I was able to practise my piano early....whilts I was practising I couldn't help but notice the quail, stellar jays, chickadees, white-breasted nuthatch and of course the robin all on grass pecking at the ground. It was gorgeous...but as luck would have it...just as I had finished taking a picture of the sun coming through the trees my batteries died......so into the charge they went and no battery to take any pictures at the moment.
It was a cool morning....the frost was heavy on the ground...and the sun started to warm the trees and they began to steam....it was wonderful...the dew drops dripping off of the branches...yes nature in it's glory.I had been visiting one of my blog friends Janet at Life in Westcliffethis morning,she is an avid photographer and birder....she has a glorious picture of a bird I had never seen before but is indigenious to my area, but at highter elevations...this got the bird bug into me....today was an absolutely gorgeous day...the sun was shining....the temperature actually got into the double digits 11 celcius...warmer in other areas....it was a perfect day to go outdoors and find some new birds.
Our destination northwest, towards the Comox Valley along the old Island highway. It is a wonderful drive which follows the shoreline....so most of the birds we saw were shoreline birds.
We made our first stop just a few moments from our home....it was the mouth of the Big Qualicum River.....during spawning season eagles are abundant....that wasn't the case today...it was actually fairly quite....
Ducks are plentiful here....we saw two Kingfishers diving for food....difficult to capture on film...we needed our telephoto lens....we then got back into my truck and continued north to one of our favourite spots...Nile Creek.....there was not much wildlife ...but the view of Mount Arrowsmith was spectacular....
Nile Creek with Mount Arrowsmith in the background.....
Mount Arrowsmith
After a brief stay..we got back into the vehicle and continue north....next stop....Fanny Bay....
This is a Bufflehead.....if you click on the picture I think you can get a close up....
Another Bufflehead....again if you click on the picture I think you can get a close up......
We made our way up the Comox Valley, and on our way home just ahead is the Comox Glacier....you can take airplane rides up there to get airial view...it truly is spectacular...and today it was just in your face.....amazing....
The next photos were taken at a place called Royston Wreck....it's old ships that were sunk and is a favourite site for divers....the wildlife here is amazing and so is the view......
Cormarants perched on a pilon
Although it had been a wonderfully bright and warm day...being by the waters edge you got a bit of a chill....it was time to start heading home. On our way up the valley we had seen two graceful Blue Herons...but with there not being anywhere to stop we weren't able to catch a photo....hubby really wanted to get a photo for me to post....so we went back the way we came....but this time....there were no herons to be seen.....maybe next time.
Well I hope you enjoyed the trip with us.....hope you all had a fantastic day.....
