Monday, January 26, 2009

The weekend

Well, were back from the frozen up north cabin. It was great weekend. One of the rare weekends where Denise and I get to spend time together at the cabin. I got to the cabin on Friday night. Denise had fried up some bluegill bites as a snack. They were really good. I had a couple of adult beverages and it was bedtime.

Saturday we got up and it was cold. I got up on the roof to shovel some of the snow off. The ice on the edge of the roof in places was about 10 inches thick. This would explain the leak in the utility room from the ice dam.After shoveling, Denise wanted to go to Tip Up Town up in Houghton Lake. So off we went. Tip up Town is an annual two weekend festival in Houghton Lake. It started years ago as an ice fishing tournament and over the years has grown into a major event with carnival rides, games and helicopter rides. One of the big attractions is the polar bear dip. A bunch of crazy people get into their favorite summer swimwear and dive, belly flop or cannon ball ino the frigid waters of Houghton Lake. There were probably three hundred people in line to take part in this event.


This is a pic of the rescue divers who check out the area for foreign objects or ice shards. There was also a paramedic team standing by.

This is a pic of the first participant getting ready to take the plunge. Her skin was bright red after standing in line in the single digit weather waiting for the event to begin.


Here is pic of me and Denise at Tip Up Town. Notice that we are dressed appropriately for the weather. Denise reminded me of Ralphie's little brother in the movie 'A Christmas Story'. We had a good time. Most of the fishing takes place farther down the lake. We would have taken more pics but the batteries died on the camera.

After leaving TIp Up Town we stopped at the crafts fair that is also part of Tip Up Town. Denise purchased some spices from a Mennonite woman then we headed back to our cabin for dinner and a nap. The events coordinator (Denise) got us tickets to a comedy show. The Irish Comedy Tour. They were three comedians who are Irish Americans and my gosh were they funny. I would tell some of their jokes but we do try to keep this blog family friendly.

Sunday, we slept in a little. It was -3 degrees outside. A good day to stay inside. I took some pics of some of our daily visitors.

A Pine Siskin, one of the 'winter' finches. We had some Common Redpolls, but too far away to get photo's.

One of the many squirrels that love Denise's suet feeders.


A Red-Bellied Woodpecker.


A male Downy Woodpecker on the no-no feeder.



This is a pic of the very rare orange and black chimney bird. OK , its just me cleaning the chimney flue. The chimney is nice and clean now. After this we headed home.

Hope all of you had a great weekend. Take care.

Bill



6 comments:

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Hi Bill and Denise, Sounds like a wonderful but COLD weekend in Michigan. Can you believe those idiots jumping in that frigid water???? Yipes!!!! My favorite picture was that big orange bird on your roof. I haven't seen one quite like that before. I need to check this one out. Maybe he'll clean out our chimney.. Ya think?????

Hope you two have thawed out!!!
Hugs,
Betsy

George said...

You two sure are hardy people. I was glad to see you all bundled up, but I don't think I'd even go out with the temperature at -3°. Thanks for sharing your (cold) weekend with us.

Cedar ... said...

It sounds like you two enjoyed each other's company and had fun. I have not seen the Red Bellied woodpecker here. Nor the Orange and Black Chimney bird either,.... grinning! :)

Shelley said...

Hi Bill & Denise,

What a fun filled packed weekend you had! I've never been to Tip up Town Weekend but have always been curious. Loved the bird photos!

Jen said...

Polar Bears! Holy cow! ha ha. There's no way!!

Great photos of your birds and squirrels. Glad you were able to make it up to the cabin.

Bill said...

Betsy if we are ever in Tennessee I would be more than happy to clean your chimney.

George it was cold. It would have been better if it was not so windy.

Cedar we get al kinds of woodpeckers. Downey, Hairy, Red Headed, Red Bellied and Pileated. As far as the Orange and black Chimney bird he is only seen a couple times a year and only on the roof.

Shelly Tip Up Town is fun. The area we were at was the family friendly area. We never got over to beer tent. Next year we will have to set up a weekend for you to come over and enjoy Tip Up Town.

Jen Thanks for stopping by.

Bill