I've been poking around in the backcountry all of my life, usually with some specific end in mind. Most of the time I'm hoping to learn more about wild things: Wild birds and wild animals. Wild trees and wildflowers. Wild woodlands and wild waterways. I usually have a pretty wild time of it, too. This winter has been no exception. I've been getting to know a pocket wilderness in my corner of Canoe Country — the forested hills overlooking one of the swiftest reaches of The River. It's been a fruitful season. I now know where the porcupines go to find shelter and food, where the foxes make their dens, and where the deer yard up when the cold begins to bite. I've also learned where the red squirrels cache their cones, where the chickadees and mourning doves roost, and where the turkeys scratch for food when the snow drifts deep. This local knowledge pays off. Because I'm on "speaking terms" with so many of the woodland's full‑time residents, I'm quick to sense when something disturbs their forest community, and lately I've felt a thrill of apprehension in the air — a current of alarm, even of outright fear. It's what I call a Macbeth moment, after the familiar couplet from the Scottish play:

By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes.

And that's exactly the feeling I got, starting about three months ago. Something wicked had entered the woods, and I wanted to find out what — or who — it was…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/10/fisher/

Sometimes you just don't want to fuss over a meal, but you want something hearty that will stick to your ribs. It helps if the meal is delicious, too, and who would argue against it being healthy? One of my old reliables is a black bean mix that can be made ahead of time, stored in the refrigerator, and used all week to make any number of easy meals. The best thing of all is that this is one bean mix that comes together fast, just the way I like it.

Prep time is minimal, so folks who have an aversion to cooking can make it. If your pantry is well stocked, you probably don't even need to go to the store to buy anything. Here's what you need…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/09/blackbeans/

The days are getting longer in the northern hemisphere as General Winter retreats, but daytime temperatures are still cold enough to require tights, fleece, woolens, full-fingered gloves, and wind shells when bicycling. And mornings are downright icy, so it's not time just yet to remove the studded tires if you're commuting early or late in the day.

When conditions are chilly, it's difficult to imagine sweltering under a roasting sun on a shadeless road. But it will come, and when it does, it pays to be armed with ways to combat the full blast of the sun's heat. After a long winter, I like the feel of the sun on my bare skin during those first opportunities to go outside in shirtsleeves. But however good it feels, and however cool it is to show off the classic cyclist's tan, it's not wise to court burns or cancer by exposing skin to the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. I've been using sunscreen to combat the threat, but it's greasy and eventually washes off as I sweat, and I don't much like it. I could wear long-sleeved jerseys, but I don't own any summer-weight ones, and they're pricey. But when I learned about arm coolers, I knew that I'd found a solution that I could live with…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/08/armcoolers/ The setting? A rest stop during an autumn bike ride on rough roads. A bright sun casts strong shadows across the dry, gritty road. Today the road is icy in places, muddy in others, but soon, I hope, it will be dry enough to ride there again…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/07/bike-19/

This is a joyous time of the year for wildlife, and muskrats are no exception. The ice which has sheathed their world has begun to recede, releasing them from the constraints of the underwater realm and the toasty but dark and confining interior rooms of the lodge. Days are warmer, too, and though muskrats are usually active at night, they are creatures of the day and are as happy to bask in the sun's rays as we are.

Muskrats are similar to beavers but are smaller, they don't fell trees, and their tails are slim, not wide and flat. They live in wetlands just as beavers do, and thrive on the roots of aquatic plants. Their lodges are similar to beaver lodges in shape, but are smaller and built of the dried stalks of dead aquatic plants. Maybe because of their name, muskrats are an underappreciated animal, but they're a valuable member of the wetland community. Our photographer Tony Jancek has been chronicling the comings and goings of a family of muskrats, and shares these photos of these busy little animals on their home pond…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/06/atj_muskrats/  
A gray squirrel enjoys a meal of sunflower seeds set out on a stump. Do I begrudge him the seed? Nope. This is the hardest time of the year for wild animals and birds here in the snow belt. Food is scarce, either because it's been gathered or eaten, or because it's covered in a winter's accumulation of snow and ice, or because they've lost their storehouse.

A neighbor clear-cut a large portion of his wood-lot this last fall. Every tree, whether dead or alive, was a home and source of food for the wild community who lived there…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/05/photo-41/

 
If you ride a bike, then you should carry some basic repair supplies and tools, and you'll need some way to carry them. Like most prepared cyclists, I carry a spare tire tube, puncture-repair patches, and basic tools, and I tuck these treasures inside a saddle bag (aka seat bag or wedge bag). These bags are available in a variety of shapes and sizes, from tiny (holds a tube, a credit card, and a spare key) to big enough to carry basic repair kit, a lunch, a jacket, and more.

With better riding conditions fast approaching, I've been going through the saddle bags for my bikes to make sure that everything is tickety-boo. If you haven't checked the contents of your saddle bags recently, do so now. It's better than discovering something essential is missing when you're a long walk from home.

I checked the saddle bag for my Surly LHT yesterday. It's an Axiom Catskill bag, with reflective piping and logo patch, and it's expandable by the simple expedient of unzipping a bellows. Here's what it looks like from astern…]]> http://www.tamiasoutside.com/2010/03/04/saddlebag/