2016 Scottish Games

Jeffery and I wended to Woodland, where they have the Sacramento Scottish Games at the Yolo County Fairgrounds.  We've been many times, and shown photos here, but here are some more.  We love this festival perhaps the most of all, for it combines all the elements of the various festivals we love.  Music, dance, men in kilts, medieval garb and games, plus athletics, bagpipes, animals, fair food, and more.

The other beautiful thing that happened is; I left my camera there at the Games. When I got home and realized it, I found the number to the Lost and Found, called it, and the nice Lady Janice who was there with the Caledonia Club that hosts the Games, vowed to send it.  Clearly, she did as she'd said, because here are my photos!  Thanks Janice! I've been helpless without it!

We enter the Scottish Games

I am the first contestant to hurl the haggis.  It flew 36,6 feet,  The winning lady hurled her haggis 81 feet,

Jeffery hurled the burrito-like parcel of haggis 54 feet.  The winning man hurled his 112 feet.

men in attire

lassies dancing

in the falcon demonstration, this large owl was the first to be shown to us.  He was huge, and didn't care for the bagpipe music.

this lady walked her hawk around the fields for all to get a good look at.

They flew the hawk and I happened to be behind and zoomed-up on this trainer.

here's both girl and bird to show no harm

this hawk is a desert hawk, with particularly long legs and a funny turkey-like gait that they had the hawk do for us.

in the Old Town part of the Games, we could greet the Queen.  Many youngsters did this happily.

bright scene

the Parade at noon

I'm going to show you a good amount of this parade

I'd be happy to have the pretty outfit this lassie is wearing.

love the sleeves!

lots of youth participants in the Gunn Clan section

one of the hawks over in the Scottish animals area

falcon, if memory serves

Mac, the 11 year old wee hairy beast

we finally found and purchased an affordabe utility-kilt for Jeffery

the helmet is just so "him"

trying on chain mail requires assistance

Jeffery is bedecked, and the gear is heavy

this laddie was a game sport.  he donned the extra apparel, weighing him down even more, and then the red-headed fellow chased him around the camp to show him how it felt to be a medieval soldier.

Time for a series of caber toss photos.  The caber (pole) is uprighted for the contestant, who must pick it up, carry it, and fling it completely up and over so it's other end lands and the pole tips over.  We saw one guy fling the caber up and hit the tip, but it fell back towards him, so it didn't count.

there, he has picked up the caber; phew!

the previous fellow failed, so this fellow tried, but failed.

this is so much fun, seeing guys trying to pick up the caber in their kilts.

uh-oh!  it's up, but it's coming the wrong way

this is how most of the cabers ended up.

There you go!  More fun was had, but that's a good enough sampling, eh?

April in the Canyon

We've done a lot of little stuff, hikes, projects, etc.  Here's a look.

Jeffery with his pho in Oroville

Laurie's pho

I think I found Wrong-way Feldman! (look it up)

the Oroville Inn has some nice touches!

 Okay, now we're back in the canyon.

had to check on the Scotsman's grave.  It is in good condition, I'm glad to report.

the barn at the end of the Belden back-road

Jeffery is going to take some stuff up for tomorrow's work on the Tobin Trail with Roger

there he goes, fully laden; he'll have more to carry up tomorrow, like the chainsaw.

I decided to walk up to see the guys, and saw wild irises along the Tobin Trail

Lupine

Indian Paintbrush and wallflowers

I approach Colby Creek, where Jeffery and Roger are hard at work creating a bridge walk-way to get across the creek.

Jeffery set a goodly rock in place at the sheer edge

this is all new trail section  that Jeffery is building, which will lead to that fallen log in the background, which will be the bridge.  Roger is working on the other side of the creek.

this is the current way down the sheer cliff to cross the creek, which has eroded in the winter rains and our usage of the trail.

by the time I arrive, Jeffery has finished creating the new trail section, and is working on benching the steep place for a rock retaining wall.

looking down to the creek

Jeffery on his new trail section.  The guys will use downed trees to create the bridge, but today, the darned chainsaw refused to fire up.

Here's Roger, working on the far side to make a new trail section  to connect up to the old section

I helped!  Not much, but a little!

here is the new wall Jeffery built down to the creek, which will still be the way to go down and across until the bridge gets built.

here's the same shot, only from the creek level.  Roger has made the creek visible over the past months, so it's a whole new world at Colby Creek.

new trail section in sunlight.

on a run for the mail, I saw this double engine running down the tracks

Fern Creek and bleeding hearts on the Belden back road

the Frates garage still has its orange door, and is still standing

Red Hill got a new dusting of snow on April 23

rock wall at the End House on the back road

Ben Lomond also got new snow

red larkspur and new pine growth

rock flowers, whose name I do not know.

the back road is so green!

the back road doesn't go anywhere but along the river

dogwood

Ben Lomond peeps out of the clouds above Dead Man's Curve

the Frates House

Hope all this green woodsiness isn't too confusing for you.  For me, it's like entering a magical place and seeing it with new eyes.