Friday, September 27, 2019

Wildlife Crossings

About an hour west of Calgary is the gateway to Banff National Park.  The route to and through the park is eighty-three kilometers along the Trans-Canada Highway - a fast and furious road carrying millions of trucks, cars, motorbikes and cyclists each year; tourists and day-trippers, workers and holiday-makers - and a startling array of RV's, campers and fifth-wheelers!

Collisions between vehicles and wildlife can be fatal, on either side of the equation, but obviously the animals come out far worse than the metal beasts that mow them down.
By about 2014, there were six completed overpasses in place.  
These are 50m wide "bridges" over the highway and have cost millions of dollars to build.  They are finished like the surrounding natural habitat with earth, plants and trees.
It can take years for large wildlife to feel safe to utilise these crossings, but motion-detecting cameras prove they do work.  One issue is that the animal has to walk up the crossing area, and he cannot see what is on the other side and so, of course, is naturally very wary.  Modifications may be made in future years to try and address this.

There will also be 39 underpasses, many of which are already put to extensive use.  Over 200,000 crossings have been recorded involving bears, wolves, elk and cougars.
A motion-detector camera took footage of a gorgeous lynx using an overpass.  A rare sighting indeed.


Years ago, when we were at the Park Gate paying our annual park pass fee, we were given a CD to play in the car.  It was aimed at the kids, telling the story from the animals' point of view - simply, for drivers to just slow down - and using different silly voices for the different species.  My girls were about 8 and 10 at the time and enjoyed listening to the stories.

We must have played that flipping CD about 10 times and even now, I could recite back to you the bear's comments!
But the gift of the CD has made us all so much aware of the vast efforts (and expense) that Parks Canada, highway agencies and environmentalists have made to mitigate the deaths of wildlife along this increasingly busy corridor through one of the most beautiful drives in the world.

Sunday, April 21, 2019

Kitchen renovation

Long post - lots of photos, and me showing off just a tiny bit.

Ahh, the kitchen is the heart of the home.  And I used to hate mine. 

It took 10 years of planning and preparing, and 8 weeks to complete a renovation.  

It might take another 10 years to pay for it!

Say goodbye to a dash of collapse, dysfunction and leakage.  B'Bye 90's golden oak.
Considerable fretting ensues, but the decision is made to remove the corner pantry.  These things hide a multitude of kitchen sins, but it turns out to be the best decision ever.

While the whole house is in such dusty disarray, let's remove several half/pony walls, move the lounge to a different room and create new dining room.  Let's create a new fireplace.  Oh, and let's steal a funky design from a show home!


Be sure to choose a talented kitchen designer who thinks like you do.  Who thinks through the placement of everything - where you turn, where you'll stand, where you will store.
Ask the designer to try and create a kitchen island in a really awkward angled room.  
"I would like a zig-zag, please?"
Template for a shit-load of granite.

Replace all flooring on the main floor.  Paint the stairs. Add to half walls in the entrance/lounge area and take them up to the ceiling.  Add wiring for new wall lights and for a wall-mounted tv.

Eat dust for 8 weeks.  Mmmm, yummy.

And then delight in the final new product.





Hello light and airy, the longest island ever, and add colourful LED lights (with 12 settings!) for the every-occasion party look.


Finally, bankrupt oneself with gorgeous new dining set.

At last - done!  And for about 15 minutes on a random Wednesday, my house looks like something out of a glossy magazine and I am smug and delighted.

Then reality bites.  We carry on living here, like a real family, and mess and untidiness ensues, but the functionality is fabulous.