Weasel Trek

Leka's first camping trip, in Rabbit Blanket Lake Provincial Park, Ontario. Leka hasn't yet learned that it's warmer inside the tent.

Leka tries to make friends with the Wawa goose.

Leka and the Terry Fox Monument, outside Thunder Bay, ON (Terry Fox, who had lost one of his legs to cancer, tried to run across Canada in 1980 to raise money for cancer research. The cancer spread and he had to stop in Thunder Bay and died soon afterwards, but every September in Canada there are 10K runs named after him that continue to raise money).

Leka at the entrance to the Arctic watershed near Upsala, ON. (unfortunately we didn't stay long enough for her to turn into a white arctic weasel).

Leka and one of the "Bears on Broadway" in downtown Winnipeg, MB.

Bears and Leka seem go together.

Daredevil Leka rides without a helmet.

Leka with some more unfortunate stuffed friends -- this time at Fort Garry, Winnipeg, MB. Outside this building, about 10,000 Canada geese were landing on a pond to rest on their way south. Leka had to stay inside though because they don't allow weasels in the vicinity of migrating birds.

Leka gets a bit too close.

Oddly enough, Leka's favourite animal appears to be a polar bear. That's probably because she has only seen them when they are either stuffed or made of cement.

Historic Upper Fort Garry, Winnipeg, MB

Leka poses with Trans-Canada highway sign and her first view of the Rockies (outskirts of Calgary, AB).

Leka at idyllic Lake Louise, Banff National Park, AB

Anka was the first of the litter to leave home, starting with a trip to Boston, MA. Here she is exploring Harvard Square.

Soon after was the Great Weasel Diaspora, and they scattered across the world. Freja spent her first Thanksgiving out of the country, in Switzerland, dangling from a cable car in the frozen Alps.

Vandra was lovingly hosted in Idaho, and here she is posing in the capital Boise with (of course) some potatoes.

Vilse partied hard - kid style - in Austin, Texas. Her favorite stop was the fabulous toy store Toy Joy, where the staff spoiled her rotten.

Kalle's first journey, on the other hand, was all about old-world culture and refinement. On his trip to Paris he impressed the tourists with his impression of a hunchback at the Notre Dame cathedral.

Once in the hands of Kevin Burke (of Beans Around the World) and his lovely wife, Freja became our most well-traveled weasel. Their first trip together was a Caribbean cruise; after swimming Freja took some time to relax on a pier in Mahajual, a small village near Costa Maya.

At the same time, Leka was enjoying the sun and waves in West Palm Beach, Florida. He liked the Morikami Japanese gardens best, though. Do weasels eat bamboo? We have no idea...

... Soon thereafter Leka was scoping out some much colder beaches in New Jersey - and still showing off his mischievous streak.

Kanin is perhaps our bravest weasel at all. Not content to lounge on a beach, he went skydiving in Florida! Don't miss the excellent video of his adventure.

Utforksa was the first to return to his Scandinavian roots with a trip to Iceland. Here he is at the Hallgrimskirkja, a cathedral in Reykjavik and the tallest building in the country.

Kjell spent a very long journey in the mail but finally reached his destination halfway around the world in Christchurch, New Zealand. He was impressed by the chalice sculpture in Cathedral Square, built to honor the city's 150th anniversary.

Annika stopped briefly in the UK, but only to make trouble! She spent most of her time there locked in the stocks in Shrivenham High Street, a village near Oxfordshire.

From New Jersey Leka's hosts took him all the way to Egypt. He was awed by the pyramids, and never quite got used to riding camels, but all the locals in Cairo agreed that he was much different from the native weasel population.

After being released, Annika crossed the Channel to France, Italy, and Monaco. She was a week early for the Cannes Film Festival, but made up for it with a relaxing stay in Nice.

Back from their cruise, Freja, Kevin, and the beans set off for a tour of the American heartland - roadside attraction style! First few stops in Minnesota, home of the Mall of America, and, of course, the Jolly Green Giant...

... Next stop on the road for Freja and Co., the SPAM museum, in Austin, MN...

... followed by Wall Drug, in Wall, South Dakota. Freja was drawn here like a homing pigeon; apparently kitsch and silliness are in her blood (who knew?)...

... At any rate, it brought her next to the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD, which is decorated entirely with corn, oats, and other grains. She also hung out a bit with the Blues Brothers, but you'll have to check the album for that...

... Freja is still on the road, but last we heard from her she was having a ride in the world's largest Radio Flyer wagon in Spokane, Washington. Whew!

Back to our other weasels, Kjell made it safely from New Zealand to Japan, where in July he climbed to the top of Mount Fuji. He came back down in great shape and better spirits...

... From there he flew back across the world to London, England. He rode double-decker buses, dined in a few pubs, and made a visit to Westminster Abbey.

Leka returned to New Jersey from Egypt in good health and spent a day at the Cape May Zoo. After narrowly escaping a bear, he restricted himself to visits with herbivores.

Anka, with whom we'd lost contact for a while, turned out to have spent some time in Japan like her brother Kjell. She explored the shops and restaurants of Tokyo, traveled by train, subway, bus, ship, gondola, and cable car (many great pictures!). Here she is at the end of her Japanese adventure, having tempura for dinner. She never quite got the hang of chopsticks.

Vandra had a very busy summer traveling Europe - France, Italy, and Malta (some of the very same spots, in fact, as her sister Annika a few months before!). She saw Versailles, the Louvre, the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and climbed Mount Etna. And, of course, spent an afternoon getting dizzy looking at the Leaning Tower.

Over the past year, we've even heard from some weasel cousins - friendly folks with their own weasels and weasel-adventures to share. Here is one such, Ike, playing Rikki Tikki Tavi and attacking a shoe-horn (the kind with teeth!)

Leka as prow figure.

Leka has a stand-off with two killer pugs (she won).

Investigating some water lilies.

Soaking up the sun...

Ever the goodwill ambassador, Leka finally wins over one of the killer pugs.

Leka poses with an Inukshuk.

Freja and the world.s largest Radio Flyer wagon. The handle is a slide.

There are a bunch of bear sculptures in Spokane; here's Freja with the blue one.

Clock tower - no snipers allowed.

Eeek! The tiger's eating Ike! He only looks boneless!

My, what big teeth you have!

The rare and elusive Joshua Jackalope comforts Ike after being frightened by a huge were-wolf!

Lions and Tigers and Bears! Oh my! Yes, that's a shark's tail to the left. Are you surprised by now?