Preparations

Preparations, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

(Clicking on the photo will take you to the original flickr photo with notes to explain each item.)

Now that winter has arrived with snow and lots of cold weather I'm starting to get excited about my upcoming trip to the south of France. I fly to Paris on January 31st arriving the morning of February 1st and take a direct TGV train from the airport to Beziers arriving there late afternoon. I have rented an apartment in Beziers for the month of February and I'm looking forward to exploring this old and historic city. While I there I plan to do several practice walks in preparation for walking le voie du Puy from Le Puy en Velay to Saint Jean Pied du Port starting March first. The canal du Midi goes through Beziers so I hope to do a couple of longer walks, 2 to 3 days, along the canal trail and my friend Pru who lives near Paris sent me a guide book, “L'Herault...a pied. Du Haut Languedoc a la Mediterranee.” which is a guide with excellent maps to 54 short walks ranging from a few hours to full day all of which are within a short distance of Beziers and I hope to do several of these.




I have my Le Puy walk planned at 40 days barring any unforeseen problems and I have made a short schedule to help me with accommodations etc.:

Le Puy en Velay to Saint Jean Pied de Port
March - April 2010

If I try to average 20 KM per day the walk to the Pyrenees should take between five and six weeks.

Accommodations Le Puy:

Gite d'etape Accueil Saint Francois rue Saint Mayol tel 04-71-05-98-87 beds 19 cost 17 Euro including breakfast evening meal 10 Euro except Thursdays and Sundays. Open all year in the old town.
Gite d'etape – Appart Hotel des Capucins English spoken. 29 rue des Capucins tel 04-71-04-28-74 beds 19 cost 14.20 Euro breakfast 7 Euro kitchen available for cooking. contact@le-puy.de .

Things to see and do in Le Puy:
Pilgrim's stamp Romanesque Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Sacristy. 10 till noon and 2 till 6pm.
Climb the Puy 267 steps to the chapel of Saint Michel d'Aiguilhe (the needle)
Large statue of Notre-Dame de France over looks the town from a high rock.

World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago...

In 1998, several sites in France were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites under the description: Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France. They are places related to the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Western Spain, a part of the Way of Saint James. Usually they are churches or hospitals. Below is a detailed list of these sites: more

Get one for any topic!

Day 1 Le Puy en Velay (alt 629M) to Le Chier 18.8KM/721.2KM to go:



Accommodations Le Chier :

Chambre et table d'hotes tel 04-71-57-29-37 or 06-60-38-25-34 jean-marie.vigouroux@wanadoo.fr 1 person 35 Euro dinner 18 Euro picnic lunch 7 Euro. Open all year.
Chambre et table d'hotes tel 04-71-57-20-46 1 room 2 people 45 Euro dinner 18 Euro kitchen available to use open all year.

Next village 2 KM away has shops, bakery etc but the gites there don't open until later in the year. Should be able to pick-up food for lunch on the way through in the morning though.


Day 2 Le Chier to Saugues(alt 960M) 41.2KM/700KM to go:

Just after the start of today's walk 6.7KM to Monistrol-d'Allier 589M the climb begins and continues for the next 31KM till you reach Le Sauvage 1292M. Start early plan for long slow days.

Accommodations Saugues:

Gite d'etape communal (Gites de France 3 epis) rue de la Margeride tel 04-71-77-80-62 or 06-65-15-04-32 hebergements-municipaux-saugues@orange.fr 17 places possibility to cook 10 Euro open all year. Center of town.

Centre d'accueil la Margeride rue des Tour Neuves. tel 04-71-77-60-97 info.lamargeride@wanadoo.fr
40 places demi-pension 27 Euro coin op washing machine. English spoken. Open March to October street on the right after the post office .

ATM Post Office ans Credit Agricole.
Population 2000 bars, restaurants, shops, banks, post office and tourist office.
Romanesque Church Saint Medard, 13th century Tour des Anglais and dungeon.
Buy bread and food no place to eat at next stop.

Day 3 Saugues(alt 960M) to Le Sauvage (alt 1292M) 59KM/681KM to go:

Accommodations Le Sauvage:

Gite d'etape Domaine du Sauvage tel 04-71-74-40-30 forty places 10.40 Euro kitchen to cook meals open all year.




Day 4 Le Sauvage (alt 1292M) to Les Estrets(alt 940M) 80KM/660 to go:

Accommodations Les Estrets

Chambre et table d'hotes – Gite d'etape Bienvenue a la Ferme on the GR65. Tel 04-66-45-61-90 or 06-88-90-97-89 twenty places pilgrims demi-pension 32 Euro. English spoken.


Day 5 Les Estrets(alt 940M) to Lasbros(alt 1000M) 94KM/640 to go:

Stop to buy bread and food in Aumont-Aubrac no food in Lasbros but you can cook there.

