Uncle Henry´s Universe.

Have no
picture of an Easter rooster so it have to be a capercaillie instead.

I wish you a nice
weekend!

Gray, windy
and snow showers. No eagle today, opportunity to get some other things done instead.
Transported firewood for windbreaks and cabin in Fänstjärnsskogens nature
reserve. Cleaned off some garbage and loaded paper on the toilet. Being an
executive caretaker is also an important task!

The cottage is open to visitors all year round. Welcome!

Destruction
of our old-growth forests are in full swing. It is astounding what rough types
that forest companies are using to get the dirty work done!

Just found
this clip from last year, or perhaps it was in 2011. Filmed with an iPhone 3Gs.
A colleague transporting lumber out to the footbridges in Fräkensjömyrarnas
nature reserve. He looks very pleased, right? I think my dear colleagues dreams
of their own iron horse, instead of the miserable four-wheel motorcycles that
they use today…

Today
arrived the fifth squirrel, slightly later than last year, but who knows, maybe
it will be even more. Last weeks has also greenfinch, siskin and yellowhammer
been visiting the bird feeder, a sign that spring is slowly approaching,
despite the cold nights. We have been down to 24 degrees below zero, but the
days are warmer, only a few degrees below zero! Sunshine and good winds for the
golden eagle and no snowfall in sight, we have wonderful days right now.

Yesterday
came five jackdaws up from the village and made a hasty visit to our farm.
Nice. A harbinger of spring. We are still waiting to hear spring’s first crow,
they leave the valley during the harshest winter months so it feels really cozy
when we hear their croaking again. One of the first real signs of
spring.

The power
of nature is overwhelming. The seasonal changes, extreme weather, tides or just
a small lingonberry twig that has found its own place on earth.

This year’s
inventory of golden eagles has started in a fantastic weather. Sunshine, fresh
winds and temperatures above freezing. The very first day I managed to see two
adult eagles dive over the nest they usually use in the rough pine at the foot
of the mountain. This territory is occupied, five remain. I’ve said it before
but it is worth repeating. It’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it!

I got today
that tickling feeling of discomfort, it felt like someone was staring at me …
Discovered eventually the Hawk Owl that had sneaked up behind me. What a lovely
buddy, he kept me company all day long. It came closer and closer, hunted to
the end only a few dozen meters away from me, but then had the batteries in the
camera run out a long time ago …

Suddenly
draws snow showers in and it becomes gray and chilly, is considering breaking
today’s work but soon after, the clouds passed and the sun is shining again.
Spring weather! The forecast looks good for the next week, I hope that the work
continues as well as it started. Would be fun to find some new territory this
year as well.

The days
are getting longer and the light changes, we begin to hope for an approaching
spring. Although sound changes. You hear woodpeckers drumming, birds singing
and it ripples from melting snow. Everything is still quite tentative, we will
experience many setbacks yet, but you start to actually believe that it will be
a spring and summer also this year.

It is
sometimes discussed whether nature has an economic value, if one can put a
price tag on everything that we have free around us … I have previously
hesitated but now realize that it is actually true! Pygmy Owl has patrolled at
the bird table most every day last week and thus succeeded in reducing the
consumption of sunflower seed very significantly, has probably earned several
hundred crowns. Would not be surprised if the market value lands on a sack of
sunflower seeds per owl and winter

Silence has
become a scarce commodity, something that is considered worthy of protection in
several of our nature reserves. An opportunity to experience the outdoor
recreation without bellowing engines around. Sound Image has changed radically
in recent years, we know, we who are dealing with audio recording. Hardly has a
jet passed until the next is on time, or snowmobile, or car, or … Tried to
record a whistling pygmy owl, it did not get better than this! (Sorry for all
the crappy sound in the background)

https://soundcloud.com/uncle-henry/2013-02-27/s-KQJFr

We were completed with the marking of the nature reserve boundary of Mammasberg today. Mammasberg in Swedish means Mother Mountain in English, though presumably the name comes from old Savolax Finnish and means something else. We call it nowadays for Mammadag, as a tribute to our favorite Turkish mountain – Babadag! (Father Mountain) 🙂

I was joined for a while during work by a curious Siberian jay. It is always nice when they come to visit. Had the phone only to shoot with, and the jay was not as intrusive as I wanted, but it became a pretty cozy picture anyway. (iPhone 4s)

Even with a generous partial enlargement!

Iron Horse is a remarkable machine. Easy to love, but also to hate when the terrain is rocky and difficult. There are several accessories but loading surface belongs to my favorite. I think it´s good for my back to avoid carrying heavy larch poles up steep hills.

On flat ground, especially on the bog, the machine works like a dream. To mark nature reserve boundary went this day as a dance!