Since there is becoming so much emphasis on the "Hole In the Wall" Campground and the festivities that will soon take place, I will commence my posting tonight with Trivial Prattle. Where did the name of the "Hole In The Wall" campground originate and why?
Tonight, I am very pleased to announce that two major developments occurred today regarding our "little sanctuary" by the river. I am really pleased to announce that the construction of the "multi purpose" building is now completed. The only thing remaining to complete construction is to tack the mop board in place once the vinyl is laid. The second "custom" made door was successful and works most of the time. It does beat the "blue tarp"! If it does not rain tomorrow, the entire building will be painted and ready for decorating. I figure it only took 45 days for the construction, that really is not that bad when you consider the preciseness of the measurements and unique carpentry skills that were employed! I know it will be difficult for you to recognize the difficulties that were encountered on this project and the precise planning that had to take place. On several occasions, I mentioned the "cost overrun" on the project. In reality, the entire construction of the building with the exception of paneling and ten 2x4's was from the shelving that we took out of the video store in Homer. No tree was killed for the construction of this building so it is environmentally friendly! In addition, Shane and Dana now have a "greenhouse" which was also built from the shelving out of that store as well as a "privy" addition at their get away hide a way cabin. The video store did us well! No need for pictures, you will all be here before I could get them developed. Some of us do not have a digital camera that is compatible to XP!
The second and most important at this point in our lives is that the construction crew moved into the "Hole in Wall" today. As I worked on the building, I could hear heavy equipment operating but I thought it was coming from the Anchor River bridge project. Then Terry came out and asked if I knew that the kids were at the campground working with equipment. Walking to the bluff, I get there just in time to see Heath dumping a bucket load of sand into the "mud wrestling pit" with Erica right behind him with a shovel spreading it out! Except for the center, it is drying out, at least you can walk around the edges without sinking to your knees. They are hauling the sand in from sand bank and spreading it throughout the camping area. Hopefully, they can get enough sand to absorb the moisture and level it off so it will drain better. I also showed them an area that I wanted the building, Heath leveled that spot off with the bucket then Erica came in this evening and used the backhoe to start the hole! Perhaps, by this weekend, we can get in and install the awning and start getting it open for the season. The "wood pile" lake is almost gone, which is the lowest spot in the area - whoever picked that site out! In leveling out the spot for the building, we did managed to save that pretty little birch tree (that I would like to have in my yard) but Heidi, I am sorry your flower bed is history! At least, you will not have to walk very far in the middle of the night! Just so everyone will not worry - we will leave plenty of things for each of you to do upon your arrival. A list will be posted on the bulletin board!

Just like when I am fishing, I find myself on the wrong side of the river once again! I can see Anchor Point from here, but can't get there from here without going to the "Little Hamlet By the Sea". Now that the bridge is closed, it has surely slowed the traffic down on the highway - have not heard a car all day. That is a good thing. The family that "blogs" together has increased in size so rapidly that you can spend a lot of time going to each site. I think we are in trouble, as the little lady was leaving the house this morning to run errands,
I asked her a question and she replied, "I'll blog you"!
You no doubt have noticed the magnificent picture of the Bald Eagle that I have posted. I do this because of a recent blog posting consisting of 3.5 lines with a link to a different site pertaining this "special" bird. A patriotic symbol each of us and our great nation. If you did not see the "shorter" than normal posting, it is located on the "Erotic Screaming" site, I believe I have that name correct! This particular blogger thought it was funny that the symbol of our great nation could have been a turkey if Benjamin Franklin had his way. I believe his quote in favoring the turkey was, "The Bald Eagle is a bird of bad moral character". This is coming from a guy who decided to go fly a kite in a lightening storm with a key attached to it! The article that was linked, was very interesting, it is a great place to learn about eagles. The Bald Eagle mates for life, which further reinforces the fact that Ben did not know what he was speaking of, if taking a mate for life is morally wrong - we should all be of bad moral character! The female, as well they should, builds the nest. The largest nest ever found weighed over two tons, the tree that it was built in finally fell over - I wonder why? If possible the nest or home, is always built high off the ground so the eagle can view the surrounding area. I also discovered that the Bald Eagle suffers from "reversed sexual dimorphism". I really took offense at this because I have watch them enough during this time of the season. I know they have a very high sexual appetite! Anyone or anything that can "get er done" on the fly has to be good! Then I discovered the term "reversed sexual dimorphism" simply means that the female is larger than the male. Guess old Baldy likes his ladies big! I do want to thank the author of that particular blog site for bringing this information forward, it reinforces my concept that the "vision" that came to me in the naming of the Eagle Clan was clear and divinely inspirational. In my picture below, I have named this particular eagle "Homer", just something else that the eagle can do on the fly!