Accommodations Lasbros

Gite run by Mr. And Mme Hernandez appears to be between La Chaze de Peyre and Lasnros. Tel 04-66-47-08-94 two room 2 to 4 people per room. 14 Euro breakfast 5 Euro kitchen available.


Day 6 Lasbros (alt 1000M) to Nasbinals (atl 1180M) 116KM/624KM to go:

Accommodations Nasbinals

A good size village with shops,bank, bakery etc.

Centre d'Accueil Nada – Gite d'etape. tel 04-66-32-50-42 contact@nada-aubrac.com 38 places 10 Euro in the dorm 12 Euro in a room 3 Euro for heat. Kitchen available open all year.
Gite de Caractere Lo d'ici English spoken here. lodici375@wanadoo.fr tel 04-66-32-92-69 or 06-80-28-51-12 twenty places in 4 rooms 21 Euro 6 Euro breakfast, picnic lunch on request. Open all year.

Day7 Nasbinals (atl 1180M) to Saint-Chely d'Aubrac (atl 808M) 133KM/607KM to go:

Small town with shops and restaurants.

Accommodations Saint-Chely d'Aubrac
Gite d'etape Saint-Andre (Gite de France 3 epis) English spoken here and Internet available. Tel 05-65-44-26-87 randogitestandre@free.fr 20 places demi-pension 33.70 Euro laundry 2.50 Euro picnic lunch 6 Euro open all year opens 3 PM on the left when entering the village.


Day 8 Saint-Chely d'Aubrac (atl 808M) to Saint Come d'Olt (alt 385M) 153KM 587KM to go:

A small Medieval town 15 & 16 century buildings. Shops restaurants etc.

Accommodations Saint Come d'Olt

Espace Angele Merici, Couvent de Malet (Convent)route d'Aubrac. Tel 05-65-51-03-20 rooms with 2 or 3 beds. You share in the expenses according to resources (donation I guess) and you can participate in the Nuns office services. Open all year. 500M before the village.
Gite 15 rue de Boraldette . Tel 05-65-44-12-58 one room for 6 people.13 Euro.Kitchen and washing machine. Open March through all saints. As you leave the village on a road parallel to the D987.


Boulangerie Decruejouls Le Chemin de saint Jacques (Bakery) 9 Place Port Neuve Breakfast 5.50 Euro and fast food open from 7 AM closed Monday.
ATM Credit Agricole avenue d'Aubrac.


Day 9 Saint Come d'Olt (alt 385M) to Estaing (alt 320M) 170KM/570KM to go:

Small town population 1000 hotels, cafes, restaurants, shops and tourist information. Gothic bridge over the Lot, 15th century chateau now a convent, 15th century church of Sainte Fleuret.

Accommodations Estaing

Gite d'etape communal. Tel Cafe du Chateau 05-65-44-71-74 or town hall 05-65-44-70-32 twenty places 8.10 Euro kitchen available opens March 1st.
Chambre d'hotes, Mr Dijols, les Chenevieres. Tel 05-65-44-71-51 or 06-70-38-42-81 five rooms 1 person 32 Euro 2 persons 36 Euro open all year.

Day 10 Estaing (alt 320M) to Golinhac (atl 650M) 186KM/554KM to go:

Small village with a shop bar/restaurant. A short walk 14km

Accommodations Golinhac

Gite d'etape l'Oree du Chemin
English spoken. Tel 05-65-48-61-10 or o6-71-38-07-57 stephan.dissac@wanadoo.fr 20 places in 6 rooms 13 Euro 28 Euro demi pension picnic lunch 7 Euro kitchen available on the GR65 2KM before the village. English spoken.

Day 11 Golinhac (atl 650M) to Conques (alt 280M) 207.5KM/532.5Km to go:

Historic town shops etc. Relics of Saint Foy.
Accomodations Conques

Accueil Abbaye Sainte Foy accueil-conques@mondaye.com . Tel 05-65-69-89-43 ninety six places 9 Euros breakfast 5 Euro evening meal 11 Euro English spoken.

Day 12Conques (alt 280M) to Decazevile (alt 215M) 227KM/513KM to go:

Medium size town population 7000. The only gite doesn't open until April.

Accommodations Decazevile

Hotel Foulquier 14 bis avenue Victor Hugo. Tel 05-65-63-27-42 rooms 45 to 55 Euro breakfast 6.50 Euro evening meal 12 to 14.50 Euro. English spoken.

Day 13 Decazevile (alt 215M) to 4KM beyond Livinhac le-Haut (350M) 235KM/ 505KM to go:

A very short walk of only 8KM only other choice is to walk 33KM to Figeac.

Accommodations 4KM beyond Livinhac le-Haut

Gite Les Monts de Chaunac. Tel 05-65-43-58-34 or 06-37-88-52-19 oliver.bourdache@wanadoo.fr English spoken. 11 places 13 Euro breakfast 5 Euro evening meal 14 Euro picnic lunch on request, kitchen and laundry available. 400M from the GR 65.

