the new addition

I realize now that my description of the new acquisition was so thin as to cause many of our cerebral audience to wonder "if that was all." Yes, the over- whelming motivation was to protect our view and privacy. But indeed there is more...

It provides a far easier (and safer for those not as stable on their feet as they once were) access to Longman Creek which forms the southern bound of Stratheden. It is a state-stocked trout stream of local repute and our bottomless source of blackberries. The new land did not add appreciably to the actual water frontage, however, as it tapers severely as it approaches the creek.

There are a number of large rhododendrons, including a magnificent thicket of dense and quite large specimens. Spring blooms will be dazzling to the eye. As a continuation of our forest, it is an open forest, free of obstructive underbrush, a delight to roam. Mostly, though, the land lies along the small creek and is soggy and rocky but after the years we lived in a desert, the melodious sound of flowing water can not be over-valued.

Our basic acreage had three very small drainages which flowed onto the new land, and form a modest creek which flows into the major creek. The one near the front of the farm is actually the origin point of the water; it does not flow constantly but the ground remains damp at all times. The other two wee valleys, both close to our home, are first small seeps which evolve into ever-flowing albeit small streams. By the time all three merge, the new watercourse is notable for its flow, although not its width or depth, as it dances frivolously over and around the white quartz stones.