Everyone's photos, videos and docs, with the keywords: "tranquil"

Forgetmenot Pond

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 05 Oct 2019 16:49:44 +0000

You may have already suspected that I was desperate for photo opportunities yesterday, 4 October 2019, lol! If so, how right you were. I just couldn't get it out of my head that maybe, just maybe, the snow had melted in a few places enough to let a few fungi grow. Here, in Calgary, a lot of the snow has melted, though I don't know if the local parks and natural areas still have much snow cover. However, as I discovered yesterday, closer to the mountains, there are still a few inches of the white stuff on the ground.

My intention had been to just drive west to the Bragg Creek area, to calm my mind one way or the other. Disappointment came quickly and, on the spur of the moment, I decided to drive west along Elbow Falls Trail in search of a few scenic shots. Though the landscape is always beautiful, there are only two or three places that I usually stop at, until I finally reach Forgetmenot Pond. The highway was beautifully clear of snow, but for walking, there were a few inches of snow and ice to slip and slide through. Once at the Pond, I only trudged as far as the main path that overlooks the water. At other times of the year, I walk around the pond, but not yesterday. I do not like winter walking!

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

I found the following 4-minute video on YouTube, taken by Kenneth Lori using a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter and taken on 16 June 2016. It travels over Forgetmenot Pond and the surrounding river and mountains.

youtu.be/fEamf0nDXt4

The eight photos I posted this morning are the only ones to post from yesterday's quick trip. It was getting on for 3:00 pm when I left home to drive westwards and, anyway, I didn't find much to shoot.

Forgetmenot Pond, Kananaskis

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 05 Oct 2019 16:48:28 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

tranquil

nobody@ipernity.com (Amazingstoker) — Sun, 17 Oct 2021 11:44:24 +0000

Amazingstoker has posted:

Taken for 'The Sunday Challenge': "Serenity"

EOS 6D Peter Harriman 12 29 15 57553 sitOnABench dpp

nobody@ipernity.com (Peter Harriman) — Sun, 21 Feb 2021 09:47:32 +0000

Peter Harriman has posted:

EOS 6D Peter Harriman 08 03 40 19342

nobody@ipernity.com (Peter Harriman) — Tue, 21 Apr 2020 07:32:09 +0000

Peter Harriman has posted:

Forgetmenot Pond, Elbow Falls Trail

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 25 Oct 2018 15:11:44 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Back to Alberta for these four photos! I haven't even started going through all my photos from Day 3 of our trip to Ontario and Quebec in May.

This was just a short, spur-of-the-moment drive (like most of my outings seem to be) yesterday, 24 October 2018. My destination was Forgetmenot Pond, along the eastern edge of the Rockies. I also called in at Elbow Falls to take a few photos on the way home. I had been hoping to get out to this area all year, and finally made it.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

I found the following 4-minute video on YouTube, taken by Kenneth Lori using a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter and taken on 16 June 2016. It travels over Forgetmenot Pond and the surrounding river and mountains.

youtu.be/fEamf0nDXt4

I was glad that I had put my winter boots in my car, as when I reached my destination, i needed them. There was snow on the ground, which had partly melted and then frozen. The narrow path was just too icy to walk on in many places, so I only took a few photos at Forgetmenot Pond. Also, the light was awful, as there was no sign of the sun - not what the weather forecast had said. As I was leaving the city, the cloud formation was beautiful, but that quickly changed to solid, dreary cloud, which lasted all afternoon. I almost turned around and came home, as the distant mountains were far from clear. However, I had spent too much time the previous day, editing photos, and the constant mouse clicking had made my arm and shoulder more painful, so I really needed a break from my computer.

Tranquil

nobody@ipernity.com (Keith Burton) — Sat, 05 May 2018 15:32:49 +0000

Keith Burton has posted:

A calm and hazy evening on the River Exe Estuary at Exmouth, Devon.