Day 14 4KM beyond Livinhac le-Haut (350M) to Figeac (194M) 260KM/480KM to go:

Large town 10500 population.

Accommodations Figeac

Gite Le Soleilho 8 rue Prat. Tel 05-65-34-64-41 or 06-79-13-00-70 apadv@free.fr 6 places 16 Euro breakfast 4 Euro kitchen available. Internet.

Day 15 Figeac to Grealou (370M) 280.5KM/459.5 to go:

Chambre d'hotes Atelier des Volets Blue. An artists house. Tel 05-65-40-69-86 or 06-84-37-64-73 six places 26 Euro Possibility of simple evening meal .

Gite (Gite de France 2 ears) Mme Treuil. Tel 05-65-40-66-00 or 06-07-09-59-85 two rooms 4 to 6 people 15 Euros Breakfast 5 Euros kitchen available. No heat in winter. Next to the Hotel Quatre-Vents.

Day 16 Grealou to Gayfie (179M) 297.5KM/442.5 to go: Gayfie is about 3 KM off the GR65 half way between Gaillac and Saint-Jean-de-Laur You take a side path or road to the left there are signs.

Gite Domaine de Gayfie English spoken Mme Lise Lotte infos@gayfie.net . Tel 05-65-40-62-73 three gites 25 Euros per person. Breakfast 4 Euro picnic basket 7 Euro kitchen avaliable.


Day 17 Gayfie to Les Moulins 320.5KM/419.5KM to go: 800 meters before Bach take the route to the left then take the D19 on the right 200 meters further on.

Gite d'etape le Relais Arc en Ciel. Tel 05-65-22-72-64 or 06-30-22-24-56 twelve places in rooms of 3 people 12 Euro breakfast 4Euro dinner 10 Euro kitchen available picnic basket 6 Euro laundry 2 Euros.


Day 18 Les Moulins to Les Pradelles (273M) 341.1KM/398.9KM to go:

Gite d'etape private Saint Antoine new opened in March 2009 . 40 chemin de Rhodes marc.dherouel@wanadoo.fr . Tel 05-65-20-13-43 or 06-79-84-41-46 twelve places in 4 rooms pilgrims demi-pension 29 Euro with credential. kitchen available. The gite is 300 meters from the GR65.

Day 19 Les Pradelles to Cahors (122M) 346KM/394KM to go: A very short day due to lack of accommodations for the next 20KM. But that's OK because Cahors is a beautiful old town and I will be glad to have the day to look around.

Auberge de Jeunesse 20 rue Frederic Suisse. Tel 05-65-35-64-71 OR 05-65-53-69-68 forth five places in rooms of 2 to 6 people. 13Euro breakfast 3.80 Euro dinner 9 Euro washer dryer and internet.

Day 20 Cahors to Lascabanes (179M) 367.3KM/372.7KM to go:

Chambre et table d'hotes . Tel 05-65-22-92-63 or 06-73-07046-37 three rooms demi pension 28 Euro . 100 meters after the village just after the chateau turn right after 100 meters.

Day 21 Lascabanes to Lauzerte (221M) 390.3KM/349.7KM to go:CROSSED THE HALF WAY POINT TODAY.

Gite d'etape communal. Tel 05-63-94-61-94 seventeen places 10 Euros kitchen available ask at the cafe in place des Cornieres. Several restaurants in the village.

Day 22 Lauzerte to Moissac (68M) 415.8KM/325.2KM to go:A medieval town well worth exploring.

Ancien Carmel 5 sente du Calvaire. Tel 05-63-04-62-21 or 06-73-49-54-27 internet access available, accueil.cafmoissac@wanadoo.fr rooms of 2 to 6 places. 12 Euros demi persion 28.80 Euro. Kitchen available laundry and foot massage available. At place de l'abbatiale take the stairs next to the tourist office get off opposite the crossing of de bourg de visa 200 M later turn left on la sente du Calvaire. (Not sure that this is a very good translation but hopefully it helps)

Day 23 Moissac to Auvillar (108M) 436.3KM/304.7KM to go:

Gite d'etape communal old presbytery. Tel 05-63-39-89-82 eighteen places 14 Euro kitchen available. Laundry available.

Day 24 Auvillar to Castet-Arrouy 458.6KM/282.4KM to go:

Gite communal at town hall. Tel 06-84-92-73-96 or Mr Sala 05-62-28-73-97 or 06-22-18-42-76 eighteen places 15 Euro includes breakfast. Laundry and kitchen available.
Day 25 Castet-Arrouy to Marsolan 477.6KM/263.4 to go:Only one place to stay and a bit expensive compared to other stops along the way.

