Photos, videos and docs of Anne Elliott, with the keywords: "flora"

The sunflower droop

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 08 Oct 2019 17:01:32 +0000

Well, hello again, winter!! Our temperature today is -4C (windchill -11C). Yesterday, it looked like late fall. Today, we are having another snow storm, giving us our second world of white already this fall. Because of the forecast for today, I knew I had better get down to the Saskatoon Farm yesterday. I had wanted to buy a few of their vegetables, but they hold their special event at a weekend and I had no intention of facing masses of cars and people. Instead, I did a long drive into Kananaskis two days ago, which turned out to be a really good decision.

Yesterday, 7 October 2019, was overcast and not good for photos, which didn't really matter, as I barely used my camera at the farm. Basically, apart from sunflowers hanging their heads, everything had already died and much had been removed. There was no colour left, and the wonderful days of visits to the farm to happily snap endless photos full of colour are now over till next spring and summer. Can't wait!

After enjoying lunch there, and buying two kinds of frozen, home-made soup, I drove along one nearby road just to see if there was anything of interest. I came across an old wooden shed (outhouse?). A touch of filter in post-processing brought out the wood details.

For me, the next few days will be days to hibernate, hoping that the ground (and my car) will become bare again. The forecast reckons Calgary will be getting about 10 cm of snow today. Looks like we should have sunshine on the coming days. This year has been an absolutely crazy year as far as the weather is concerned!

Garden flower

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 01 Oct 2019 16:04:01 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

I finally got as far as the Calgary Zoo, on 12 September 2019. The last time I was there was on 26 June 2018 and the time before that had been 6 October 2015. I used to go several times a year, but the long gap from 2015 to 2018 was because of major road construction and a bridge replacement right by the Zoo. Anyway, it felt good to be back there a few weeks ago. .

My visit only covered a small area of the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. I did call in to see the Giant Pandas one last time before they leave the Zoo after their five-year visit. How lucky we have been to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. The Zoo had another Panda visit way back in 1988, but they only stayed for seven months. The Conservation Status of the Giant Panda is Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild.

A few hours well spent, happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter, and the north entrance is out of my driving comfort zone. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest. It also feels good to have some colourful photos to post this morning, following our three-day snow storm. I reckoned there must have been about 10 inches of snow on top of my fence and, sure enough, 10.6 inches (27 cm) of snow was recorded. Further south, in Waterton, they received 37.4 inches (95 cm) of the white stuff. No more snow in the forecast for the next little while, and the sun is shining today. Unfortunately, my computer is just about out of room, so a massive back-up of photo files and a lot of deleting from my hard drive is what is urgently needed.

Spathiphyllum wallisii

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 01 Oct 2019 16:02:35 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

A summer memory

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 28 Sep 2019 18:26:37 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Goodbye fall, hello winter!!! Just five days into fall, and snow arrives in the city today, 28 September 2019. So far, there is maybe an inch of snow on the top of my fence and enough to cover my car, but thankfully, it has only been a light snowfall. Snowflakes still falling as I type. A few flurries are forecast for this afternoon and light snow tonight. Our temperature is -3C (windchill -8C). The forecast in Alberta for today and the next two days is "Winter storm could bring 60+ cm of snow, blizzard-like conditions possible." Thanks, Weather Network. I think Calgary will be spared the worst of the storm. The ground is still warm, so hopefully the snow will melt quickly. Here, the last snowfall typically happens in April or May, so we have very roughly seven months of snow/winter to face. Apparently, there has been snow in eight of the last 20 Septembers in Calgary, and snow in 19 of the last 20 Octobers.

Needless to say, I needed COLOUR today, so I grabbed a few photos taken in a city garden on 3 September 2019. This is what I wrote when I posted several photos from that day:

"Yesterday afternoon, 3 September 2019, was spent surrounded by colourful garden flowers. Knowing that it is not unusual for us to get snow in September, I knew I just had to go and capture some cheery colour before fall arrived and it was too late. That included Sunflowers, which are always a favourite. Just one orange one among the many yellow, and I could only see it from the back. A little gang of American Goldfinches was making the most of the Sunflower seeds."