EOS 6D Peter Harriman 20 34 38 2339 Yachts dpp hdr

nobody@ipernity.com (Peter Harriman) — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 18:52:52 +0000

Peter Harriman has posted:

Forgetmenot Pond, Kananaskis

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 15 Jun 2017 13:14:39 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

On 7 June 2017, a group of eight of us spent a wonderful day exploring Elbow Falls and Forgetmenot Pond, in Kananaskis. We drove west of the city into the eastern edge of the mountains, stopping at three different places, including a stop along the edge of the main highway, where we found beautiful Shooting stars and a few little brown cup fungi.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

I found the following 4-minute video on YouTube, taken by Kenneth Lori using a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter and taken on 16 June 2016. It travels over Forgetmenot Pond and the surrounding river and mountains.

youtu.be/fEamf0nDXt4

What a great day we had! It was one beautiful find after another, and I think we all must have arrived back home at the end of the day, feeling happy and content. Dorothy and Stephen, as always, you planned a wonderful day for us and you even managed to arrange with the weatherman for beautiful sunshine and warmth, with an occasional welcome slight breeze. I still can't believe how lucky we were, seeing so many interesting things. In fact, I'm finding it difficult to decide what was the highlight for me. The Harlequin Duck, the distant Common Nighthawk flying high overhead, the two Morel mushrooms, the small cluster of beautiful brown cup fungi?? And so on .... Great to spend a day with such a pleasant group of keen, interested people.

Thanks so much, Dorothy and Stephen, for such a great day - my favourite kind of day : ) Thank you, also, for the ride and for the donuts you brought along for everyone to enjoy. Nice to end our day with a stop at the Cinnamon Spoon cafe in Bragg Creek, for a very welcome coffee.

Forgetmenot Pond, Kananaskis

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 11 Jun 2017 15:24:46 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This morning, I am again posting four more photos taken a few days ago, on 7 June 2017, when a group of eight of us spent a wonderful day exploring Elbow Falls and Forgetmenot Pond, in Kananaskis. We drove west of the city into the eastern edge of the mountains, stopping at three different places, including a stop along the edge of the main highway, where we found beautiful Shooting stars and a few little brown cup fungi.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

I found the following 4-minute video on YouTube, taken by Kenneth Lori using a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter and taken on 16 June 2016. It travels over Forgetmenot Pond and the surrounding river and mountains.

youtu.be/fEamf0nDXt4

What a great day we had! It was one beautiful find after another, and I think we all must have arrived back home at the end of the day, feeling happy and content. Dorothy and Stephen, as always, you planned a wonderful day for us and you even managed to arrange with the weatherman for beautiful sunshine and warmth, with an occasional welcome slight breeze. I still can't believe how lucky we were, seeing so many interesting things. In fact, I'm finding it difficult to decide what was the highlight for me. The Harlequin Duck, the distant Common Nighthawk flying high overhead, the two Morel mushrooms, the small cluster of beautiful brown jelly cup fungi?? And so on .... Great to spend a day with such a pleasant group of keen, interested people.

Thanks so much, Dorothy and Stephen, for such a great day - my favourite kind of day : ) Thank you, also, for the ride and for the donuts you brought along for everyone to enjoy. Nice to end our day with a stop at the Cinnamon Spoon cafe in Bragg Creek, for a very welcome coffee.

Forgetmenot Pond, Kananaskis

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 16:41:10 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This morning, I am posting four photos taken yesterday, 7 June 2017, when I went out for the day with seven friends, to Kananaskis. We drove west of the city into the eastern edge of the mountains, stopping at a few different places, including Elbow Falls and Forgetmenot Pond. This scenic shot is my main image - the remaining three are ones that I want for my albums, but are definitely not good shots. Actually, I was excited to see all three of the subjects photographed, as I so rarely see any of them.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

A few minutes ago I found the following 4-minute video taken by Kenneth Lori using a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter and taken on 16 June 2016. It travels over the pond and the surrounding river and mountain scenery.

youtu.be/fEamf0nDXt4

What a great day we had yesterday! It was one beautiful find after another, and I think we all must have arrived back home at the end of the day, feeling happy and content. Dorothy and Stephen, as always, you planned a wonderful day for us and you even managed to arrange with the weatherman for beautiful sunshine and warmth, with an occasional welcome slight breeze. I still can't believe how lucky we were, seeing so many interesting things. In fact, I'm finding it difficult to decide what was the highlight for me yesterday. The Harlequin Duck, the distant Common Nighthawk, the dried-up Morrel mushrooms, the small cluster of beautiful brown jelly cup fungi?? And so on .... Great to spend a day with such a pleasant group of keen, interested people. Thanks so much, Dorothy and Stephen, for such a great day - my favourite kind of day : ) Thank you, also, for the ride and for the donuts you brought along for everyone to enjoy. Nice to end our day with a stop at the Cinnamon Spoon cafe in Bragg Creek, for a very welcome coffee.

