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Since we were staying in Gros Morne Park, DH and I figured we might as well make the most of the wilderness experience :o) We made it a goal to do as many as the trails in the top part of the park that we could before we left.
Within walking distance from our campsite, there was a trail called Berry Hill Pond that was a 2 Km loop around well...a pond! LOL! It was a lovely trail with beautiful scenery and I got some great shots here -
Hey, what's this?
Another indicator of moose being in the area but no body to claim the footprint. I was getting a bit suspicious at this point... Maybe there was someone going around dropping moose poop and planting footprints in the mud. Hmmmm...
Berry Hill was a good work up to the Western Brook Pond trail that we did later on because that one was 6 Km round trip. You can read more about that adventure here.
Later in the week, DH and I took off on our own and drove to the very top of the park. Here we walked, or rather power walked the first part of the Old Mail Road trail which was 2 Km round trip. I say power walked because it begins in the woods and the mosquitoes were so bad that they were biting through my capris! I even had bites on my bum! LOL! Thankfully it was only 1 Km and then you got down to the beach :o)
Now DH and I could slowly stroll back to the car along the lovely sandy beach and waters of Shallow Bay.
On our way back we did Steve's Trail and this had to be one of my favorites :o)
It was only a 1 Km return trail but the beach area you ended up at was stunning.
You can see some of the great pictures I took of this place in my first post of our trip.
The biggest expedition was Gros Morne Mountain itself but I was the only one smart enough (besides the five year old) not to attempt it ;o) More on that in another post.
That's for sure! LOL! In case you've been wondering where this Blogger has been, I'll let you in on a little secret ;o) DH and I had been in Newfoundland! Yes, you heard me right.
On July 29, we boarded the 10:25pm ferry and rode over through the night. We rented a four person berth so that we and our friends (T, K and their DS) could have someplace to lay our heads for the long journey. It was a good thing too because it was nuts! There were people laying everywhere but we were hunkered down in our dorm-like room with our own television and bathroom :o)
At 6am we arrived on the western side of The Rock only to find a mile long lineup at Tim Horton's and nowhere else to get a decent breakfast. Luckily it didn't take long for the fog to dissipate and the sun to shine but not a moose in sight along the highway. We were expecting one at every town with a Welcome sign but I guess that's not part of their contract. LOL!
Late afternoon, we arrived at our campground at Gros Morne National Park. Yes, this was a camping trip ;o) There were lovely wooded sites and we quickly laid claim to ours. It takes awhile to put up a tent, screen tent and bed but we've got things down pretty good now -
There wasn't much doubt as to who left piles of poop around our campsite but still, not one moose came out to claim their droppings.
We took Sunday off to relax and orient ourselves but on Monday we were ready to see the sights. After a 3 Km walk, we boarded a two hour boat tour of Western Brook Pond. All I can say is that it's SPECTACULAR! I've been through The Rockies but these mountains are just majestic. This is just a little taste of what we saw -
Newfoundland has such a rugged beauty to it and it's a photographer's paradise. Unfortunately I didn't take my good camera with me (too heavy to lug around) but I was quite happy with some of the pictures that came out of DH's work camera. He only has a 3x Zoom Nikon Coolpix and here is a sample of some of the pictures I took -
Stay tuned for more of our Newfoundland adventure :o)
Lots of rain = lots of flowers. Unfortunately none of these are mine ;o) LOL!
The magnolias are my favourite and I thought I would miss them because of this weather :o( Luckily I got a small break in between the downpours and was able to snap a few pictures. Not enough for my liking though. We're 'supposed' to have sun tomorrow and Tuesday but we'll see. DH has already mowed the lawn once and I think its grown four inches in the past couple of days. LOL!
Basically in a nutshell, animals are probably the hardest thing to photograph. You can't tell them what to do, where you want them to stand or how you want them to look. They've got a mind of their own and they're going to do whatever they want ;o)
I have two cameras that I use to take pictures. One is a Kodak digital and it's somewhat small and compact. I use this camera for my every day pictures and when I want to take photos in black and white. The other camera that I use is a Canon digital SLR 50D. I 'love' this camera! The only problem with this one is that it is heavy and bulkier.