Orange False Dandelion

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 26 Sep 2019 16:58:46 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Flickr, hurry up and fix Stats - this is the fourth day in a row that the views in the Stats have plummeted, but not the views seen under each photo.

When I got out of my car to take a scenic shot on the way home, I checked out a white "spot" in the grass way down the road. Had to check it out and I discovered the beautiful Shaggy Mane mushrooms. Just a few feet away was one small splash of orange - an Orange False Dandelion. I was delighted to find this, as I have only ever seen one maybe four or five times.

Well, the weather forecast for Kananaskis for the day before yesterday, 24 September 2019, was not exactly accurate - sun, with cloud in the afternoon. They kind of forgot to mention the strong wind, light rain .... and SNOW! For a few minutes, it was one kind of weather, then a few more minutes of a different kind, repeated throughout the afternoon.

Our temperatures are falling - forecast for rain tomorrow, then three days of snow with temps down to 0C and -1C. What a way to celebrate the first few days of fall. The expected snow will probably remove quite a few of the golden leaves, so I wanted anther chance to see and photograph them while I had the chance.

The sky was blue when I set out that morning and I felt quite hopeful. When I go to Kananaskis, I always go south from the city. I had no idea where I would be going, but I knew that it wouldn't be as far as I would have liked. As it turned out, I had a few surprises along the way, so it was a real mixed day of photo opportunities - my favourite kind of day.

After stopping to take a few scenic shots on the way to the main highway through Kananaskis, I eventually reached the area where the American Pikas live. I really lucked out almost straight away, as the only few photos I took were when one Pika showed itself, and that was within maybe ten minutes. By this time, the wind was strong and it was snowing, and it was cold! Time to get out of there, as the scree slope is treacherous enough on a calm, clear day.

Driving further north, I was delighted to see a convoy of maybe eight or ten beautiful old cars heading in my direction. Couldn't resist, so I followed them when they turned off into a small picnic area. I asked if I could take a few quick photos and they were happy enough for me to do that. One car owner did comment about blurry photos because of the falling snow, but surprisingly my photos came out sharp enough.

Further on, I made a quick stop at another pull-off and was happy to notice a few mushrooms. When I turned around to head for home, I was even happier. I pulled over to take a photo of one of the mountain peaks. One tiny white speck in the distance, just off the road, caught my eye. When I went to check it out, I found myself staring at a little group of Shaggy Mane/Inky Cap mushrooms. The largest one had already started the process of curling up the rim of its cap and dripping a black ink. So much rain this year has resulted in such an amazing fungi season.

Much closer to home, I decided to take a side road that has such beautiful hill and mountain views. An old wooden barn was a welcome surprise - I don't remember seeing this one before.

So, a lovely day out, driving 320 km, with such a mixture of weather and sightings. So glad I did decide to go - as usual, a very last minute decision, but basically, I just need to grab my cameras and go : )

Sunflower, against a pink barn

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 24 Sep 2019 04:43:10 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This afternoon, 23 September 2019, I made a last-minute dash to the Saskatoon Farm, after seeing the very unpleasant weather forecast that is about to hit us. A couple of days of rain followed by a few days of SNOW. These colourful images should have waited till our world turns white, but just the thought of seeing snow was enough to make me long for colour - and lots of it! Also, I thought I had better post something other than fungi, though I have so many more photos of them that I need to edit and upload.

The sun was supposed to shine today, along with some cloud, but it turned out to be an overcast afternoon with poor light for photos. Better than snow, any day.

This interesting place is maybe a 20-minute drive SE from the southern edge of Calgary. You can collect your own Saskatoon berries in season, look around their outside green houses, and their inside gift shop full of unusual things, and buy special baking, jams, teas and so on. They also have a restaurant that offers great food.

www.saskatoonfarm.com/

As usual, I wandered round the grounds with my camera, catching two of the dogs, a chicken, as well as flowers. Many of the latter are on their last legs, but there is still some colour to be enjoyed. I never return home with an empty memory card when I visit this place.

Backlit Sunflower

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 04 Sep 2019 15:30:26 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Yesterday afternoon, 3 September 2019, was spent surrounded by colourful garden flowers. Knowing that it is not unusual for us to get snow in September, I knew I just had to go and capture some cheery colour before fall arrived and it was too late. That included Sunflowers, which are always a favourite. Just one orange one among the many yellow, and I could only see it from the back. A little gang of American Goldfinches was making the most of the Sunflower seeds.