Tranquility...................

nobody@ipernity.com (Keith Burton) — Wed, 08 Feb 2017 17:46:35 +0000

Keith Burton has posted:

Taken at Emsworth. Much better viewed large, on black.

I think I've caught up with viewing and commenting.........please forgive me if I've missed you out. There are still ongoing problems with viewing photos, but there is now an explanation on the IP Blog and hopefully it will be sorted soon: www.ipernity.com/blog/team/4650162

A colourful walk through the woods

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 02 Nov 2016 16:33:37 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

With most of our autumn colour gone, it feels good to be able to look back to photos from 1 October 2016. On that day, I finally had my very first visit to the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens, thanks to friend, Sandy. I first heard about this beautiful place from my daughter, but I had never been, because it is way out of my city driving comfort zone. In the morning, it was raining, at least in my part of the city, and I wondered if going would turn out to be a big mistake. However, the rain stopped and stayed away while we were there and, though the sky was overcast, I was still able to photograph to my heart's content. I was surprised at how many flowers were still in bloom on the first day of October and I was extremely impressed with how meticulously these gardens are kept - every inch of them. So many different kinds of trees and plants, and it was very obvious that each area had been planted with so much thought and care. Amazing that dedicated volunteers have been, and continue to be, the ones to thank for these gardens.

Thanks so much, Sandy, for giving me the chance to spend an afternoon in such beauty and peace! We all knew that snow wasn't far away and about a week after this visit, Calgary had its first snowfall of the season, the whole of the Thanksgiving weekend. At least I now have plenty of bright, colourful photos that I will be able to post in between all the coming white, snowy images that will be taken during the seven, long months of winter.

"The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs is without doubt one of the Seven Wonders of Calgary, Alberta. It boasts 1350 square meters (14 600 square feet) of gardens which includes a spectacular Wall Garden that runs an uninterrupted 1300 feet. In the gardens you will find an endless variety of annuals and perennials ranging from artemisias to zinnias. Here indeed is a place to stop and smell the roses and the peonies and the delphiniums and the chrysanthemums and the …

What makes these gardens so very special is that they were created and continue to be maintained by a band of green-thumbed enthusiastic volunteers. These hale and hearty diggers, planters, seeders, weeders, mowers, waterers, pruners and community builders work two to three mornings a week to keep the gardens in primrose shape and their efforts are truly appreciated by the many walkers, joggers, and cyclists.

On any given day, hundreds of people walk the wall garden with their families, friends and out-of-town visitors. It has become a treasured destination site for many.

For anyone who has spent time in the gardens, it is hard to believe that they have only been here since 2006 when a humble ornamental garden (400 square feet) was developed within the existing BirthPlace Forest tree beds.

The BPF, by the way, saw 7000 trees planted in the area. The project was accomplished through a partnership of BP Energy, Calgary Parks, Regional Health and Golden Acres." From the gardens' website.

www.botanicalgardensofsilversprings.ca/

Bark colour after the rain

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 16:06:40 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

With most of our autumn colour gone, it feels good to be able to look back to photos from 1 October 2016. On that day, I finally had my very first visit to the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens, thanks to friend, Sandy. I first heard about this beautiful place from my daughter, but I had never been, because it is way out of my city driving comfort zone. In the morning, it was raining, at least in my part of the city, and I wondered if going would turn out to be a big mistake. However, the rain stopped and stayed away while we were there and, though the sky was overcast, I was still able to photograph to my heart's content. I was surprised at how many flowers were still in bloom on the first day of October and I was extremely impressed with how meticulously these gardens are kept - every inch of them. So many different kinds of trees and plants, and it was very obvious that each area had been planted with so much thought and care. Unfortunately, the trees and plants weren't labelled, so I don't know what kind of tree is in this photo, but the colour of the bark after all the rain was this glorious colour. Amazing that dedicated volunteers have been, and continue to be, the ones to thank for these gardens.

Thanks so much, Sandy, for giving me the chance to spend an afternoon in such beauty and peace! We all knew that snow wasn't far away and about a week after this visit, Calgary had its first snowfall of the season, the whole of the Thanksgiving weekend. It snowed overnight again last night and today, 18 October 2016, my car is once again covered in snow that will need to be cleared off. At least I now have plenty of bright, colourful photos that I will be able to post in between all the coming white, snowy images that will be taken during the seven, long months of winter.

