I went out on a hike with my friend Linda and her dog, Summer. We decided on hiking at Forks of the Credit Conservation Area. When I drove in, I noticed some very strange-looking clouds.
Cloudy Kettle Lake
They started fading as we hiked, so I stopped at Kettle Lake to get some shots.
Undulatus asperatus clouds
Other than the weird cloud formations, I spent my time focusing on my hike as this wasn’t a photo outing.
I went out with my friend Nigel to explore the trails at Heart Lake Conservation Area. With the melting snow and the ice formations, it was a difficult trek along the slippery trails.
Bird Feeder
It was a challenging hike and I did not come away with many photos. These little birdhouses were the most interesting things on the trail, in my opinion.
Reeds
I did try to find other things to photograph, but inspiration was not my friend this time around. I hope my next outing will be more productive.
Today I headed out to Claireville to take photos at the feeders just off the main trail/road.
The Old Bridge
I had to get some shots of the bridge. It’s one of the more interesting things to photograph here in Claireville. The shadows from the late day sun from vines and the other side give this photo a lot of character.
Posing
At the feeder, the nuthatches were flying back and forth getting their food for the day.
Grabbing a Snack
They are even willing to land on your hand if you have some seeds to share with them.
I had a lot of fun getting photos of the birds and always look forward to the cold temps when it’s okay to feed them like this. In summer they are too busy to be bothered with us and our seeds when there is so much more to eat.
My friend Nigel and I went out for a hike at Lynde Shores today. The trails at Lynde Shores are full of wildlife, most likely because they have several feeders on one of their popular trails. The Chickadee trail is only 500m long. On most winter days, you can find wild turkeys, chickadees, nuthatches, squirrels and more on this trail.
Goose Stretch
Under the walking bridge by the parking lot, ducks and geese were congregating in the river below. I got lucky when this goose decided to wash his feathers and put on quite the display doing so.
Mourning Dove
Starting on the Chickadee Trail, we spotted this Mourning Dove sitting on one of the trail fences.
Caught Red-Handed
The feeders are quite popular, and you won’t just see birds here. This squirrel was taking advantage of the free food. Do you think he looks a little worried that we’ve discovered him inside the feeder?
Red-Breasted Nuthatch
We stopped a little further down the trail and decided to take out the seed Nigel brought with him to feed the chickadees. Little did we know that this Red-breasted Nuthatch preferred to be feed by hand. When we put the seed on a nearby bench, to be able to free our hands to photograph, he scolded us from a branch above us. It wasn’t until we put the seed in our hand that he stopped scolding us and came down to eat. Someone’s a little spoiled.
Red Squirrel
We continued hiking, eventually coming to LeVay’s Lane trail, which looped us back towards the parking lot. On LeVay’s trail, we found this cute red squirrel, who couldn’t decide if we were friends or foes. After overcoming some of its fear, it came a little closer, and we were able to get a few photos.
We had a little snow overnight. Nothing as significant as we received last Sunday, but enough to be interesting enough to go out for a walk in the late afternoon to get some photos.
Footprints in the Snow
I liked these footprints on the creek path. The way the light was shining across the path caught my eye. I got down really low to get a better view of the light and shadow around the footprints. It gives you a unique perspective on your subject when you change your angle or position.
Frozen Reeds
It was cold enough today to freeze the small puddles by the schoolyard (which are deeper than you would think). The soft light was hitting the ice in a way that made it glow.
Taking the catwalk home I noticed these berries that seem to have got stuck on the fence. I decided it looked interesting enough to take a photo.
The snow came, and the snow went. And here we are back to fall. So, I’m back to another neighbourhood walk and a lot more brown and yellow.
Leaves
I’m not sure what this plant is but I loved the shape. It looks almost like a cupped hand reaching to receive something.
Orange Jelly
I found this orange jelly mushroom on a random log. I guess the previous weekend’s snow didn’t bother it.
Multiflora Rose
Along the fence behind the old grade school, I found a whole bunch of these tiny berries. The Multiflora Rose, or Seven-sisters rose, is a small white flowering shrub. It’s berries, once they dry out and expose their seeds, are eaten by the local birds and wildlife. It’s a little hard to believe that there is still so much colour and life to be found even once the snow hits.