Winter 3

I dashed down to the park yesterday afternoon to try and get a few snowflake photos. Got an awful lot of blurry photos, but also maybe two or three that were just about sharp enough. This was the most complete snowflake that came out, but I wasn't sure about it on a black background. Not very Christmasy, so I'll keep a brighter shot of a slightly melted snowflake for a bit closer to Christmas. If you happen to think of it (you know, in between baking, cooking, shopping, wrapping, etc., etc., - yeah, right!), let me know which one you prefer. I just couldn't make up my mind which was my favourite of the two. It was slightly windy and, oh boy, does that make it harder to get anything that is so light and delicate in focus, LOL. I guess I should have taken my tiny, table-top tripod that I tend not to bother with any more. I loved it when I was trying to focus on a certain snowflake and another one with a completely different pattern, gently landed on it or nearby. What a magical world it was : ) I had such a lovely morning today - a Christmas get-together with a whole bunch of friends whom I hadn't seen for about a year and nine months!! My out-of-town botanizing trips are always on Fridays, so I've been unable to go these usual weekly get-togethers with friends. What a wonderfully warm, welcoming bunch of people they are - I'm very lucky to know these folks! I have to set my two alarm clocks and my kitchen timer for around 3:50 tomorrow morning - i.e. not all that much later than I normally get to bed! - as I have to be halfway across the city for 6:30 a.m., ready for travelling westwards with a few friends to do the Christmas Bird Count in Canmore (near Banff). Just hope I don't sleep through my alarms! I think it was three years ago that it was -30C on this Canmore Count and five hours of walking in it was not exactly fun : ) No bird photos, but I got some beautiful icicle shots, ha. The 2010 count is the National Audubon Society's 111th annual Christmas Bird Count! Sunday is the Calgary Christmas Bird Count, so it will be another early start.

A group of eight of us drove south of Calgary on 18 December 2012, to take part in the annual High River Christmas Bird Count. We covered all the backroads in the SE quadrant of the huge circle around the town. One of the places we stopped at was Frank Lake, a very popular place for birders. This photo was taken, looking towards the sun, giving what I thought was quite a nice effect. Have to admit that while the others were scanning the lake for any sign of wildlife, I was enjoying myself taking scenic shots and ice-crystals : ) I've marked this shot on my map, but placed it in the middle of Frank lake, as I'm not sure just where we were. We started our search at around 8:30 a.m. and returned to the meeting place around 5:00 p.m., when we handed in our results and stayed for a delicious potluck supper. Thanks so much to the local birders who organized this most enjoyable ending to a long day! Our small group's sightings for the day: Mallard 9 in am at Frank Lake; 7 seen flying there in late pm. Common Goldeneye-4 Bald Eagle-4 ad. Northern Goshawk-2 ad. Rough-legged Hawk-1 Merlin-2 Gray Partridge-12 Sharp-tailed Grouse-5 Rock Pigeon-26 Great Horned Owl-5 Snowy Owl-1 (seen 3 times). Downy Woodpecker-1 m. Black-billed Magpie-34 Common Raven-8 Northern Shrike-1 American Tree Sparrow-3 Snow Bunting-807 Common Redpoll-925 Hoary Redpoll-1 House Sparrow-245

Ha, I was determined to post one of the four photos I took yesterday, looking across a lake to the very far side, to where four Wolves were walking near the frozen lake shore! I could just make them out with 48x zoom. A small group of us spent the day in the Sibbald, Harvie Heights and Exshaw areas in Kananaskis, mostly driving, but with the occasional short walk. While we were walking along a few roads in a wooded residential area, checking feeders for any birds, someone told us he had just seen this pack of Wolves. We drove back to that area and were thrilled to bits that the Wolves briefly came into sight, before disappearing back into the forest. I feel really lucky, especially as I had been to the mountains just one week earlier. Normally, this never happens : ) Oh, and by the way, our day had started off well, too, with the sighting of two young Moose : ) Later today: I received a report from the Bow/Kan Christmas Bird Count, to which was added the following information .... "Yesterday, when passing Gap Lake I noticed four “Canis” species animals romping on the ice of Gap Lake. Without my field glasses, they acted and looked like wolves (I was hoping) but a closer inspection revealed that they were in fact Coyotes." Am I disappointed? Yeah, of course, lol! These words were written by the person who had told us about the four "Wolves". That's too bad, Cliff, but thanks anyway for the temporary excitement and a chance to see this lake in beautiful light!

