The best colour to see in winter
Shepard Energy Centre, east of Calgary, Alberta
Wearing a heavy coat of hoar frost
The cross and the moon
Little country church
Aging gracefully
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
Old barn with a different style
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
A fine old barn
Little church in the valley
McDougall Memorial United Church
A cluster of red barns
McDougall Memorial United Church
Farmyard scene on the prairie
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
One of my favourite barns
A life left behind
Built with love
Little red barn with green roof
Window box at Reader Rock Garden
Tucked away near the creek
Weathered and patched
Old barn in winter
Roof shingles galore
Charcoal effect
An old barn in winter
Still standing
McDougall Memorial United Church
The old barn at the Ellis Bird Farm
Farm seed elevator, Ellis Bird Farm, Alberta
And then there were only THREE!
This old house
Love those Canola fields
Prince of Wales hotel, Waterton
The Grad Barn 2016
Once a family home
Beautiful old house in the hills
Kirkpatrick elevator, near Drumheller
Bright and cheery in its old age
Weathered and patched
Old cabin on Gottlob Schmidt's (Schmitty's) land
Old glass doorknob
Rural decay
Little red cabin
Mossleigh grain elevators
Homestead remnants
McDougall Memorial United Church
Tea, anyone?
An old barn with character
Grain elevator at Barons
A few of the bird houses at Ellis Bird Farm
An old favourite
Under a stormy sky
Exshaw Legion memorial
Hanging on till the final fall
Sharples grain elevator
Old barn at the Ellis Bird Farm
Winter on the farm
Little country church at Dinton
One of my favourite barns
Can you see what I see?
Snow turns something ordinary into beautiful
Winter beauty
Snow, snow and more snow
Modern charm
Now THIS is winter!
Spikes of ice
Fenced in
A new find on a bitterly cold day
A different style
Little red barn on the prairie
A fine old barn
Each one different from the others
The rule of red
With a view of the mountains and the prairies
Old homestead and barn
Textures of an old homestead
Tea, anyone?
A favourite little country church
Colour for a snowy morning
A favourite old barn
Livingston House, Heritage Park
Give it time to age
Grain elevator with a difference
Rockyview General Hospital, reflected
At the Saskatoon Farm
Six old granaries
We ignored the warning : )
Colonel Walker House, Inglewood Bird Sanctuary
Ralph Klein Park
Let the sun shine
Love the style
One of these things is not like the others
One of my favourite barns
A change of subject
Too hard to resist
Yay, it's Canola time!
Three farm buddies
Olds College Botanic Gardens and Wetlands
Happy day! And Happy 4th July to all Americans, e…
A scene from the past
Brant grain elevator
Clouds and Dandelions
Nearing its end
One of three
Little red barn on Mother's Day
Simple but bright
Strong winds on the prairies
Brant grain elevator
There once was an owl
Weathered character
Off limits
Old Catholic Church, Dorothy
One of my favourite finds
A fine rural relic
Tilting
Fairly well preserved
No owl, but I love the colour
Old barn with Magpie
The big red barn
Aging sentinel of the Badlands
Snow + red barn = a happy day
Just one thing missing ....
Red barn on a cold, foggy, snowy day
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Chateau Lake Louise and ice castle
This photo was taken on 22 January 2016, when I was fortunate enough to get a place on a bus trip to Lake Louise and the annual Ice Sculpture display, Banff National Park, in the Rocky Mountains. It is a two-hour drive west of Calgary. Of course, any time a bus trip is organized way ahead of the day, you have no idea what the weather is going to be like. The weather was grim all day, with snow all day long, turning to really heavy, wet snow when we stood in the parking lot at the end of the day. No sign of the sun, which made photography a real challenge. There were so many people visiting the area that it was more or less impossible to get photos without at least a few people included. Even the mountains had mostly disappeared. Our bus driver, Tim, did a wonderful job of getting us to the lake and all the way back to Calgary safely. I was just so thankful that I wasn't driving!
Some of the group chose to snowshoe, others to walk, and others to join Anne Belton's group for birding. I was expecting a stroll along the lake shore and around the Chateau grounds, lol, but instead we did a hike along the creek all the way to Lake Louise Village, roughly 4.2 km! The trail was very narrow - wide enough for heavy winter boots and icers plus maybe a couple of inches on either side. If you were unlucky enough to walk an inch further, you would have one leg plunge into snow up to your knee or higher. I was so thankful that this didn't happen to me, but it did mean that my eyes were looking downwards all the time instead of soaking up the glorious, snow-covered forest. The snow was so thick on the trees and when it became just too heavy for a branch to support, you stood the risk of being snow-bombed from high above. A lot of the trail was downhill - not particularly fun in such conditions, but we all took it very slowly, though there were several tumbles or someone would end up travelling on their rear end. Not the easiset hike, but the surroundings couldn't have been more beautiful. Thankfully, the bus driver had arranged to drive down to the Village ready to pick us up and take us back uphill to the Lake.
