We recently had a series of showers that lasted all afternoon and night, too. In the end, we collected 10 mm (about 0.5 inch) of water which is happily going toward keeping any potential fires down, but the next morning, we saw lots of lovely clearing skies.
The carp in the fish pond didn’t seem to be much bothered, though. They continued swimming, rain or not …
… enjoying the leaves, clouds, and blue skies …
… and their attractive sky fish lives!
Happy Thursday.
(The answer will be at the end of the post.) I saw this cute little robin-like bird while out walking.
Very unafraid, he or she let me get within about a metre (3 ft) which I needed to do since I only had my cell for photos.
The size, wing-configuration and body shape all shouted that this bird is a type of thrush – so are North American robins – but when I saw it walking, the gait was definitely different. Robins will do a combination of hopping and walking, while this bird was a very confident walker with rather largish feet for its size, I thought.
I also had the sense that given the colouration, this little one might be a female or a juvenile from this summer.
Once I got back home and was able to do an online search, I learned that this is either a female or juvenile yellow-headed blackbird which means that it’s a passerine, not a thrush. They live among the bulrushes – which explains the feet as they need strong ones to grab those grasses as they perch, especially if it’s windy – near water and I discovered this little one on a railing above Okanagan Lake.
As you can see, in addition to the yellow heads, the males also have white wing flashes. These birds like to migrate to Mexico for the winter, but in some places they remain all year. The Okanagan Valley is apparently one of those places.
Happy Wednesday.
Evening begins with soft, quiet light …
… that grows deeper and redder, chasing away the blue yonder of day …
… as the sun continues to disappear …
… until finally, the sky is bathed in fiery summer orange.
Happy Tuesday.
Akaroa is a charming small town located on the Banks Peninsula on the east coast of New Zealand’s South Island that was formed by two ancient shield …
Akaroa
Beautiful photos of and information about New Zealand from Linda at Wandering Canadians. Please click the link above to read about the rest of her visit to Akaroa and to see more of Linda’s posts about her and her family’s wanderings.
The Okanagan Valley is famous for its wine production.
A wide variety of grapes are grown here and in some cases, types that don’t produce particularly good wine results in Europe tend to do much better here, occasionally very much better which often leads to some interesting bottles that would be difficult to find elsewhere.
The various types are affected by humidity, proximity to the lake, dryness, and other soil, moisture and weather conditions.
Not sure what kind of grapes are growing here as they’re not labelled, but they’re near a favourite winery. They look luscious but don’t taste like table grapes at all! These are specifically wine grapes.
A bit further to the south and west of us is the Similkameen Valley, very hot and dry, which grows some excellent reds.
Although the Okanagan Valley is known for wine, this area is incredibly produce-rich and grows a very wide variety of other fruits and vegetables, including cherries, peaches, apricots, pears and apples.
No matter where you go, the life of a farmer can be incredibly tough; they’re always at the mercy of whatever the weather throws their way, but when it works it is so tasty, delicious and wonderful!
No, it’s a panicle hydrangea! A very beautiful one …
… that’s part of this group.
… after a rain storm …
… the sun re-entering …
… once the clouds have cleared.
Happy Saturday.
It’s white and pink time!
Happy Friday.
Happy Thursday.
That’s quite a head-display!
Happy Wednesday.
In the Net! - Pictures and Stories of Life 