Gaillardia

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 04 Sep 2019 15:27:14 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Colour in the garden

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 24 Aug 2019 16:09:08 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Another 5 photos, taken at Akesi Farms on 18 August 2019, have been added this morning.

Six days ago, on 18 August 2019, I was fortunate enough to make a return visit to a wonderful farm, NW of the city. I left home a few minutes before 8:00 am and arrived back home at 8:00 pm, feeling totally tired out. This was partly because I had only had a couple of hours' sleep the night before, and because it took me two hours to get to the farm. This was the first time I had ever driven myself there, as we had carpooled on the previous two visits. To say the least, I was not at all impressed to see the Maintenance light on my car dashboard come on before I had even left Calgary! After leaving the farm, I took some back roads that had been recommended to me while I was at the farm; roads that I had never driven before. Beautiful scenery, and I discovered a rather nice old log cabin and two or three old rusty vehicles, including a beautiful big, blue bus. I am SO happy that I made myself do both drives. I had to do it, as this is an amazing farm, and I couldn't bear the thought of not visiting again.

This 53 acre farm, Akesi Farms, is a 90 minute drive from downtown Calgary and is near the town of Sundre. It belongs to Meghan Vesey and Kwesi Haizel. It is permaculture based with future crops of eggs, mushrooms, fruits and nuts! Hard to believe that this beautiful place has only belonged to this young, hardworking, enthusiastic couple since November 2014. A tremendous amount of work, thought and planning has already gone into adding to what was already there, with a 'little' help from family and friends.

www.akesifarms.com/

Below is the link to a video about Meghan and Kwesi and the farm, by The Redneck Gourmet Show, 23 March 2017. The video was taken in winter - in summer, the farm is a mass of colour!

youtu.be/Tih5H5uMDNE

Our visit coincided with Alberta Open Farms weekend, where about 100 farms were open to the public. Our Naturalist leader had arranged to take anyone interested in nature on a nature walk, at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. A very interesting, short talk on the history of Bergen and the area around the farm was given by Marilyn Halvorson, who has lived in the area for many years. Three tables had also been set up - one had attractive barn quilts painted on wood (Jenni Weeks at N50 Barn Quilts). Another had knitted items and quilts from Irene Echlin. The third had produce such as jars of home-made marmalade (from Kettle Crossing Farm), and also green tomatoes which had been grown in a massive greenhouse near Olds. I discovered when I got home that eating just one tomato at a time was not enough, they were so good. This is something I have been very impressed by ever since I first met Meghan and Kwesi. They are very community-minded, helping other farmers, which is so good to see.

We were also shown a small display of several edible mushroom species that are being grown on the farm, Some of them are also growing in a few places around the farm - Meghan's mother very kindly pulled a little cluster of three Wine Caps that were growing in the vegetable garden, for me to take home and try. Of course, I had to take a few photos the other night, before I added them to a Spanish Omelette : )

Check out their mushroom business. They are selling mushroom spawn for if you want to grow your own. They also offer talks on how to do this. The Fante word "Akuafo" means farmer.

www.fungiakuafo.com/

Thank you so much, Meghan, Kwesi and Meghan's parents, for such a lovely day! Great to see new additions to the farm (well done, Kwesi!), as well as all the familiar things, including those beautiful dogs, Whiskey (male Border Collie/Great Pyrenees cross) and Titan (male Great Pyrenees), and your chickens and geese. Too bad we missed the honey created in your beehives. I wish you all the very best - you deserve all the successes that come your way.

Wild Sunflower sp.

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 15:55:05 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

"Bear Warning - Votiers Flats and Shannon Terrace Day Use Areas closed
Effective Date: August 16, 2019 until further notice
Where: All trails and area between Votiers Flats and Shannon Terrace Day Use Areas in Fish Creek Provincial Park
Why: Multiple bears feeding in the area."

www.albertaparks.ca/parks/kananaskis/kananaskis-country/a...

