Week 32: Amazing Animals

an animal

Still catching up...week 32 was scheduled to be "an animal" and even though I already used this topic, I decided to do it again.  Between August 7th and 14th, we traveled from home through Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and into South Dakota.  These photos are from our time in the Badlands and the Black Hills of South Dakota.

There is a bison herd in Custer State Park in the Black Hills.  We met up with them blocking the road three or four times.  I found it funny that the first two times, I stopped along with everyone else and took many photos.  After that, I drove right past, thinking, "ho hum, more bison," and grumbled about people blocking the road.  It's amazing how quickly something out of the ordinary can become ordinary.

This guy meant business.  I waited until he was done using the road before I moved on.

This bee was enjoying his lunch.

This bunny found us at Blue Mounds State Park...a campground that had no water for showers or anything due to e. coli.  It was so hot and all I wanted was a cool shower before bed but it was not to be.

Donna and I watched the prairie dogs for a very long time.  They are so funny when they yip and stand up.  I wasn't able to get that with my camera but Donna did.  I am looking forward to seeing that photo.

This bighorn sheep was standing by the side of the road in the Badlands.  We pulled up beside him and photographed through the open window.  He didn't care about us at all...he just kept eating.

This one makes me laugh.  The pronghorn antelopes were plentiful but this morning, I was having no luck getting a decent photo.

This turtle was at Reptile Gardens near Rapid City.  I like the way the greenery looks like a bow tie on this guy.

I wonder what they are telling each other.

Reptile Gardens had a building we walked through with the animals roaming free all around us.

This pronghorn was not wanting me to photograph him.

That's it for this week.  I am almost through processing the next week's worth of photos so week 33 should follow soon.

Week 31: A Girls' Weekend

convey a feeling

These photos were taken during week 31 (which I believe ended on August 6th - I am a little bit behind).  Every year on the weekend after the August long weekend, two of my first year university housemates and I (with the recent addition of Lisa), get together.  For years, it was a women and children only weekend and we used to go camping.  After three years in a row of having the worst luck with rainy weather, we decided that camping was done, we would find other things to do.  We had a weekend at Blue Mountain, one in Ottawa and maybe another one before we decided to dump the kids and have a girls' weekend.  This year we booked a bed and breakfast in Gore Bay on Manitoulin Island.  Apart from the place not being air conditioned and it being yucky hot out, it was fantastic.  We had our own space above the garage with kitchen and living room facilities so noise wasn't an issue.  We were tourists and we enjoyed gabbing and playing a really rude game - I can't remember the name of it but I haven't laughed so hard in my entire life.

I didn't take many photos and I didn't really follow a plan so I just chose my favourite photo and picked a topic from later this year that fit.

This photo was taken at Meldrum Bay at the far west tip of the island.  I visited about 18 years ago and recalled this area being starkly beautiful and lonely.  During this visit, it wasn't at all what I remembered but the stark loneliness remained.

And this photo says, "ahh, sangria"!

Manitoulin Island is full of fossils.  The visitor centre at Providence Bay is built from local limestone, including the fossils found within.

Beach volleyball anyone?

Overlooking Gore Bay.

Lisa sitting way too close to the edge.

Our B&B hosts told us about this place that makes apple fritters and sticky buns.  They put them out at 11:00 each morning and they are sold out by 11:10.  We got there early and waited in line and were lucky enough to get some of each.  Here is Kathy ready to tackle a sticky bun.  The fritters were also that big.

Week 30: Classic Canadian Castor

an animal

The animal assignment was supposed to be for when I am in the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota and will be seeing bison and mountain goats and prairie dogs and other creatures I don't see on a regular basis.  The problem is that I left it until the last minute again and I didn't have the time or energy to do the topic that was actually listed for this week.  What I did have the time and energy for at 7:30 on Saturday evening was a quick trip to Whitefish Island where I had a lovely conversation with a visitor from out of town about how lucky we are to have this amazing place in the middle of our downtown.

It was an hour from sunset so I thought I might just see the beavers being active.  I walked around the far island first and I was overwhelmed by the bird song...there were thousands of chirping birds in the trees and the sound was so loud and beautiful.  I don't know what species was making the cacophony.  When I pointed my camera at the trees, all I saw were small black and grey birds.  Whatever they were, I appreciated the evening song.  When I came around to the boardwalk, I noticed a family looking intently into the pond and an older couple with a big camera pointed at the pond.  I found that I was in luck with the beavers.  There were at least 10 or 12 out there in the different parts of the pond eating or doing what beavers do.  The best though, was a young boy (who stayed behind when his family moved on - no worries, dad came back later) who had an eagle eye and ear and kept pointing out where the most active animal was.  

