in my chair and fell sound asleep... for over an hour and a half. It was just one of those dreary days that was conducive for a good, old fashioned, grandpa nap.

Upon awakening and clearing the cob webs from between my ears, I decided to head to the lake and try my luck while Sargie opted to remain home to put up the last of the ripe tomatoes.

Fishing was okay, but I just wasn't in the mood. I returned the few I'd caught and came back home.

Top most on my mind was getting back to the cozy, warm, and dry, house. Somewhat damp and more than a bit chilled, I was delighted by the delicious smells that greeted me coming from the kitchen.

Sargie had been working her wonderful kitchen magic while I was away.

My bride had made one of my favorites, squash, stuffed with sausage, hamburger, fresh tomato slices, Swiss and cheddar cheese, and fresh mushrooms. Words have yet to be invented to describe how delicious it was.

We had a quiet evening last night and in spite of my previous marathon afternoon nap, I slept the night through.

On today's agenda: I want to scrape the south side of the storage shed behind the barn and get a coat of paint on that before this evening's storms come thundering through. If the weather is decent, Sargie and I plan to go fishing later in the afternoon. 

Meanwhile, as soon as it's light enough, I'll head out the door for my morning stroll.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

I'm doing what all husbands do when their wives's hands are hopelessly occupied in the kitchen. Helping of course!

 

September 24, 2020 - Thursday morning

55 degrees/rain/calm winds

Pentoga Road

Normally, I would have started with the picture below in celebration of Sargie's fishing prowess, but she headlined Wednesday's writing. 

I'll keep this simple. From now on, The Crappie Queen will be referred to as the Master Angler Crappie Queen.

Michigan's Master Angler award for a crappie requires a minimum length of fourteen inches. Sargie's measured 14.5 inches. 

Jambo and I checked some time ago what was required, paperwork, registration, at least two witnesses, and all, to officially recognize a fish for the master angler award and it's quite daunting. None-the-less, Sargie's our Pentoga Road Master Angler Crappie Queen.

To compare size, those are really nice bluegills lying above the crappie.

Wednesday was filled with fishing and installing a television antenna.

While Sargie was still slumbering away, I was on the lake at sunrise.

The leaves are at their peak and the reflection off the smooth surface was gorgeous.

Fishing was good. I caught all I wanted within the first hour and was back home before 8 AM. As follows all successful fishing trips, the next hour or more was spent cleaning my catch.

I took a quick jaunt to Pentoga Village and back, more to enjoy the colors than for the exercise.

A few geese lifted off the Brule River and immediately turned to the south as they gained altitude.

A salvage person is to come and get the old Man Truck in the next day or two. It served me well for many years, but with only rust holding it together, its days of hauling wood and dirt ended two years ago.

Just because the truck ceased to run doesn't mean it wasn't somewhat functional. I put what was left over from the pond liner in the bed last year. Weighing several hundred pounds, the tractor was used to move it elsewhere.

The next order of business was to install a television antenna over the shop to replace the one that was destroyed by snow and wind last winter. 

How something so seemingly simple could be so difficult to assemble is beyond me. It came in a hundred million pieces, or at least ten or twelve.

It took several trips up and down the ladder to install the thing and still, it doesn't work very well. Next will come a new cable to replace the old. The current one is a series of spliced wires connecting the tv to the antenna. 

Though it was hot and the middle of the afternoon, we decided to go fishing. Sargie was ready to ply her skills against whatever might be swimming under the surface.

She warmed up by catching a couple of nice bluegills, certainly big enough to keep.

In the end, we had a great time, catching a combination of fish and Sargie gained her "street cred" by catching the giant crappie.

Master Angler Sargie even let me catch a fish every now and then... when I wasn't taking one off of her lure.

Back home and with our catch cleaned, I planted a Japanese Iris in the pond. Not wanting to actually swim in the increasingly cold water, I practiced my nonexistent yoga skills and stretched far to anchor the plant's roots in the gravel.

Pentoga Road's version of yoga's "dirty dog"

The newest additions to our goldfish family seem to be adapting very well. Sargie and I fed them last night and watched as they roiled the water competing for the floating food.

Mississippi Brother Garry finished the Lord's Prayer he's been sawing. Simply put, I wish I had his talent. His work, as always, is beautiful.

 Keeping track of time, Garry said it took sixteen hours over several days to complete the entire prayer from start to finish. 

I have less than half of mine sawed and if I'm lucky, I might finish before Christmas. 

In family photos, Josh sent this one of Wyatt and Cody at the beach off Connecticut's Atlantic coast.

Typical Pennington boys, when it comes to swimming, they seem impervious to cold water.

It's time to wrap this up and think about taking a quick walk. Last night's rainfall added up to 1.8 inches with more still falling. There are several ongoing projects in the shop (the Lord's Prayer being one of them) so this looks like the perfect opportunity to stay high and dry and who knows, maybe even sneak a nap into the mix of things.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...