Well another day of drizzling rain, a little wind and the Tournament is canceled once again, will try it next weekend. Just checked the Doppler Radar, it appears that we will run out of rain in the next hour or so. In case you were wondering the LA area looks clear right now. As it drizzles, it will give me a chance to touch bases with each of the blog sites, starting to get enough of them with the Bear Clan coming on line that I can spend a good two hours just traveling to family members home bases.
I am hoping that by the time I finish my travels this morning that I will be able to get out and work on the multi-purpose building. Got to get that door done, I don't think Mama Bear is going to enjoy another Blue Tarp this year. Still have to get that custom door made, but this time I pre-measured the hole in the wall. It is three little black marks less than 30 inches in width and 7 little black marks past 72 inches long. I also need to make a stool to step on, it seems that I did not get a good measurement on the throne. Anyone under six foot tall will have to get a running start to get up and on to the throne if I do not build a foot stool. Not even going to tell you how I measure for the height of the seat! After a few beers, it is going to drive Homer and Plumma crazy, do you realize how difficult it is to cut a round hole, it will make a challenging target for them to hit after a little Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Real estate agents were showing the house yesterday, so Terry and I and the two dogs went for a drive to the beach. I could not believe the number of Eagles that have moved into the area, in one spot I could count twenty nine of them and there were more the closer we got to the mouth of the river. Majestic looking birds, what a awesome and inspiring representative of the senior clan. The "vision" was destiny.
Can't bug myself, so off to the various sites I go.

The rains continue to sprinkle upon us, just enough to make it impossible to work on my project. Tried it once, but when I touched my new chop saw, it was a electrofying experience! Fortunately it is still under warranty. This will make my third chop saw since I started the project, the loss of each of them due to electric power. We must be getting a low grade of power from the utility company! My home made extension cord and the rain had nothing to do with the other two burning up. Finished the custom made door, now I am having to make a second one to replace the first one! Seems that I forgot to measure the width and height of the opening for the door. Building would be so much fun if there not so many rules that you have to follow! But all it not lost, I hear Heidi say she wanted a counter top for her sink -I have a good one already built in the shape of a door, at least similar to the shape of a door!
Had a great auction last night, raised over ten grand which is a big increase over last year. Had a total of 40 boats to auction off. By evening end, my voice was gone, my leg was gone but it was worth the effort. One of my big items this year was a straw hat, the type you see people wearing in the tropics. One of the fishermen showed up wearing it so I could not resist in auctioning it off. Got $110.00 for it, the high bidder on the hat was the guy wearing it. I really enjoy this auction, the people attending knows that it is for a good cause and we make it fun for them to shell out their money. My good friend Don T was in attendance again last night. He and I are the only two guys that I know which wear Western cut Pendelton Shirts. He has a better color selection than I. The last two years I have auctioned off his shirt, being a good sport, he would always remove his shirt so I could auction it off. The first year, one of his friends bought it for $150.00 and gave it back to him. Last year I sold his shirt for $135.00 and he bought it himself.
The derby was suppose to be today, but at 5:30 the surf was to high to launch boats but once outside,the water was great. If we would have waited for an hour before canceling,the surf laid down and it was like a mill pond all day. The only boat to make it out at 5:30 did it the old fashion way, used the mouth of the river and had six fish boated prior to 7 a.m. when he discovered we had canceled the derby for the day. That person being your baby brother. Steve Walli bought his boat for around $300.00. So, we will try again at 5:30 in the morning!
It was a pleasant surprise to find the entire "Bear" clan blog site this evening when I opened up the computer. I think I heard a little bell tinkling in the back ground from Brother Don. Family became very important to him over the past ten years or so. Someday, I will tell the story of the practical joke that he wanted to pull on me. I only learned of it during my trip down for his memorial service. I would have been the best he had ever come up with, if he would have had the opportunity to fulfill his fantasy. Perhaps, I will tell it around the campfire one evening.