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The 8 photos I have posted this morning, 17 August 2019, were taken on the second walk I went on four days ago. On 13 August 2019, I did something that I always try to avoid - go on two walks on the same day. This time, there were two birding outings that I really wanted to go on, one in the morning and the other in the evening. Both were in Fish Creek Park.

It had been quite a few years since I had walked west of Bow Bottom Trail and I had forgotten what the area looked like until this new walk. Quite a few birds were seen, likewise mosquitoes. I didn't take many photos, but it was nice to catch an American Goldfinch doing what American Goldfinches love to do - collect the seeds from the invasive Creeping (formerly Canada) Thistles. A baby House Wren was spotted near the top of a distant broken tree, peering out of a cavity. I couldn't even see it with the naked eye, so I was surprised to see the tiny beak in my photos. A couple of wildflowers caught my eye, and a friend pointed out a line of fungi on a distant, unapproachable tree trunk.

The 13 photos I posted yesterday morning were from the morning birding walk, at Mallard Point. The expert eyes were searching for Warblers that have started to arrive here. These tiny birds that are fast moving and always seem to be hiding, are not easy to see, and definitely not easy to photograph, as all bird photographers know. As usual, my eyes also wander to wildflowers and fungi. The Wandering Garter Snake that slithered across the narrow trail and disappeared into the long grass came as a surprise. Definitely not my favourite thing! Managed a quick shot in between people and have posted it just for the record. The Osprey, and the little Clay-coloured Sparrow with a beak full of insects, were enjoyed by all. Actually, the air was full of tiny flying insects, as you can tell by all the tiny specks in my Osprey shots.

We were very lucky with the weather for both walks, which is always so much appreciated. A Frost Warning was issued for last night, 16 August!

Campion

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 15:53:30 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Campion / Silene sp.

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Fri, 16 Aug 2019 16:57:43 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

On 13 August 2019, I did something that I always try to avoid - go on two walks on the same day. This time, there were two birding outings that I really wanted to go on, one in the morning and the other in the evening. Both were in Fish Creek Park.

The 13 photos I posted this morning were from the morning birding walk, at Mallard Point. The expert eyes were searching for Warblers that have started to arrive here. These tiny birds that are fast moving and always seem to be hiding, are not easy to see, and definitely not easy to photograph, as all bird photographers know. As usual, my eyes also wander to wildflowers and fungi. The Wandering Garter Snake that slithered across the narrow trail and disappeared into the long grass came as a surprise. Definitely not my favourite thing! Managed a quick shot in between people and have posted it just for the record. The Osprey, and the little Clay-coloured Sparrow with a beak full of insects, were enjoyed by all.

We were very lucky with the weather, which is always so much appreciated. Today, 16th August, it has been pouring with rain - again! Yesterday was one of the few beautiful days we have had this summer and, as often happens, I had an appointment in the middle of the day.

Splash of colour

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 17:27:09 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This morning, 14 August 2019, I added 9 photos taken at the Saskatoon Farm, after my longish drive further SE, to look at a few old barns. Lots of colour at the Farm - lots of people, too.

Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to rainy days (the last few days, with more to come). This afternoon, though the day started sunny, we now have thunder and rain - actually under a weather alert, Severe Thunderstorm Watch.

Six days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.

My intention six days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn.

For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.

After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.

From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.

Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again and check on. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around this time, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.

Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.

Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.

Artichoke

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 17:26:23 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This morning, 14 August 2019, I added 9 photos taken at the Saskatoon Farm, after my longish drive further SE, to look at a few old barns. Lots of colour at the Farm - lots of people, too. I added a touch of filter in post-processing, to add a bit of interest.

"The globe artichoke, also known as French artichoke and green artichoke in the USA, is a variety of a species of thistle cultivated as a food. The edible portion of the plant consists of the flower buds before the flowers come into bloom." From Wikipedia.

Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to rainy days (the last few days, with more to come). This afternoon, though the day started sunny, we now have thunder and rain - actually under a weather alert, Severe Thunderstorm Watch.

Six days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.

My intention six days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn.

For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.

After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.

From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.

Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again and check on. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around this time, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.

Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.

Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.

Yellow Prairie Coneflower / Mexican Hat

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 05:00:25 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Tonight, I have just added 7 photos taken at the Saskatoon Farm, after my longish drive further SE, to look at a few old barns. Lots of colour at the Farm - lots of people, too.

Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to cool, rainy days (the last two days and today, with more to come). This morning, 12 August 2019, the temperature was only 12C again.

Four days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.

My intention two days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn.

For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.

After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.

From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.

Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around yesterday, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.

Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.

Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.

Flowers at the Saskatoon Farm - Solanum sp.

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 04:55:30 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Tonight, I have just added 7 photos taken at the Saskatoon Farm, after my longish drive further SE, to look at a few old barns. Lots of colour at the Farm - lots of people, too.

Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to cool, rainy days (the last two days and today, with more to come). This morning, 12 August 2019, the temperature is only 12C again.

Four days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.

My intention two days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn.

For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.

After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.

From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.

Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around yesterday, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.

Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.

Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.

Yellow Mountain-avens / Dryas drummondii

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Fri, 02 Aug 2019 15:33:52 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Will have to add descriptions, etc. later, as I have a dental appointment to get to.

Later. Yesterday, 2 August 2019, was a day of a little bit of everything, which was fun. I only decided around noon to go for an afternoon drive west of the city. It was hot and there was a haze over the mountains. Both cameras took photos with rather blown out skies - because of the haze?

My destination was Forgetmenot Pond, out past Bragg Creek. Forget-me-not is the name of a flower. This weekend is a long weekend for a Civic Holiday on Monday, so I thought there might be far fewer people yesterday, Thursday. A lot of people seemed to have the same idea as me!

There was a good variety of wildflowers, some of which I will have to leave unidentified and post simply as "pretty pictures". So nice to find Prairie Gentians, which I haven't seen for a long time. A few others were Grass-of-Parnassus, Elephant's Head Lousewort, different Paintbrush, Alpine Bistort, and beautiful Yellow Mountain-avens. Love the small flowers of the latter and their beautifully twisted seedheads. The only birds I saw in the area were Barn Swallows who were nesting, and a calling Spotted Sandpiper, perched on a piece of driftwood the far side of the river.

After walking around the lake, I started on my return drive. Before long, I decided to take a quick look in a forested area, to see if there were any mushrooms, but only found the ones seen in one of today's photos. While I was there, cows were the furthest thing from my mind. I guess they are let loose in that area of forest, so they do a good job of fertilizing everything. When I spotted the two mushrooms, I was excited and didn't realize that my left shoe ended up in something that felt very soft and a little slippery! Sigh!

Maclean Pond was the only other place I stopped, just briefly, during my mountain drive, until I was closer to home. Thought I would drive along one of the roads that had given me a good variety of birds fairly recently. This time, absolutely nothing. I discovered that one road was blocked (maybe part of the major road construction going on for the Ring Road around the city?), Instead, I came back along a road I hadn't been along for quite a while - and what an amazing sight I saw. Way down the road, I could see some large brown animals on the road. My first thought was 'cows'. However, I pulled over and zoomed right in to check, discovering that they were Elk. Maybe two or three hundred of them - they just kept coming and when you thought they would be no more, another group appeared on the hillside. They were all constantly calling, which you can hear on the little bit of video I took. Will post another short, somewhat closer bit of video later. There were males, females and young ones. Fortunately, no other vehicles came along the road while I was there. An amazing thing to witness.

Garden flowers - Ligularia?

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 30 Jul 2019 19:35:56 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This morning, I have just added the last 14 odds and ends taken on 27 July 2019, on a bioblitz of Dennis Apedaile's acreage. These Ligularia flowers were photographed at our leader's garden just before we left early morning. Are those Birch catkins on the right?

Three days ago, on 27 July 2019, we had such an enjoyable day, with a few lovely surprises. We had been invited to do a bio-blitz (i.e. list every plant, tree, bird, insect, fungi, etc. species) on the property belonging to Dennis Apedaile and family. This forested area is NW of Cochrane, reached by a beautiful road that was new to us. The night before the trip was SO hot indoors (no air-conditioning), I didn't get even one minute of sleep all night.

The early morning started off with our first sighting - one of the neighbourhood Jackrabbits, seen when we were leaving our leader's house.

