Nature Watch: Crane and Mallard

The wind on April 17th played havoc with our photography competition. Not only did it buffet our cameras, but it stirred up the air currents between our cameras and our subjects so that neither Nelson, nor myself got a detailed shot. We had a discussion about whether we should even show these, but in the end decided we have been blessed with some great shots, and there are going to be days when one, the other, or both of us don't do well.

On this day Nelson's shots were much better than mine, and he's chosen this Sandhill Crane as the one he thinks is the best of his lot. I'd like to point out the effect the wind had on a portion of the stubble field where it appears smeared.

Sandhill Crane, Southeast Saskatchewan, Apr 17, 2016. Photo credit: Nelson Draper

Meanwhile, I was out and about on the 17th as well and yes, all my shots were also blurred by the wind. The only decent one I have is this Mallard pair which, for whatever reason, decided to swim in the yuckiest part of the slough. I suspect that most of the stuff floating about had been dislodged by wave action--something that doesn't happen often out here unless the wind is fierce.

Mallard pair, Montmartre, SK, Apr 17, 2016. Photo credit: Anita Mae Draper

So there you have our windy images. For all you budding photographers... don't beat yourself up if you can't get great shots on a windy day. Minimize the wind damage by standing where the wind can't buffet your or tripod or arms while you hold the camera, but in the end, there's not much you can do - at least not with our level of equipment. (P500 and P520 Nikon CooPix cameras)

I believe Nelson has a great video clip of Sandhill Cranes practicing their mating dance. We'll get that set up soon. Until next time...

Evening Walk Photos: April 8, 2015

Red-Winged Blackbird, South of Montmartre, SK, April 8, 2015

Now that winter is over and the warmer weather has returned, Nelson and I have started taking a walk in the evenings. Not far, but down our country road where we stop and listen to the migrating birds and I try to capture them to share with those who may not get to experience the prairie as we do. 

The top photo is a red-winged blackbird who sat atop the wolf willows at the end of our driveway. It seems he's claimed his territory since he sat there alone singing in an attempt to attract the attention of any nearby females. He paused his singing as we passed, but continued as we turned onto the main road. 

Canada Geese Pair in Flight, South of Montmartre, SK, April 8, 2015

Our attention was drawn to a pair of low-flying Canada geese who were preparing to land in the nearby slough. I tried to film their landing because I love the way their feet come out as if they're stepping on the brakes, but it happened so fast, I missed it.

Snow Geese in Flight, South of Montmartre, SK, April 8, 2015

The air was filled with honking snow geese, except as soon as they spotted us on that empty road, they quieted and silently arced around us before continuing on their path. Incredible.

Canada Geese Pair, South of Montmartre, SK, April 8, 2015

While passing our dugout, I heard a Canada goose loudly honking its presence, but couldn't see it so I waited. Seconds later, a pair swam into the middle reminding me of the swan photos I took last summer. I don't know if this Canada Geese pair are in migration or will nest for the summer, but they're welcome to stay.

Country Road, South of Montmartre, SK, April 8, 2015

We headed home, noting that the spring runoff had lowered considerably. In a few weeks this quiet stretch of road will be filled with sounds of grain trucks and tractors pulling augers and seeders as the farmers return to plant their crops.

Looking Back at Easter 2011

Do you remember Resurrection Day last year? This is what we had to go through to get to church on Easter morning 2011 ...

And this is what we did that Sunday afternoon...

Look under FLOOD WATCH in the sidebar label section for more flood pics.

We didn't want a repeat of last year. But after a mild winter with barely any snow, we enjoyed our early spring.

But it was not to be because we awoke to this yesterday morning...

And then a flock of robins were in a frenzy to eat the last of the Purple Royalty Crabapples - almost as if they were stocking up...

And then the sun came out and the snow melted off the trees. The Juncos basked in the sun and we were left with a yard full of slush.

And this is what our driveway looked like this morning...

The snow is melted on the gravel and pavement portions and despite how it looks, there's only a light covering on the grassy sections.

At 8:15 am, I looked out my window and saw the neighbor's cows had come over to wish us a Happy Easter. So nice of them except for the 'gifts' they left in the driveway.

And I almost missed the male robins in the hedgerow because their red breasts matched some of last year's leaves. After the feeding frenzy yesterday, they certainly look well fed.

What a wonderful, ever-changing world our God created.

Happy Easter!

Christmas

I can't believe it's been a month since I posted here. I have to blame it in part on my other blogs here on my new website. Under the Blogs tab you'll find 4 of them including this one, but there's the Book Review blog under the Books tab and the Recipe blog under the Fun tab. My latest recipe is for sugar cookies and I have one of Nick from last year decorating a delightful Christmas tree sugar cookie. :)

I've also posted a whole page of Christmas theme jigsaw puzzles under the Fun tab.

Meanwhile, I've been busy at church taping all the worship sessions including this one with Nick and Nelson leading with O Little Town of Bethlehem. You can find more videos of Nick and Nelson on the Glenavon Church on the Hill YouTube Channel.

