Our recent precipitation has been snow flurries and freezing rain but we hold to the promise that even these April showers will bring May flowers.
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Category: spring
April 2017 – ice out
Typically ice leaves the lake in front of our place some time between late April and early May. We eagerly await this change.
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Signs of Spring
Got a hot photo tip from a good friend of mine (thanks, Mel!) that at Sandbar Lake Provincial Park the marsh marigolds were out and the bugs were not! So I grabbed my gear and rubber boots to check it out.
I was surprised to see how abundantly they grew in this swampy area just adjacent to the picnic pavilion. The sun was setting and I tried unsuccessfully to catch some of the yellow blooms in the glow of evening sun. The colours were actually captured more truly in the shaded areas. I played around a little with the polarizing filter which helped to reduce some of the glare of the wet forest floor and gloss of the leaves.
The iPhone does a decent job of capturing them too (with a little filter touch from Instagram)
Although I didn’t notice a particular fragrance to the area (apart from damp dirt) there were some distinctive sounds. While I stood to shoot, I could hear the drumming of grouse in courtship nearby. When I decided to move, the earth seemed determined to hold me fast. It took significant effort to release my boots from the suction of the muck.
Sights and sounds of spring!
Wet Willows
Damp dreary days don’t normally draw me out with my camera but after such a long, cold and snowy winter, I was eager to get out in spite of the soggy conditions. Driving some back roads in a light drizzle I noticed what I thought was pussy willows on the branches in the ditches.
The light rain was clinging to the branches creating the effect of soft, white pussy willows.
There were also willows starting to bud with furry catkins present.
I was entranced the juxtaposition of the buds above and droplets below. Then noticed tiny droplets that appear as bulging eyes on the the buds at the end of the branch! I was wishing I had brought my tripod to more effectively zoom in for a clear shot.
A few other branches held some different bud and droplet configurations.
A wet day well spent.
Moose crossing
The back roads are finally dry enough to travel by vehicle. We picked a sunny afternoon for a drive and enjoyed watching this yearling moose poke his nose out of the brush on the side of the road, trot along ahead of us then duck back into cover.
Break through
Winter has hung on far longer here than we like. But a splash of colour in my garden gives me hope for spring’s return. This sweet snow crocus bravely pushed through the earth but also a leaf of last years growth!
Karen Greaves Photography & Fibre Art 
