John-Edmonton
Silver Member
- Mar 21, 2005
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My home Edmonton is very unique. It has a large river, the "North Saskatchewan "running through it, and multiple creeks also feeding the river. Edmonton was a stopping place for supplies to mine up in the Yukon and Alaska during the gold rush in the 1800's. The Hudson's Bay had various forts in and around the city. So, because of the river, there was a lot of activity around here, possibly going back to the 1700's.
And, it's gets frick'n cold in the winter, going down to -40's, the same in both Celsius and Fahrenheit. So, when the creeks freeze, I like to hike them, searching the vertical banks to see if there is anything of interest. Here is a spot, where underground springs spill their water, overflowing the frozen soil, and adding layers to the frozen ice and snow. That's my wife taking some photos of the springs water frozen along parts of the creek.
Here's a slice of time showing on the wall of this vertical cut of the creek. Old coal seams on the bottom, a mid layer of clay in the middle, with the gravel indicating an old stream bed cris-crossing the area at one time, 5 -10,000 years ago.
I work on an orthopedics ward in a hospital, dealing with hip/knee replacements and broken bones from falls and motor vehicle accidents. So, it comes as no surprise that bones fascinate me. While searching closely along the wall, I found a bone partially sticking out. I carefully removed it with my pick and wrapped it up in paper towel to preserve it, as it was quite easy to crunch and pulverize it.
The flat bone on the bottom is the one I pulled out of the vertical cut of the creek. There were a few spots where the frozen creek bed was exposed, where I found the other bone, and also a white piece of petrified wood.
Hunt #2 was on the west facing slop of a hill. It was quite steep, however, there a few trails made it possible to navigate, and there was some exposed dirt amongst the scattered snowy areas. My first target was the lid off an old canning jar, a typical find of a picnic site. I was limited to the digging, as the ground was mostly frozen.
No coins were found. I did however, dig up a vintage "Benson and Hedges" lighter. Funny thing.....I could still push in the button to create alight the butane, and looking inside, it was still producing an electric spark. Too cool.
Finally, hunt #3 was today. I had some spare time, and hit a few sleigh hills, and got some much needed exercise and some cold cash!
And, as many times before, while I was putting this post together, I was drying a fresh batch of 3 lbs of elk, which my twin sons got me for Christmas. Life is good!
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