Yesterday, DH and I, along with our friends T and K (and their DS) took a drive to Kejimkujik National Park. It was a beautiful day and we wanted to purchase our national park passes. On our way there, we came upon this fellow on the side of the road -
Eastern Wild Turkeys are not native to NS. I've seen them in Maine and I 'believe' there are a few in NB but not here so this guy/gal must have gone rogue. LOL! I love wild turkeys. They're a funny, inquisitive bird. This one was close enough for pictures but even after my incessant gobbling, it just wouldn't stand still! We debated about capturing it for a nice turkey dinner but it can count its blessings that we let him/her get away ;o)
I had my Kodak digital with me and the one drawback about this camera is the time it takes between taking the picture and allowing you to take another picture >:o( So there was DH in the front seat telling me to take a picture 'now' and I'm waiting for the bloody green light! In the meantime, any chance at a good picture has gone out the car door...
After a lovely hike through part of the park, we are driving out and lo and behold we 'finally' come across some deer. Deer are like pennies here and are used to humans. Unfortunately, with five deer, one problematic camera and a photographer trying not to climb through the rear window of the car, this is the best I could get -
The Bambies weren't very cooperative :oS
Thankfully there was ONE animal that allowed me to take all the pictures I wanted :o)
Yes, he is real and no, he's not dead. LOL! This is a Blanding's Turtle. They are considered a 'Species At Risk'. In the late spring, you'll find nesting houses along the sides of the road in the park. This is to protect the eggs that are buried in the sand. I guess this turtle wasn't smart enough to realize that giving birth on the side of a road wasn't a good thing ;o)
DH and I are visiting my parents at the moment and having a very nice time :o) The leaves are much more colourful although the high winds have taken a lot of them down. I haven't been able to get the pictures I've wanted because of this :o(
What I didn't expect to get a picture of was this -
Y-e-s that IS a moose! DH and I were walking down the road with my parents when we spotted this fellow. There were approximately 225 feet between us. Thankfully he turned into the woods. Nice moosie ;o) LOL!
I want to thank everyone who entered the breast cancer giveaway and who explained to me how to get a screen shot ;o) LOL!
The winner of the DMC Stitch Pink Kit is...MYRA!!!!
Congratulations! I will be emailing you shortly :o)
Tomorrow we leave to visit my in-laws so I will be offline for a few days :o( To all my Canadian friends, have a Happy Thanksgiving!
About a month ago, DH and I bought a suet birdfeeder especially for the woodpeckers that we have around our house. I've been so entertained by their calls and antics that I wanted to attract them to a certain spot in order to photograph them :o)
We placed the feeder on the dead tree at the back of the property just for now. It proved to be an ideal site, until the other morning when I found it on the ground :o( I'm thinking raccoons.
The salesman at the bird store suggested this type of suet feeder because there are only certain birds that can feed upside down. I never knew this! It didn't take long before my little guys started arriving :o)
At first I thought we were only getting the Downy Woodpeckers -
But after much observation, we realized that we were getting the Hairy Woodpeckers as well -
They look the same don't they? Apparently they are hard to tell apart but the Hairy is somewhat bigger than the Downy.
What we NEVER expected was this visitor -
That's a Pileated Woodpecker, the biggest of their species! It's an absolutely beautiful and incredible bird. Excuse the poor quality but when you only have seconds to take a shot, sometimes you don't always get the best pictures.
