Belated Birdwatching
I was going to make this post when I had gone through and edited my photos from a birdwatching trip my friend and I went on last fall. Sadly, most of my pictures were duds! The autumn sunset was in the wrong direction and created a lot of harsh glare. My lens didn't have enough reach, hence my purchase of the fancy Tamron lens, which I have yet to unpack! I'll share what I can though.
This was my first visit to Beaver Dam Flats in Southeast Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It's a 43 hectare park on the Bow River with manmade pathways and human made trails. I would love to visit in the spring or summer, but I would not go alone. We saw signs of homeless habitation and there was a used campfire with logs around it.
It felt like all seasons in a day which is not uncommon for Calgary. It was sunny, windy, icy and muddy. This was another reason I did not take a lot of photos as I had to walk very carefully in places.
Usually you can find lots of birds here, especially water fowl. The group was keen on spotting harlequin ducks that day and we did--although I could not see them. Bleh. I didn't pack binoculars. We saw Canada geese, mallards, goldeneyes and buffleheads. Apparently the gravel bar on the Bow River is a favourite spot for these guys. I didn't know that Canada geese fly all around during the day and then come back to the river to roost. We were just in time to see them land! We saw a lone cormorant too.
The woods were fairly quiet. We didn't even hear chickadees! I remarked to the group guide that one would think bird life would be more abundant here. Maybe it was just the luck of that day. Apparently this park was known as a great place to spot owls.
We walked down the winding path underneath a railroad bridge that was loaded with graffiti. Pam spotted a merlin who should have been on his way. I didn't know they were migratory birds.
In 2013, Calgary had a major flooding event and years later there are still places along the river that are fenced off. It was interested to see the debris piled up in person. Speaking of disasters, we finished the trip by taking a hike up a muddy, slippy slope that had me hanging on to the fence and wishing I had longer legs! There is a whole spot where a neighbourhood used to be and we walked right by it. High lead levels years after houses were constructed on an old oil processing site doomed the houses. The land will now become a park. Again, it was weird to see where houses should have been. We were on top of the ridge and afforded impressive views. By now it was getting late in the day. Mother Nature had one last surprise--bald eagles! WOW. They were so majestic and I couldn't believe that I was seeing them at such close range!
This was my first visit to Beaver Dam Flats in Southeast Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It's a 43 hectare park on the Bow River with manmade pathways and human made trails. I would love to visit in the spring or summer, but I would not go alone. We saw signs of homeless habitation and there was a used campfire with logs around it.
It felt like all seasons in a day which is not uncommon for Calgary. It was sunny, windy, icy and muddy. This was another reason I did not take a lot of photos as I had to walk very carefully in places.
Usually you can find lots of birds here, especially water fowl. The group was keen on spotting harlequin ducks that day and we did--although I could not see them. Bleh. I didn't pack binoculars. We saw Canada geese, mallards, goldeneyes and buffleheads. Apparently the gravel bar on the Bow River is a favourite spot for these guys. I didn't know that Canada geese fly all around during the day and then come back to the river to roost. We were just in time to see them land! We saw a lone cormorant too.
The woods were fairly quiet. We didn't even hear chickadees! I remarked to the group guide that one would think bird life would be more abundant here. Maybe it was just the luck of that day. Apparently this park was known as a great place to spot owls.
We walked down the winding path underneath a railroad bridge that was loaded with graffiti. Pam spotted a merlin who should have been on his way. I didn't know they were migratory birds.
In 2013, Calgary had a major flooding event and years later there are still places along the river that are fenced off. It was interested to see the debris piled up in person. Speaking of disasters, we finished the trip by taking a hike up a muddy, slippy slope that had me hanging on to the fence and wishing I had longer legs! There is a whole spot where a neighbourhood used to be and we walked right by it. High lead levels years after houses were constructed on an old oil processing site doomed the houses. The land will now become a park. Again, it was weird to see where houses should have been. We were on top of the ridge and afforded impressive views. By now it was getting late in the day. Mother Nature had one last surprise--bald eagles! WOW. They were so majestic and I couldn't believe that I was seeing them at such close range!