Well Rats

[Iowa Dave]

I was just ready to drift a thread a little farther but it got closed. While we’re not camping and live socially distant from others it doesn’t stop us from going for a car ride and agreeing with others. So here are are my afternoon observations:
Steve Dunham and Linda as Ralph mentioned, make killer biscuits and gravy. I look forward to camping with these Escapees as well as many others in 2021.

Secondly, we were within about 500 yards of the primitive campground at Lake
MacBride State Park near Solon Iowa when Rita snapped this little guy today. His mom was in the big weeds behind him.

Finally I entitled the second photo “About as far south as she gets”
In recognition of the upcoming winter solstice and today’s sunset.

Had some friends come out and pick up derecho downed corn for the squirrels, deer and turkeys. Seemed strange to walk around in the corn stubble wearing a mask but felt pretty good at 20 degrees F with a 10 mph breeze. Stay safe, stay warm and be smart. You can’t drift this thread, it’s already untied itself from the dock.
Iowa Dave

[thunderworks]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Attachment 52692
Attachment 52691

I lived in Grinnell, Iowa for 10 years from the late 1960's until the late 70's. I remember the cold, winter days and the incredible beauty of Iowa on a clear winter's day. There is a crispness to the sensory world on those cold days - clearly a thermal crispness, but also a visual one that is hard to describe unless you actually experience it.

I live in Kansas now, and while I don't miss the cold, I nonetheless miss a lot about Iowa. It's a very underrated place to live.

[Bobbie54]

Nice pictures!

[h2owmn]

That's a lovely sunset, framed by the bare trees. The little one looks like it has a pretty good coat for the winter. I have had a big buck wandering around the property after the two mammas who hang out here. Photo was taken through a screen so it's a little fuzzy.

[Iowa Dave]

That’s a big blacktail no doubt about it. We go for a deer looking drive fairly often. Camping this past year did not exhaust my gasoline budget so have to keep stimulating the economy.
Had about 50 spaghetti squash in the garage that needed a home before they froze so I took them to a food bank this week. They were perfect and the manager was very happy to get them. We have deer in the yard a lot of nights. I have a camera out and you never know what’s going to show up. Feeding some suet my daughter made from lard off the
Mangalica hog we had processed this past spring. Woodpeckers like it.
Iowa Dave

[oldwave]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

I was just ready to drift a thread a little farther but it got closed. While we’re not camping and live socially distant from others it doesn’t stop us from going for a car ride and agreeing with others. So here are are my afternoon observations:
Steve Dunham and Linda as Ralph mentioned, make killer biscuits and gravy. I look forward to camping with these Escapees as well as many others in 2021.

Secondly, we were within about 500 yards of the primitive campground at Lake
MacBride State Park near Solon Iowa when Rita snapped this little guy today. His mom was in the big weeds behind him.

Finally I entitled the second photo “About as far south as she gets”
In recognition of the upcoming winter solstice and today’s sunset.

Had some friends come out and pick up derecho downed corn for the squirrels, deer and turkeys. Seemed strange to walk around in the corn stubble wearing a mask but felt pretty good at 20 degrees F with a 10 mph breeze. Stay safe, stay warm and be smart. You can’t drift this thread, it’s already untied itself from the dock.
Iowa Dave
Attachment 52692
Attachment 52691

One of my best friends lives in Solon. Curious have you ever been in the Solon Hardware? My buddy and I made a documentary film about that store.

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by oldwave

One of my best friends lives in Solon. Curious have you ever been in the Solon Hardware? My buddy and I made a documentary film about that store.

We were in Solon today. I’ve been to that Hardware store a few times. Solon is doing pretty well right now. A couple good restaurants and a brewery etc. My daughter lives in North Liberty and while we go down there via the Interstate we almost always come back across the Mehaffey bridge and up through Lake MacBride, Solon, Ely and back home. One of my classmates owned and operated Joensys Restaurant in Solon for years. “Home of Iowa’s biggest and best tenderloin”. He retired and sold out and it’s an upscale restaurant now, not the good old beer joint it used to be. They’ve had some fine High School athletic teams in Solon and I sold them a lot of seed, fertilizer and sports stuff about 10 years ago. When you come out this way we can do tour including Sutliff, Ivanhoe, Shueyville and Swisher. Bohemies at every turn. Vi’tame’ Vas
Iowa Dave

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by thunderworks

I lived in Grinnell, Iowa for 10 years from the late 1960's until the late 70's. I remember the cold, winter days and the incredible beauty of Iowa on a clear winter's day. There is a crispness to the sensory world on those cold days - clearly a thermal crispness, but also a visual one that is hard to describe unless you actually experience it.

I live in Kansas now, and while I don't miss the cold, I nonetheless miss a lot about Iowa. It's a very underrated place to live.

