When Less Is More
According to SCDNR, now that we are having warmer weather in SC, black bears are becoming more active. During this time bears are looking for easy food left around.
So far, there have been five different bear sightings here at the cabin. Plus, many more sightings in the woods behind our home.
Here are 12 recent trail cam videos featuring bears.
Enjoy the videos! 🙂
Nature Photo Gallery
There is magic in the mountains. Every season has an alluring mood with vibrant colors that highlight the beauty of the hills. Here is a list of ten lovely mountains in upstate South Carolina. Plus, a photo gallery of nature and wildlife in the woods.
With Gratitude,
Let’s take our hearts for a walk in the woods and listen to the magic whispers of old trees. ~Unknown.
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Mediterranean baked salmon is an easy and healthy recipe to make. It is tender, moist, and packed with many delicious flavors. Serve it with white rice, salad, or your favorite side dish. I love serving my salmon with white rice and black beans.
Jump to Recipe
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the salmon on a well-oiled baking dish. Add salt, paprika, garlic powder, cumin, and dill on the salmon. Chop the cherry tomatoes, onions, sun-dried tomatoes and black olives. Add to the baking dish with the seasoned salmon.
Add the capers and sprinkle more olive oil. Add 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Thicker cuts of salmon may require 30 minutes. Optional: Top salmon with 1 tablespoon of blue cheese and serve immediately.
Hello Friends,
It’s been super busy here! I have been working on a new recipe, Mediterranean Salmon which I will post soon. In the meantime, I had a black bear visit the cabin in the late morning. According to the South Carolina DNC, black bears are more active in the month of May here in the Carolina woods.
Read more here about black bears in South Carolina.
Plus, the squirrels are not shy to peek into the windows to say, ‘hello.’
Enjoy the videos!
Lots of Love,
Shelter Logic
100% PURE
Throughout history snakes have been a symbol of medicine, love, rebirth, wisdom, good, and evil. Snakes will seek shelter in any place that is hidden. They burrow under rocks, logs, tree stumps, and bushes. Snakes are frightened of humans and are not prone to strike unless they feel threatened. It’s best to keep a good distance, and they will mosey on by.
Corn snakes are generally docile and non-venomous. The corn snake has colors of orange and brown with patterns that resemble a ‘corn on the cob.’
It is easy to confuse corn snakes with venomous copperhead snakes. Corn snakes have brighter colors and are of a more slender build than copperheads. Corn snakes are also an excellent choice as a pet snake according to experts. Read more here.
Copperheads are the most common venomous snake you will find in South Carolina. They are reddish-brown, long, and wide snakes with a diamond shape pattern on their backs. Copperheads try to avoid humans and often hide under fallen leaves. Most copperhead bites occur when an unsuspecting human steps on the snake. Read more about the copperhead here.
The king snake has a black body with yellow patterns. King snakes dislike copperheads. King snakes do not have venom. They kill their prey by wrapping themselves around the prey and squeezing it to death.
Black snakes are not venomous nor aggressive. If they feel threatened, they may bite as a last resort. The black snake can reach up to 8 feet in length. Black snakes eat large amounts of rats and mice. They are especially handy to have around when you are growing a vegetable garden.
Historically, the eastern milk snake got it’s name from a silly belief that it would drink milk from a cow. The eastern milk snake is not venomous. People confuse the eastern milk snake with the venomous coral snake. Experts have suggested learning the following rhyme in order to differentiate the two snakes: “Red on yellow kills a fellow. Red on black, friend of Jack.”
According to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, there are 38 different species of snakes in South Carolina.
You can read more here.
Many people have a natural fear of snakes including, myself. Experts have studied this reaction and have discovered that we usually are not born with the fear of snakes. The fear of snakes is a learned behavior.
Read more here.
After encountering many snakes here in the woods, my fear of snakes has diminished, and I have developed a great admiration and respect for these magical creatures.
Warm Wishes,
FORIA
PIG & HEN
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Hey Everyone!
April is an exciting time to see wildlife in the woods. All the animals are active this month. Black bears are emerging from their dens and showing up around the neighborhood. I spotted a black bear and her cubs a few miles from my home and captured a short video.
Read more about the black bears here.
Plus, the coyotes are roaming around at night, and the raccoons are busy socailizing and searching for food.
