Gettin our ski on

get outside and love winter.

peace
e


photo by eric berglund

Took a day off from hunting with a gun and went to a fun local spot (not a zoo or wildlife preserve) with O. to shoot some deer with the camera instead.  Came across this king of bucks who was certainly a willing model.

What a creature!

 

 Hmmm and some tasty pizza from the other night.

So i started this b-log back in the fall of 2007 as some place to throw some photo's out there for others to enjoy, occasionally ramble a bit and just generally keep a log of life & all of the fun & amazing sh!t that goes down it.  It started out very surf & fish oriented and has morphed into a bit of everything.  If you haven't figured out by now, i keep very busy being a dad, loving husband and chief putterer, not to mention having a kickass day job as a fisheries biologist on Lake Superior and a boat load of hobbies.  Some folks like b-logs that are updated with daily content....this one is not.  There was a time when it was, but come on.  I plan to keep making and posting 'art' whether anyone stops by here or not, it's just fun. Anyways, i guess i'm writing this as a way to ring in the sixth year of the fresh aspect. happy buck fever and peace out.

e

mmmmm yeah. Happy New Years all. Into the fifth year here at the fresh aspect and back at er after a christmas hiatus. Here are a some snaps from the last couple of weeks.

Lynx canadensis.

Pulled into our blueberry haunt for a pit stop on the way back to Winnipeg and came across this critter, who didn't seem to be too concerned with our abrupt arrival. Here he or she is slinking off after we had a chance to get a good look.



The new sled.

More on this later. But i will say it's hand crafted by Tom Neilson down in Cocoa Beach, Florida. 6'8'' 23&1/4''wide and 3'' thick, with multiple fin possibilities. Should be a dealdy slider for the lake.



A rack of freshly smoke Lake Superior herring.

As good as it gets.



peace
e


photo's by eric berglund

A neighborhood friend stopping by for a snack.

More with the waves. I can't help myself. Haven't surfed nearly enough this fall.

Good times and good eats. Loggin days in the woods chasing down large critters with good friends.

Home away from home last week.



be well

peace
e



photo's by eric berglund

Some early mornings.

Fin





peace
e


photo's by eric berglund

Another beastly brook trout

Steel

A glowy sunset at the end of the first day of the moose hunt.

Called a cow into 20 yards the next morning, but with bull tags in pocket there was nothing i could do but watch her slip by. Still plenty amazing. Lot's of season left.


peace
e

photo's by eric berglund

Days are longer and the sun is warmer, but winter is still in the air.

Some lake whitefish


Snow Party! That's what the skis say.




peace
e

photos by eric berglund

lightly frosted

gettin down towards the bottom

winter stroll

kiddo's tough

warmer weather, made for a pleasant time poking along through the woods with the kiddo at the end of the day.


peace
e


photo's by e

On Smoking. Smoking fish that is.






Until now, i've never really tried my hand at smoking meats. Jerky in the oven, yes. Charcoal BBQ...always. But no smoking of fish. So when a friend offered up a day before christmas to help me smoke 36 cisco (lake herring) that i had in the freezer i took him up on it. eric v's secret family brine recipe and attention to detail combined with a well stoked fire of birch logs for 8 hours produced some outstanding results. These smoked delicacies were enjoyed by many over the holidays. Many thanks to 'other eric' for his insight into this world of smoking. i'm hooked.

peace
e

photo's by: eric v-wal

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Folks.
Thanks for continuing to swing past the fresh aspect; i hope it adds something positive to your day.

This is what it's all about. What a fantastic christmas it was with family and friends.



be well
peace

e

When you're out in the woods hunting, senses attune, you tend to pick up on nuances that might otherwise go unnoticed on a normal day.

These two days were cold...-30C cold, with north winds to add extra snap to the air. This plant was carving a perfect arc back and forth in the otherwise untouched snow. The bend in the plant apparent in the shadow.

Animal tracks of all sorts.


peace
e

photo's by eric berglund

Big whitetails. Gliding the nordics. Stiff north wind. O'Yeah.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD.
photo by e

Yet a few more from last Wednesday. Specially dig Liam carving one off the top with style in the bottom shot.





peace
e

photos by eric berglund

So postless up in this joint, it ain't even funny. Peepers and mind far from the interwebs. Beauty of an October thus far, good days in the woods. For tonight, it's some vegetation in a transitioning state of being.




be well
peace
e


photo's by e.

We forage and we like it!
Awesome mushroom hunt the other day, yielded some choice edibles.

Lobster mushrooms (Hypomyces lactifluorum)...(Note: a mushroom but not actually a mushroom; rather a parasitic ascomycete that grows on the Russula and Lactarius species). Same color as their namesake and seafoody tasting as well.

AhhYEAH! Golden Chanterelles (Cantharellus cibarius). So incredibly stoked to have found this stash.

A fresh home cooked creation using all local foods.


thankful

peace
e

photo's by
eric berglund

Good sighting on the way to the patch.

Insane clumpers

33 liters of blueberries on saturday. sitting pretty with a serious stash.


peace
photo's by e.

Boreal Birch Syrup

Check this fun vid from Boreal Birch Syrup of Thunder Bay, owned and operated by Dave Challen and Beth Kuiper. They make some mean syrup.

I'll tell ya what's nice; resurrecting the notion of a winter bicycle commute. After years of riding through the depths of the Canadian winter, i was forced to curtail my commute a couple of years ago, mostly because of the distance to my place of work. A 20km commute by bike in the dead of winter in northwestern Ontario is pretty ridiculous. Recently however i've been fortuitous enough to start working at a location within a reasonable commuting distance (10km) and i can now pedal to and from work again. It's a nice way to start and end the day. Try it sometime.


peace
e

photo by: eric berglund

Fresh blanket of snow and the full moon made for a bright night wednesday.



photo by eric

I won't bother with the full written account of the weekend, since a couple of shots might explain a thing or two....or not.






Good times.


peace
e

photo's by e
(exception: shot deux of L&e looking sorta boss, by: leif)