As for the birds, well, they obviously didn't particularly like the grey, snowy day and stayed in hiding, other than several Common Ravens, a couple of Magpies, one or two Clark's Nutcrackers and two House Sparrows. Back at the Chateau, two of the birders did see a very distant Stellar's Jay - always a lovely bird to see, but it was too far for them to get photos.
We had time to wander round the Ice Scuptures area, in front of the Chateau. Some beautiful work created by sculptors from various parts of the world. Each year, they seem to have an ice castle built out on the frozen lake. The carving and actual competition had taken place a few days before we went.
"Winter comes alive in iconic Lake Louise, Alberta. Ice Magic Festival, January 15 - 24, 2016 is a world class event with over 20 years under its belt. Talented ice artists from around the world delicately balance grueling physical labour with precision artistry in a 34 hour International Ice Carving Competition.
Jaw-dropping scenery sets the stage as ice carving teams of 2 create sculptures illustrating their interpretations of our chosen theme for 2016: Earth, Wind, Fire & Water - Elements of Life." Taken from link below. I love that the prize money for this competition is only a comparativey small amount, which I think shows that the carvers do what they do for love of the art, not for the money : )
Team Ice Carving Competition
1st Place: $2,500
2nd Place: $1,500
3rd Place: $750
Carver's Choice: $750
People's Choice: $500
One Carver, One Hour, One Block
1st Place: $1,000
2nd Place: $300
3rd Place: $200
People's Choice: $250
www.banfflakelouise.com/Area-Events/Festivals/Winter/Snow...
So, a wonderful day trip for us all in breathtaking surroundings. I am especially appreciative, as I don't drive to the mountains, so rarely get to see them. Many thanks to FLC for doing such a great job of organizing this most enjoyable day for us. Thanks to Anne Belton for taking some of us on a beautiful hike through the forest. Definitely a day to remember.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateau_Lake_Louise
Some of the group chose to snowshoe, others to walk, and others to join Anne Belton's group for birding. I was expecting a stroll along the lake shore and around the Chateau grounds, lol, but instead we did a hike along the creek all the way to Lake Louise Village, roughly 4.2 km! The trail was very narrow - wide enough for heavy winter boots and icers plus maybe a couple of inches on either side. If you were unlucky enough to walk an inch further, you would have one leg plunge into snow up to your knee or higher. I was so thankful that this didn't happen to me, but it did mean that my eyes were looking downwards all the time instead of soaking up the glorious, snow-covered forest. The snow was so thick on the trees and when it became just too heavy for a branch to support, you stood the risk of being snow-bombed from high above. A lot of the trail was downhill - not particularly fun in such conditions, but we all took it very slowly, though there were several tumbles or someone would end up travelling on their rear end. Not the easiset hike, but the surroundings couldn't have been more beautiful. Thankfully, the bus driver had arranged to drive down to the Village ready to pick us up and take us back uphill to the Lake.
As for the birds, well, they obviously didn't particularly like the grey, snowy day and stayed in hiding, other than several Common Ravens, a couple of Magpies, one or two Clark's Nutcrackers and two House Sparrows. Back at the Chateau, two of the birders did see a very distant Stellar's Jay - always a lovely bird to see, but it was too far for them to get photos.
We had time to wander round the Ice Scuptures area, in front of the Chateau. Some beautiful work created by sculptors from various parts of the world. Each year, they seem to have an ice castle built out on the frozen lake. The carving and actual competition had taken place a few days before we went.
"Winter comes alive in iconic Lake Louise, Alberta. Ice Magic Festival, January 15 - 24, 2016 is a world class event with over 20 years under its belt. Talented ice artists from around the world delicately balance grueling physical labour with precision artistry in a 34 hour International Ice Carving Competition.
Jaw-dropping scenery sets the stage as ice carving teams of 2 create sculptures illustrating their interpretations of our chosen theme for 2016: Earth, Wind, Fire & Water - Elements of Life." Taken from link below. I love that the prize money for this competition is only a comparativey small amount, which I think shows that the carvers do what they do for love of the art, not for the money : )
Team Ice Carving Competition
1st Place: $2,500
2nd Place: $1,500
3rd Place: $750
Carver's Choice: $750
People's Choice: $500
One Carver, One Hour, One Block
1st Place: $1,000
2nd Place: $300
3rd Place: $200
People's Choice: $250
www.banfflakelouise.com/Area-Events/Festivals/Winter/Snow...
So, a wonderful day trip for us all in breathtaking surroundings. I am especially appreciative, as I don't drive to the mountains, so rarely get to see them. Many thanks to FLC for doing such a great job of organizing this most enjoyable day for us. Thanks to Anne Belton for taking some of us on a beautiful hike through the forest. Definitely a day to remember.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateau_Lake_Louise
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