As always, enjoy the trail cam videos!
Warm Wishes,
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One of my favorite pizzas for the warm weather is blue cheese pizza with prosciutto. Blue cheese and fig pizzas are easy to make. You can purchase a premade pizza crust and it will be ready in just a few minutes. It’s crunchy, salty, and sweet. Plus, drizzle a little bit of balsamic vinegar for extra flavor. Serve it with a salad or your favorite side dish.
Enjoy!
• Pizza Crust Choose your favorite pizza crust. I used a gluten-free premade pizza crust.
• Blue Cheese & Figs The perfect combination of sweet and salty.
• Fig Preserves Fig preserves for spreading onto the pizza crust. • Prosciutto Fresh prosciutto for a bit of crunch on your pizza. Note: You can also use bacon in place of prosciutto or vegan bacon as another option. It's all up to you and your taste buds. 🙂 👍
• Small Yellow Onion Use a small yellow thinly diced onion.
• Sherry Wine Use sherry wine for deglazing and caramelizing the onions.
• Maple Syrup Use maple syrup for caramelizing the onions.
Preheat a medium pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Thinly dice a yellow onion. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes stirring often, until the onions begin to wilt. Season with salt, pepper, and stir. Reduce the heat and add 1 tablespoon of sherry cooking wine. Add 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and stir for another 10 minutes. Turn off heat and set onions aside to cool.
Now its time to bake the prosciutto. Turn on the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet pan with parchment paper. Place the entire packet of prosciutto onto the baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to a bowl. Allow to cool.
Slice 3/4 cup of figs in half and place into a small bowl. Set aside.
Now it’s time to assemble the pizza. Again, set the oven to 400 degrees F. Use a round pizza tray and add a small amount of oil to the pizza tray. Place the pizza crust onto the pizza tray and spread the fig preserves to your liking. I used 2 tablespoons of fig preserves. Crumble the baked prosciutto into small pieces evenly onto the pizza. Add the cooked onions and sliced figs.
Add the blue cheese as desired. I added about 3/4 cup.
Bake for about 10-12 minutes. Drizzle a little bit of balsamic vinegar for extra flavor. Serve the blue cheese and fig pizza with a salad or your favorite side dish.
Skin brightening facial scrub made with strawberry, pineapple, papaya, cranberry, bilberry, grape, lemon and orange – all blended together to deeply nourish while giving you super soft, glowing skin.
The weather gets scorching hot here in the South Carolina mountains. I try to maintain a simple beauty regime. I enjoy the natural no-makeup look that is hassle-free yet put together. Here are my ten favorite beauty products for the spring and summer months.
Warm Wishes,
Debra Roinestad
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I am raving about ravens. The weather is great now for raven watching. According to wildlife experts, many have admired the ravens’s intelligence and confidence as they strut around. Ravens are not usually as social like crows, but sometimes they hang around in pairs.
Read more here about ravens.
Our trail cam captured 174 raven videos! I narrowed down the trail cam videos and picked out the most enjoyable footage.
To view past trail cam videos of ravens click here. And here.
Wishing everyone a lovely spring.
All the best!
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Cilantro chutney is a lovely combination of tangy and sweet. You can use cilantro chutney on sandwiches, grilled meats, salads, and dips. I enjoy using the chutney as a dip for sweet potato fries. Cilantro chutney is easy to prepare. In a food processor, add cilantro, mayo, garlic, sherry cooking wine, maple syrup, sour cream, ground coriander, salt, and pepper, and blend until smooth.
Refrigerate the cilantro chutney in a storage jar. Cilantro chutney will be good for one week in the refrigerator. Also, you can freeze the remainder of the cilantro chutney in a plastic zip-lock bag for future usage.
Enjoy!
Debra Roinestad
Wash can cut the bottom stems of the cilantro and peel one garlic clove.
Add the cilantro, garlic, sherry cooking wine, maple syrup, mayo, sour cream, ground coriander, salt and pepper in a food processor. Note: If you do not have a food processor you can use a blender.
Pulse the ingredients until smooth and creamy.
Pour the cilantro chutney into a storage jar. The cilantro chutney is ready to serve. Cilantro chutney will be good for one week in the refrigerator.