"The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs is without doubt one of the Seven Wonders of Calgary, Alberta. It boasts 1350 square meters (14 600 square feet) of gardens which includes a spectacular Wall Garden that runs an uninterrupted 1300 feet. In the gardens you will find an endless variety of annuals and perennials ranging from artemisias to zinnias. Here indeed is a place to stop and smell the roses and the peonies and the delphiniums and the chrysanthemums and the …

What makes these gardens so very special is that they were created and continue to be maintained by a band of green-thumbed enthusiastic volunteers. These hale and hearty diggers, planters, seeders, weeders, mowers, waterers, pruners and community builders work two to three mornings a week to keep the gardens in primrose shape and their efforts are truly appreciated by the many walkers, joggers, and cyclists.

On any given day, hundreds of people walk the wall garden with their families, friends and out-of-town visitors. It has become a treasured destination site for many.

For anyone who has spent time in the gardens, it is hard to believe that they have only been here since 2006 when a humble ornamental garden (400 square feet) was developed within the existing BirthPlace Forest tree beds.

The BPF, by the way, saw 7000 trees planted in the area. The project was accomplished through a partnership of BP Energy, Calgary Parks, Regional Health and Golden Acres." From the gardens' website.

www.botanicalgardensofsilversprings.ca/

Glorious colours of fall

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 02 Oct 2016 15:38:44 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Yesterday, 1 October 2016, I finally had my very first visit to the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens, thanks to friend, Sandy. I first heard about this beautiful place from my daughter, but I had never been, because it is way out of my driving comfort zone. In the morning, it was raining, at least in my part of the city, and I wondered if going would turn out to be a big mistake. However, the rain stayed away while we were there and, though the sky was overcast, I was still able to photograph to my heart's content. I was surprised at how many flowers were still in bloom on the first day of October and I was extremely impressed with how meticulously these gardens are kept - every inch of them. So many different kinds of trees and plants, and it was very obvious that each area had been planted with so much thought and care. Amazing that dedicated volunteers have been, and continue to be, the ones to thank for these gardens. Thanks so much, Sandy, for giving me the chance to spend an afternoon in such beauty and peace! We all know that snow isn't far away - it has fallen in parts of the mountains, but not yet in the city - so I am trying to get out as much as I can before having to deal with the long, dreaded months of winter. Apologies to everyone for not much commenting at the moment!!

"The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs is without doubt one of the Seven Wonders of Calgary, Alberta. It boasts 1350 square meters (14 600 square feet) of gardens which includes a spectacular Wall Garden that runs an uninterrupted 1300 feet. In the gardens you will find an endless variety of annuals and perennials ranging from artemisias to zinnias. Here indeed is a place to stop and smell the roses and the peonies and the delphiniums and the chrysanthemums and the …

What makes these gardens so very special is that they were created and continue to be maintained by a band of green-thumbed enthusiastic volunteers. These hale and hearty diggers, planters, seeders, weeders, mowers, waterers, pruners and community builders work two to three mornings a week to keep the gardens in primrose shape and their efforts are truly appreciated by the many walkers, joggers, and cyclists.

On any given day, hundreds of people walk the wall garden with their families, friends and out-of-town visitors. It has become a treasured destination site for many.

For anyone who has spent time in the gardens, it is hard to believe that they have only been here since 2006 when a humble ornamental garden (400 square feet) was developed within the existing BirthPlace Forest tree beds.

The BPF, by the way, saw 7000 trees planted in the area. The project was accomplished through a partnership of BP Energy, Calgary Parks, Regional Health and Golden Acres." From the gardens' website.

www.botanicalgardensofsilversprings.ca/

Sparkles on Forgetmenot Pond

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 01 Nov 2015 16:04:08 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

One month ago, on 1 October 2015, I finally managed, for the first time this year, to get out to the mountains as far as Forgetmenot Pond - really an on the spur of the moment decision. The weather called for some sun and some cloud, which sounded good. I knew I had better not leave it any longer to get out there - as it was, we had a light dusting of snow the following night. You really need good, clear reflections to get the best photos at the Pond, but it wasn't quite calm enough for that and it was quite hazy for much of the drive.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

This is the only mountain drive I will do on my own and it's one of my favourite places. It only takes about 50 minutes to an hour to get from home to the Pond, so makes a very pleasant half-day trip.

