The Famous Five

Couldn't resist driving a few backroads just S and SW of the city the other day, coming back home past this well-known row of five red sheds. One year, the surrounding field was a sea of yellow Canola, which looked so beautiful. I saw my very first wild Skunk right here months ago. Unfortunately, the grass was long and I couldn't get a decent shot at all, but I was so happy to see the animal. "These are prairie granaries. Believe it or not, this is how much grain used to be harvested off of each field. They were always lined up for ease of the truck and auger, usually red as red barn paint was a cheap paint to help them from rotting. Many skunks and fox will live under them . Most don't get any use anymore as granaries have gotten much bigger as harvest is better than the 50's." Thanks so much to Debbie Prediger for this interesting information!

Not sure that I've ever taken a photo of "the Famous Five" from this spot before - usually, I turn up the road you can see and park along there. Every once in a while, I can't resist taking yet another photo if I happen to be driving in this area. This land has had a For Sale sign for a long time. When it does eventually get new owners, hopefully they will leave this well known row of five red granaries standing. Feels a little strange to be looking at bright, summer colours, knowing that we are part way through fall already and some of the trees have already lost their golden leaves. Yesterday evening, 19 October 2013, I went to the annual "Banquet" for our local nature group, held in a church hall across the city. I had only ever been to one of these, a number of years ago, and found it was a very formal affair, with some ladies even dressed in long gowns - not my kind of thing at all! However, friends persuaded me to go this year and so I went : ) Turned out to be a far more casual thing, with good food and many familiar faces that I hadn't seen for ages. It was most enjoyable, marred only by my right eye that wouldn't stop watering the whole time. By the time I went to bed last night, it was painful and still watering and this morning is half swollen shut, so I guess I'm going to have to make a doctor's appointment. I don't think I'm going to be able to be on my computer much today, at all, as it's difficult to see properly and really unpleasant. We were very honoured to have Jon Turk as our guest speaker. He came to talk to us about some of his travels, including his circumnavigation, on foot and by kayak, of Ellesmere Island, which earned him (along with Erik Booner) one of the National Geographic's ten top "Adventurers of the Year" awards for 2012. Jon was a most entertaining speaker, with never a dull moment, inspirational and motivating. His underlying message really was to forget the material world and go out and do what you really want to do. He is 66 years old! jonturk.net/

Not a cloud in the sky and no snow on the ground - this does not feel like a winter photo at all! I won't complain though, as this winter has been wonderfully mild for much of the time. So far, the weather forecast for the next two weeks gives double digit temperatures, climbing to 16C on Saturday. Crazy weather for winter, and March is supposed to be Calgary's snowiest month. It does make you wonder, though, what our spring and summer will be like. Hope it won't be pay back time. Yesterday afternoon, I made a last minute decision to finally drive SW of the city to an area that I had never driven myself before. I was only out for three hours, driving a total of 131 km. I wondered if the Wild Turkeys might be in view, but I couldn't see any at the place where other people had been seeing them. A short distance down the road, I decided to stop and take a couple of shots of the scenery, mainly so that I didn't go home with an empty memory card, lol. It was then that a familiar looking vehicle came down the road - it was friends Ron and Trish. They had been unlucky with finding birds further south and were on their way to see if they could find the Evening Grosbeak that had been seen recently. I followed them, but we were out of luck. We did hear a very distant call of either a Northern pygmy-owl or a Northern Saw-whet Owl. After parting ways with my friends, I drove home via familiar roads, thinking of two spots I would stop at to take a scenic shot or two. Both were on fairly steep hills but had a pull-off big enough for one vehicle. There was a vehicle parked in each, so no scenic shots. Further on, I stopped to take a couple of photos of this "famous" row of five, red, wooden granaries. Very rapid shots, as I found myself surrounded by bees as soon as I got out of the car! Too bad they weren't all inside the row of covered beehives that you can see. The enormous field that these sheds are on has been changed by the new owners. Instead of just an open, bare field, there are now several scattered clusters of coniferous trees, making me wonder what the plan is. Once I was back in the city, I decided to call in at Fish Creek Park on the way home, to see if any photographers were in sight. Not a single one, but the parking areas were packed with people who had come to enjoy the beautiful weather. Smoke from barbeques was rising into the air and you could hear kids having fun. I asked myself how much wildlife might be seen on a busy, noisy day like yesterday, a Sunday - and decided to go straight home, lol!

This photo might just be of interest to a handful of local people, as until the land (including "The Famous Five", a row of five, red granaries seen in the previous photo) was recently taken over by new owners, the field had been just one huge, open field. Now there are a few patches of trees dotted here and there, and also a line of coniferous and deciduous trees just inside the fence line. Three days ago, on 17 May 2015, I finally got out with my camera for a few hours. The previous few days had been dreary and overcast, with rain the last couple of the days. The sense of freedom felt so good, as I stopped in at a wetland in SW Calgary and then drove my usual loop along the backroads SW of the city. At this first pond, I saw the usual Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Redheads, Common Grackle, Red-headed Blackbirds, and a quick glimpse of a distant pair of Cinnamon Teal glowing in the sunshine. Something I didn't know until a few minutes ago is that many female Redheads make no nests of their own, but instead lay their eggs in the nests of other ducks. I had intended walking around to where I had seen the Canada Geese nest in other years, but before I did so, I suddenly noticed a distant pair of Geese swimming in my direction. I didn't really think much about it, but as they got closer, I realized that they were escorting 10 little goslings. They swam right up to where I was standing, as if to show off their new little family. And then they were gone, swimming off in the direction from which I had seen them come. After taking a few more photos of the nearby ducks, I carefully looked at each pair of Geese on the pond and none of them had any goslings swimming with them. Maybe they had returned them to the edge of the wetland and hidden them well. These were my very first goslings this spring, so I was happy as can be to see them. A week earlier, on 10 May, my daughter and I had great views of a pair of Red-necked Grebes, who seemed to be building a nest closer to shore than in previous years. It was disappointing to see that the tiny "island" that they seemed to have chosen was now very low in the water, after all the rain we had had. Hopefully, they won't move to a higher mound that is further away, but that is what I am expecting. Makes me thankful to have seen the pair fairly close 10 days ago. From this pond, I continued on my drive, greatly appreciating the sunshine and fairly empty roads, despite this being the Victoria long weekend here. The Brewer's Blackbirds were perched on fence posts, and I always love to see these birds with their white eyes. In one large pond, I watched two pairs of Blue-winged Teal, a Muskrat, a Pied-bill Grebe, and a pair of Red-necked Grebes. Most of these birds were very far away, but I did manage to get a few distant shots of the Teal. At the next slough that I stopped at, I saw one solitary Swan, too far away to tell if it was a Trumpeter or Tundra (apparently a Trumpeter). I also spotted a funny little Pied-billed Grebe swimming fairly close to the road, but by the time I had driven a bit further in order to turn my car around, the Grebe was already closer to the far shore. Further on, I stopped to see a pair of Mountain Bluebirds that came to their nesting box just once while I was there. Tree Swallows made a quick appearance at the nest box that was nearby. Continuing my drive, I passed a pair of American Wigeon preening themselves at a tiny slough, along with a Green-winged Teal. Further yet, I stopped to take a few photos of Red-winged Blackbirds and - to my great delight - a Wilson's Snipe, one of my favourite birds to photograph. Last year seemed to be such a great year for Snipe, so I was hoping this spring might be the same. When I drove this road in one direction, I was happy to spot a distant Snipe down in the grasses, but still wished that it had been standing on a fence post. After turning my car around, I slowly drove along the edge of the wetland again and, this time, there it was! Absolutely made my day - anyone would think it was my very first sighting ever of a Snipe! Surprisingly, it didn't stay for long, but gave me time to get three or four shots. From here, it was time to return home along some of the backroads before eventually having to get back on to the highway. A dark phase Swainson's Hawk was where I had seen it (same one?) on a couple of other occasions. Took a photo or two through the windscreen, so not the best photos, but I thought it might fly if I got out of the car. It was so good to get out and, though I saw no new or rare birds, I was, as always, happy to see the more usual ones, especially when they are close enough to photograph.

A rather plain capture of this well-known row of five red granaries - you really need some photogenic clouds or snow to make the photo more interesting. However, I couldn't resist just stopping by to see them and to check out the changes in the field that I had seen the last time I was there. My next photo might just be of interest to a handful of local people, as until the land was recently taken over by new owners, the field had been just one huge, open field. Now there are a few patches of trees dotted here and there, and also a line of coniferous and deciduous trees just inside the fence line. Three days ago, on 17 May 2015, I finally got out with my camera for a few hours. The previous few days had been dreary and overcast, with rain the last couple of the days. The sense of freedom felt so good, as I stopped in at a wetland in SW Calgary and then drove a familiar loop along the backroads SW of the city. At this first pond, I saw the usual Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Redheads, Common Grackle, Red-headed Blackbirds, and a quick glimpse of a distant pair of Cinnamon Teal glowing in the sunshine. Something I didn't know until a few minutes ago is that many female Redheads make no nests of their own, but instead lay their eggs in the nests of other ducks. I had intended walking around to where I had seen the Canada Geese nest in other years, but before I did so, I suddenly noticed a distant pair of Geese swimming in my direction. I didn't really think much about it, but as they got closer, I realized that they were escorting 10 little goslings. They swam right up to where I was standing, as if to show off their new little family. And then they were gone, swimming off in the direction from which I had seen them come. After taking a few more photos of the nearby ducks, I carefully looked at each pair of Geese on the pond and none of them had any goslings swimming with them. Maybe they had returned them to the edge of the wetland and hidden them well. These were my very first goslings this spring, so I was happy as can be to see them. A week earlier, on 10 May, my daughter and I had great views of a pair of Red-necked Grebes, who seemed to be building a nest closer to shore than in previous years. It was disappointing to see that the tiny "island" that they seemed to have chosen was now very low in the water, after all the rain we had had. Hopefully, they won't move to a higher mound that is further away, but that is what I am expecting. Makes me thankful to have seen the pair fairly close 10 days ago. From this pond, I continued on my drive, greatly appreciating the sunshine and fairly empty roads, despite this being the Victoria long weekend here. The Brewer's Blackbirds were perched on fence posts, and I always love to see these birds with their white eyes. In one large pond, I watched two pairs of Blue-winged Teal, a Muskrat, a Pied-bill Grebe, and a pair of Red-necked Grebes. Most of these birds were very far away, but I did manage to get a few distant shots of the Teal. At the next slough that I stopped at, I saw one solitary Swan, too far away to tell if it was a Trumpeter or Tundra (apparently a Trumpeter). I also spotted a funny little Pied-billed Grebe swimming fairly close to the road, but by the time I had driven a bit further in order to turn my car around, the Grebe was already closer to the far shore. Further on, I stopped to see a pair of Mountain Bluebirds that came to their nesting box just once while I was there. Tree Swallows made a quick appearance at the nest box that was nearby. Continuing my drive, I passed a pair of American Wigeon preening themselves at a tiny slough, along with a Green-winged Teal. Further yet, I stopped to take a few photos of Red-winged Blackbirds and - to my great delight - a Wilson's Snipe, one of my favourite birds to photograph. Last year seemed to be such a great year for Snipe, so I was hoping this spring might be the same. When I drove this road in one direction, I was happy to spot a distant Snipe down in the grasses, but still wished that it had been standing on a fence post. After turning my car around, I slowly drove along the edge of the wetland again and, this time, there it was! Absolutely made my day - anyone would think it was my very first sighting ever of a Snipe! Surprisingly, it didn't stay for long, but gave me time to get three or four shots. From here, it was time to return home along some of the backroads before eventually having to get back on to the highway. A dark phase Swainson's Hawk was where I had seen it (same one?) on a couple of other occasions. Took a photo or two through the windscreen, so not the best photos, but I thought it might fly if I got out of the car. It was so good to get out and, though I saw no new or rare birds, I was, as always, happy to see the more usual ones, especially when they are close enough to photograph.

The light was rather low and flat on Saturday morning, 25 May 2013, when my youngest daughter and I drove some of the backroads SW of Calgary, including to visit this "famous" row of five red granaries. They seemed less red, somehow - maybe they are just showing their age more, losing that layer of old, red paint. Or maybe it was just the light - they look so different when the sun is shining on them. (Ha, couldn't stand looking at the original post, so I've just replaced it with a very slightly brighter copy). The far side of the sheds, there is a pile of colourful beehives and the bees had found them. Rachel had asked if I wanted to go along the backroads for my birthday - and what more enjoyable way to spend the day!!! Despite not being able to find a Great Gray Owl for her to see, certain other birds were right where I'd hope they would be - such as Red-winged and Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Wilson's Snipe, Mountain Bluebirds, Ruddy Ducks, Black Terns, etc., etc.. At one tiny slough, there were maybe just four or so birds on the water, and I suddenly realized that one pair was not "just" a pair of Common Goldeneye, but a pair of Barrow's Goldeneye (seen in the first photo I posted today), which Rachel had never seen. By the end of this great day, I think she had an even better understanding of why I love spending a day (any day!) in this way : ) The weather was good, other than a few raindrops, so we were lucky. Thanks so much, Rachel, for spending the day with me! Hope your photos came out better than mine did - got more blurry photos than I'd have liked, but that's usually the case, anyway, lol. By the way, if it's any comfort (and I'm sure it's not, lol!), we couldn't find any Great Gray Owls yesterday, on the annual May Species Count that covers some of the area you and I went to, plus other roads. Thanks for a super day!

Another view of the Famous Five, LOL! Lots of photographers drive to this area to see this row of five granaries. At this time of year, when the Canola fields have turned golden, the view is even more spectacular. This photo was taken back on 27th July. Today, I am home, sitting at my computer wearing socks, sweatpants and a sweater. Last night, I needed sweatpants, socks and two duvets - and this is SUMMER, LOL??? Almost forgotten what the sun looks and feels like, ha, ha.

Yet another view of the "famous five" red sheds south of Calgary : ) I had been looking forward to seeing them surrounded by piles of snow, but I found that there was far less snow than I had been expecting. Still pretty, though, I thought, including the curves of the tracks. Got home 45 minutes ago (7:15 p.m.) from a long day's Christmas Bird Count in the Snake's Head/Sundre area, north west of Calgary. This was our final Count. My alarm was set for 3:50 a.m., though it took me a while to drag myself out of bed after only one hour of sleep! An overcast day today with a few snowflakes and a temperature, I think, of around -12C.

After a morning's walk in Weaselhead today, I decided to drive just south of the city to see how much snow was in the fields surrounding this now "famous" row of red sheds. Not a lot of snow in the field, but it was pretty deep along the edge of the road - as I found out when I tried to walk over to the fence : )