Gite – Chambre d'hotes – L'Enclos du Tabus. Tel 05-62-68-79-40 or 06-84-32-78-28 mussets@orange.fr pilgrims demi pension 32 Euro laundry available, swimming pool.

Day 26 Marsolan to Castelnau-sur-l'Auvignon 473.6KM/248.4KM to go:

Gite – Chambre et table d'hotes Les Arrocasses. Tel 05-62-68-12-24 ten places in 2 rooms 14 Euro or demi pension 32 Euro. Sounds really nice in the village.

Day 27 Castelnau-sur-l'Auvignon to Larressingle 489.6KM/232.4KM to go: Only 16KM today. Walk through Condom today there must be some interesting postcards there.

Accueil a la Ferme de Tollet-gite. Tel 05-62-28-02-45 or 06-87-36-04-34 call at meal time. 5 rooms divided for 2 people 15 Euro kitchen available demi-pension 30.50 Euro meals are produce from the farm, laundry , also sell farm produce and will go find you on the GR if required. To find the farm leave the GR via a little road on the right follow the arrows the farm is 500M from the GR.

Day 28 Larressingle to Lamothe 507.3KM/214.7 to go:

Gite d'etape-Chambre Le Repose des Pelerins gite.lamothe@gmail.com . Tel 05-62-09-40-65 ten places 11 Euros 20 Euros demi-pension. Internet access. Collectively prepared family meal 5 Euros.

Day 29 Lamothe to Le Haget 527.9KM/194.1KM to go:

Gite d'etape Le Relaid du Haget . Tel 05-62-08-54-02 or 06-11-66-13-98 stephanie.brud@wanadoo.fr . Two gites 5 places each 11 Euros demi-pension 27 Euros kitchen and laundry available .

Day 30 Le Haget to Castagnere 542KM/180KM to go:

Gite-Chambre d'hotes Tel 06-09-98-36-21 bernard.sain@club-internet.fr three rooms for 2 people no sheets demi-pension 30 Euros. 200M after repere 2 of the GR ??? turn right on to a little road which crosses fields fro 800m tomorrow you only have to walk 400M to rejoin the GR.

Day 31 Castagnere to Aire-sur-l'Adour 561.2KM/160.8KM to go:

Hotel de la Paix-Gite . Tel 05-58-71-60-70 or 06-81-39-50-02 hoteldelapaix.40@wanadoo.fr eight rooms 1 person 15 Euro including breakfast.

Day 32 if everything went as planned this should be April first.Aire-sur-l'Ardour to Miramont-Sensacq 579.4KM/142.6KM to go:

Hotel-restaurant Beaumont. Tel 05-58-79-90-65 ten rooms pilgrim demi-pension 30 Euro closed weekends. April first is a Thursday.

Day 33 Miramont-Sensaco to Arzacq-Arraziguet 593.4 KM/128.6KM to go:
Centre d'accueil gite d'etape communal. Tel 05-59-04-41-41 centreaccueil@arzacq.com 35 places possibility of private room 10.50 Euros kitchen available demi-pension 22 Euros.
Day 34 Arzacq-Arraziquet to Pomps 614.4KM/107.6KM to go:

Gite d'etape communal. Tel 06-84-91-94-00 or 06-32-78-14-81 or town hall 05-59-81-60-61 eighteen places 9 Euros breakfast 4 Euro dinner 10 Euro reserve the day before kitchen and laundry. Town has a grocery store open 11:30 to 6:30 closed Sunday.

Day 35 Pomps to Maslacq 633.4KM/88.6KM to go:

Gite d'etape . Tel grocery store-bar Pereira 05-59-67-30-27 or 06-24-64-42-80 six places 8 Euro breakfast 3.50 Euro kitchen available.

Day 36 Maslacq to Navarrenx 655.2KM/66.8KM to go:

Bar des Sports-chambres . Tel 05-59-66-50-63 two rooms 25 Euro 1 person 36 Euro 2 persons. Breakfast 5 Euros evening meal possible reserve 9 Euros. Closed Sunday afternoons there are other restaurants in the town.

Day 37 Navarrenx to Aroue 740KM/48.8KM to go:

Gite d'etape communal . Tel 05-59-65-95-54 gite.aroue@wanadoo.fr 12 places 9 Euro kitchen and laundry a restaurateur come to get you and returns you after dinner grocery store open in the afternoons. 100 M after the church.

Day 38 Aroue to Arosteguia 759.6KM/29.2KM to go:

Gite d'etape prive a la ferme Arosteguia. Tel 05-59-65-27-94 or 06-27-71-69-82 contact@arosteguia.com fourteen places 15 EURO breakfast 5 Euro kitchen available take the short cut off the GR marked by yellow and blue snails in the middle of the road. This short cut rejoins the GR if you keep going.

