Caboose Camping April 24, 2024

When culture generates stress, nature offers rest.

When culture produces narrowmindedness, nature offers a bird’s eye perspective.

When culture makes people feel isolated, nature makes them feel free.

Just like the caboose I am staying in, I am going no where while I am here!  This afternoon I spent a few hours out on the deck reading.  I finally started  “A Year in the Woods”.  The three lines at the first of this post are from that book.  They resonated with me and I wanted to share them with you.  

🌲 🌲 🌲 🌲 🌲

I woke well before sunrise to the sound of the robins gleefully singing.  While the coffee was brewing, I donned warm layers, slung my camera over my shoulder, poured a cup of that coffee, exited the front door of the caboose, crossed the deck, walked down the stairs then through the yard to the trail that would lead me to where I could watch the sunrise.

When I was here last year, snow was still everywhere and lots of the locations on the property were not accessible.  There is not a flake of snow to be seen anywhere, there was not much to begin with this winter so it was gone quickly and early.  This morning I spent time at Sunrise Lagoon savouring sips of coffee and the sunrise.

Beyond the Lagoon is Pequito Pond.  It looked full of ducks from a distance, I saw them fly away as I approached.  There is a Duck Conservation Area beside the Pond but there is no access to it.

Breakfast was next on the agenda. It paired nicely with a fire, it was still close to zero in temperature.  When I arrived yesterday, I was surprised to see three gigantic bags of firewood sitting by the picnic table.  I also found an axe and fire starter inside a cabinet in the caboose. I have been taking full advantage of being permitted to have a fire. This could change any day or even any minute with the current conditions.

It was such a peaceful morning by the fire listening to and watching the birds.  The two other cabooses are not occupied nor are the campsites close by. It’s still early season and also being here mid week makes a difference.  I could hear people every now and then away off in the distance along with birds far and near.  This Common Crackle is one of many in my trees.

The Morning Dove appeared curious.

This Robin stared at me with a piece of twine in its beak.

Time came to head back to the trails to walk a few kilometres after sitting and reading for an extended period.  The wind picked up and created an interesting looking sky.

a Western Meadowlark 

sky views while walking again later

This is the view as I arrived back at my caboose, ready for dinner, then a fire, then calling it a night much later.

Caboose Camping April 23, 2024

While window watching, one opened up so I jumped at the opportunity to embrace the opening!  With wonderful weather stretching over a few days along with a mid week vacancy at my favourite caboose, it was go time.  On the way to going to the campground where the Canadian Pacific Caboose is, I stopped by Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation to hike for a few hours.  

I’m not sure what I was thinking bringing loads of warm layers!  With the crazy mixed up weather we experienced, I was mixed up too, +12C felt like +25C!  De-layer, de-layer, de-layer!

The trails were dry and 99.9% clear of snow!

Yet, when there was snow, I played in it!

view west to our Rocky Mountains

I wondered would I see crocuses!  So happy when I did!  I have not had time to get back to crocus hunting in Calgary.

The Tree Swallows and Mountain Bluebirds were plentiful.  They were tormenting each other as each was protecting their nests in the bird boxes. This is a Tree Swallow, the sun sure made it shine brightly!

These are Mountain Bluebirds, a female and male.

They are watching over that box.

It was about an hour drive to my Caboose from where I was hiking.  I arrived right at check in time and took no time at all to unpack, change, open a beer, grab the chips and settle in outside in the sunshine where it now felt like +30C!

Once the sun went down, it was time to layer up.  I was now thankful I had that warm winter wear with me. It also meant soon the full Pink Moon would appear. It was still below the trees at this point, but I patiently waited!

enjoying a fire while waiting

It was a beautiful clear night and the full Pink Moon put on quite a show!

crafting : painting : birding

👼 👼 👼 👼 👼 

Back in mid March when I got into macrame, the plan was to complete a few easy projects to get the hang of the craft and then move on to create a boho bag.  That idea has fallen by the wayside since I have been having so much fun working on smaller more meaningful items.  This angel is the latest addition to my meaningful collection.  I took her out into a treed area to get a photo of her in nature.  She represents my Guardian Angel who loved being out in nature.  We spent many times in various parks over the years, she loved the sights and sounds and smells of these places. I know my Guardian Angel has my back!  

she now hangs in my home on the fairy light tree

🖌 🖌 🖌 🖌 🖌

Another thing that has fallen by the wayside are watercolour painting sessions.  After painting twelve full moon scenes and a cover scene, for my 2025 calendar, over a short period of time, I then pushed all the supplies to the side, not wanting to even touch a brush.  Except for this!  These splashes and swipes of paint represent a logo I designed.  There's more to this than meets the eye!  That's all I will say for now!  Stay tuned!

