Emma and her wee pigtails
Curly girly as Pops call her
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
My Litle Friend
Emma is changing and growing so fast. I took a few photos while I was grandsitting on Monday at their house. When I arrived she did her little shy gesture and then came over and gave me a hug. Nothing can be more heart warming than getting a hug from Emma. She is such a special happy girl.
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Point Farms, June 19-21 2015
We seem to be heading to the right towns this year to take in the festivities that are going on. Goderich was hosting a Multi Cultural Festival in the town square on Saturday so we enjoyed some of the music and dance that was going on.
Friday was a little cooler than it had been so it was a pants day for heading up to Point Farms. We arrived to a very wet and muddy park in spots due to all the rain they had been having. Fortunately for us our site was just a little damp in spots. We did a trip into town to make a stop at the bakery to place a Saturday morning pick up order. We must have some fresh donuts to enjoy while we are there. We picked out a dozen cookies to tide us over until our donuts were ready the next day.....lol When we arrived back at the park we drove around to check things out. Duncan mentioned that we had not seen any deer here since our first trip to this park. It wasn't long before we spotted one trying to hide in the thick growth along the road. The tulip tree was in bloom so I finally got some photos of the flowers. I went for a walk along the beach before dinner and we spent the evening at camp enjoying the fire.
Saturday we hung out in Goderich for most of the midday. We shopped at the market and a few stores and enjoyed listening to a Scottish pipe band, some Gaelic music, a Mexican mariachi band and a native group performing some of their dances. Back at camp I found a nest of Red Starts in the trees behind our site with 2 new babies. I was able to observe mom and dad feeding them and get a few pictures to share. There was also a mom red squirrel doing some renovations to her nest in the pine tree. Her little ones were out and about playing and looking for food. On our trip back to our cottage from town I saw a thrush near the gate so I got out to try and photograph it. They are very hard to get pictures of as they are very elusive birds and are usually in thickets and brush. It happened that there were two of them and they got rather vocal so they must have had a nest near by. I was able to get some photos and enjoy some of the communication between the pair. Our evening was spent relaxing at the fire. It was the warmest evening we have enjoyed so far this year.
Sunday morning I went for a two hour walk through the park enjoying the sights and sounds. We enjoyed brunch and a relaxing time at camp before heading to the beach in the afternoon. While we were walking along we came across a spotted sandpiper that became very vocal so I figured there was a nest nearby. I didn't find a nest but I did find a wee one out and about. It was a really cute feather ball. While reading about the spotted sandpiper I found out that the males are the ones that sit on the nest and raise the young. They are one of a few birds that do it this way. After a wonderful time at the beach it was time to hook up and say goodbye to Point Farms.
Duncan read that there is going to be a Celtic Festival in August in Goderich and we have lucked out with our booking and will be there to enjoy the music and activities from that. Next week we are off to Rondeau and if everyone is well, Emma will be joining us for the weekend. She will enjoy exploring the park and all it has to offer.
Long tails and beaks
Friday was a little cooler than it had been so it was a pants day for heading up to Point Farms. We arrived to a very wet and muddy park in spots due to all the rain they had been having. Fortunately for us our site was just a little damp in spots. We did a trip into town to make a stop at the bakery to place a Saturday morning pick up order. We must have some fresh donuts to enjoy while we are there. We picked out a dozen cookies to tide us over until our donuts were ready the next day.....lol When we arrived back at the park we drove around to check things out. Duncan mentioned that we had not seen any deer here since our first trip to this park. It wasn't long before we spotted one trying to hide in the thick growth along the road. The tulip tree was in bloom so I finally got some photos of the flowers. I went for a walk along the beach before dinner and we spent the evening at camp enjoying the fire.
Saturday we hung out in Goderich for most of the midday. We shopped at the market and a few stores and enjoyed listening to a Scottish pipe band, some Gaelic music, a Mexican mariachi band and a native group performing some of their dances. Back at camp I found a nest of Red Starts in the trees behind our site with 2 new babies. I was able to observe mom and dad feeding them and get a few pictures to share. There was also a mom red squirrel doing some renovations to her nest in the pine tree. Her little ones were out and about playing and looking for food. On our trip back to our cottage from town I saw a thrush near the gate so I got out to try and photograph it. They are very hard to get pictures of as they are very elusive birds and are usually in thickets and brush. It happened that there were two of them and they got rather vocal so they must have had a nest near by. I was able to get some photos and enjoy some of the communication between the pair. Our evening was spent relaxing at the fire. It was the warmest evening we have enjoyed so far this year.