Grinnell is a real nice town with a very good college. My Great aunt owned an “Old folks home” in Grinnell. My Grandma lived there and helped her with the care of about a half a dozen elderly ladies. I don’t range out quite that far as a general rule when I’m just out for a ride but was about 2/3 the way there earlier this week when I was in Chelsea in Tama County. Here’s a couple pictures of the Iowa River east of Chelsea a couple miles. Another Iowa winter day with blue sky, crisp air and a vigilant Bald Eagle. That was quite a house in its day.

[oldwave]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

We were in Solon today. I’ve been to that Hardware store a few times. Solon is doing pretty well right now. A couple good restaurants and a brewery etc. My daughter lives in North Liberty and while we go down there via the Interstate we almost always come back across the Mehaffey bridge and up through Lake MacBride, Solon, Ely and back home. One of my classmates owned and operated Joensys Restaurant in Solon for years. “Home of Iowa’s biggest and best tenderloin”. He retired and sold out and it’s an upscale restaurant now, not the good old beer joint it used to be. They’ve had some fine High School athletic teams in Solon and I sold them a lot of seed, fertilizer and sports stuff about 10 years ago. When you come out this way we can do tour including Sutliff, Ivanhoe, Shueyville and Swisher. Bohemies at every turn. Vi’tame’ Vas
Iowa Dave

Nice, we premiered the film last January before the world went to hell. Filled the community center with the showing. Two very nice ladies that run the hardware, along with the son of one of them. My buddy was the director of the Iowa City VA until he retired 6 years ago. We were motorcycle touring buddies and are still film making partners. You’d like him, he has a great sense of humor.
I expect I’ll be out that way after vaccination.

[HABBERDABBER]

Any venue (U-tube, etc) for viewing your film?


I'd like to see it.

[Telescopist]

Great Pic of the sun setting.

[oldwave]

Originally Posted by HABBERDABBER

Any venue (U-tube, etc) for viewing your film?


I'd like to see it.

Send me a private message and I’ll link you to a copy you can watch.

[Iowa Dave]

Can anybody recommend a source for bulk VHB tape? Rita insisted on air conditioning and being able to run the toaster oven while boondocking and I gotta figure out how to put 7.6 KW on the roof of the 21. Also looking for free camping because I spent my camping money on panels. Have a great weekend.
Iowa Dave

[padlin]

How about Amazon? here's 3m 4950, pick the width you want and it'll show you how big a roll they have available. I saw 2 packs of 36 yard rolls elsewhere, but you they were talking something like $300 for the 2.

oops... https://www.amazon.com/3M-Tape-4950-...00HAGAAXE?th=1

[Iowa Dave]

Thanks Bob, I’ll look into it.
Iowa Dave

[UncleTim]

Okay you guys are inspiring me.

Maybe some day we can all meet out here where we grow our ungulates a little bigger than most.

Plus we got these snappy little fellows that are lots of fun.

Happy holidays to all. Squeeze your loved ones tonight. Make sure they know.

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by UncleTim

Okay you guys are inspiring me.

Maybe some day we can all meet out here where we grow our ungulates a little bigger than most.

Plus we got these snappy little fellows that are lots of fun.

Happy holidays to all. Squeeze your loved ones tonight. Make sure they know.

It looks to me like the one canine picture is the animal is mousing. I’ve seen it in foxes but not coyotes or wolves. The big elk are pretty impressive. I always enjoy seeing the animals the west has in numbers. Years ago we were in Rocky Mountain National Park and really enjoyed the Elk we saw there. When Rita’s brother was a forest service Hot Shot
He went on a fire that was lightning caused at the site of the strike was a Bull elk that had been electrocuted. He harvested the antlers. Later we visited him in Idaho and agreed to bring the antlers home for him. It was a fair hassle to take them out of the topper each night and twist them around so they could stay in the front seat of the Ford pickup.
Iowa Dave

[UncleTim]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

It looks to me like the one canine picture is the animal is mousing.

Indeed he was, in fact they both were. In one pic, he has a mouse in his mouth. It is quite a scene to see them listen intently , then position properly and finally spring up high in the air and land nose first right on top of the mouse. This is a resident mated pair that live in the meadow year round.

Amazing, every time.

All of these images were taken in Moraine Park, right off the campground in RMNP. It was January, about 6 am, and there were about 5 people in the entire park (it seemed like).

It should only be about 60 days until things begin to thaw in the very lowest of elevation. Things will begin to open up again. I am biting at the bit already this Winter.

[HarleyD]

A couple of pics taken outside our home in Silverthorne from a garden level window.
They came by every spring for a couple of weeks. Loved the dandelions and stripped the small aspens.
Magnificent creatures

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Can anybody recommend a source for bulk VHB tape? Rita insisted on air conditioning and being able to run the toaster oven while boondocking and I gotta figure out how to put 7.6 KW on the roof of the 21. Also looking for free camping because I spent my camping money on panels. Have a great weekend.
Iowa Dave

Hi: Iowa Dave... Looks a little big even for a 21'er!!! Reminds me of a Beatles tune "Here comes the sun King". Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie