And down(y) he flew

This photo was taken on 10 October 2017, on a very overcast day. I decided to join friends for a three-hour walk - that included a fair bit of standing - at the east end of Fish Creek Provincial Park. I was hoping that there might still be some fall colour to be seen. Strong winds and snow had removed a lot of the leaves from the trees, but there were still enough to give a bit of a golden glow to photos.

We had a few good sightings that day, including a Great Blue Heron that seemed to have a problem with swallowing a very tiny fish it had caught. It would catch the fish, and then drop it back in the water, and repeated this several times. I don't think it ever did catch and actually eat it. Another fun thing to see was a male Downy Woodpecker that suddenly flew down to someone's hand. This doesn't happen very often and it is such an amazing feeling. I did get a photo from a better angle, but the bird was rather blurry. Chickadees and Nuthatches were also very aware that we were standing there. They are so busy searching for and collecting food to store away for the long, harsh winter months.

Great Horned Owls nest each year at the east end of the park and have done so for years. I don't know how on earth someone spotted the one we saw on this walk. It was perched far away in a wooded area and was almost impossible to see. If I moved two or three inches to the left or right, the owl was hidden from view. Even though I have seen endless owls over the years, it is always a good feeling to see one again. I guess I missed the owls in this area back in March or April of this year - too busy with preparations for my trip to Trinidad & Tobago, but also, last winter was so brutal.

Today, 5 November 2017, it is another overcast day so far, and the temperature is -12C (windchill -16C). I might join friends for an afternoon birding walk. After almost three days of hibernating because of the bitter cold and falling snow, I finally had no choice but to clear all the inches of snow off my car yesterday evening, as I was going to the annual Nature Calgary Banquet (a rather fancy name for a casual supper). The guest speaker this year was Chic Scott, who gave a very interesting talk.

"It has been over fifty years since Chic Scott discovered the magic of high places. During a lifetime of adventure he has climbed and skied around the world, organized clubs and foundations, written books and worked as a mountain guide.

His odyssey has taken him from the icefields of the Canadian Rockies to the historic climbs of the European Alps, from the grandeur of the Himalaya to the icy solitude of Mount Logan. In all seasons, on foot and on skis he has followed his passion." From Chic Scott's website.

www.chicscott.com/