Sunday morning I went for a two hour walk through the park enjoying the sights and sounds. We enjoyed brunch and a relaxing time at camp before heading to the beach in the afternoon. While we were walking along we came across a spotted sandpiper that became very vocal so I figured there was a nest nearby. I didn't find a nest but I did find a wee one out and about. It was a really cute feather ball. While reading about the spotted sandpiper I found out that the males are the ones that sit on the nest and raise the young. They are one of a few birds that do it this way. After a wonderful time at the beach it was time to hook up and say goodbye to Point Farms.
Duncan read that there is going to be a Celtic Festival in August in Goderich and we have lucked out with our booking and will be there to enjoy the music and activities from that. Next week we are off to Rondeau and if everyone is well, Emma will be joining us for the weekend. She will enjoy exploring the park and all it has to offer.
White Crab Spider on a daisy
She has caught a bee for supper
Flower of the Tulip Tree
Mom Redstart
Dad Redstart
Mom sitting on the nest
One of the babies
Mom feeding one of the 2 chicks
Dad bringing in bug snacks
Busy as a bee....
Upper and lower level accommodations
Goderich Pipe Band
Pond lilies in shades of pink
Saturdays view of the lake
Mom red squirrel
One of the baby red squirrels
Wild rose in full bloom
Brown Thrasher, a first for me
Tadpoles in a pooling area on the beach
View of the beach in Duncan's shades
Dad Spotted Sandpiper
One of the young out adventuring
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Awenda, June 11-14 2015
What an exciting weekend!!! We headed out on Thursday afternoon for an early July long weekend since the holiday falls on a Wednesday this year. We took a new route up this time to try and avoid some of the windy hilly roads. It was a great alternative and we will continue to use this route. There wasn't anyone one at the gate when we arrived so we headed to our site. The mosquitoes were very much alive and biting in the park. After a tour of the park we picked up pizza for dinner and spent the evening at camp.
We awoke to light rain showers which continued until mid afternoon. When we headed down to the beach area around noon we spotted a doe and her new fawn in the parking lot. I took a few photos through the windshield before getting out to try and get some more. Mom turned and went into a wooded area but the fawn stayed out. It walked a short distance away from me as I walked towards it on the opposite side of the parking lot. After checking out a big rock and a garbage can nearby it turned and spotted me. Without hesitation it walked directly towards me. I couldn't believe that it was standing right at my feet. I said to myself that I really shouldn't pet it but this may be the only time I get to touch a wee fawn in the wild so I went ahead and rubbed its head. What a thrill!!!
I kept an eye out for the doe as I didn't want to get hurt by her. The fawn walked a short distance from me stood there for awhile and then returned to me again. It then walked away again, stood about 10 feet away for a few minutes before going off into the edge of the woods. I was able to get over 100 photos before the fawn started to call out for mom. I thought it was best to leave so that mom would come back and reunite with her fawn. I was so excited and a little wet but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was experiencing and I wanted to enjoy every minute of it. We checked later in the day and the fawn was not around so we felt good that they had reconnected. We enjoyed some more sights of the park before heading back to camp. We had a late supper and a wonderful campfire that evening.
Saturday the sun came out and it got quite warm. We drove into Midland as we learned that the Butter Tart Festival was on. I have never seen so many tarts and there were a number of varieties. Last year they sold out of 50,000 tarts by mid afternoon. Wow! The main street was closed and there were vendors selling tarts, cookies, pies and craft items as well as live music. We sampled a few tarts along the way and picked up a selection of different kinds to enjoy over the next few day. They were so yummy and creamy and not overly sweet which I enjoyed. Now it was time to head to Victoria Harbour to have lunch with friends and go for a bit of a tour of the area with them. We had a great time. While driving back into the park I saw a deer in the woods and was able to get a number of photos as she slowly ate her way along a trail. I was about 15 feet from her most of the time. This is the doe that has an antler and is called Unicorn by the park staff. I compared the pictures I took to the ones I got a couple of years ago and I am sure it is the same one by the markings on her. After such a busy day we spent the evening relaxing in front of the fire.
