celebrating nature and earth every day

 What is it that makes me appreciate nature more and more as time passes? 

The last time I was at Carburn Park, skating was still in full swing.  A small portion of the pond is now open water yet a large part remains covered in ice and snow.  From my memories of being here last spring, it is a popular place for the birds to hang out during the warmer months. My hopes were to see some new seasonal visitors.  

the small section of open water on the pond

Many kilometres can be covered if you head north along the Bow to Beaverdam Flats which is what I did.    The trails are clear of snow and ice and mostly dry especially earlier in the day.  I did encounter mud on the return hike.  

My intentions were to watch for birds.  I had some luck with that seeing many Black-Capped Chickadees, Northern Flickers, Robins, a Bald Eagle and a Cooper's Hawk.  It was the ducks though that really caught my eye.  While performing surveillance when following along the Bow, I spotted something that looked a little different than all the other ducks that were out there.  Seeing this Common Loon was so unexpected and I cherished many many minutes watching it.  

A little while later I had another unusual sighting!  A Red-Necked Grebe!  I saw a Red-Necked Grebe two years ago but it was from a distance and the colours were not clear.  Today the Grebe was closer and it is obvious why it is called what it is called. 

This young buck was settled in a sunny spot.  When it breathed I could see its breath.  Those are icicles hanging from the chin.  I kept my distance and zoomed in to capture this photo.  It must have been a very comfortable spot because he was still there two hours later when I was returning along the same route.  For a few seconds I did wonder if it was OK or maybe he went about his morning routine for a couple of hours and then returned to the same spot.    

The highlight for today was seeing the Common Loon.  

What a gift to be presented with on Earth Day!

🌎🌏🌍

All the snow that fell near the end of last week worked wonders for the crocuses!  On this day I went hunting again and came away with the feeling of crocus overload.  If I knew better, I would have brought my coffee, breakfast and a blanket, settled in one spot and I would have come away with dozens of gorgeous photos from that one area.  Bouquets are now in abundance!

I felt like I was looking deep into the soul of this crocus!

Most of the bouquets had large amounts of grass around them and on top.  I found a few bunches where I was able to hold the grass aside or down while snapping the photograph.  These will be fully open in a day or two.

being one with the earth is necessary to capture this angle

I picked out a few more, from my two hundred photos, to create this collage.  

While it did feel like I was overloaded with crocus sightings today, 

there are more locations to check out. I think I still have room within to do more savouring.

🌏🌍🌎

Regular visits to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary at this time of year come with new varieties of sights and sounds each time.  That proved to be the case on this day.  My welcome this time was from two Northern Flickers performing their mating song and dance routine.  

The bright spot tucked high in the branches of the tree was a Dark-Eyed Junco.  This was my first sighting of one this season.  It was quite content staying there and checking out the area, that was until my phone beeped.  Even though the beep was so very quiet, the bird heard it.  I quickly turned off the sound.

Oh my neck!  This is what it took from the House Finch to get a clear vision of what I was.  There were a few males and females on the ground foraging for food but it was this guy that I paid attention to as he monitored me. 

Work continues at The Sanctuary.  It will be ten years this coming June since the flood ravaged Calgary and other parts of Southern Alberta.   This area has come a long way but there is still lots of work ahead.  

With a few sections closed off for construction, a couple of other areas have opened up.  

This is the view from a path I have never been along.  

Like every other time I come away from The Sanctuary, once again I came away feeling soothed.  

This is a protected place full of so much nature to appreciate.