Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: rain

This is what the weather was like on 15 July 2012, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. The gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx

This is what the weather was like on 15 July 2012, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. The gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx

This is what the weather was like on Sunday 15 July, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. Yesterday, the gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. Thanks so much, Sandy, for introducing us to a new, fascinating area of Alberta and for the ride - made a great day, despite the rain! "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx Art (Leapfrog!) - wish I could send you a few days of this cool, rainy weather!

I love coming across a Wilson's Snipe / Gallinago delicata perched on a fence post at a wetland ( west of the city). The heavens had just opened and this photo was taken in very heavy rain, with tiny hailstones bouncing in through my open car window. Taken on 7th June. As today progresses, I know I am going to find it more and more difficult to remember what day and time it is. I stayed up all last night, as it was the annual Dawn Chorus at 3:30 a.m. this morning, in Weaselhead. We were so lucky that it stayed dry most of the time, with just a few raindrops and a few flashes of lightning. I think we were walking for about four hours. Haven't yet heard how many species we saw/heard, but the number of species and actual birds was way down. (Later: 44 species of bird were heard/seen). I think we must be insane to travel from different parts of the city at this unearthly hour (I left home around 2:45 a.m.), but it's quite fascinating to witness the start of a brand new day for our feathered friends. In case anyone is interested, a Spotted Sandpiper was the first (at 3:45 a.m.), followed by a Song Sparrow (3:49 a.m.), Yellow Warbler (3:58 a.m.), American Robin (3:59 a.m.) and Clay-colored Sparrow (3:59 a.m.).

This was taken yesterday, in the rain and snow, when we were doing the annual May Species Count in Fish Creek Park. This Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius syn. Actitis macularia) looked less than impressed! We spent about six hours in temperatures of 0.8-2C! Out came the winter boots, the sweater, the fleece jacket, the thick winter jacket, toque, two pairs of gloves and long-johns - and it's June the day after tomorrow, lol. I was halfway to being soaked to the skin! An enjoyable walk, though, as usual. We saw a total of 47 bird species, compared to 58 species May 2009. I'd never taken a photo at ISO 400 before (can you believe it?), so hardly the best quality : )

Nothing but rain, rain, and more rain this last week! Just when there were so many walks/outings that I was going on. Quickly snapped this photo after photographing a hillside that is completely covered in the invasive weed, Stinkweed. Just liked the brilliant yellow and the bright red of the rain jackets on such a miserable, gloomy morning. These are four of my birding and botanizing "buddies" - nothing keeps THEM at home when it's raining and there are interesting "things" to see and hear : ). Electricity wires are so annoying....couldn't avoid them, unfortunately. The middle two guys pick up litter/major garbage such as tires, etc., probably every single day, when they go out walking to look for birds and plants. They keep our parks/natural areas as clean and tidy as is humanly possible. Thanks to them, the natural areas can be enjoyed without the eyesore of garbage, for the most part. Of course, people being people, there is always new litter being disgarded, but these guys are doing an amazing job - they deserve a huge thank you! Later: many thanks, Phil, for removing the annoying wires from my photo - much appreciated!

One advantage of the rain!