The next sighting, and unfortunately only seen by me, came as a total surprise. We were driving along the highway when I spotted a black dog in a field. I was a bit surprised to see it wandering on its own. OMG, it's not a dog, it's a Black Bear!! We were going too fast and passed it before anyone else could see it. Wish I had thought about trying to get a photo - no time, anyway.

Nine of us from Calgary took part in this bioblitz, along with three ladies from the Summer Village on Ghost Lake. We were also joined by about 12 members of Dennis & Charlotte’s family, their friends and neighbours. A fun, most enjoyable group of interesting people. Our group took our lunch with us, but we were encouraged to also help ourselves to the delicious food provided.

The morning and part of the afternoon were spent on a slow walk along various forest trails on the Apedaile's acreage. We came across all sorts of wildflowers, the odd insect, and yes, we even found a few mushrooms, including Aspen Boletes. Birds were almost non-existent! I spotted a Hummingbird that flew to one of the feeders, a Black-capped Chickadee flitted about in the trees near the house, and someone noticed a Red-breasted Nuthatch.

Everyone was thrilled to bits to suddenly notice something fairly small flying in all directions near a fire pit, that had a tangle of dead branches and a few pieces of wood piled up. It was a Little Brown Bat! After a few seconds, it flew into this pile, hid from view, and stayed there.

When it was time to leave, we began walking towards our cars, when suddenly the wind became very strong and it started to rain. It didn't last long, but unfortunately, we had to make a very hurried departure. Thank you so much, Dennis and Charlotte, for letting us come and explore your wonderful property! Having you all come along with us made the visit even more enjoyable. Thanks, too, to good friends, Dorothy and Stephen, for driving four of us there and back. As always, so much appreciated.

Mountain Death Camas / Zigadenus elegans

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Mon, 29 Jul 2019 19:27:13 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Love the ring of tiny, green hearts (glands) that each flower has inside.

"All parts of the Mountain Death Camas plant are poisonous from alkaloids more toxic than strychnine and can sicken livestock. Plants over-winter as a bulb that is very similar to the wild onion and a few settlers learned of its toxicity the hard way. Alkaloid poisoning is a terrible way to die!"

www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/mountain-death-camas

"Mountain Death Camas is also sometimes called Poison Camas, Poison Sego, Alakali Grass, White Camas, Wand Lily, and Death Camas. These common names elude to the poisonous compounds found in this lily.

The scientific name elegans means elegant. It is a beautiful, flowing plant even though it its highly poisonous. The genus contains plants with alkaloids toxic to both man and livestock. Sheep are frequently affected, since they seem to eat the plants more readily than other animals do. Hogs are said to be immune to the poison. Poisoning usually occurs in early spring because the death camases appear before most other range plants and their succulent leaves are available.

Make sure not to confuse this plant with the true Camas, which formed a stable food for Indians of the Northwest. The flowers are quite different, but Indians did occasionally mistake bulbs of the two, since both plants grow together in meadows. It is difficult to distinguish death camases from onions, sego lilies, fritillaries, and wild hyacinths when the edible plants are only a few inches high. However, a combination of leaf characters and a cross section of the bulbs or corms is diagnostic at any stage in the development of the plants." From Untamed Science.

www.untamedscience.com/biodiversity/mountain-death-camas/

The day before yesterday, 27 July 2019, was such an enjoyable day, with a few lovely surprises. We had been invited to do a bio-blitz (i.e. list every plant, tree, bird, insect, fungi, etc. species) on the property belonging to Dennis Apedaile and family. This forested area is NW of Cochrane, reached by a beautiful road that was new to us. The night before the trip was SO hot indoors (no air-conditioning), I didn't get even one minute of sleep all night.

The early morning started off with our first sighting - one of the neighbourhood Jackrabbits, seen when we were leaving our leader's house.

The next sighting, and unfortunately only seen by me, came as a total surprise. We were driving along the highway when I spotted a black dog in a field. I was a bit surprised to see it wandering on its own. OMG, it's not a dog, it's a Black Bear!! We were going too fast and passed it before anyone else could see it. Wish I had thought about trying to get a photo - no time, anyway.

Nine of us from Calgary took part in this bioblitz, along with three ladies from the Summer Village on Ghost Lake. We were also joined by about 12 members of Dennis & Charlotte’s family, their friends and neighbours. A fun, most enjoyable group of interesting people. Our group took our lunch with us, but we were encouraged to also help ourselves to the delicious food provided.

