Window Views

While hiking along this past summer, somewhere in Cape Breton, 

we happened upon an old, dilapidated house.

I couldn't resist taking this picture looking up at the window.  

The rounded top made me believe that once upon a time, 

this old house had lots of character in all it's simplicity.

I wonder how many children 

watched out this very window

in anticipation Santa's arrival?

To find more 'Window Views'.

click HERE.

My World Tuesday

Island Time

"How often we forget all time, when lone, 

Admiring Nature's universal throne, 

Her woods, her wilds, her waters, the intense 

Reply of hers to our intelligence."

- George Gordon, Lord Byron, 1823 [The Island].

Click right HERE

for more MyWorld posts!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Camera Critters

Variable Darner

This Variable Darner flew at me while 

I was working in the yard one recent afternoon.

I thought, "How cool is this?  He's going to land on me!",

 and I stood stock still.

However, it seems my face was his destination,

 and I couldn't help but step back and dodge his final approach.  

Nonplussed, he landed on a post directly behind me for a quick photo shoot,

before lifting off and trying to land on my face a second time.  The funny thing (for me anyway) is that I've been tracking these darners all this late summer, hoping and waiting for one of them to land.

Not only are they busy, they are fast!

Click here to see more delightful Camera Critters!

Baleine Peninsula

Fall is in the air and the weather is rapidly changing.  

Summer sped by in the blink of an eye 

and I can't quell the feeling that I missed it. 

But then I journey back through the hundreds of photos I took,

and realize I was part of summer this year.

Here I sit, enjoying a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, after hiking several hours through the barren headlands of the Baleine Peninsula., what seemed like a hundred of acres of bog, and several miles of isolated beaches 

Black Guillemots

experiencing the wonder

Remains of a drowned forest

of such diverse habitat.

Artful sculptures

Nature's nursery

Fine dining

The bog extends right up to the edge of the cobble beach.  I couldn't resist including a snapshot of these empty sea urchin shells, left all in a row.  Reminded me of the story of the Three Bears.

No matter where I turned, or where I wandered,

a magnificent display surrounded me.

Truly, MY WORLD rocks!

Won't you check out other My World posts

by clicking HERE?

Post Script - Fuller's River

.
I have posted about my kayaking excursions to Fuller's River here and here.  Today I had an opportunity to take a few photos from a another location to give a different prospective of the area.

This is all marsh, much to this harrier's delight!

Toward the left,

center stage,

toward the right.

You can see the tidal canals interlaced throughout the marsh. 

And this is but a small portion!

Today, hidden within the depth of these tall grasses,

there were about a dozen or more Great Blue Herons.

The Yellow-legs, plovers, and sandpipers spent the afternoon

dodging the pair of harriers that were relentless in their hunting.

We were there for several hours, and so were they!

This is my world!

You can see why I return to this spot over and over again.

Please take a moment to check out these other MyWorld Participants

by clicking right HERE!

Canada Burnet

Canada Burnet

(Sanguisorba canadensis)

Imagine acres of these beautifully simple flowers growing

along side the wetlands!  Not a grass, not an herb,

the Canada Burnet is referred to as a forb/herb.  

A forb/herb is a non-woody plant that is not a grass.

I learn something new every day.

For more flowers from around the world,

click here.

Southward Ho!

Cape Breton, Nova Scotia isn't exactly on the major migration route for northbound shorebirds, but we are dead center on for Southward Migration!  During migration, shorebirds occur primarily in shallowly flooded coastal or freshwater wetlands or on intertidal mud flats.

Well, guess where I paddled on Sunday?  Correct!  Intertidal mudflats, that even during high tide, they are so shallow, we had to proceed with caution so we wouldn't continually get grounded.  Canals interwoven among themselves.  Mud flats, forest, floating bogs, brackish backwaters, and open ocean across the dunes.

The birds were bountiful.  Semi-palmated Plovers, Semi-palmated Sandpipers, Short-billed Dowitchers, Black-bellied Plovers, Greater Yellowlegs, Sanderlings.........I'm sure I'm forgetting a few.  And of course, resident eagles and osprey made multiple appearances.

So busy feeding, we could drift right up to the sandbars/mudflats 

and watch without disturbing even the resting birds. 

It was peaceful, exciting, and relaxing all rolled into one.

I loved the way they'd all lift at once, 

then land again in the exact same spot.

I will add a photo of the Black-bellies with S.B.Dowitcher, although it isn't of the greatest quality.

But to compensate, here are a few additional images while I ponder the miracle of from whence they came - the arctic, circumpolar, the sub-arctic; and where they are going - it just blows me away!

Safe journey, my feathered friends!

Check out more My World posts

HERE!

Weekend Reflections - Gotcha'

A few weekends back I posted just the hummingbird feeder with the

reflection of the trees.  I was able to finally capture a hummer

and not just any hummer, but a juvie that I am very excited

about because she has a distinct marking on her belly

making her easier to track next year!!

For a large variety of weekend reflections from all over the world,

just click HERE!

A Brave Journey

What heaven is this?  Where am I?

Hey, guys, can we have a little chat??

Please don't chase me away from the feeder!!

My baby and I were blown in on during yesterday's gale force wind!

We're lost and we're hungry!

Can't you hear my poor baby, calling and calling for food?

Oh, thank you, thank you.  

We'll be out of your way once we 'power up'!

Okay, sweet child, we can stay here, rest up, and get our bearings.

But you have to behave yourself and stop that loud and incessant begging!

Our hosts will only tolerate so much!

You poke around here, where you'll be safe, 

and I'll be back in a minute with a tasty treat!

Mmmm-mmm-mm, try this!

Which way did she go?

Hope she brings back more!!

~

Junco's are not residents on my property, and only pass through in the spring.

Imagine my surprise when I heard the unfamiliar voices

of these sweet little birds in my rock garden.

The little story is true.  I was glued to my seat

as I watched it unfold and realized what was going on.  

Initially, the adult junco tried to access the feeder and the ground below, 

but the song sparrows kept chasing it off.  

I'm glad I grabbed my camera when I did!

By late afternoon of the following day, they were gone.

Safe journey, my little friends.

Glad you found refuge here with me!!