Sunday was another rainy day but I was able to go for a short hike with the aid of the umbrella. While hiking the Nipissing trail there was a huge tree down over the stair section so it limited me on my hike. It looked like it was a fresh fall so I reported it to park staff who were not aware of it. We had a late breakfast and started to pack up in the pouring rain to head home. Needless to say we both needed a change of clothes before we left the park for home. I had the time of my life this weekend and I will carry those amazing moments with me forever.
We awoke to light rain showers which continued until mid afternoon. When we headed down to the beach area around noon we spotted a doe and her new fawn in the parking lot. I took a few photos through the windshield before getting out to try and get some more. Mom turned and went into a wooded area but the fawn stayed out. It walked a short distance away from me as I walked towards it on the opposite side of the parking lot. After checking out a big rock and a garbage can nearby it turned and spotted me. Without hesitation it walked directly towards me. I couldn't believe that it was standing right at my feet. I said to myself that I really shouldn't pet it but this may be the only time I get to touch a wee fawn in the wild so I went ahead and rubbed its head. What a thrill!!!
I kept an eye out for the doe as I didn't want to get hurt by her. The fawn walked a short distance from me stood there for awhile and then returned to me again. It then walked away again, stood about 10 feet away for a few minutes before going off into the edge of the woods. I was able to get over 100 photos before the fawn started to call out for mom. I thought it was best to leave so that mom would come back and reunite with her fawn. I was so excited and a little wet but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was experiencing and I wanted to enjoy every minute of it. We checked later in the day and the fawn was not around so we felt good that they had reconnected. We enjoyed some more sights of the park before heading back to camp. We had a late supper and a wonderful campfire that evening.
Saturday the sun came out and it got quite warm. We drove into Midland as we learned that the Butter Tart Festival was on. I have never seen so many tarts and there were a number of varieties. Last year they sold out of 50,000 tarts by mid afternoon. Wow! The main street was closed and there were vendors selling tarts, cookies, pies and craft items as well as live music. We sampled a few tarts along the way and picked up a selection of different kinds to enjoy over the next few day. They were so yummy and creamy and not overly sweet which I enjoyed. Now it was time to head to Victoria Harbour to have lunch with friends and go for a bit of a tour of the area with them. We had a great time. While driving back into the park I saw a deer in the woods and was able to get a number of photos as she slowly ate her way along a trail. I was about 15 feet from her most of the time. This is the doe that has an antler and is called Unicorn by the park staff. I compared the pictures I took to the ones I got a couple of years ago and I am sure it is the same one by the markings on her. After such a busy day we spent the evening relaxing in front of the fire.
Sunday was another rainy day but I was able to go for a short hike with the aid of the umbrella. While hiking the Nipissing trail there was a huge tree down over the stair section so it limited me on my hike. It looked like it was a fresh fall so I reported it to park staff who were not aware of it. We had a late breakfast and started to pack up in the pouring rain to head home. Needless to say we both needed a change of clothes before we left the park for home. I had the time of my life this weekend and I will carry those amazing moments with me forever.
A huge moth on our bug light
What an awesome sight!
The fawn has spotted me and is heading my way.
My excitement is building inside of me.
This is just after I have pat her and it
walked away and turned back at me
It came back to me again. I can't believe I am this close
to such a wee fawn and it trusts me for another visit
Stopping for another look as I was talking to it
Looking at me again as it heads into the trees
One last look around before going off.
My heart was pounding having had such an amazing encounter
Geometric shapes in the reeds at Kettle Lake
Wild flower called cancer root
Everything is so green and lush in the park
Lots of wet weather for the fungus to grow
This is the first I have seen someone do this.
What a great way to keep your tent dry.
Rainbow colours in the clouds during lunch
in Victoria Harbour
Turtle swimming by the docks
Blue Heron with an itch to scratch at Big Chute
Snake skin on the rocks
Unicorn doe enjoying her greens
She pauses to look at me
Close up of the start of her antler growth
Daisy floating in the lake
Beautiful moth on the bug light
The light shining through shows the
amazing green colour on the underside
The flicker of the fire
Heart shape found in natures beauty
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