And if you're wondering what our weather is these days, this photo is a fairly good representation. Lots of frost, but not much snow with temperatures averaging 5 below freezing.

I'm really missing Jessie this year because she would be coming home right about now to help with last minute preparations. Instead, she flew out at noon today to Vietnam where she's a relief worker for the orphanage missionaries so they can come back to their families for the season.

But she'll be home at the beginning of January to spend a couple weeks with us. Meanwhile, please pray for her.

Crystal won't be home for Christmas this year, either as she'll be coming home when Jessie comes in January.

Bonnie and Magnar are our other Christmas regulars but they won't be here this year either because they're helping Sonya Rose move to Fort McMurray, Alberta during the holidays. However, we'll get to see them this coming week when we meet them in Regina so it won't be too bad.
I've got a big weekend coming up because I'm baking tomorrow and decorating (finally) on Sat/Sun. I am in the minority here with all these men/boys around and for some reason, they don't want to sit around listening to Christmas carols or even decorate. But I intend to get them moving this weekend. I'll let you see how it goes. :)

Anita.

Bird Nests Flooded Out

For the second time this year our road to town is under water. The surrounding fields are flooded, most of them unseeded as well. Too much rain. Not even drying time. But we're not the only ones affected.

A week ago as I walked along the driveway, small birds flew up out of the grass. It got to be where I knew where their nests were. But this morning as I surveyed the water surrounding our farm, I realized the nests were about a foot down and the momma birds were nowhere insight.

Which got me thinking about an American coot couple (yes, that's a coot couple and not a cute couple, although they are cute). A pair of coots took up residence close to the corner where the driveway passes the shelterbelt. How had they fared with the flood situation?




Apr 25 - Height of the Spring Flood

May 6

May 7 - First sight of migration and nest building as waters decrease 



May 13 - Black dot is Coot looking for nest material



June 1 - Coot nest above water, below top of old Bullrushes



June 4 - Coot nest hidden amongst last year's bullrushes 

June 6 - Last years bullrushes have broken off and their litter shows the high water line 

June 22 - Recent downpours have filled the field and water covers the road.

June 22 - The nest has risen to the height of the bullrushes although I don't know how the coots do it. Only 3 nests are visible in the whole slough and all of them are American coots. 

I don't know how other nests have fared, but Nelson saw one duck with a tiny duckling trailing behind earlier today so I'm hoping the nests were hidden and spared.

Meanwhile, our basement is still flooding. Our dehumidifier broke down  - it was over 20 yrs old - and there's a shortage of them in the city due to all the flooded basements.

And yet, we're much better off than so many others. I heard on the TV tonight that the good folks down in Minot, ND will have to raise their dikes 8 feet to contain the Souris River. Eight feet!!! That's the height of a normal room. And then there's all the flooding in Manitoba. Och!

Apple Blossoms, Finally!

With summer offically a couple weeks away, we finally have blossoms on our crabapple trees. They started a couple days ago and overnight, the trees burst into an explosion of blossoms. I can't remember the name of this bird, but I found it eating the blossoms with gusto. (see bottom of post for update)

We've had 2 days that could be considered hot - 28C/86F. The rest of the days have been cold and rainy, windy and cold, or rainy and windy.

Soon, the lilacs will bloom and their heady scent will drift in through our open windows - that's if it's warm enough to open them. I had them open for 2 hrs today but had to shut them so the furnace wouldn't click on.

I've been reading up on the photography for websites and it seems the photos chosen most are those with only a partial image and lots of open space for text. I hadn't thought of it before, but these are the types of photos that can be used to make greeting cards. And with the addition of a Bible verse, you have a nice scripture card or even wallpaper for your computer.

Well, I suppose if it's for the computer it would look better sideways, but you get the idea.

When I went for yesterday's walk, I saw what I thought was a piece of dock jutting up above the grass. But dock isn't that big yet around here. As I moved closer, I clicked on my camera and zoomed in. It was an American Bittern and it just stood there with its beak in the air. Another few steps and it moved a few feet away. I slowly moved closer, snapping pics until it flew behind the wolf willows. This is the closest shot I was able to get with any clarity. I didn't see it after that.

And here's a photo of what the pasture looks like when the water is drained as it usually is by June. But with the latest rain, the rocks have disappeared again for the 3rd time this year. If you look closely at the fence post on the far left you can see the spring runoff reached within inches of the top. No wonder the road was a foot under water.

Your turn... were your blossoms on schedule this year? Ours are about 4 weeks behind where they should be.

***News update... Over on my blog at the Harlequin forum, author Donna Alward has identified this bird as a Cedar Waxwing.

Donna said, 'I think that bird is a cedar waxwing. It is hard to tell without seeing the rest of its plumage, but I *think* the bohemian waxwing doesn't have the yellow on its breast like a cedar. Both are found on the prairies, though. :-)'

And as someone who used to live in Alberta, Donna would know. I've checked 2 bird identification books and confirmed that the bird in the top photo is indeed a Cedar Waxwing, Bombycilla cedrorum. Thank you, Donna. I appreciate you piping up. :)

Road Trip Results

 I'm back from my road trip for research with mixed results. Although I discovered lots of neat places and took oodles of pics, many of the historic sights I needed to photograph wouldn't be open until Victoria Day. I missed by a week!