🐦 🐦 🐦 🐦 🐦

Lately, not a day goes by that I am not "out & about" enjoying nature in some form or another!  I was not feeling like I wanted to sift through my crocus photos so sifted through my bird photos from the past three days.  Covering thirty kilometres throughout Beaverdam Flats, Carburn Park and Inglewood, I came away with some nice surprises and unexpected sights.  Of course, I did see some of those usual suspects such of this male House Finch...

....and his cutie-pie friend!

While standing in a location watching the ducks do their spring thing, I was startled by a flock of Tree Swallows that flew from the tree, so much so that I let out a WOOW.  What a sight to see watching them fly over top then in a matter of a minute all settle back down in the tree.  

This is a close up of a few of them as they settled down on a branch.  

I mentioned in a previous post about wanting to capture a video of a drumming Northern Flicker but had no luck. Well, I had better luck this time around!  

It pays to keep your eyes peeled in every direction.  Movement in the water below caught my attention and when I was able to get a better look, I saw this muskrat swimming by.  It quickly disappeared into an area around that log.  

It was a blind corner for both of us!  

I think I was more shocked than the coyote was. 

It just nonchalantly did an about face and sauntered off trail into the trees.  

While looking into the trees to see where the coyote went, I saw a flicker of a bright yellowish green colour.  I waited, I watched, I looked to left and right then there is was again.  This is the clearest photo I captured.  While it is facing away from me, I was able to see that red patch on the head.  Seeing this Ruby-Crowned Kinglet was a nice surprise!  

Another nice surprise was seeing this male Harlequin Duck.  I followed it back and forth for quite some time as it swam back and forth chasing after his lady friend.  At first I wandered what it was chasing after as I forgot how the females look so different.  The reminder came when I got home and made the ID's of my sightings.  

This was an unexpected sight!  While seeing deer is a common occurrence, seeing one with one antler is not.  It will soon shed the other one. This normally happens during January to March after mating season.  Throughout the summer, they will grow back.

The nice surprises and unexpected sights continued!  As I walked out of the trees to the trail by the river, this thing flew up from the water and landed on the grass in front of me.  I was camera ready, you need to be these days!  Once I got home, I used my app to make the ID.  This is a Cooper's Hawk. 

Oh my, even another nice surprise sighting!  This is an Osprey!  It was easy to photograph because it hoovered in one spot for a lengthy time.  It was eyeing the water beneath it. I was expecting it to do a deep dive to the water to capture food, but that did not happen, it just eventually flew away.  

My gosh, the sweet surprises kept happening!  I heard the tune and I could name it in five notes!  This is my first sighting of a Song Sparrow this season.  I ended up seeing three of them and they were all singing their little hearts out. 

Early on this day, I stopped by the Bald Eagle's nest viewing location.  The Eagle was busy busy busy doing something but I could not capture a good photo because of all the movement.  Later, on my way back, I stopped by again and captured this photo.  I chatted with another birders who told me it appeared her activity earlier was that of feeding babies but they did not see the babies nor do they know how many are in there. I won't have another opportunity to head back here for a week or so. 

These spring days have been so fulfilling!  

Camino de Santiago Virtual Challenge April 2024

And I'm off!  Again!  Virtually!  Twenty-eight plus hours by air virtually got me from eastern Australia to France to start my next conqueror challenge.  The Camino de Santiago is one of the original challenges and has seen close to 85,000 conquerors from all over the world take on this trek virtually.  No doubt many have completed the Camino in reality.  The route is 774 kms in distance.  I was not wanting to do another longer challenge but this one feels like a good fit right now.  This route is long enough so the plan is to virtually still be covering Camino distance while I am actually hiking in Austria in June. 

This is the route the challenge takes.  It starts in France and crosses over into Spain.  The closest I have been to Saint Jean Pied de Port in France is when I was in Figueres Spain back in 2022 which is a five hour and forty minute drive away. 

This is a close up of the route showing my marker at 16.8 kms along the way.  I received my race bid and my number is 84941, this is a popular challenge.

This is the photo I am using for my marker.  

It is from one of the walks I did along the Mediterranean while in Spain. 

at the start of the Camino de Santiago

first postcard that popped into my mailbox and I am sending off to you

A mere 16.8 kms into the challenge and this is the virtual view!  Oh WOW!