Day 39 Arosteguia to Caracotchia 777.8KM/11KM to go:

Chambre d'hotes. Tel 05-59-37-03-97 christiane.sempe@wanadoo.fr four rooms 1 person 40 Euro located on the GR reservation recommended

Day 40 Caracotchia to Saint-Jean-Pied de-Port 788.8KM/0KM to go:

Gite L'Esprit du Chemin. Tel 05-59-37-24-68 hubertarno@espritduchemin.org 18 places 8 Euros breakfast 3 Euros dinner 9 Euros. The best experience of my 2008 Camino can't wait to stay here again.

Should be the 9th of April one more day and I will be 60.

Merry Christmas, Vrolijke Kerstmis ,Joyeux Noël ,Frohe Weihnachten ,Χαρούμενα Χριστούγεννα ,Buon Natale ,メリークリスマス ,즐거 운 성탄 ,Feliz Natal ,С Рождеством Христовым ,Feliz Navidad

Whiting Maine Walk and Christmas Party at the Meads December 6, 2009., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The Huron Carol (Canada's first Christmas Carol)

'Twas in the moon of wintertime when all the birds had fled
That mighty Gitchi Manitou sent angel choirs instead;
Before their light the stars grew dim and wondering hunters heard the hymn,
Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born, in excelsis gloria.

Within a lodge of broken bark the tender babe was found;
A ragged robe of rabbit skin enwrapped his beauty round
But as the hunter braves drew nigh the angel song rang loud and high
Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born, in excelsis gloria.

The earliest moon of wintertime is not so round and fair
As was the ring of glory on the helpless infant there.
The chiefs from far before him knelt with gifts of fox and beaver pelt.
Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born, in excelsis gloria.

O children of the forest free, O seed of Manitou
The holy Child of earth and heaven is born today for you.
Come kneel before the radiant boy who brings you beauty peace and joy.
Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born, in excelsis gloria.

Words: Jean de Brebeuf, ca. 1643; trans by Jesse Edgar Middleton, 1926
Music: French Canadian melody (tune name: Jesous Ahatonhia)

The "Huron Carol" (or "'Twas in the Moon of Wintertime") is a Christmas hymn, written in 1643 by Jean de Brébeuf, a Christian missionary at Sainte-Marie among the Hurons in Canada. Brébeuf wrote the lyrics in the native language of the Huron/Wendat people; the song's original Huron title is "Jesous Ahatonhia" ("Jesus, he is born"). The song's melody is a traditional French folk song, "Une Jeune Pucelle" ("A Young Maid"). The well known English lyrics were written in 1926 by Jesse Edgar Middleton.

This version performed by Heather Dale, and sung in Wendat (Huron), French and English.

You Tube version of the Carol:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6IG6F6E5Ac

Ilex verticillata - Winterberry

Ilex verticillata - Winterberry, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Ilex verticillata – Winterberry

A deciduous Holly. One of my favorite shrubs. Grows wild in this area the one in the video clip is in my road side garden. Most of my property is natural forest and there is a clump of this shrub growing in the dense part of the wood. I dug this bush up and moved it to the roadside years ago when it was just a small plant. At that time I didn't know that Winterberry was a true Ilex a member of the Holly family so like all hollies it has male and female plants and you need one of each to get the nice red berries. When this plant was almost full brown it started producing a few berries every year, only five or so, which proved it was female and evidently a small amount of pollen was being carried to it either on the wind or by insects. A few years ago I went to a garden center and bought her a mate and ever since then it has produced a load of beautiful berries that stay on the bush almost all winter.

Pound Sweet, Pound Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweeting, Rhode Island Sweet, Round Sweet, Vermont Sweet, Lyman’s Pumpkin Sweet, Sweet Pumpkin, Yankee Apple

Pound Sweet, Pound Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweeting, Rhode Island Sweet, Round Sweet, Vermont Sweet, Lyman’s Pumpkin Sweet, Sweet Pumpkin, Yankee Apple, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The apple with many different names. I bought mine years ago as a Pumpkin Sweet. What ever you call it, it's a wonderful old heritage apple. Very firms flesh, an excellent storage apple, great in pies or apple sauce. I also eat them fresh off the tree but it wouldn't be to everyones taste, a bit on the hard side.

(A quote from Big Horse Creek Farm's website) “The name for this apple is derived from its large size and yellowish-orange color. It originated in 1800's in the orchards of S. Lyman of Manchester, Connecticut and was first recorded in 1834. It has long been a popular apple in the South sought out for its culinary qualities. It is excellent for baking or canning, but less desirable for fresh eating. Fruit is large to very large with tough, smooth skin with patches of russet, occasionally showing a brownish-red blush. The yellow flesh is firm, crisp, juicy, and very sweet. Ripens October or later. “

What I like about it most is what it does this time of year. It doesn't drop it's fruit on the ground. I've never seen any other apple quite like it. What ever fruit is left on the tree after I've harvested all that I want, stays on the tree all winter. This is a great treat for wildlife, especially birds. After we've had a lot of cold weather the fruit turns brown but it still doesn't fall off the tree. All winter long there are birds in the tree picking at the frozen fruit and in the spring it's the first thing the robins go for as soon as the arrive.

