Vancouver Island

A few photos from a road trip to Vancouver Island. Still some fall colors here (unlike Saskatchewan).



The temperate rain forest always seems so ... overgrown ... to a prairie person.



According to iNaturalist, these are Orange Spot Jellies (a kind of fungus). They were about the size of a teaspoon and the consistency of jello.



There aren't a lot of birds around this time of year. We saw a few bald eagles in the distance but none close enough to photograph. Lots of gulls though.



I think this is a Yellowlegs, but I'm not sure if it's Lesser or Greater.



I always like to see Great Blue Herons.



When we checked in to the hotel at Cowichan Bay there was a sign warning about the noisy sea lions. Apparently this time of year they like to haul up on the docks. Obviously they don't sleep because they kept up their cacophony all night. It was nice to see them in the morning though. There were supposed to be both California and Stellar sea lions but from a distance I'm not sure I could tell them apart.







Of course, being around the water I couldn't resist a few reflection shots.



We've done a few hikes. This was the view from the top of Mt. Tzouhalem near Maple Bay.



And the view from the top of Bruce Peak on Saltspring Island. (We went to check out the paragliding launch, but it seemed a little sketchy to us - not much room, rough ground, and big trees)



Nice view of Mt. Baker though.



We stayed overnight at Moon Water Lodge on the Malahat and were treated to a wonderful sunrise.







The night view from our room at the Coast Harbourside Hotel. The night mode of the new iPhone 11 Pro does an amazing job.



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On the River

It seems a little incongruous to be posting these photos from kayaking on the river, while outside there's a snowstorm. But I didn't get around to posting them till now.

I was pulling my kayak down the back alley to the river (we have wheels that strap on) when a butterfly went by. I had my camera, but only the telephoto lens (thinking of birds). Luckily it focuses reasonably close and I still got some decent shots of this Painted Lady.





Butterfly photography taken care of, I continued on to the river! As soon as I got on the water I saw this Yellowlegs. But between the the bird's constant movement and the kayak being pulled away by the current, I had a hard time getting a decent shot. This was the best I did and it's still not as sharp as I'd like.



There were lots of gulls on the sandbars.



And a few ducks around.



And of course, Canada geese.





The trees were already starting to change, adding some color to the reflections.



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Macro Sunrise

To see a World in a Grain of Sand

And a Heaven in a Wild Flower 

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand 

And Eternity in an hour

- William Blake

Look close and you can see the sun rising behind the trees through the lens of the water drops. These are closeups of condensation on my home office window. They're worth looking at larger if you get a chance.

Icy Walk to Work

This was one of the first really cold mornings this fall. I get less fond of Saskatchewan winters each year, but this morning the sun was rising and there wasn't much wind, so it didn't seem too bad. Of course, my bare hands got cold taking photos.



I'm fond of this tree. I'll be sad when it finally dies. It's far enough back from the riverbank that the beavers probably won't go after it, but you never know.





I'm still getting used to the ultra-wide lens on the iPhone 11





The wide angle view obviously takes more in, compared to a more normal angle:



Notice the birds in the sky. Probably migrating Canada geese, there are lots of them still around.

Harvestman

The flowers are long gone and their remains buried in snow, but here's remembering brighter days with weather more conducive to 6 and 8 legged creatures.

Autumn

After an early fall with cold temperatures and snow, we've had a nice spell of weather recently. A friend has been reminding me I should take some photographs with my new iPhone 11 so I took advantage of a sunny morning. Regardless of the weather, the days are getting shorter and sunrise is getting closer to when I walk to work.



While some of the trees are bare, some are still full of color.



Not much wind and the river was calm and peaceful. (Except when the gaggles of geese went honking by.)



Such bright colors!





I'm afraid the pond is looking a bit stark. But I've still enjoyed a few last days warm enough to eat my lunch out here.



I've never really been into wide angle lenses. I'm more likely to shoot telephoto or macro. But I really should try it more because it gives a very different perspective. Most of the shots above were taken with the iPhone 11's new ultra wide camera/lens (14mm equivalent).

I still prefer my "real" cameras, but there's no question that cell phone cameras are getting better and better.

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40 km

I headed out for my long run on Sunday thinking I'd probably do 30 km, but as usual, I would wait and see how it went. As it turned out, I felt pretty good and I ended up doing 40 km. While I would like to be able to do it faster, I maintained a steady sustainable pace the whole way, and finished spent but not wasted.

It's sure nice having a GPS watch. I covered a lot of new ground on my run, and without my watch I'd have a hard time knowing how far I went.

I deliberately didn't aim for a marathon distance (42 km). I'm not sure why. Partly it doesn't matter, since I'm only doing it for myself. Part of me wants to wait till I can manage a faster time. (Although that might be wishful thinking.) And part of me just likes round numbers :-)

It went really well, it was a beautiful day and I felt good. The last few kilometers were a bit of a struggle, but that seems true regardless of the distance. Some of it's definitely in your mind.

It's amazing what the human body (even an almost 60 year old one) can do. When you're sitting on the couch, the idea of running for a little over four hours straight seems inconceivable. But work your way up, and put in the practice, and given your body cooperates, and it's actually quite enjoyable. (Assuming you're not racing, then it's a whole other story.)

I could bore you with a lot of numbers, of heart rates and paces and times, but I'll restrain myself since it's all basically meaningless to anyone but me.

It's two days later, and aside from a little stiffness, I feel surprisingly good. So it's back to the cycle again - an easy week to recover and then juggle how much I can run while staying healthy and uninjured (and motivated).

Close Encounter of the Fox Kind

Walking to work along the lower dirt trail by the river, I glanced up to find a fox staring at me intently from about 20 feet down the path.