For this post though, I want to show some of the weather related things I found on my travels.

Although I saw many farmers out in their fields, some tried to get a head start and only got bogged down in the muck. Here's a tractor that didn't get too far in the task:

And here's the dozer that tried to pull him out:

The wind was so bad one day, the flags were flying straight and high...

Two days after the super-windy day, I passed one large fire and saw another in the distance.

It could've been another dangerous situation, like up at Slave Lake, if the wind took control of this small grass fire...

Road conditions were horrible. Part of the reason was due to flooding. Here is an example of just one of the many roads being eaten away by the force of water.



Numerous road closures and detours popped up everywhere without warning so planned routes had to be changed at the last minute.

And once I had to drive through 5" of water to get across - just like at home over the Easter weekend.





Another reason roads were in deplorable conditions was because of frost upheaval due to the freezing and thawing ground:

Sometimes the bad parts were easy to see, especially when they were red flagged, but other times you didn't realize they were there until almost the last second.



But I'm safely back home now and ready to get back to work. While in Humboldt, I did a bit of research in the local library and found a book with excellent information on the Carlton Trail. And because of the new provincial library system (SILS), I was able to take the book home with me. When I'm done, I just drop if off at my local library and they send it back up. What a concept. I wish I had time to visit more of the libraries along the way. Perhaps next time. :)

How are the roads where you live? Did you get the frost upheaval like we did up here? Or do you live in a frost-free zone?

Red Fox in our Farmyard

On Apr 20th I heard Anna barking up a frenzy with a few growls thrown in for good measure. It wasn't just a cat she was after! I grabbed my camera and ran outside. Anna, looked south, jumped up and down on her front paws, glanced at me, then back south. Something was in the field behind the quonset. I hurried down mindful of the muddy ground and saw it - a red fox running along the fenceline. I started taping and this is what I got:
A red fox in our farmyard...  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50IfIYvucBw



At least it didn't get any of my chickens and ducks - this time.

What's the wildest creature you've seen up close?

April Ends in Blizzard

After staying up for 36 hrs straight due to television coverage of Will and Kate's Royal Wedding, I went to bed on Friday night listening to the howling wind of a blizzard. My main concern was the boys who had been gone on a week-long youth retreat in the city and were due home around 10pm. But Nelson was talking care of it and I needed sleep.


Midnight - I found Nelson in the kitchen. He'd just brought the boys home. With white-out road conditions and 60kph winds, it had taken him 2 hrs - instead of the usual 30 mins - to drive into town and pick up the boys from the drop-off point. But his work cell phone was buzzing with alarms and he had to get back out to check well sites. I went back to bed.

4:30 am - I woke find the power out. Nelson still wasn't back. Instead of going back to bed, I cuddled with a blanket on the recliner and soon fell asleep.

8:30 am - I woke when JJ wandered into the living room. He asked if I'd phoned SaskPower to inform them of the outage. No, I hadn't. But I did then. Smart kid.

10:30 am - Took this photo:

Noon - Nelson finally came home. When he reached his farthest site, it'd been too dangerous to drive back. He'd slept the rest of the night in his truck then continued his work as the weather cleared.

The house was cold enough to sit under blankets for warmth. Nelson brought out the emergency candles for heat and then went to bed.

4 pm - Storm ended although still windy. I wanted to take my daily walk out to take photos of flooded road but couldn't bring myself to walk through the drifts and freeze without a warm house to come back to.

5:30 pm - Nelson awoke hungry. I was going to serve cold ham sandwiches, but he had other ideas. Although we can't drive our motorhome anymore the appliances still work - on propane. Nelson got the stove working. He threw a frozen pizza in the oven and boiled a kettle of water one of the 2 small burners. Yum, pizza and hot ramen noodles for supper. Was going to make tea but tummy was warm and full.

7 pm - Power finally came back on and we settled in to warm up.

 8 pm - I realized if I wanted photos I'd better get going. I went and took these:

Wherever you see snow on the road it's really ice. And slippery when you're wearing rubber boots!

Although the water had receded off the road surface, the ground was still plenty mucky. And with the water level still high, there's a good possibility of rising over the road again as this new snow melts.

Do you see how there's a handful of icy snow at the bottom of each branch grouping? Well, those patches of ice are a couple inches above the water level and they waved back and forth with every gust of wind. Quite pretty, actually.

The wind was still howling when I went out on this photo journey and after being out for only 10 mins or so, the index finger I use to snap the photos was aching from cold. I was wearing those little magic gloves as I do when the temperature is so cold in the winter, but it was only at 0c tonight which is the freezing point.

Yet, the wind whipping across the water has a dangerous beauty to it. In this photo below, there's nothing hanging from the fence on either side of the post - just icicles that have been dipped like candles in the water with every splash.

Here's one last pic of the icicles on the corner post.

I sure hope this is the last we've seen of snow this spring. What will tomorrow bring?

Stay tuned as I have some good news to share in my next post.