On the return drive, I called in at a place not far from Forgetmenot Pond, where I have found a few mushrooms in previous years, but found nothing this time. Actually, I didn't see a whole lot of anything during the few hours I was out, other than the spectacular mountain scenery. The fall colours were beautiful - a mix of Aspen yellows and the dark greens of the coniferous trees. I was comparing it with a photo I took on the same drive on 24 September 2007. The mountains above the tree line were all covered in snow, unlike this fall.

Deciduous yellow

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 15:19:08 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

On 1 October 2015, I finally managed, for the first time this year, to get out to the mountains as far as Forgetmenot Pond - really an on the spur of the moment decision. The weather called for some sun and some cloud, which sounded good. I knew I had better not leave it any longer to get out there - as it was, we had a light dusting of snow the following night. You really need good, clear reflections to get the best photos at the Pond, but it wasn't quite calm enough for that and it was quite hazy for much of the drive.

Forgetmenot Pond is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond, but enjoyable to do. The main road this far into Kananaskis only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

Forgetmenot Pond is the only mountain drive I will do on my own and it's one of my favourite places. It only takes about 50 minutes to an hour to get from home to the Pond, so makes a very pleasant half-day trip.

On the return drive, I called in at a place not far from Forgetmenot Pond, where I have found a few mushrooms in previous years, but found nothing this time. I didn't see a whole lot of anything during the few hours I was out, other than the spectacular mountain scenery. The fall colours were beautiful - a mix of Aspen yellows and the dark greens of the coniferous trees. I was comparing it with a photo I took on the same drive on 24 September 2007. The mountains above the tree line were all covered in snow, unlike this fall.

Tundra Swans

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 15:16:47 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This photo was taken on 17 October 2015, when I spent the day birding with six friends. We travelled west of the city, the direction that I don't often get to see, mostly along Highway 1, turning off in a few places to see what species we could find. Overall, it was a very quiet day as far as birding goes.

At this particular pond, we watched several distant Swans, which are always nice to see. The two in this photo are Tundra Swans, but there were also Trumpeter Swans on the pond. This particular pond is part of the Trumpeter Swan's migratory path.

"True to its name, the Tundra Swan breeds on the high tundra across the top of North America. It winters in large flocks along both coasts, and is frequently encountered during its migration across the continent." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Tundra_Swan/lifehistory

While my friends were checking out the few other waterfowl, I just had to turn around and take a few photos of an old orange/red barn in the distance (seen in the next photo). I wasn't sure just where we were, but last night I went on Google Earth and eventually found the exact place. I also discovered that there is a whole lot more about this barn and the ranch it belongs to. It also has a whole movie set in Western theme (i.e. old saloon, etc.), which has been used in a long list of movies.

We also did an enjoyable walk along the Flowing Waters Trail in Bow Valley Provincial Park - a highlight there was seeing a Brown Creeper.

Here is our leader, Andrew Hart's report, that he sent in to e-Bird. Thanks, Andrew, for the list and of course for a most enjoyable day, as always.

"Seven of us met to head west on what was initially a chilly morning which promised to warm up later.

Our first stop was at the Jumping Pound Pond where we saw a family of five Trumpeter Swans along with a few assorted ducks. We then worked our way along the back roads parallel to Hwy 1 checking out the sloughs. Only one (about half way to the Sibbalt turnoff) was really productive, yielding 18 Tundra Swans and several waterfowl including some Hooded Mergansers.

We then headed to Bow Valley Provincial Park, where we were met by very strong winds. Possibly because of the winds we did not see very much on our walk around the Flowing Waters Trail, several flocks of White-Winged Crossbills were the easiest to see. We did have one Brown Creeper which seemed to be blown up the slope towards us and almost slammed into a lone tree on the ridge path.

We passed the Seebe Dam en route to Exshaw, but again slim (to say the least) findings at both locations.

We saw about four Rough-legged Hawks between stops.

Here is what we saw at the stops.