Winter Herb Garden - Parsley and Basil - Last of this years Leeks.

Winter Herb Garden - Parsley and Basil , originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The outdoor gardening season for 2009 is officially over, the garden beds are cleaned up and ready for winter and I harvested the last of the leeks yesterday. I have three different varieties of garlic planted in my square foot garden frames a new variety that I bought this fall via the Internet from B.C., some of the garlic that I harvested from this years crop and some that was just off the store shelf this fall. They have all been in the ground for over a month now and the only variety to actually come up and start to grow is the supermarket variety. It was only in the ground six days when it broke through the surface and started to grow. Right now it is green and healthy and about six inches tall. I will try to remember to mulch it as soon as the ground freezes. Should be interesting to see how the different varieties prove out next year.

I have got a lot of use out of the light garden that I bought last winter. It was in use from mid January last winter when I started my onion, shallot and leek seedlings through to late spring as I started the various seedlings for the summer garden and now it has been in use since mid September this fall when I planted several pots of Italian Parsley and a mixture of different Basils for kitchen use this fall and winter. They are up and doing nicely I made a pasta sauce the other day and it was so nice to have fresh herbs to use.

Remembrance Day Poppies

In Flanders Fields

by John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep,
though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust Prize winning photo.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust Prize winning photo. Machiasport area. Mill Pond stroll. With Yurts August 9, 2009, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I just received this notification that this photo won the Maine Coast Heritage Trust photo contest prize;

Hi Dale:

I am writing to inform you that one of your photos has been chosen as the 2009 MCHT Photo Contest Winner (see attached). Thank you so much for participating in this year’s contest. Your image does an excellent job of capturing the beauty of the Maine coast. As winner of this year’s contest you are entitled to an MCHT Tote bag. Please forward to me your address and I will send it on its way. Again thanks for your participation and support of MCHT.

Sincerely

Jeffrey Romano
Maine Coast Heritage Trust
1 Bowdoin Mill Island, Suite 201
Topsham, ME 04086

I'm pleased to be the winner but I'm not sure if I had any competition. A man from the Heritage trust led a Pathfinders walk in Machiasport on August 9th and he invited any of us who were taking photos on the walk to enter the contest, he also said that as of that date there had not been any entries.

Fall Colour

Maple, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The fall foliage colour is rapidly disappearing but this maple tree in my neighbor's front yard is still a show stopper. Most of our maples turn a shade of orange or red but whatever species this one is lights up like a light bulb. A beautiful time of year but we all know what is just around the corner, all of the nice colour will be covered with a blanket of white.

Quince Jelly

Quince Jelly, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

It seems that every time I do another preserve I say that is the last one of the season well I think this is really it, I'm almost out of jars.

I've never even tasted Quince jelly before but I've thought about making it for years now. My two flowering quince shrubs always have some fruit on them in the fall but this has been an exceptional year for them, evidently they really liked our very wet summer. I always thought that the growing season here must be too short for the fruit to ripen, it turns yellow but stays hard until it falls off the plant. I discovered while looking on the internet for jelly making instruction that the quince fruit never does get soft, so I was good to go.

The process is simple:

1. Cut the fruit in half and remove the core and seeds, I used a tea spoon which worked well.

2. Put the prepared fruit in a heavy bottom pan and add enough water to cover by one inch.

3. Bring to the boil and reduce heat to simmer for one hour.

4. Take off the heat and mash, I used a hand held blender.

5. Put the mashed quince in a double layer cheesecloth bag and hang over a bowl or container to catch the liquid. I left mine to drain over night.

6. Measure the liquid and return it to a heavy bottomed pan add slightly less than one cup of sugar for each cup of liquid.

7. Bring to a rolling boil and cook until it reaches the jelly stage. You can determine this stage by chilling a spoon full on a cold (one you've kept in the freezer)plate as soon as one of these tests produces firm jelly remove from the heat and skim off the foam.

8. Add to sterile bottles with sterile lids.

Enjoy the resulting jelly which I find a bit tart but a very nice flavour.

Trying out my homemade canned apple pie filling.

Trying out my homemade canned apple pie filling., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Well I just had to try out the canned apple pie filling to see what it was like. I used a deep pie dish so I was able to use a whole liter jar of the canned pie filling in the one pie. When I emptied the jar into the pastry I was concerned about the amount of liquid and thought it was either likely to boil over in the oven or produce a very sloppy pie. I'm please to say that neither happened. I'm not quite sure where it all went but the finished product was a very normal Apple Pie and it didn't make a mess in the oven. All in all I'm very pleased and I certainly will make more of this in the future, maybe even later this fall. It sure takes a lot of the time consuming work out of making an apple pie, no peeling, cutting, seasoning etc.