The morning and part of the afternoon were spent on a slow walk along various forest trails on the Apedaile's acreage. We came across all sorts of wildflowers, the odd insect, and yes, we even found a few mushrooms, including Aspen Boletes. Birds were almost non-existent! I spotted a Hummingbird that flew to one of the feeders, a Black-capped Chickadee flitted about in the trees near the house, and someone noticed a Red-breasted Nuthatch.

Everyone was thrilled to bits to suddenly notice something fairly small flying in all directions near a fire pit, that had a tangle of dead branches and a few pieces of wood piled up. It was a Little Brown Bat! After a few seconds, it flew into this pile, hid from view, and stayed there.

When it was time to leave, we began walking towards our cars, when suddenly the wind became very strong and it started to rain. It didn't last long, but unfortunately, we had to make a very hurried departure. Thank you so much, Dennis and Charlotte, for letting us come and explore your wonderful property! Having you all come along with us made the visit even more enjoyable. Thanks, too, to good friends, Dorothy and Stephen, for driving four of us there and back. As always, so much appreciated.

Flower close-up

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 27 Jul 2019 01:10:02 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This evening, I have just added 12 more photos from my visit to the Saskatoon Farm, on 18 July 2019. I will not be posting any images tomorrow, as I will be out with friends. Having noticed that my Cover photo/banner has disappeared, I did wonder if I would be able to upload any photos. A few problems, but all uploaded eventually. Sorry for flooding my photostream today!

A few days ago, after seven or so long, brutal months of winter (coldest on record?) and now endless weeks of rain and cloud, I finally decided, enough is enough. I have become a fair-weather photographer, and we don't get that much fair weather, especially this year. So, on 18 July 2019, despite the weather forecast for a thunderstorm, I decided to drive SE of the city mid-afternoon. My plan had been to go to the Farm first and have a meal, and then continue on to Frank Lake. Seeing the beautiful storm clouds on my drive south, I was torn as to whether to go to Frank Lake first and catch a few photos. Then it occurred to me that I could also get a few sky shots once I had turned off the main highway and on to the country road leading to the Farm.

The Farm was pretty busy. So much wonderful colour everywhere that I almost forgot about the weather. That is, until I was eating outside under the open shelter. It was so cold, I had goosebumps, and the wind increased, sending a huge picnic table umbrella flying fast like an arrow through the air. Just a short bit of rain and all returned to 'normal'.

As usual, I wandered around the grounds, shooting flowers, rabbits, landscape, clouds, and old tractors. One barn stood out to me and had me puzzled. I have visited the farm many times before, but I don't remember seeing one particular barn/shed before. It looked so pretty, with its colourful flower border, so maybe that is why it caught my eye.

Eventually, I continued my drive to Frank Lake. The storm clouds stayed with me. One side road has a small wetland on either side of the road and I pulled over to check what birds might be there. I was about to turn off my car when a loud buzzer sounded and a tornado alert was announced - to take shelter and if there was no shelter nearby, to get into a ditch or ravine. Then I heard that the area covered was further SE - in fact, where I had been a week earlier.

"Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) confirmed a weak EF0 tornado touched down two kilometres northeast of Crossfield at around 2:15 p.m. Sunday, 14 July 2019, marking the 12th confirmed twister of the season." (This was roughly 50 km north of Calgary.)

According to the weather agency, Alberta typically sees an average of 15 tornadoes per year with the peak season starting mid-to-late June and ending early-to-mid August.

So far in 2019, there have been 12 confirmed tornadoes in Alberta and three probable ones. There have also been many reports of funnel clouds." From Global News.

While I was standing by this wetland, a White-faced Ibis flew in. I believe this was the first one I had really seen and photographed this year. Further on, when I was at the blind, there were so many Ruddy Ducks. The Barn Swallow pair flew back and forth to their nest that is just out of sight. I had checked to see if I could spot the Red Knot (bird), but without binoculars, it was pretty much impossible to check the very distant water birds.

A very enjoyable afternoon/evening. Mid-evening, the main highway wasn't very busy, and the rain only started when I arrived home and had to get out of the car.