My Nature Day

I'm still in a birding drought at the cabin. Thought I would share what else was going on around me.


These are lily pads by our dock. Tons of frogs have been hopping around here. The Green Heron fishes here daily but I haven't been able to get a decent shot of him.




Even the turtles are hiding from me!






One of my favorite ways to photograph birds is by kayak. It makes it easy to stay quiet and get a little closer without being too intrusive. You can get a glimpse of my cabin to the right of this photo.





This isn't a nature photo, but I thought in the spirit of World Cup Soccer, I'd share my favorite soccer player...

Not a bird....

...but a bird dog!


Couldn't resist posting a photo of my beautiful girl since I had no bird photos today. Scout is now 1 years old and a little over 75 pounds. She will continue to fill in so I believe she will hit 80 lbs +. She is so sweet natured and will still crawl into anybody's lap who will let her. And yes, I let her!

Nutty Birds

No man in the world has more courage than the man who can stop after eating one peanut.

~Channing Pollock

Loon Fever

How many photos can I snap of Loons? Not enough in my case! To me, they are such interesting and complex birds. I am fascinated by their behaviors and of course love their haunting calls across the lake. Here are some of the many faces of the Loon....


An alert Loon....





A sleepy Loon.....







A messy Loon....








A curious Loon! (When the female sees me on my dock, she actually swims toward me and hangs around in front of our cabin. The male is more cautious. I am careful to give them their space and am hopeful that they will try to nest again.)

Peek-a-boo

Surprises at the Log Cabin

If we are strong, and have faith in life and its richness of surprises, and hold the rudder steadily in our hands. I am sure we will sail into quiet and pleasant waters for our old age.
-Freya Stark

First surprise - seeing a fox for the 1st time in my life. She had a few kits with her too. We definitely locked eyes through my cabin window. I bet she could see me smiling....







2nd surprise was having baby Robins hatch in the eaves of our log cabin. Anytime I made a sound on the deck, 3 little heads would pop up looking for food.







And my best surprise........was my Loons coming back to our lake. I believe they are going to try to nest again. And I'm going to do whatever is in my power to help them. I am looking into getting an artificial nesting raft for my Loons as well as buoys to protect them. More on that later......but can you hear my heart singing once again? :-)

Birds that tease me

Do you have birds that tease you? Well I do! Come meet some of my bullies.....


Why oh why does the Oriole have to hang out in the tops of tall trees, far, far away from me? One good close up photo, that's all I ask....






And this guy! He teases me with his incessant calls. Hush already! Your voice isn't that great!





And come on Mr. Purple Finch! Can't you look at the camera for one second so I can get a full frontal shot of your handsome face?


So, who are some of your bird bullies?? :-)

Broken Heart

See the 2 beautiful Loon eggs in the nest above? It breaks my heart to know they will never hatch due to the unfortunate (and dare I say it - IDIOTIC) actions of a person who got too close to the nest. On the day I found the nest, I posted signs at the boat launch warning everyone and to please give the Loons their space. According to one resident on our lake, it was the first time in 30 years that the Loons had attempted to nest on our lake.

I found the nest last Sunday, came back to the cabin on Thursday and found no Loon parents. After investigating, I inadvertently found out who the culprit was who got too close (I'm pretty sure, but have to admit other factors go in to Loons abandoning the nest) and was just devastated. I admit, I went inside my cabin and cried. (I know Bird Girl will know how I feel, I still remember when her bluebird babies died.) My heart is completely broken...