Dawn over the Rockies - at Canmore, Alberta

Another view of the mountains taken in Canmore on December 17th, when a few of us took part in the annual Banff/Canmore Christmas Bird Count. This annual Banff-Canmore Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is organized by the Bow Valley Naturalists and this was the 37th consecutive year for this event . The town of Canmore is surrounded by mountain peaks. The early morning sunrise cast a beautiful pink glow, which I'm not usually up in time to see in the mornings. (Location on map is only very approximate, just in case anyone is curious as to where Harvey Heights is).

My small group covered the Harvey Heights area. The meeting place for the various groups was at the home of Colleen Campbell, who so generously opens up her home to us each year, including giving us a lovely warm place to go back to, to eat our lunches and to finalize the lists of birds seen by the end of the day. Colleen is a long-time Wildlife Researcher, who focused exclusively on grizzly bears from 1993 until 2006. She is also known for her incredibly beautiful artwork - photography is another of her keen interests. Recently, she took in two adorable little rescue kittens - they were so soft and gentle! There was room in my backback to have put both kittens in to take home with me - but I thought Colleen might notice that they were missing : ) Colleen, thank you so much from us all, for your generosity and welcome - and that includes the welcome that Jesse always gives everyone. What a sweet, intelligent dog she is!