Pumpkin Sweet Apple Harvest and Apple Pie Filling Canning

Pumpkin Sweet Apple Harvest and Apple Pie Filling Canning, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

It seems to be getting colder early this year and I've started to think that my apples might freeze before I get them picked, so today I got my long handles picker out and harvested four shopping bags full of my Pumpkin Sweet Apples.

They are an amazing apple green when ripe just like Granny Smith and a great old heritage apple with good storage qualities. Best used as a cooking apple I love them baked, in pies or apple sauce. I've never tried canning them before so this year I though I would can some pie filling and apple sauce. Today I canned five quart jars of Apple Pie Filling.

This also gave me an opportunity to use my new Starfrit Apple Peeler and slicer/corer, both worked very well and only cost $11.50. The slicer only makes eight sections from each apple and I thought they were too thick for pies so I cut each section into two pieces. To keep the apple sections from turning brown before I could can them I put them in a solution of one gallon of water with two tablespoons each of vinegar and salt.

Next I made a thick syrup by cooking until thickened a mixture of 4 ½ cups sugar, 1 cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt, 10 cups water and 3 tablespoons lemon juice. The rest was easy pack the jars full of sliced apples, cover with the syrup, finger tighten jar lids and process in a boiling water bath for 30 minutes after the water returns to a full boil.

The syrup is delicious I hope it makes a good pie.

Some Pumpkin Sweet Info:

Pumpkin Sweet (Pound Sweet, Pound Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweeting, Rhode Island Sweet, Round Sweet, Vermont Sweet, Lyman’s Pumpkin Sweet, Sweet Pumpkin, Yankee Apple) - The name for this apple is derived from its large size and yellowish-orange color. It originated in 1800's in the orchards of S. Lyman of Manchester, Connecticut and was first recorded in 1834. It has long been a popular apple in the South sought out for its culinary qualities. It is excellent for baking or canning, but less desirable for fresh eating. Fruit is large to very large with tough, smooth skin with patches of russet, occasionally showing a brownish-red blush. The yellow flesh is firm, crisp, juicy, and very sweet. Ripens October or later.(Quoted from Big Horse Creek Farm website.


1. The finished product, 2. The finished product, 3. The corer/slicer, 4. The corer/slicer, 5. In a vinegar and salt bath to stop browning, 6. The Starfrit peeler, 7. The Starfrit peeler, 8. The harvest, 9. Pumpkinsweet Apples on the tree, 10. Long handled picker in action., 11. Long handled picker in action., 12. Harvest

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

The Fruits of Autumn 2009

The Fruits of Autumn 2009, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

One of the things that I like most about this time of year along with all of the autumn colour is the bounty of fruit that is available for wild life that are preparing for winter. A walk around my garden this morning with my camera revealed that mother nature has done a very good job this year. In this collage there are photos of Bar Berry, Bittersweet, Quince, Pumpkin Sweet Apples, Rose Hips and Fire Thorn.

Quince is so bitter that I'm not sure if anything actually eats it. The pumpkin sweet apple is an old heritage variety and I will be harvesting some soon for canning, great in apple pies. The interesting thing about this apple though is that it never falls off the tree. There will still be some of this years brown fruit next spring when it blooms again. It is much appreciated by the early returning spring birds and last year one lonely robin over wintered in my garden and was seen almost every day picking on the frozen apples.

Garlic planted six days ago is up and growing already !!

Garlic planted six days ago is up and growing already !!, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I'm amazed the garlic that I planted in my new square foot garden project, only six days ago, is up and growing this morning. It was fresh new garlic not even sprouted when I planted it. The weather has been warm with a couple of rainy days since it was planted so I guess it isn't wasting any time getting established before winter sets in. That's a good thing because if it sets good roots before freeze-up it will stand a much better chance of staying in the soil rather than being push up out of the ground by the frost. I will have to remember to mulch it well after the ground freezes.

Flickr Galleries

Beziers - Friday Market, originally uploaded by Charles G Thompson/100 Miles.

Recently I discovered a new Flickr feature called Galleries . With this feature you can create a gallery of up to 18 photos from other unrestricted Flickr photos on the topic of your choice. So I've been having fun creating Galleries relating to my planned trip to France this coming winter.

I plan to spend February in Beziers and the surrounding area:

Beziers Gallery

I love the fresh markets, flower markets and flea markets in France.

Markets of Beziers Gallery

The Canal Du Midi which connects the Atlantic and the Mediterranean was designed and built by a man from Beziers and goes through Beziers and I plan to do some practice hiking along the Canal.

The Canal du Midi Gallery

Starting March first I hope to start walking the Camino route from Le Puy en Velay to Saint Jean Pied de Port on the French - Spanish border.

