Trimming Trees & Moving the Gazebo - getting ready for summer!

     On Friday evening my brothers along with their wives were in to help cut down two old plum trees and trim old shrubs, including misc. other jobs like cutting the lawn and tilling the garden.

     Then on Saturday morning my brothers Kerras, Kenny and friend Gary helped me move the gazebo closer to the house.  We were going to use the move conventional moving method, ie. towing it with the tractor, however, Gary had the idea to roll it up to the house instead of towing.  We contemplated the idea then tipped it over and rolled it like a barrel up to the house, then standing it up.  No damage!

     Below: the large clay area where the gazebo use to be - we're going to plant a large sunflower patch - lots of food for the birds in the fall.

      The tulips are late coming up this year - the spring has been so cold - here's the only one in bloom - notice the hosta coming up beside it. 

Skinners Pond Harbour & Beach and Stompin' Tom Connors Schoolhouse

     I was out for a drive along the North Cape Coastal Drive ( Route 14 ) yesterday afternoon.  Here's a few photos I took of the Stompin' Tom Connors Schoolhouse.

     Stompin' Tom was a well-known Canadian folk singer in the 1960's to his death in 2013 and lives on.   In 1973 he renovated the old schoolhouse he attended to display his memorabilia and opened it to the public.  In the first photo I believe the house Stompin' Tom lived in as a boy is immediately to the right of the school.
     Check-out my blog post of March 22, 2013 following his death.  http://peiheritagebuildings.blogspot.ca/2013/03/skinners-pond-and-stompin-tom-connors.html     

 Above: the southeast corner / Below: the front / northeast side.

     The schoolhouse is located at the corner of Rte. 14 and Stompin' Tom Connor's Road.   If you're in the area be sure to take a drive down to the harbour and beach - some say the best beach on Prince Edward Island.

Above:  Skinner's Pond Harbour

Image cf. https://marinas.com/view/marina/8660

Spring Daffodils are up

     I was happy to see the spring daffodils yesterday!  

     The daffodils are under the flag pole - the rock makes the place where we buried a Family Time Capsule in 2000 to be opened in 2050.  

     Below is a photo of the event.  The capsule was placed in the ground by Stephen G. Jeffery, great-great-great grandson of Stephen E. Jeffery who settled the homestead in 1860.

Celebrate 2014 with us

The following information cf. http://pei2014.ca/

Join Us in 2014

     2014 marks the 150th anniversary of the 1864 Charlottetown Conference which paved the way to Canadian Confederation.  Year-long, province-wide celebrations will ensure that Prince Edward Island will be buzzing with activity and alive with Canadian pride throughout 2014. 

     When the Fathers of Confederation met in Prince Edward Island in 1864 they decided to form a country – our country, Canada.  Though there were formal meetings and long discussions, they forged a bond over dinners, dancing, music, and the beautiful sights of PEI.  In 2014, forge your own bond with PEI as you mix rich history with generous hospitality. 

     Take in the sights and sounds of a province in the full swing of celebration.  With more than 150 festivals, events & activities taking place throughout the year, PEI 2014 has something for everyone!   

     Where the past meets the present and our history walks hand in hand with today’s celebration, your experience in PEI will be as memorable as it was for the Fathers of Confederation in 1864.

     Join us in 2014 for a celebration 150 years in the making!

Visit www.tourismpei.com  for more vacation planning ideas.

Charlottetown Conference delegates posing on the steps of Government House 

September 1864 (Collections Canada)

PEI has worst Winter in 42 years

     Here's a few photos to demonstrate what we've been through here on Prince Edward Island over the past week - now considered the worst winter since 1972.
     Be comforted - this will all be gone and things will be lovely here on Prince Edward Island this spring, summer and fall!

Above - my niece Marcy Jeffery took this photo this morning.

Above - Western Road (Rte. 2) near Wellington on Monday.  Photo cf. Facebook.

 

Above -Backroad Folkart "Olde Time's Garden House Museum"

roof cupola.  Photo by Shirley Jeffery

_____________________ 

     The University of Prince Edward Island's Climate Lab posted this article last week.  http://projects.upei.ca/climate/

A Winter Not Seen for 42 Years

Posted on March 27, 2014 at 9:31 pm by afenech

By Dr. Adam Fenech, Director, UPEI Climate Research Lab

     Last week PEI saw a “mini White Juan” storm that brought 48.5 centimetres (cm) of snow measured at Charlottetown airport.  White Juan refers to the brutal blizzard of February 19, 2004 nicknamed after Hurricane Juan, a storm that hit PEI on September 29, 2003 with wind gusts up to 140 km/h causing flooding, uprooting of trees and infrastructure damage in the Charlottetown Harbour. White Juan brought 120 km/h winds and 74.4 cm of snow at Charlottetown which remains the maximum 24-hour total since records began. Last week’s storm was a mini-version with lighter winds (98 km/h) and less snow, but it still reminds us of our vulnerability to extreme cold weather. Good preparations and planning helped PEI  emerge without too many tragedies this past week. Community leaders should be commended for their work in getting the message out to take this storm seriously.