And to think I was going to stay on the couch!

This beaver was happy to munch right underneath us as we stood leaning over the railing expressing our awe quietly.  I know the photo looks all cock-eyed...I couldn't get my camera angled correctly and still avoid the wood of the boardwalk.

This part of the island was the noisiest.  I like to think the birds were telling me about what I might find in that tunnel up ahead.

The evening light was so pretty.

We haven't seen the bridge for a while (a couple of weeks anyway).

This little bird was in another noisy area but the birdsong here came from a variety of birds.

I love cattails.

Oh, yet another view of our bridge.

I wish I had more light to do what I really wanted with this shot...but I guess if I had more light, that wouldn't be the setting sun in behind the flowers.

Sunset light on a lovely duck.

Let's hope I stop procrastinating this week and put a little more effort into this project.

Week 29: Almost Didn't Make It!

texture

I left it to the last minute again this week...but I have an excuse.  Have you noticed the freaking heat!?!?  Who can move in this weather?  Not me, that's for sure.  Every day I checked the forecast and it always said the heat would break the day after tomorrow.  Then tomorrow I checked again and the heat was to break the day after tomorrow again!  It never broke!  Okay, you might have noticed that I am using a lot of exclamation points so I guess my point is made...I do not like the heat.  Why then, you might ask, are you going to South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana?  Good question.  Yesterday the temperature in the Badlands was 39 degrees!  I think we might have to put all of our gear in the tent and sleep in the car with the air conditioner on.  Well, it appears that my point about the heat is not yet made.  Please Mother Nature, send us a cold snap.

Anyway, about the last minute photography again.  We got home at about 8:00 this evening and since it had cooled off so nicely from 31 to 28 degrees, I decided to take advantage of the cold evening air (yes, you should read that sarcastically) and wander through the field at the end of our street.  It is full of wildflowers (or weeds, depending on your point of view) so I put on my macro lens and sauntered as slowly as possible (but I still broke a sweat).  There wasn't much light and I had to use a high ISO so there is quite a bit of noise in the photos but that's what you get when you try to finish an assignment at the eleventh hour.

lacy

spiky

delicate

knobbly

stringy

lumpy

varied

layered

Whew...in under the wire.

But I am still sweating :(

Week 28: Shiny Happy People

street photography

I really want to do more of this but it is soooo hard.  I hate pointing my camera at people I know, let alone strangers!  I made Pam take the kids to Rotaryfest last night where she blew $30 in five minutes on two rides and one game each for the kids.  Then today I made her take them to the parade and sit in the hot sun on the concrete...all so I could have company while I snapped photos of strangers.  Pam, although I am sure the kids enjoyed themselves, I do thank you from the bottom of my heart.

In contrast to last week's blog where I had a grand total of five bug photos (two of the same fly!!), tonight I had a hard time narrowing down the ones I wanted to include.  I could easily put as many as I like in the blog (I think) but my internet is slow and as it is, it will probably take an hour to upload the 16 photos I eventually chose.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy some of these.  I certainly enjoyed attending the festival which I haven't been to for several years and I had fun scoping out the sights and people for photo opportunities.

Here is a clown.  I hope none of you have coulrophobia (fear of clowns is a real thing!).

There is some significant level of dedication needed to keep that hairdo looking good

Duncan tried his hand at this game but sadly, he did not come home with a new fish.

I'm going to guess this little cutie likes to dance.

Some kids (okay, not just some kids - Duncan and Danica) enjoying the Scrambler.

Q-tip (Pam's brother's dog) enjoying his popularity.

Before the parade, there was a Colour Blast run and many colourful people ran past us.

This princess was quite speedy.

Moooooom, when is it going to start?

This woman has been the Town Crier for 32 years!

For some reason, this truck really appealed to me...the photo made it past several deleting cuts.

I love the way the leaders of the bands are always so serious.

Is is just me or is that young guy in back definitely related to the older guy in front.  Or maybe it's just the facial exertion required to blow those pipes.

The Indian Friendship Centre Avatar float won best something-or-other.  They went all out with the costumes and looked great.

I can't remember what float this cutie was part of.

I've been considering the physics involved in tossing up and catching your drum sticks while moving.  This guy didn't seem to care about the vectors involved.

And that's a wrap.