The Le Puy Camino Gallery

As you can see some very beautiful photos, hope I'm able to take some that are as good.

The square foot garden project.

The square foot garden project., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

First crops planted in my Square foot Garden Project. The Garlic the I ordered from Salt Spring Island Seeds arrived and I planted it along with some garlic that I had in the kitchen. This will give me a chance to compare the results from the expensive seed garlic to the regular store bought garlic.

Before I planted the garlic I added a generous amount of Seafood Compost to each square foot cell and worked it into the soil. The use of Seafood Compost seemed very appropriate as the variety of Garlic that I had selected from Salt Spring Island Seeds is called Fish Lake # 3. The Fish Lake cloves are much larger then the store bought variety so I allowed them more room in the square foot cell. Each head of Fish Lake only had four cloves though which was a bit disappointing, considering the price including shipping was $13.00 for two heads. The cloves should have a good chance to set roots and get established before the ground freezes in late November or early December.

Last of the cucumbers pickled and the last of the tomatoes canned.

Last of the cucumbers pickled and the last of the tomatoes canned. , originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

This years canning is almost finished just a couple more things to do the cranberries and the apples both of which wont be ready to pick until we have a a few frosts in early October.

The grow bag garden has been quite successful especially in my little greenhouse. I only had two hybrid greenhouse cucumber plants and they produced enough cucumbers to make three batches of pickles, one batch of dill and two batches of sweet bread and butter, and that is besides having a steady supply of cucumbers for salads and sandwiches since mid July. There were six tomato plants in the greenhouse and they did very well, mid August before I started getting ripe ones but there has been a good supply since then and I have four quarts canned for pasta sauces this winter. I had another dozen plants in grow bags in the garden but after the five weeks of rain in late June and all of July they were hit by a blight and died along with my potato plants. I didn't get any tomatoes off them and potato harvest was very small, but tasty.

The square foot garden project.

The square foot garden project., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I filled two more frames with compost from the grow bag garden and it took four of the eighty five liter bags to fill each one, so I should have enough to fill all six frames. The rest of the grow bags are still in use in the greenhouse and the small garden in front of the house so I will have to wait until the crops are finished growing or hit with frost before I can fill the other frames.

Next I set a dozen fence posts and put up the rabbit fence. I bought fifty feet of fence and had just enough with only a short piece left over. I decided not to put a gate into the garden, I figured that would just create a place where they could squeeze through, instead I'm going to make a stile out of cinder blocks on both sides of the fence. Hopefully rabbits aren't clever enough to figure out how to use a stile.

The square foot garden project.

The square foot garden project., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The day began with a visit to the hardware store to buy more nails so I could finish the last raised bed frame. After building the frame it was on to the 12 X 12 foot site where I hoped to be able to put all six frames. As I cleared the grow bags and removed the black plastic mulch from the area it became clear that if I put all six frames in this area it will be over crowded and very difficult to work around, so I decided to put only four frames in this area. The other two will be placed in another area where I already have a large raised bed. Since this new area will be the only area with a fence to keep the rabbits out I will need to remember to grow crops that the rabbits don't like in the two beds that will be outside the fence. This year the rabbits didn't bother the onions, tomatoes, potatoes and squash so I should be able to fill those beds with these crops.

I also harvested a nice crop of potatoes and squash from the containers and grow bags.

After I removed the plastic I spent a couple of hours with a garden spade tuning the soil over in the bed because it had become quite compacted from walking on it this summer. I was pleased to see that the sod that I had turned over in late spring had composted nicely.

I was able to fill one of the frames with the compost from the potato containers and one grow bag. I have nineteen grow bags left each containing eighty five liters of compost not sure if that is enough to fill the three remaining frames or not.

I divided the filled frame with cedar laths that I bought for this purpose. My square foot garden isn't divided into square feet however, for a couple of reasons, the inside dimensions of the frame ended up being 46 X 46 inches and also the width of the dividers take away from the growing space. Each section is 10.5 inches square.

The square foot garden project.

The square foot garden project., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

My square foot garden project began last spring when I turned the sod over on a 12 foot square area of the back lawn. I then covered this area with black plastic mulch and gardened on top of this with grow bags for this summer. Today phase two of the project began with the arrival of the lumber to build six four foot square raised planters with and also the posts and fifty feet of fence to help keep the rabbits out.

I built the first planter in the driveway where I had the lumber dropped and quickly discovered when it came time to move it to the back garden that assembled they are too heavy for me to carry comfortably. So I carried all of the building supplies out to the back garden and continued the construction out there. Fortunately I ran out of nails about the same time that I ran out of energy. I got five of the six planters built and will finish the other one as soon as I get some more nails.

I ordered garlic yesterday so I need to have one of these planters ready to use as soon as it arrives so it will have a chance to get rooted this fall.