     Last week’s storm seems to have been one of many during this particularly cold and stormy winter of 2014. Over the past thirty years, there has been a definite downward trend in the amount of snow that PEI has received, but not this winter. We have to go back 42 years to find a year with more snow. If we consider the snowfall months to be November, December, January, February and March, then this year’s snowfall has been about 417 cm of the white stuff, the most since 425 cm fell in 1972.  On average, the snowfall this winter season has been almost 60% more than the normal, or what is expected. This year’s snowfall has been particularly jarring as the past two winters have been very dry indeed. And yes, this winter has been colder than normal by almost 1.5 degrees Celsius.

     The winter of 1972 was a much different winter than this year’s. By the end of March, 1972 had 80 days of snowfall, while this year PEI has had only 47 days with snowfall. By the end of March, the winter of 1972 had many days of small snowstorms with none above 25 cm, while this year PEI has had four major snowstorms on December 22 (27 cm), January 22 (37.4 cm), February 19 (27.8 cm) and March 26 (48.5 cm). The winter of 1972 went on to have 531 cm of snow once the months of April and May were added to the total. I hope that the winter of 2014 does not have any more surprises for PEI.

      And before you curse the winter, after you have shovelled this recent back-breaking load of snow off your driveway, remember that a cold and snowy winter can be good for the environment and economy. Some PEI businesses enjoyed a financial boost thanks to the early winter weather in December 2013. Businesses that offer sleigh and wagon rides looked at this snowfall as an early Christmas present, as their sales figures jumped about 50 per cent over the previous December. Brookvale Ski Park opened before Christmas for the first time in at least 10 years and automobile towing businesses saw an increase of 20-30 per cent from normal due to the snow.

     Snow is also necessary for farmers.  The snow blankets the fields so that when it all melts in the spring, the fields are properly irrigated and ready for planting.  Certain crops such as the fruits and berries also need snow cover to provide insulation from extreme cold.  When these crops are exposed to the elements, they become vulnerable to frost which can kill the crop outright. If you hate mosquitoes, you should probably celebrate this awful winter as mosquito populations should be reduced by the severe cold, too. While a sustained cold snap won’t wipe out these pests, it can kill some larvae and slow the bugs’ spread.

      Note: Don Jardine and I have put together over 365 weather trivia stories for a calendar titled “150 Years of Prince Edward Island Weather”. From humorous tales of pigs swimming down the street after their barn flooded during the Kennedy Inaugural Storm of 1961 to the tragedy of the Yankee Gale of 1851 where one hundred fisherman (mainly Americans) were drowned on PEI’s north shore, the PEI Weather Trivia Calendar is bound to meet the needs of the weather junkie in you. Watch your bookstores as it is being printed for release in May.

     Questions? Contact Adam Fenech at afenech@upei.ca or (902) 620-5220

Winter 2014

     Here's a few photos around the Homestead.  Last week we had a 2-day blizzard with 50cm+ (20") and winds as high as 110km/h ( 66mph ).  The weather folk say this is one of the worst winters in 25 years.  The children missed three days of school this week.  So far this winter they've missed 11 school days due to snowstorms, which for some reason have mostly been on Wednesdays.

     Above: On the Centerline Road heading to the the Homestead.  The pole on the right is at the junction of the Confederation Trail.  

      Above:  At the Homestead - for all the snow we had last week there could be more snow around the yard!

    Above:  Dad's garden is under 4'-0" of snow.

      Above:  The Department of Forestry planted these spruce trees on part of our pasture land.  In summertime the trees are hard to see due to the weeds - in winter they stand out nicely and we can measure the progress.

      Above: looking down the driveway to the Centerline Road.

     Above:  A big snow bank behind/west side of the house.  In the spring we plan to move the gazebo closer to the house and back deck.

      Above:  The Centerline Road heading up the road a short distance to Lauretta and my brother Kerras' Folkart Shop.
       Below:  driving in Kerras' driveway.

     Below: I went out to check on our little church - Holy Trinity Anglican.   I couldn't get in the driveway, however, I was able to take this photo from the road - hard to believe in 6-weeks we'll be having our annual cemetery clean-up.

Tourism PEI 2014 License

     We received our 2014 operating license a month ago - I put it in the house yesterday.  Here it is...