The prairies in winter

This view and the old, unusual homestead always take me by surprise, because I can never remember exactly where this location is. We came across it again yesterday and I always have to stop and take a quick shot.

Yesterday, 21 January 2015, my daughter and I spent the day together, out in nature. I know I needed to get out myself and the fact that my daughter asked if we could do that, told me that she, too, desperately needed to get a break from all the sadness and reminders of her big sister/my older daughter for a few hours. Friends who know me well have been telling me how important it is to be outdoors with my camera, especially at a time like this, and I know they are right.

Much as it would have been great to have gone looking for Snowy Owls, I just didn't feel up to that long of a drive. Instead, I drove to a much more familiar, closer area, SE of the city. The day was a mix of sun and cloudiness, and though the sun was in the wrong position for some of our shots, we did OK.

Normally, I never walk from the road on to the surrounding land, even when there is not a "No Trespassing" sign. There was a very short, rough road leading to where a beautiful Great Horned Owl, spotted by my daughter, was sitting, and we walked a few steps closer to it. She had already spotted a different GHO along one of the backroads and later on, she spotted our only Snowy Owl of the day. I was reminded exactly why I never set foot on someone's land - though I had taken even more steps on this track with friends for the Christmas Bird Count. Guilt came flooding in when a truck with two young guys came down the gravel road and turned in at this very spot! Needless to say, I apologized and told them that normally, I never do this. They were so pleasant and told us, no problem at all and to go much closer (which I didn't). People like this really help make one's day, so Thank You to these two guys.

The rest of the day, my daughter and I drove mostly roads that we had driven before, except for one short stretch where we found not just one beautiful, old barn, but two. The first and larger barn was one that I had wanted to get to for some time.

I think being out with our cameras, driving the backroads, was therapeutic - certainly for me as I could enjoy my daughter's company, and hopefully for her, too.