Friday 22 February 2013

River Shots -- October 2012

I haven't been getting out much with the camera this winter. I don't think I posted any of these shots last fall when our camera club team went on a 'river shots' outing, so I thought I'd break up the winter with this posting.

We were on a pontoon boat on the Otonabee River near Peterborough. It was a perfect day for a river cruise. Besides the usual river traffic that you'd expect, we saw geese, a few turtles and more than our share of Great Blue Herons.

















A passer-by...










































Great Blues blend in well with fallen trees... and they know it.


































This one looks a bit tattered. Maybe it was just the pre-flight pose I caught him in. I can't remember if it was windy as well.















 
Northern Map Turtles















"What are we going to do today, Mom?"


A cozy nook...

















My favourite shot of the day.


Winter will be loosening its grip soon. I'm really looking forward to spring and nature re-awakening. With any luck it'll be an early one. :-)

- fini -


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Saturday 9 February 2013

On the Path & 2nd Marsh
February 9, 2013

A few days back, I took a camera on my walk on the path. I thought it was such a contrast to today (when I went down to see Farewell Creek after our snowfall) that I'd include them both in one post.

The path looks pretty boring this time of year, though the snowfall would add a lot. Problem is, trudging through deep snow quickly tires me out, so I'll give it a day or two before I go again.





















A Hemlock twig with the distinctive white stripes on the underside of its flat needles.

















Biding their time... Poison Ivy berries.























A beautiful golden gall on a Goldenrod stem. A Goldenrod Gall Fly larva is inside, waiting for spring when it'll chew its way out.






















Moss
















I like the shapes of the Dog Strangling Vine pod leaves in the winter.
























Some hardy fungi with enough color to make it worth a shot.




















I've only seen this species on the path on a fallen tree. I would've thought it would be easy to ID in one of my books or on the Net but I couldn't find it.













I don't expect to see Milkweed pods this time of year that still haven't dispersed their seeds... but I like to see them any time of year... especially when they're unexpected.















2nd Marsh

As I slugged my way in through the deep snow to get my shot of Farewell Creek from the footbridge, I saw these patterns in the snow.

Jane calls this 'Winter Cotton'. Sometimes there are 100s of them.
















This was the shot I was after... Farewell Creek from the foot bridge. Not as good as my 2008 shot but still pretty nice.














As I turned to look down the other direction from the bridge I spotted a beaver. I've been very lucky this year in seeing beavers. This one was by itself. He didn't look like he was enjoying the cold, but he wasn't in any rush to get back to his lodge either.
 













He had the open patch of water to himself.
















He wasn't shy. He gave me all the time I needed to move about trying for good shots.














I caught his forepaws in a couple shots.













Looks like he had a snack before I got there.

















He looks cold but nature has given him a thick coat and the stamina to survive our winters.
























He even went for a couple short swims while I watched.




I kept my distance so I wouldn't bother him. He didn't seem to mind me moving around from one side of the creek to the other to get shots. I watched him for about half-an-hour. I finally left and he was still milling about.























It was another gorgeous day to be out & about in nature. Bright blue skies & sunshine and warm enough that I hardly put my gloves on at all. Sweet.


The Friends of Second Marsh web site...
A direct link to a map of the paths/trails in the marsh...

A link to a page that has my past posts re the marsh, in one place rather than scattered throughout this blog...


- fini -
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