Road Trip

Back in September Shelley and I took a quick overnight road trip, up the coast to Port Renfrew and then looping back inland via Lake Cowichan. We camped overnight at Fairy Lake, just past Port Renfrew. On our first stop we were greeted by a pair of sea lions.

There were quite a few dragonflies around, although I expect them around freshwater, not on the coast. I think this is a Variegated Meadowhawk

Sometimes bird detection auto-focus will work on dragonflies, like this Blue-eyed Darner

It was nice to see lots of little fish in the water around the kelp.

A West Coast Lady visiting the last of the flowers.

We spotted a Common Loon, too far away to get good photos. While "loon" does match their eerie calls, I like the British name of Great Northern Diver.

I couldn't resist a few more abstract images.

Sandcut Beach Waterfall provided some material.

Just past Jordan River there was a congregation of gulls.

A little further on a large bird flew across the road and landed on a branch. At first I thought it was a hawk, but it turned out to be a Barred Owl. There was no good place to stop but I jumped out with my camera anyway. Unfortunately the owl refused to look at me face-on. It was preoccupied with a crow that was harassing it and soon left. Still, I was happy to get a decent shot.

I couldn't resist these reflections.

The Cross Orbweavers are much more visible in the fall.

At Fairy Lake (where we camped) we had to go and see the "Bonsai Tree".

The fog and early morning light on the lake made for some interesting scenes.

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More Fall Colors

I saw this leaf while I was out running and thought it was a good one. I put it carefully in the pocket of my shorts for the last 6k of my run. I was skeptical it would make it home in good shape, but surprisingly it did. I decided to try a black background this time.

Part of the reason for the color change is that the tree pulls the useful components of the green chlorophyll out of the leaves so it's not wasted when it drops them. Yellows and oranges were there all along and are uncovered when the green is gone. Red on the other hand is actively produced in the autumn, making it more variable.

Kingfisher

As the days grow shorter, my morning walk before work is getting too dark for photographs. But I was a little later this morning since it was the weekend, so I took my camera.

I heard this Belted Kingfisher, but I couldn't see it at first. I went out on a rocky point that overlooks a tree where they perch sometimes, and there it was. I often hear and see kingfishers, but they seldom sit still. For some reason, this one stayed in one spot for a long time, giving me ample time to photograph it, although the combination of dark shade and bright sun was challenging. It would have been nice if it had faced me, but you can't have everything! It was quite a long way away, so I was glad to have my longest telephoto lens, and to be able to sit on the ground and brace the camera. 1200mm handheld is a stretch. Thank goodness for image stabilization.

I tried it in black and white since that's often better for high contrast, but I think I like the blue gray feathers better.

After a while it moved a few feet to a different branch where there was a different background. When I eventually left it was still perched there.

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Fall Colors

As I was walking by, I happened to notice these colorful leaves on the ground. Of course, I had to stop and examine them closer. A woman and her dog looked at me suspiciously as I knelt by the path and picked through the leaves. I collected some of the "better" ones and took them home to photograph.

And this one was just outside our place.

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Dahlias

In the fall Butchart Gardens has an amazing display of dahlias. Dahlias are native to high altitudes in Mexico and Central America. Here's a small sample of their diversity of shape, size, and color.

The bees and other insects like this crane fly were also enjoying the flowers.

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Recent Photos

A random assortment of photos from the last couple of months.

I saw this Tiger Swallowtail through the window and grabbed my camera, ran outside, and managed to get a few photos before it flew away.

This skipper butterfly (Woodland?) posed nicely for me.

Most hydrangeas come from Asia but some are native to the Americas. I like the wide variety of shapes and colors.

Lots of other flowers around, of course.

Queen Anne's Lace (wild carrot) sometimes has a tiny red flower (the "ruby") in the middle of their large white blooms. It's only about the size of a grain of rice. One of the theories for its evolution is that it looks like an insect visiting the flower, which makes other insects think it's worth visiting.

There are still a few of last year's seeds around.

For a different aesthetic, here's a few abstracts.

I haven't seen as many otters this summer but I spotted this mother and juvenile near the marina.

Whereas, there seem to be more harbor seals around than other years. The babies grow so fast that, from a distance, it soon becomes hard to tell them from the adults.

The Great Blue Herons ignore the seals and go about their business. Usually they catch fish but if you zoom in you can see this one caught a shrimp.

And a few more birds.

Spot the Kingfisher. Unfortunately I didn't have my telephoto lens. The Kingfishers were scarce earlier in the summer, I wonder if they were nesting somewhere else? But they seem to be around more now. Several times I've seen one chasing another, chattering noisily. That's probably the parents kicking the kids out of their territory.

In Saskatoon I enjoyed seeing the Jackrabbits (actually hares). Here it's cute little Cottontails.

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