Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Take a walk with me!

Come with me for a little walk! (This walk we're taking just occurred this past Saturday for the GBBC- so we're going back in time. Humor me and pretend.) We are going to head to the Ausable River in Grayling, Michigan.

Did you know that Grayling is home to the longest non-stop canoe race in North America? It is called the Ausable River Canoe Marathon.
ausable


Here's a nice little bridge for us to cross and see if we can find ourselves some "fancy" ducks!
ausable bridge



Well here's a handsome Mallard.....
mallardx


Omigosh! He has a girlfriend! Good for him! Hey you two, are there any Golden Eyes, Loons or Blue Herons with you?
pair of ducks


Now I've made them upset and they're flying away with one of their friends. Okay, let's head over to Spikes Keg O Nails and have some of the best burgers in town. I'm buying!

ducks flying

37 comments:

Craig Glenn said...

Shelly,

What a great walk! I really enjoyed it. I hope a lost some weight with all that exercise. lol

Love the mallards!

Craig

Patsy said...

Love the walk and thanks for the burger. It was a little cold out but a beautiful day.
Patsy

Anonymous said...

Such a pretty walk. Nalley has relatives in that area.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Beautiful walk, Shelley... I needed that!!!! AND the burgers were wonderful!!! Thanks for inviting us along with you!
Hugs,
Betsy

A New England Life said...

I enjoyed the walk and the ducks very much! A beautiful winter post. Hopefully Spring will be rearing it's head soon : )

And now, lets go to the burger joint! Veggie burger for me please ; )

Sharon

mon@rch said...

I just love when the sun comes out! Amazing photos and those blues are perfect!

Kim said...

Lovely walk and such pretty scenery.

Hey everyone, look at the bridge over there, isn't it so picturesque. Hurry up and look at the mallards because Shelley has seemed to spook them some and they appear to be getting ready to fly away.

Yummy veggie burgers, a great way to refuel after that invigorating walk. ;o)

Ruth's Photo Blog said...

Thanks for the walk.The scenery was beautiful and I can almost taste the burgers.
Blessings,Ruth

MuseSwings said...

That was fun! I enjoyed the walk - except I'm wearing sandals and my toes are frozen now. Thanks for the hambuger- delicious. Come on down for a grouper sandwich sometime!

Kelly said...

...very pretty...I do like the snow! The offended mallards look great in flight!

KathyB. said...

Did you call ahead and let Spikes Keg of nails know you are bringing a crowd ? Lovely walk.....let's eat!

Chris said...

Hi,
Oh, I would have like to take a walk with you in this very nice environment :-) Wonderful, I love the two first pictures a lot, with this nice winter atmosphere... Good you saw some birds!!

Jayne said...

What a beautiful river, and even prettier Mallard with his gal!

NCmountainwoman said...

Great outing. Thanks.

jalynn01 said...

I love the reflection of the bridge & trees in the icey cold blue water. Nice walk and ummmm burgers .. my favorite. Just this once I'll endulge. Thanks.

Deborah Godin said...

Loved these shots - you can just see that mallard drake stretcing his neck, making the decision to take off!

Gardener's Garden said...

Great post...my initials are in the table at Spikes and I like mine rare!

Dorothy said...

Shelley,
Beautiful pictures! I enjoyed the walk. Blessings to you!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Shelly: Loved the post with the neat Mallard, they are very colorful.

Deb said...

What a wonderful walk!
Good luck Shelley ~ hope you find your 4 legged friend soon :-)

Tina said...

Shelley,
Thanks for the walk...what a great designed bridge! Glad you caught up with some birds..good idea for lunch, next time, maybe, we go to Red Robin..best burgers I've ever tasted..don't know if you have them out your way!!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Shelly: Bob came for a visit, check it out.

troutbirder said...

I love walking along beautiful trout streams and the Ausable is world famous. Thanks for inviting me along as I have never been here before. One of my heroes, Rober Traver, I believe called this his "home waters."

Anonymous said...

Shelley, I checked with Nalley and he shared a great story about the group, The Eagles....stay tuned!

BirdingMaine said...

What a wonderful walk under those beautiful blue skies!

Excellent photos Shelley!

Anonymous said...

That mallard couple are really colorful on the pond. Nice photography and very nice scenes to photograph.

Abraham Lincoln
Brookville Daily Photo

Shelley said...

Craig - Yes - we burned off a lot of calories on our walk! LOL!

Bennie & Patsy - You're right, it was cold but the burger hit the spot! :)

Mildred - If you & Nalley ever visit - please let me know!

Betsy - I'm so glad you enjoyed it! i have many more trips planned for us! wink, wink!

Sharon - yes - a veggie burger coming right up!

Monarch - the bright sunlight can make you forget the frostbite on your nose - lol!

Kallen - veggie burgers for you too! By the way - I've really gotten into veggie hotdogs!

Ruth - thank you for coming along!

Muse - I should've lent you my boots! And a grouper sandwich sounds lovely!

Kelly - I need to learn to be quieter around the ducks! :)

Kathy - plenty of room! I just have to kick the snowmobilers out!

Chris - thank you! This is a lovely little area in northern Michigan.

Jayne - thank you! I thought they made a good looking pair!

NC - thank you! It was a glorious morning and I lucked out!

Jalynn - does this mean no desert!

Deborah - you have a good eye! Those ducks were on alert as they heard me trying to crunch quietly thru the snow.

Gardener - LOL at your initials being there! I might need to do that too!

Dorothy - so glad you enjoyed it! I kept thinking while I was there that morning that I wanted to remember it forever.

Fishing guy - thank you! They don't compare to my Loons but I think their nice all the same! :)

Deb - yes - we definitely need a dog for the walk next time! :)

Tina - we do have a Red Robin here and I like their burgers too. I would say that Spikes is a tad better!

Birdgirl - those loons will probably have to get a restraining order against me! Ha,ha!

Trout - it's a beautiful place to fly fish - you would love it!

Mildred - can't wait to hear it!!!!

Birding Maine - thank you for your kind comments!!

RuthieJ said...

Mallards are fun! I love to hear them quack and they're the only duck (besides wood duck) I can positively ID without looking at the field guide.

Jenny said...

Fabulous walk Shelley! Really enjoyed it. I've been to Grayling a few years back! (-: Didn't find the brilliant burger joint though! )-: Did find the Kirtland's Warbler though! (-:

Willard said...

This is a beautiful series, with super scenery and wildlife.

Anonymous said...

Shelley...beautiful place and I love the mallards..any photo with a duck has to be a great photo ...

Kathy Feightner said...

Beautiful Pictures. I loved them. You have a real talent

Eve said...

Hi Shelley!
I'm finally getting to your blog to comment...finally. These two are...dare I say...rude...if only they knew what a sweetheart you are.

sandy said...

Beautiful walk.... cold but so pretty.

Connie said...

Loved the walk. Sure I'll have a burger. Sounds great! :D

Mary said...

Lovely walk and love the humor :-)

Leedra said...

The light is just right in ALL of these. They are all so good.

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