Just a simple portrait of an extraordinarily common bird. We have a small flock of Canada geese that winters at work, with a few cackling geese sometimes present too, but since they make a mess of the sidewalks I think I’m the only one that is happy to see them. To me they are also a reminder that beauty lies not too far outside my cubicle walls.
This picture was taken not at work but at, well, you can probably guess.
My last day in Yellowstone was an amazing day, one I’ll remember for a long time. One of the highlights was a small herd of bighorn ewes and lambs alongside the southern trail to Mount Washburn.
If things get a little quiet around here for the next month, it’s because I signed up for NaNoWriMo again this year. I reached the 50,000 word goal the previous two times I participated in 2005 and 2009 but I think it’s unlikely I’ll get that far this year. Partly because in previous years I had a better idea of what I wanted to write and partly because there are other things I’d like to do this month, especially taking pictures, editing pictures, and updating my site. Goodness am I behind.
And partly because I haven’t been sleeping as well lately and am often tired at the end of the day, normally my favorite time to write. The other day I fell asleep as soon as I finished eating dinner, for a night owl like me that’s rather embarrassing so let’s just keep that between us, shall we.
In the meantime enjoy this lovely mountain stream flowing over moss-covered rocks, taken on the trail above Wahkeena Falls in the Columbia River Gorge. I went hiking a couple of times in the Gorge in the weeks before my Wyoming trip, trying to get myself back in hiking shape while lugging the camera gear around.
I’ve seen bitterns catch a wide variety of animals, but even so I was caught by surprise when this one struck into the grass and emerged with a large earthworm. I knew some songbirds like robins ate worms but bitterns join egrets and kestrels as birds I was surprised to see hunting the wiggly worm.
I love, love, love the tiny little horns of a bison calf and finally had the chance for a close-up in the Tetons.