I assume he was coming down the path from the opposite direction and stopped when he (or she, but I hate to use "it"). It seemed like a very intense stare. People are always distracted by one thing or another. This guy appeared very much to be living in the here and now.

I thought he would run away. I've encountered a few coyotes along here and they tend to be much more skittish, rapidly departing. After a few seconds of staring at each other he turned and walked away. I backed up slowly to get out of sight so I could get my camera out of my pack. It was a long shot that he'd stick around long enough for photos, but it's always worth a try. Sure enough, by the time I had my camera out and ready he had disappeared.

I started walking slowly down the trail. The leaves haven't all fallen, but enough that visibility is better than in the summer. I didn't know which direction he'd gone so I was looking all around. I had the telephoto zoomed all the way on my camera, assuming I'd see him in the distance if at all. Of course, he appeared right beside me and I got a couple of shots of a big blur before he sauntered away again, just doing his own thing.

Humorously, when he reached the open area he sat down and looked back at me, almost as if to say "are you coming?",



Then he headed into the bush on the river bank. I followed slowly. He seemed unconcerned about me, but I didn't want to push my luck. I found him sniffing around in the leaves.



He uncovered the remains of a magpie and lay down to chew on it. You can see a feather hanging from his mouth. I'm not sure if he just happened to find it, or if he'd left it there previously. Some magpies had been in the trees above him and he had looked up at them. I though maybe they were harassing him, but perhaps he's been catching them?



Then it was time for a good scratch. This was the only time that he stayed in one place long enough for me to take a little video.



Then time for a thoughtful look at the river.



I figured I'd pestered him enough for one day and I let him go his own way. Besides, it was -5c, my hands were frozen, and my camera battery was low.



I love the bushy tail and the black tips on the ears.

Sadly, none of these shots is as sharp as I'd like. They're not bad for the web, but not for big prints. I wish I'd had a better camera, but at least I had the little ZS100. And regardless of the photos, it was wonderful to spend a little time with such a beautiful creature.

Dogs!

Warning: rant approaching

I'm 5k into an easy 10k run on the trails along the river. I see a woman and a dog off the trail by the river. I don't pay much attention, people (and dogs) are common. The dog comes running after me. I still don't pay much attention, dogs often do that. But in a rush it chases me down and bites me just below my waist. And as quick as it came, it was gone.

It hurt, but it didn't feel like there was much damage. It was more the unexpectedness and the shock.

I stopped and yelled at the lady: "Your f***ing dog just bit me!" (I apologize for swearing, but I was angry and full of adrenaline.)

She replied "I don't think so." What a bizarre response. She wasn't far away but she was behind trees and bushes so she couldn't have seen what happened. Either it was denial or wishful thinking. Of course, what she probably meant was that she didn't believe her dog would do that.

I replied that it had indeed bit me. She didn't say anything. No apology, no "are you ok". And worse, absolutely no reprimand or discipline to the dog. I could imagine her comforting it after the nasty man yelled at them.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not claiming it "attacked" me. This was a big full grown German Shepherd. If it had seriously wanted to attack me I have no doubt it would have done a lot more damage. I'm not sure if it saw me as play or prey or just interloper. I can't imagine how it could have felt threatened or defensive since I hadn't gone near them - it had to chase me down.

People tend to say things like "it was just excited". Honestly, I don't give a crap about your dog's state of mind. If I was playing with it and got it too excited and it nipped me, fair enough. But if I'm just passing by, your dog shouldn't bite me regardless of whether it's "excited" or "playful" or whatever euphemism you come up with. And the fact that it's "just a scratch" doesn't justify it either. What if it had been a child? What if it did decide to bite more seriously?

This was not a puppy, this was a large full grown German Shepherd. I'm sure having a big strong dog made the woman feel safe. It doesn't make me feel safe.

If you can't control your dog, maybe you shouldn't have one. At the very least, if your dog is so poorly trained it bites people passing by, I suggest you keep it on a leash. This wasn't even an off leash area. I gave up running in those areas because I got bitten several times.

I realize someone running seems to excite dogs, but that's not my fault. I try to stay away from them and I don't do anything to antagonize them. I guess I should get my exercise indoors in a gym while watching TV like a normal person. Maybe they'll allocate us oddballs a few small designated non-dog parks.

I got rabies vaccinations in case of dog bites in third world countries. I guess dogs are now a first world problem too.

I don't hate dogs. And I don't mean to be offensive to dog owners. I know lots of people with dogs. My family had dogs when I was growing up and I loved them. Back then dogs were mostly for families with kids. Now everyone has to have a dog, if not two or three, and often the bigger the better. Dog ownership is up roughly 30% in just the last 10 years, with multiple dog ownership growing even faster. There are about 100 million dogs in the US. It's almost become the exception not to have a dog. I'm not sure how much of it is fad or fashion, or whether there's some gap in our current psyche that dogs fill. Maybe people need a simple physical friend because they interact with their other 1000 friends through their phones, mediated by giant evil corporations. 

To add insult to injury, it messed up my run stats since my heart rate went through the roof and took quite a while to settle down. A good example of fight or flight response.

In case any other dog lovers are in denial that one of their beloved babies would do such a thing, here's some evidence. (The waist band of my pants protected me from the other half of the bite.) And yes, I'm pretty sure I'll live :-)

Walking to Work

I'm catching up on photos. These are from a few weeks ago, before winter arrived :-(

This pigeon had some competition in the color department.





This is the path leading from the river up to Innovation Place. I love how it's turning into a green tunnel. I remember when they planted all the trees along here. They've really grown.



And the orchard walk (apple trees) leading to the pond:



The bees and the flowers are all gone now, till next year.





The house sparrows are still around though. No migration to somewhere warm for them.



Nice reflections of the fall colors in the Innovation Place pond.





One of the last flowers of the season.



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