Mama Eagle surprised me today, she wants to get a fishing license this year so she can fish with me. She thinks that I will not wade the river as much as I use to and in fact she is right - very little wading and no chasing fish down river for me! She also wants her own blog site and she is going to take Heidi up on her offer to set one up for her. I will send you the information by separate email - do not want the pass word to get into the wrong hands - we all know what happens then. A pure bred,highly trained, intelligent dog and master turns into a skunk! Again, welcome to the world of Blog to the Bear Clan! Blog postings in excess of five lines are always welcomed!

It has become my goal to make your camping experience at the "Hole In The Wall" Recreational Area as pleasant and memorable as humanly possible. The "shelter" that was fully utilized and enjoyed by all will be erected and ready for occupancy prior to your arrival, weather and water level permitting. Many hours of labor and material has went into the "multi-purpose" building, giving you a safe, clean environment to reflect and contemplate life in general. I will ask that you keep it clean so Donnie will not have to spend much time doing clean up chores each day during his fire watch. This will be an added asset this season, the facilities was less than desirable last year. It is very difficult to hide under the willows in order to spy upon the clans when ladies are utilizing the facilities right behind you. The wood pile was also less than desirable, without my direct supervision, the wood was not stacked properly and was precariously leaning which was a potential safety violation, especially for the little people. To correct this, a firewood rack will be installed prior to your arrival which will permit you to stack the wood neatly and off the ground. The rack will be located in a different spot this season, currently where the wood storage area was located last year, is under three feet of water, it is the lowest point in the campground area.
Being the born leader that she is, Heidi came up with some very good suggestions in her Blog posting yesterday pertaining to useful things that you can do to make camping a little less stressful, especially when it is raining and three trucks are stuck in the middle of the campground.
I have also come up with several other ideas that will make you more comfortable with the some of the basic amenities that you enjoy at home. Water: Good quality and quantity of potable water has always been a problem regardless of where you camp. However, this can be easily remedied. At some location in LA, since they have went out of style, there are a good number of "water bed" mattresses that you can acquire for a few dollars, less than $10.00. A twin size water bed mattress is slightly smaller than the bed of a pick-up and will hold a couple hundred gallons of water. Two mattress should provide all the water that you will need to sustain life for several days. By draping a "blue tarp" over the bed of the truck, you would also have a great tent and bed for the little people to sleep instead of the hard ground in their tents!
ELECTRIC POWER: Although not a real necessity, it would be nice to have power inside the campground without having to stretch 1.5 miles of extension cords from the "Eagle Nest" to the camping area. We have two young ladies that are constantly working on their muscle toning, loosing a few pounds and getting in shape for the wrestling season. We also have two very well qualified "shade tree" mechanics and one electrical lineman, between the tree of them I am sure they can come up with an idea of how to install a "generator" on your mothers stationary bike. With Brit and Noe taking turns peddling they should be able to provide enough amps to meet our needs. During the darker hours, if we had a second generator, we could install one on your mothers treadmill and I know she could generate the power that we need, especially if we hook up some batteries to stow the excess that she and the girls generate. FIRE PIT: The clan fire pit, although meets or exceeds state approved fire pits, I was concerned throughout the summer that we would have one of the kids hurt if they tripped, as it turned out, Homer was the only one to fall intothe fire! I will try to improve the fire pit this season to insure we do not have an accident. However, all camping trips the smoky fire has always been a problem. Within a few minutes everyone smells like wood smoke. This is caused from wet wood or the fire not burning hot enough. Again, we have the talent within the clans to correct this. The solution would provide a hot fire and utilize less firewood. The Plumma also has a very good knowledge of heating systems. To me, it would be a simple process to install a underground line from the "methphane" pit bringing it to the surface under the fire pit. There