I had hoped that my photos of these two beautiful young Moose would come out better than they did, but a bit of touching up made this one uploadable. I always appreciate the chance to take photos when I'm with other people (most of whom don't have/take cameras), but I make sure I take just a few quick shots so that I don't keep everyone waiting too long. These animals were covered in frost and you can see the cold breath coming from the one on the right. I loved their frost-covered whiskers (beard?), but this doesn't show up in these photos. The highlight from yesterday was seeing a pack of four Wolves on the move, the far side of a lake. We had been told about these Wolves by someone who had just seen them a short while ago. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moose

On the way back to Calgary after a birding day in the Sibbald, Harvie Heights and Exshaw areas of Kananaaskis on Sunday, 20 January 2013, we noticed this very distant herd of Elk crossing a field. Just before this photo, they had been walking in a dead straight line.

On a birding walk yesterday morning, 21 January 2013, at Griffith Woods, we saw some quite interesting ice crystals/frost. This was a branch that was lying in the creek. Will post a photo of a different frost/ice formation another day - a formation that I'd never seen before.

This was such a beautiful sight, looking towards the sun at Gap Lake on Sunday, 20 January 2013. We had spent a bit of time there, looking for a pack of four Wolves that we had just been told about. The photo I posted yesterday of a very distant animal in front of a row of trees, was taken from this spot, looking to the far side of the lake. Amazing that I got any shot from that distance, lol! Most unfortunately, I received an e-mail later yesterday from the person who told us about the "Wolves", saying that it had now been decided that after all, these animals were Coyotes, not Wolves. Hugely disappointing, but we certainly enjoyed the temporary excitement - and seeing the beauty of this lake. Today, I have no choice but to back up some photo files so that I can delete them from my hard drive, before my computer crashes ... sigh. 23 January 2013, 9:30 a.m. Wow, that must be a first - message from Flickr says: "You caught us at a bad time: We're running red hot at the moment, so uploading is temporarily unavailable until things cool down. Please try again soon! (And, sorry for the lame excuse.)" Some of my Contacts have been able to upload this morning, so it's obviously not affecting everyone. Hoping it willl sort itself out before I have to go out for my volunteer shift - if not, I will be posting late afternoon or early this evening. Not a very nice day out today. It's -13C (9F) with a windchill of -22C (-8F) and snowing. The sky looks like there is plenty more snow to come. Looking quite pretty, though I probably won't be thinking in those terms while I'm scraping ice and snow off my vehicle shortly : ) Stay warm, everyone!

A little Snow Bunting that actually sat still for a second or two. Taken east of Calgary on 7 December 2012. 23 January 2013, 9:30 a.m. Wow, this must be a first - message from Flickr says: "You caught us at a bad time: We're running red hot at the moment, so uploading is temporarily unavailable until things cool down. Please try again soon! (And, sorry for the lame excuse.)" Around noon, I was finally able to get these shots uploaded, but now have to dash out for my volunteer shift. See you later. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_Bunting www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Snow_Bunting/id

This Moose and its sibling had a good sprinkling of frost on their fur. I loved their frost-covered whiskers (beard?), but this doesn't show up in my photos. I always appreciate the chance to take photos when I'm with other people (most of whom don't have/take cameras), but I make sure I take just a few quick shots so that I don't keep everyone waiting too long : ) Taken on 20 January 2013, when two carloads of us spent the day driving around the Sibbald, Harvie Heights and Exshaw areas, looking for birds.