Checklists included in this summary:
(1): Jumping Pound Pond
Date: Oct 17, 2015, 8:50 AM
(2): CA-AB-Rocky View No. 44-45240 Township Road 252 - 51.1252x-114.5434
Date: Oct 17, 2015, 9:10 AM
(3): Bow Valley PP - Flowing Waters Trails
Date: Oct 17, 2015, 10:10 AM
(4): Seebe Dam
Date: Oct 17, 2015, 12:25 PM
(5): Exshaw
Date: Oct 17, 2015, 12:55 PM

38 Canada Goose -- (1),(4)
5 Trumpeter Swan -- (1)
18 Tundra Swan -- (2)
4 Gadwall -- (2)
41 American Wigeon -- (1),(2),(4)
204 Mallard -- (1),(2),(4)
12 Northern Shoveler -- (1)
26 Green-winged Teal -- (2)
2 Ring-necked Duck -- (2)
6 Hooded Merganser -- (2)
4 American Coot -- (2)
4 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) -- (1)
2 Black-billed Magpie -- (2),(5)
1 Common Raven -- (3)
2 Black-capped Chickadee -- (3)
2 Red-breasted Nuthatch -- (3)
1 Brown Creeper -- (3)
6 Golden-crowned Kinglet -- (3)
2 American Robin -- (5)
1 European Starling -- (1)
46 White-winged Crossbill -- (3),(4)
10 Pine Siskin -- (3)
20 House Sparrow -- (5)

Andrew Hart"

Peace in the Jumpingpound area

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 18 Oct 2015 16:01:35 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

All three photos posted this morning were taken yesterday, 17 October 2015, when I spent the day birding with 6 friends. We travelled west of the city, the direction that I don't often get to see, mostly along Highway 1, turning off in a few places to see what species we could find. Overall, it was a very quiet day as far as birding goes.

At this particular pond, we watched several distant Swans, which are always nice to see. They were just off to the left and right of my photo. This is part of the trumpeter swan’s migratory path. You would never guess that the main Highway 1 runs from left to right through this area - the reflections of passing vehicles were seen in the water.

While my friends were checking out the few other waterfowl, I just had to turn around and take a few photos of an old orange/red barn in the distance (seen in the next photo). I wasn't sure just where we were, but last night I went on Google Earth and eventually found the exact place. I also discovered that there is a whole lot more about this barn and the ranch it belongs to. It also has a whole movie set in Western theme (i.e. old saloon, etc.), which has been used in a long list of movies.

I'm adding a link to a detailed account of the Ranch by The Western Producer, posted on 27 August 2012 by Barbara Duckworth. It provides a lot of interesting information. This Ranch family emphasizes watershed management on 28,000 acres of land.

www.producer.com/2012/08/ranch-uses-tranquil-setting-to-d...

www.clranches.com/

clwesterntown.com/

www.country-guide.ca/2014/07/31/the-wide-view/44390/

calgaryherald.com/business/local-business/producing-a-mor...

calgaryherald.com/business/mcdonalds-undertakes-pilot-pro...

The joy of peace and quiet

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Mon, 05 Oct 2015 15:12:53 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Four days ago, on 1 October 2015, I finally managed, for the first time this year, to get out to the mountains as far as Forgetmenot Pond - really an on the spur of the moment decision. The weather called for some sun and some cloud, which sounded good. I knew I had better not leave it any later to get out there - as it was, we had a light dusting of snow the following night. You really need good, clear reflections to get the best photos at this location, but it wasn't quite calm enough for that and it was quite hazy for much of the drive.

This is actually a man-made pond, left over from the excavation of a gravel pit. The water is crystal clear. It's just a short walk around the pond - this view is from part way round, looking back The road here only opens in June each year, as a winter gate at Elbow Falls closes in December for the winter months, to protect the wildlife in the area.

I have added, in a comment box below, a previously posted photo taken from a different angle at Forgetmenot Pond on 12 October 2009, before the winter gate was closed for the winter months.

Forgetmenot Pond is the only mountain drive I will do on my own and it's one of my favourite places. It only takes about 50 minutes to an hour to get from home to the Pond, so makes a very pleasant half-day drive.

On the return drive, I called in at a place not far from Forgetmenot Pond, where I have found a few mushrooms in previous years, but found nothing. I didn't see a whole lot of anything during the few hours I was out, other than the spectacular mountain scenery. The fall colours were beautiful - a mix of Aspen yellows and the dark greens of the coniferous trees. I was just comparing it with a photo I took on the same drive on 24 September 2007. The mountains above the tree line were all covered in snow, unlike this fall.