is constant source of gas being generated from the pit that is going to waste and should be utilized. At the commencement of the season, we will need to insure that "Homer" spends a lot of time in the multi-purpose building in order to have a constant flow of gas until sufficient deposits can be made. MUD AND STUCK VEHICLES: This was a major problem this past season and will remain a problem as long as we enjoy the privacy of the bowl area. We not only have to contend with the rain but also the drainage from the high ground that surrounds us on three sides. In my walk about yesterday, the area that I laid the typar this past year and all of you were so kind as to haul in gravel to cover it, that area has a remained intact this year and undisturbed from the water level. During the GS cookie sales campaign, there was some controversy pertaining to the payload of the Chevrolet compared to the Ford. Each of my four children drive Chevrolet's so this will provide them an opportunity to demonstrate their payload capacity. I figure that if each Chevy makes 9 trips to the beach and returns with a full load of gravel, which would be a total of 36 loads, it would be sufficient to cover the entire bowl area with fresh, clean gravel. Just yesterday, I took my old Chevy pickup that I use to plow snow and discovered that it will also work as a "poor man's road grader" by back blading. I smoothed out my driveway utilizing this method. As you haul in gravel, I can back blade it into place and it will eliminate a lot of raking, although that would also be good exercise for Brit and Noe. Remember, we also have a new clan of "Woodpeckers" plus a very big Buffalo Calf that should be fully utilized in this operation. As you can see, I have given great thought in identifying some problems we have had in the past, serious consideration as to how we can make your camping adventure pleasurable, and as a good leader, have also provided the solutions to those problems. It is now time for you to take action!

It is that time of the season, time to do a little fishing. It appears that this Bald Eagle could not find a salmon in the river, but he nabbed a nice little Skunk to munch on until the salmon start arriving in larger numbers.
This weekend is the International King Salmon Calcutta Tournament, I will do the auction on Friday night at the banquet and then the derby will be on Saturday. The marine fishery has been producing well for feeders with a few spawners starting to show up.
The Anchor River will open up on the weekend of May 20th for the first weekend. You can expect some high dirty water the first weekend, there is still a lot of snow to melt off in the back country. The Anchor River will be open for five weekends again this year so we should find some great fishing. That is your sport fishing report for today, have a good day on the water and good luck with you fishing. After fifteen years, that will be likely the last time you here that sign off tag line.
The current status of the campground is that the water level is declining, most of the run off has already occurred. Now all we need is several good days of sun, a little wind and we should be ready to set up. If that does not happen, Brit and Noe will have a larger area to "mud wrestle", I missed that event last year. It has to be replayed again this year if we have to make a "pit" for them. Can we take side bets and make this a real match, say the best out of three falls? If they do wrestle, I think "Homer" should dress up like a Suma (sic)wrestler and let the girls think that the winner of their match will have to wrestle "Homer Yamaha". Looking forward to all the festivities, it should be fun.
Update on the "multi-purpose" building, the custom designed door arrives tomorrow, a little trim work inside and then install the seats, the perch has been completed. I still need to install several "unique novelty" items but we won't go into those details, you will find out soon enough! Speaking of that, on our (?) trip to LA on the 17th and 18th, if anyone knows where they can get a bunch of Styrofoam packing peanuts, I need about one hundred pounds for a special project. For those "handicrafters", I also need a head made out of a flesh colored nylon stocking or support hose with a short haired wig. Don't ask and I won't tell! So much to do, so little time. Have a good day and let's hope the sun shines.

Looks as if everyone took the weekend off, but I cannot blame you for that, it was so beautiful out the last two days, at least on the Kenai Peninsula. Even took my morning coffee on the deck this morning, first time I have been able to do that in a long time without having to bundle up in my snow suit, gloves, and earmuff hat. It was very pleasant sitting there early this morning, the quietness with the eagles soaring overhead. Cannot wait for another seven hours to pass so I can do it all over again.