Since this was his second visit and the birdfeeder was down, we're going to have to quickly come up with another spot and some more peanut butter suet :o)
On Friday I was pleasantly surprised to see this in my mailbox -
I won the pattern off of Erynne's new site! If you haven't seen her new designs, head on over to the Red House. Thanks so much Erynne! I'm really going to enjoy stitching this one :o)
It's that time of year again when the beautiful Magnolia trees are in bloom. On April 22, I did my rounds and had lots of great pictures as a result :o)
Pink Magnolia
White Magnolia
Red Squirrel
Song Sparrow
Duck Butt :o)
I hope everyone is having a wonderful day, stuffing themselves with turkey and pumpkin pie :o) DH popped a small turkey in the oven yesterday and it filled the house with wonderful smells. But alas, no pumpkin pie for the Pumpkin :o( I think I might have to get one at the grocery store this week to satisfy that craving. It won't compare to homemade but hey, you gotta do what you gotta do. LOL! I did suggest going to Tim Horton's for one of their pumpkin spice donuts but that didn't go over well ;o)
After all the clean up (seriously, how do our mother's do it????), we drove to our nearby sand beach and took Duncan for a walk. It was so nice with the sun setting, the waves rolling in and not another human being in sight. DH got to meet the local fox cub. He's grown so much and looks really healthy. He's not that afraid of humans, which concerns me. This was a picture of him that I took in early August -
A few of you inquired about when I would show another picture of Birds & Berries so here is an updated picture -
I have been devoting my time to it and I'm pretty pleased with the progress. I find it much more interesting now that the greens and red/pinks are being added. I know I'm getting ahead of myself but I find myself debating whether to start the next bird on top or bottom. Decisions, decisions ;o)
I see that I have quite a few new Stalkers! I want to welcome you to the Pumpkin Patch :o) Please feel free to leave comments. I hope you'll stick around for Pumpkin Day because that will be coming up real soon and boy, did I ever go crazy with pumpkins this year! LOL!
Dunna...Dunna...
Dunna...Dunna...Dunna
Dunna...Dunna...Dunna...Dunna...
Sound familiar? It should be if you've ever seen a Jaws movie ;o)
Today, DH and I went to Seafest. What is Seafest? I'm not 100% sure. This was the first time we've ever gone to one. After observation today, I'd say it's a festival with entertainment, food and...shark fishing!
Now, I've never seen a shark before and this really intrigued me. Having grown up watching all the Jaws movies, I've always been sandwiched between fear and great interest. One good reason why I will not swim in the open ocean. LOL!
I hate seeing anything harmed but I was just like a kid because I wanted to see a real shark close up...and I did! This little guy is called a Blue Shark -
I even got to touch it!!!! The feel of the skin is hard to describe. DH says it's like sandpaper but to me it's like a pumas stone.
We arrived at a good time because there were two boats that came in with their catch. I've uploaded some pictures into a Picasa album but I will warn you, some of the pictures may be disturbing :o(
The top contender when we left came in at 330 pounds! This was a Mako Shark. I just can't imagine trying to real that sucker in, especially while it was still alive :oS Nope, no thank you.
This was my day today -
Absolutely beautiful in every way. The sun was shining, the temperature was hot but there was enough of a breeze off the water to make it enjoyable :o)
Since moving here to Nova Scotia, I still can't get over the fact that I have beaches just minutes away and sometimes I fail to take advantage of that. The beaches around here all have pure white sand. When your bare feet first hit the hot crystals, they sink down deep, wrapped in warmth. Then, as you walk towards the water, the cool compact sand awaits to cool off your tootsies.
I don't think there is anything better on a hot day than wading in cool salty water, with the waves lapping up against your legs. The sand underneath your feet almost comes alive, like liquid, as it pours away from below your feet, just as if you were standing in actual quicksand. It's such an odd sensation but almost soothing.
When I venture out on one of these journeys, this is when my inspiration really hits. The television, telephone and computer are all left behind and what you are left with is just nature itself. I just can't see enough of the things that surround me. I know some people must really wonder about this odd woman and her camera, who seems to be taking pictures of nothing. Good thing I don't have the two idiots in tow! LOL!
I want to thank everyone for taking the time to vote and giving me your input about naming my photographs. Things are really coming together now :o) Unfortunately I cannot post any of the pictures until I can get them watermarked. I do apologize to those that are interested :o(
In the end, I have decided to name each picture and the name will be placed on a label, attached to the backboard form. I'm still up in the air about my signature but it "will" be on there somewhere. Now off to write up a little bio of myself and that should wrap everything up :o)
