" UNDER THE SNOW & ICE, THE SPRING REBIRTH OF THE NORTHERN FOREST LIES BENEATH!"

This past week has seen some warmer, sunny days and cold nights. Just what is needed for sugaring of the Maple Trees here in Quebec. With the Maple Sap running, can Spring weather be that far away? 
As you can see in this photo, Blue is just waiting for the change and is enjoying the warm, Spring sun.
It has been a quiet week here spent working in the kennel and enjoying some quality time with all the dogs just sitting & petting them and enjoying the peace & tranquility. This week was also a good time to get really acquainted with Tony & Tanya. They have quickly adapted to their new surroundings and the one on one attention from me. As soon as they see me, they start to get excited anticipating some petting or food.
Another sign of Spring, Teal came into heat last week. So, soon the rest of the females will follow suit. This caused Tony to go off his food. But, only for one day! He couldn't resist for longer.
There were also updates this past week to the "Pedigree" page.
Until next week........

"A BEAUTIFUL DAY HERE IN THE NORTHERN FOREST!"

Yes, it is a beautiful day here with the temperature around freezing and a blue, cloudless sky!
It was a rather quiet week here weather wise with nice warm days, a little rain and no snow. It was so warm & sunny that the roof of the chalet is now snow-less. 
However, after last weeks heavy rain and the drop in the temperature, everything on the ground is very icy and difficult to walk on, let alone run dogs.
Everything is coming together for next season and with the arrival of Tanya the Point position in the team has been secured. Tanya is the daughter of Tony and ran for the last three seasons on the Open Class Team of Rosaire Perron. Again,I have been the beneficiary of Rosaire's generosity & support. If it wasn't for his assistance, I wouldn't have been able to convert the kennel so quickly. 
The dogs are all just relaxing and enjoying the change of seasons and so am I!
Until next week........

"TONY CHECKING OUT HIS NEW DIGS IN THE NORTHERN FOREST!"

It has been a crazy week here with a lot going on for a normally tranquil existence.
Tony arrived here this week from the kennel of Rosaire Perron and will be mainly used here as a stud with an arrangement between Rosaire & myself. Rosaire continues to assist me on my endeavors to produce a competitive team here in the Open Class Racing in Quebec. Without his assistance, the conversion would not have been possible. Tony is the son of Mike from the Egil Ellis Kennel in Alaska. He has sired many great racing dogs here in Quebec. It is a real honor to have him here at Miortuk.
The other big story here has been the weather. As forecasted, the next major storm did arrive on Thursday depositing another 12" of wet snow. That added to what we received over that last couple of weeks has added over three & a half feet of new snow. With all the new snow, it has become difficult to open the road way into the chalet as the plow truck cant push the snow due to the high side banks. The road has become very narrow and is just wide enough to get the truck through. Another snow fall will leaves us stranded. The other complication is, I need to go out this coming week for food for the dogs.
Luckily for me a great neighbor, Michel, came yesterday with tractor equipped with a snow blower and widened my entrance enough that I will be able to plow out for the rest of the Winter.
Along with the snow, we also received 24 hours of rain which made the snow very heavy. This was creating a problem in the chalet with the melting snow on the roof causing water leeks in the ceiling and also the danger of collapsing the roof due to the weight of the, now, wet snow. This prompted me to go up on the roof to shovel off the snow. There was over 3' of snow along the edge of the roof on the western side of the chalet. 
Coupled with all that has happened this week, the Hydro/Electricity was off for 11 hours on Friday.
So now: the hydro is back on, the roof is safe, the entrance way is clear & life is again wonderful here in the Northern Forest!
Until next week........

" WINTER IS STILL NOT OVER HERE IN THE NORTHERN FOREST! "

Mother Nature gave us a late Winter blast of snow starting on Friday night and continuing until Sunday morning. During this period of time, we received between 18" to 24" of fresh , new snow. Then Saturday night the winds picked up causing some serious drifting. The kennel, protected by the trees, didn't get the drifting. So this photo, taken Sunday morning, shows only the snow that fell from the storm. We also received, last Monday, 8" of new snow. If the forecast is correct, we are supposed to receive another major dump on Thursday.

Saturday was spent plowing out the entrance road & the grounds around the chalet. Today, will be spent plowing out again due to the drifting.
This week, Kara departed from here to travel back home to Oregon. Kara did a great job here through the Winter and she is going to be missed by both the dogs & myself. 
THANKS AGAIN KARA!!!!
The dogs are staring to whined down after a busy running season. Already plans are a foot for next season. More details to follow in coming weeks. 
Until next week......