We did make a trip up to Kenai today to select the stain for the house painting project and pick up the finishing touches for the "multi-purpose" building. A fantasy that I have had since I watched the Blue Collar Comedy Tour came true today. I have been chuckling ever since. Prior to the shopping spree at Home Depot, the little lady wanted to do some shopping at Freddies, which was o.k. with me because they are the only store in Alaska that sells my favorite licorice. She headed one way and I headed to the candy isle, I am not a shopper. I get what I want and out the door. This was especially true today, I figured that if I beat her to the truck, I could consume at least a half bag of licorice before she caught me eating all that sugar and other bad things that are reportedly contained in my favorite candy. By the time I found the candy isle in the newly remodeled store, my leg was hurting so I decided to pick up something to relieve the pain, after going down several isles and not finding anything that looked like it may relieve the pain, I decided it must be at the pharmacy at the front of the store. Although I did find the Midal, but I think that was for a different kind of cramping. So, off I go to the check out stand with my three bags of candy. People are lined up at all three of the ten check out counters. Why they have ten counters and only have three open, I am not sure. I qualified for the "express lane" although it had more people in it than the other counters, I figured it would go faster. Wrong concept, again! After standing in line, very slowly moving through the "express" lane, my leg is throbbing and I can tell the lady in front of me is getting very agitated at the pace the line is moving. I comment, "this adds an entire new concept to express lane", she acknowledge my assessment and remark back it was the express lane but had the slowest checker the store could find. When I finally got to the check out counter, I discovered why. On the lapel of the smock the clerk was wearing was a big name tag, "Hi, My Name is Sue and I Am In Training". I had discovered the answer to my question! Cashing out, I headed to the pharmacy, it is difficult to savor good licorice when you are in pain. The choice of pain relievers was great, you could choose from Advil Capsule or Advil Tablets. Nothing else that resembled a pain reliever. I decided to take the Advil, especially since it was on sale. I was the only customer in the pharmacy and two ladies were working behind the counter. One lady was a few steps from behind the counter, busily emptying bottles of pills into a trash can, the second lady was working on the counter with something else. The lady working with the pills saw me, I was standing there at the counter with a box of Advil in one hand and a $10.00 bill in my other hand. She very politely told me that the other lady would help me in just a minute. Which she did, she was a very attractive lady, in her mid 40's, very neat hair and showing a lot of cleavage which appeared nicely tanned from my vantage point. If you are wondering, her eyes were brown so I was not staring! She looked at me and with a very pleasant voice said, "you going to buy that", my reply back was so fast that it even surprised me, I said "no, I am going to steal it, I just wanted you to know". The lady dumping pills burst out laughing. The lady waiting on me just looked at me funny as I handed her my $10.00 bill. I was still smirking, so I had to ask her if she had ever watched the Blue Collar Comedy Tour or heard the jokes about "here is your sign", she had not so I decided not to spoil the moment explaining it to her. It made my day, at least until I got to the Starbuck Coffee Stand which was my 2nd mission of even going into the store. If you are ever in Soldotna, on a Sunday and wanting a cup of coffee, do not, I repeat do not go to Fred Meyers, the coffee stand is closed on Sunday!
As for the Home Depot, an entire new story, but I am now of the opinion that they are very similar to Comp USA in Anchorage, if you have a question, don't ask it because they do not know either. Whatever happened to the requirement when working in a business that you should possess "product knowledge"? My problem there was nails! You can go into any hardware store in the world, go over to the nail aisle, take a brown bag and fill it with as many pounds of nails that you want. I always like to buy them in odd numbers, like 3.25 pounds, that way the clerk has to think. But that option is not available at Home Depot. You can buy a box of nails weighing one pound, which is not many nails or you can buy a box weighing three pounds. That is your choice. The prices of the boxed nails is equivalent to buying six pounds of nails anywhere else that sells nails in the bulk. So, I am standing their amazed at their small selection of nails and high prices, then I spy a little orange smock. I approach him and asked if they sell nails in the bulk. His reply, "yes sir we do have them in 25 pound boxes but I will need to see your contractors license". I was wanting to buy a dozen different sizes of nails to replenish my supply, but not 300 pounds of them in 25 pound boxes. I won't live that long to use them up.
I meet up with Terry in the paint department, she is so much more patient than I. She has the stain that she wants and the clerk is just starting to wait on her. I leave to go find some Thompson Weather Proofing for my project, not finding it after traveling through several isles, I return to the counter where your mother is still being waited on as they have to mix the stain? I ask him, if they carry the Thompson product and he replied that they did not but had an equivalent brand that was even better. He pointed me in the right direction. As I turned to leave, a gentleman was standing behind me with a can of Thompson Weather Proofing in his hand. He was very helpful and took me to the isle where it was located and he did not even have an orange smock. Now you see, why I do not shop! Internet shopping is looking even more appealing!