May 2023 Painting Challenge Complete!

I talked a bit about this project back on May 10th and showed the progress to date.  Each square is 1 & 1/2 inches in size.  It took working with the tiniest brushes, having a steady hand with my nose almost touching the paper.  To complete this challenge today, I cheated! Due to taking care of business, I did not have the opportunity to be out & about enjoying nature today.  The ice cream painting was from a photo I took on Monday.  I will share a little story about a few of the days:

🖌On May 22nd we had showers, on May 23rd while out & about,  I admired the puddles capturing photos of many.  It had been ages since I saw a puddle!  They are not easy to paint but I gave it a quick shot.  With all the wildfires in Central and Northern Alberta, the whole province was and still is in dire need of rain.  

🖌On May 16 & 17, the air quality was rated at 10+ and even for hours it showed 11.  Calgary made the news for having the worst air quality on the planet earth.

🖌On May 5th and May 31st, I did not get out to enjoy nature so a beer and ice cream were my muses. 

This was such an enjoyable challenge, 

I will do another one in a few months time.

🖌

Nature Journaling

I still have not sat out in nature to paint & print what I see in front of me! It will happen, one day!  What I did create in my journal was this two page spread about beach glass (sea glass).  As you can see, I had many pieces of these treasures to replicate.  You may need to click on the photo to enlarge it to read the words.  I have such a large collection but not near as large as some of my maritime friends.  We all love being lost in the joy of strolling beaches searching for shiny specs to collect.

I made many projects from the pieces of beach glass I collected over the years.  

These are the bigger projects and my favourite.  

a lighthouse

Inukshuk

Beach & Lighthouse, Calella, Spain

raising her arms in victory on a mountain summit

Waterton Lakes National Park Other Hikes & Sights

For this wayward escape to Waterton Lakes National Park, seeing as it was for a shorter time away than I would normally go for, I did not take much time to lounge about.  These days here were truly a gift, it was summer like in every way with hot weather, excellent trail conditions, all stores hotels restaurants and facilities were open, yet the tourist numbers were very low as it is still early season.  The Chief Mountain Border which is about a 30  minute drive down the road from the entrance to Waterton, is now open after closing in 2020 due to the way our world was. The local lady told me they are beginning to see more of our American neighbours now which is a good thing because afterall, Waterton Lakes National Park is a Peace Park with Montana's Glacier National Park.  

Waterton Townsite

Walking a loop from my home away from away, along the shore of Upper Waterton Lake, around the townsite, by the campground, by Cameron Falls, past the school, playground, visitor centre and other locations then back to my home away from home is roughly a five kilometre walk, which I did numerous times.  These are a few photos from those walks.

from the calm bay looking towards the Prince of Wales Hotel

 along the pathway between the main campground on the left and the walk-in tent sites on the right

Cameron Falls

the Visitor Centre showing it was a gusty day with the flags waving 

Rainbow Sorbet in a Vanilla Waffle Cone 

(I already devoured half of the sorbet.)

the boat tours run even when the winds are high

view towards the USA from the shore of Upper Waterton Lake

Buffalo Paddock

It can be hit or miss when you drive through the Buffalo Paddock. On this day, I would call it a hit! Not only did a get to see a buffalo up close but the yellow bouquets of wildflowers were everywhere.  Even though there has not been much moisture, the greens were vibrant.  

entering the Buffalo Paddock

view from along the narrow dirt hilly road that winds through the paddock

the Buffalo are those brown dots in the middle

a zoomed in shot of the Buffalo

When I rounded a corner, this Buffalo swiftly ran off the road up onto the hill. 

 Akamina Lake

Walking into Akamina Lake has been on my list of things to do when in Waterton but I never got around to doing that until this day.  Gosh what a pretty trail and lovely lake! A new kiosk has been constructed since last summer.  Also, it appears new boardwalks have been built and the trail more defined.  There is lots of work being done to clear deadfall near the entrance.  

view from along the boardwalk

Wilsons Warbler

Northern Waterthrush

(collecting twigs to build a nest)

view along the section of dirt trail

Akamina Lake

at the end of the trail is a platform with a bench

(a most gorgeous spot to sit awhile)

view of the rock lined section of trail

 Cameron Lake Trail

On one of my two visits up to Cameron Lake, I walked the Cameron Lakeshore Trail to the end.  I was surprised how dry and snow free the whole area was for May.  The local lady told me, a few of the local hiking guides already tried the one way Carthew-Alderson trek and it was doable, so Tamarak will begin their shuttles in a couple of weeks which is much earlier than normal.  Today was a hot day and some people were even swimming in the lake.  It is early season yet so the platforms are not in place nor are the canoes and kayaks available for rental yet.  

view of Cameron Lake 

a pond near the parking lot

right beside the trail 

near the end of the trail looking back at where I started in the far centre

view near the end of the trail 

Bellevue Trail

Hiking along the Bellevue Trail is always so pleasant.  It is an easy out and back and you can go out for many kilometres.  The wildflowers are in abundance and this trail was the perfect place to be to admire them.   It was breezy which was a good thing as the temperature was up there.  The ground was very dry yet everything was thriving.  

pretty in pink

after hiking up a little hill, this is the view off to the winding Red Rock Parkway

view of the wildflowers and where the mountains meet the prairie

Vesper Sparrow

bouquets were in abundance off the trail

view from across the road at the trailhead

Waterton Lakes National Park Bertha Lake May 29, 2023

A mere hop, skip and a jump from my home away from home, is the trailhead for Bertha Lake.  I did this hike last summer and enjoyed it so much now that there are views galore due to the wildfires.  This Lake was my go to place today.  The stroll along Evergreen Avenue to the trailhead was delightful.

trailhead kiosk 

 Right from the get go, the wildflowers were in abundance.

It was quite breezy which I was thankful for because it was already warm.  There was loads of blue in the sky and just enough of those white fluffy puffy clouds that I love so much,

overlooking Upper Waterton Lake 

Along the trail were dashes of red, pink and orange offered up by the Paintbrushes.

the beginnings of a Bears Breath

a video of Lower Bertha Falls taken from the bridge

After crossing the bridge, the switchbacks begin to gain elevation. 

That’s the Lower Falls in the centre.

A splash of colour up there in amongst the lush green vegetation, that’s me!  A few years back, I posted about being “kissed”, that’s what I called the little X that appeared on the photo from the way the sun caught the camera lens. Well, as you can see in bottom right of this photo, I got “kissed” today.

As I approached Bertha Lake, there were short sections of snow that were easily passable, then for the short down hill stretch just before the lake, I kick stepped through the snow. There was one slice of ice still floating about near the shore. 

The wind was strong and cold.  There was loads of snow still around.  It was loud from where the creek runs from the lake turning into the Upper Falls.  There was no one else here.  For all those reasons, I only stayed long enough to capture a destination shot then began the hike back.

This was the perfect location to stop for awhile on the way back. It was only fifteen minutes on the way back from Bertha Lake.

The whole route was buzzing with bird song and activity.  I decided I did not need to see every bird that sang.  I would get no where if I did.  I did spot this Hammond’s Flycatcher which was a lifer for me.

a male Western Tangier

He sports the same colors of the ice cream I purchased later.

As I got lower on the trail, more and more hikers came along.  We shared pleasantries and many asked about the conditions higher up.  This was the view as I began the last stretch down to the townsite.  

What an enjoyable hike! 

 I have a feeling this could become an annual trek.