Scenery 2

LOL, sorry, but my drive this morning led me back to the famous five - after getting myself lost, a feeling I dislike intensely! A spectacular hoar frost continued this morning after the last few days, though it looks more like ordinary snow in this photo. Felt good to finally have a blue sky. Went to a local park within the city on my way home. Then, was out this evening at an excellent talk on mushrooms. A long drive across the city, and normally I'm not out in the evenings, and I can't say I enjoy night driving. Worth it for this talk, though, even though I was stressed out having to drive somewhere I'd never been before : ) Thank goodness for Google Maps Street View, LOL - sure helps! Getting practically no time on Flickr the last few days - gosh, I've only made one comment today!!

Took this yesterday, just south of the city, on yet another day of spectacular hoar frost. As you can see, it coats everything with white. Not sure why the sky was so blown out - taken quite early in the morning, shortly after sunset. Now our temperatures have warmed up a few degrees, so no chance of hoar frost in the near future.

Part of the family of White-tailed Deer that live at the east end of Fish Creek Park. Their neighbours include a pair of Great Horned Owls and all the usual - Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpecker, Northern Flickr, and occasionally a Pileated Woodpecker. Oh, and a Porcupine : )

Took this photo just outside the south western edge of the city three mornings ago. I love the rolling hills between us and the Rockies. I had got up early to go on a walk to look for birds, but when I saw that the sun was shining at last, I made a quick change of plans and drove south west down a few backroads. There was a beautiful hoar frost and I liked the way it had touched the hay/straw bales. The sun on the distant Rocky Mountains was so pretty.

Thanks to Tom Petty and his 1991 song! I love Alberta's wide open spaces : ) To the west of the city, there are rolling hills that merge into the Foothills at the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains. A few mornings ago, I drove a few of the backroads to soak up the beauty of a hoar frost. This was shortly after sunrise and the sun had barely reached the endless fields of stubble. In the far distance, beyond this hill, lie the majestic Canadian Rockies, where the sun was shining on the snow-covered peaks. I always find our landscape completely breathtaking.

Came across this lovely old wagon south of the city when I got myself lost five days ago. The hoar frost was gorgeous and, for once, the sun was shining and the sky was blue.

We walked around the Reader Rock Garden this morning, as well as walking the residential streets and alleys in the Rideau/Roxborough area. Good to see Wood Ducks on the River - my first ones for this year. Same with the Brown Creeper. The Union Cemetery is next to the Reader Rock Garden. Felt very different seeing this place in the fog. "Calgary averages twenty days with fog each year. Half of these normally occur in the fall and half in the spring. Environment Canada does not list which month has the most days with fog." We seem to have had more days of fog and hoar frost this winter than what I remember from other winters, but maybe I just missed them before. I had asked my oldest daughter if she had any statistics for this - she didn't, so she e-mailed one of our Meteorologists, Paul Dunphy, and the info just above was in reply to her e-mail. Thanks, Fiona and Paul!

Back to a hoar frost photo taken on 22nd January. There is just nothing that can compare to driving in a spectacular hoar frost - other than driving in a spectacular hoar frost WITH blue sky (which was definitely missing that day), LOL! This little backroad is just south of the city, with gentle hills and endless farmland. Everything, right down to the slimmest of stems and grasses, was covered in white crystals. "Calgary averages twenty days with fog each year. Half of these normally occur in the fall and half in the spring. Environment Canada does not list which month has the most days with fog." We seem to have had more days of fog and hoar frost this winter than what I remember from other winters, but maybe I just missed them before. I had asked my oldest daughter if she had any statistics for this - she didn't, so she e-mailed one of our Meteorologists, Paul Dunphy, and the info just above was in reply to her e-mail. Thanks, Fiona and Paul!

Actually, this is a winter scene from way back on 7th February 2007! I never had the heart to delete it from my files, as it really was such a beautiful day down by the Bow River, I believe at Hull's Wood. We are in for either rain or snow - and how do I know that? Because I finally washed my filthy car late this afternoon. So, you'll know who to blame, LOL.