Showing posts with label road work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label road work. Show all posts

Thursday, 15 July 2021

Gramma Camp – Week 33.4

Wednesday, Grampa did his morning walk at Last Duel Park. There, he saw a muskrat in the water. That was the highlight!


Momma made charts for progress. It's been working really well. We even remembered French Horn practice, as well as the virtual lesson on Monday.

After two girls did breakfast and teeth, we had a discussion about our daily outing. What about something different? I remembered going to a nice spot, truthfully a boat launch. The trick was to figure out where it was. JB narrowed it down to Toledo, and then on from there. 

I found it! Eloida Lake Boat Ramp – we took off south to escape the bikes on our road. 

We hedged our bets, it could be busy, so we had an alternate plan. There is a beach at Bellamy Park. It's a place for camping, and it would be hard to tell if it'd be busy. The photos show it is tiny. They do have day passes for the beach.

They were playing Rock, Paper, Scissors in the back seat, 11:50.


We passed the sheep farm, as well as wheat and corn growing. Summer is unfolding as it should

Of course, in farming country, you need equipment. This one is wider than the one highway lane. I said that there was a 9-vehicle convoy and was promptly corrected!!! Accuracy is important. I explained that there were three vehicles behind us...

When I see these big homes, I quite enjoy them, especially since I don't have to clean them!

There was road work, the county is replacing all of the culverts, and it looks like they are widening the road, as well. A johnny-on-the-spot sits in the middle of nowhere!

There was a fox running behind the car, and into the ditch. We turned around here, since the navigator did a poor job of letting the driver know where to turn!

When they pass cows, they yell out 'horses!' ????

And there, after a half hour drive, Lake Eloida.

Happily, the boat launch was very quiet, as was the lake.

We had one visitor. A man who used to live in Ottawa, and moved to Athens. We chatted, and played with the dog, as well as visiting with the man. The terrier was happy to play in the water with the girls. They found a water logged tennis ball, and we threw it for him. 


Doggie's owner told us about a nice beach on Charleston Lake. Maybe next time!


Eventually, the doggie went on his way. The girls had not had lunch, but we'd brought water, and some Scoops and salsa. That was a nice snackie.

The lake is fairly shallow, as is the way from here to there. Our GPS didn't know where it is. I found another spelling of Eloida, Loyada!

There aren't a lot of homes around the lake, the far side is mostly bog. They are fairly large homes, for the most part, and many have pools!

Toledo is working on the highway, more ditch work. 

I love these windows, happy I don't have to clean them.

We headed home for showers and lunch. Grampa had a nap. We'd been on the road for nearly two hours, it was 2:15. By now, rather than a large lunch, which would delay dinner, I'd warmed up soup for Josephine while she showered. It's strange planning meals when they sleep in until 9:30 or 10, and we are up at 6 a.m. I took off to the local farm market, but they were out of beans and other snackie things. I brought home strawberries.

I began watching the robins, again. I noticed a pair of flickers dive bombing the robins in the lilac bush. It was really strange! They don't compete for food, but perhaps there is a flicker nest about.



I tucked Isabelle in at 9 p.m., Jos at 9:30. 

Friday, 5 May 2017

Lanark County Construction 2017

Horrid headline from B.C., I wonder the stats in Ontario, or across Canada?

Safer driving calls renewed after Langford flagger struck

'Staggering' total of 244 B.C. roadside workers hit by vehicles over 10 years

June 2 What a job!

The new, wider shoulders, are wonderful. Construction is everywhere!
Nailed him!


May 30th – about 3/4 done.



May 25th– still at it!



May 24 – 6:30 a.m. and they're off

May 23

May 20 – Rideau Ferry Parking Lot, long weekend

May 18


May 18 afternoon:Asphalt has begun to be laid, this is the base

We had errands in Smiths Falls, Rideau Ferry and Perth: dry cleaners, dropping off old clothes to a charity, I need spray paint, new mineral chalk paint for Frosty, batteries to recycle. It was tricky going! We tried to go around, but it adds so much time.


May 18th – 6:30 a.m. repaving begins!

May 17th – gravel watered down, paving trucks were parked, ready for the next day. 


May 16th gravel laid, 

May 15

construction from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

May 9th

The roads have been scraped of asphalt. Next step: laying it again! Those poor flaggers!

May 8th

More culvert replacement!
contruction may 8 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

May 4th: replacing culverts

These are fun, replacing culverts. They are large, and dug deep. They work on one half at a time. A couple of culverts collapsed in Ottawa a couple of years ago. Several ate some cars. We know the importance of non-rusty, newer culverts!
 This is a three-way stop, with three flaggers, since the road runs west off of the highway. 


April 25


First, break off the rock, move it away in dump trucks. It's a long day for the flaggers. These are good jobs, undertaken by good workers. Cavanagh, I am told, is a great employer.
Widening the rock cut: April 25


You can hear the noise from the backhoe when they move it .(Listen on the video!) That vehicle they've been using to move the rocks out of the rock cuts. They are first widening the base. The county is adding an amazing 2' shoulder, which makes a big difference to

vehicle navigating around vulnerable road users, like cyclists and walkers.
Construction May 2nd from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Marking the project; laying pylons in April

Our county sent out a press release, providing information on construction season. (See below)
This is true across our province. There are many who disrespect workers on the road. I've heard of many incidents. These folks work as hard and as fast as they can to repair our infrastructure.




I'm sure all of you are experiencing construction! It's what we need to expect. This is the 'before' photo! The freeze and thaws of last season wreaked havoc on our roads. I'm watching how they work, since I travel twice a week this way, at least!

I can't tell you how disturbing it's been. Not the construction, but the driver's responses to it. Adding to the noise, on Thursdays, are the guns from the recertifying of the OPP in the back of the forest.  We have 500 OPP having to pass the test at the range.

Yes, construction slows drivers down, and they cannot drive as fast as they normally do, but the noise as they break free from the flagger's control and the single lane limits, is horrible here. Some drivers gun the engines, and boot it into town. There are long lines, as the workers try to get the work done quickly. They work 12-hour days. Last night, May 4th, as the big storm rolled in, I heard them working frantically to finish up at 7 p.m.

This is what happens during the evening rush hour! Lots of tired, grumpy, impatient people. We make sure we smile, and wave in thanks to the flaggers.

Press release and information

The 2017 Lanark County public works construction program has 47 km of roads scheduled to be rehabilitated or treated as part of the ongoing pavement preservation program. The total construction budget for this year is almost $6.9 million. Federal gas tax and Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund funding combined covers $1.95 million of these costs.
Lanark County Public Works oversees construction, operation, repair and maintenance on more than 560 km of roads and 82 bridge and culvert structures.  I made up a table!