This afternoon, on a 31C-degree day in May, I could feel the dampness of perspiration at my forehead hairline, it was that muggy. And though we offered Jackie and Jillie sips of cool fresh water repeatedly during our two-hour plod through the ravine, neither took up the offer. I came better prepared today for the heat and humidity that yesterday brought out mosquitoes in a feeding frenzy. Long white, light cotton pants and jacket-top. No mosquitoes.

Moderation called for a short hike through the woods, but sometimes you just don't feel like using common sense. Unlike many others, for our hike through the woods today, like yesterday in similar weather circumstances, was serenely quiet, no one else out and about on the forest trails. The mosquitoes were taken care of, but not so the heat and humidity. By the time we returned home I was prepared to peel that white outfit off my damp limbs.

But while we were out drawn to discover what new surprises maturing spring was prepared to reveal, we enjoyed toddling along, recognizing each surprise, like old friends returned, one after another. First off, we came across a surprise installed in the past few hours, but not by nature. This was a human amendment of a natural occurrence. The short stretch of lower trail on the bank of the creek that had collapsed yesterday, making us turn back and off the trail, now sported a tall, long wire fence around its approach extending to the edge of the upper trail to prevent anyone from accessing the collapsed trail.

We'd been expecting that to happen for a decade, actually. And now, it finally did; the lower trail no longer viable thanks to a slow and steady erosion of the ravine hillsides from time to time toppling into the creek. It's been many years since we used that lower trail and just for that reason; that it was on the cusp of collapse. We just happened yesterday, out of curiosity, to take it, at a time when the trail gave way.

In our perambulation on this exceedingly hot day we came across other, more pleasant surprises. We know the Saskatoon berry trees bloom early and we're always on the lookout but we're also always surprise when we see that the bloom time has arrived. They're also called serviceberry trees and the berries they produce make excellent pies. And then we saw as well baneberry in flower. They too produce berries (either red- or white-baneberries) and their fruit is not to be put into any pie; they can be lethal.

The forest floor is now carpeted with woodland violets, in shades primarily of yellow and mauve. Eventually white flowered violets will appear, and after they have bloomed, larger flowered, purple-pink violets in turn. More of the trout lilies are now blooming, as are the purple trilliums. I scrambled halfway down a hillside and found a lonely little pair of white trilliums had finally opened. I'm on the search for pink and Painted Lady trilliums. We often see a sample of both each spring, but so far no luck.

We had just returned home when Jackie and Jillie informed us there was someone at the door. He was, in fact, our daily visitor, halfway up the door, stretching, stretching. It was Junior Rascoon and our two are certainly familiar with his presence, just not on the cusp of entering the house. When he realized he was finally noticed, Junior stepped back and waited patiently for Irving to appear. Irving opened the door and spoke to his friend, then brought out his hospitality plate, as it were.

 Leftover bagel from breakfast cut up into neat little slices, and biscuits that Junior particularly enjoys. He moved back slightly to accommodate the door ajar with Irving's outstretched arm doling out the goodies, and when the door closed Junior moved back in to take possession of the offerings. He's a persistent little fellow and Irving has grown very fond of him.

That's the point at which we all piled into the truck to drive a half-hour distant to a converted old farm which in the spring brings in all manner of cultivated garden plants, mostly annuals. They have the most complete, healthiest display of flowering plants available anywhere and wherever they source them from obviously takes pride in their product. I bought begonias and petunias, canna lilies and dracaenia, wax begonias and dahlias, and felt as though I was in Ali Baba's cave with jewels glittering at me everywhere I looked.

Now I have enough, or almost enough plants to fill all our garden pots to brighten up summer days, as well as the spaces in the garden dominated by perennials but calling out for additional colour, texture and form. As soon as this heat wave passes I'll begin making a pass at the planting, and can hardly wait. 

When we arrived at the garden-plant destination we took turns sitting in the truck with Jackie and Jillie. I was first to look around and fill up on my floral menu, then Irving took his turn and chose a few baskets. In the interim, sitting in the truck, we each in turn offered the puppies the water they spurned while we were going through the ravine and both drank copiously, as though they were dying of thirst and just couldn't get enough.