Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: local walk

AND DAY 11 IS FINISHED! One more day of this wonderful trip to Ontario and Quebec to go. These catkins were taken on a late afternoon, local walk in Tadoussac, after our amazing trip in a tiny boat to the Brandy Pot Islands. Day 12 will have photos of some 50,000 Snow Geese seen along the drive back to Quebec City. We also got the chance to photograph a handful of barns, which was much enjoyed. I have a deadline for getting all these finished, and it looks like I am going to meet my deadline after all. "Offshore from Riviére-du-Loup and part of the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park, the Pot a l’Eau-de-Vie Archipelago consists of three small islands which link up at low tide: Gros Pot (Big Pot), Petit Pot (Small Pot), and Pot du Phare (Lighthouse Pot). The name of the archipelago came about during French rule when sailors likened the reddish-brown rainwater collected in pockets on the rocky islands to brandy, and the shape of those pockets to brandy pots. Legend also suggests that Prohibition bootleggers hid alcohol in an area on the north shore of Gros Pot, hidden from view, now called “le trou de la contrebande” (the contraband hole-in-the-wall)." lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=1592 This was an exciting day for us, with a trip to the middle of the St. Lawrence River to see Razorbills and Common Murres on the Brandy Pot Islands. It was breeding season and people are not allowed to set foot on the islands, so we sat in our tiny boat, named Juno, ate our picnic lunch and watched in awe at the cliffs that were covered in these two bird species. To be honest, I don't think I had ever heard of either species - my friends are far more knowledgeable than I am. Our day started early and, unfortunately, the skies were black and it was raining. Not exactly the kind of weather one wants to be on a tiny boat in the middle of a huge body of water! Definitely not ideal photography weather, either. I think it was around half way through the trip that the sky brightened up, just as we started heading for home. I think we were out for about six hours and travelled 50 km. When I say that we were all so cold on this boat ride, I mean we were absolutely FROZEN, despite several layers of jackets, toque, gloves, etc.. The sight of thousands and thousands of birds in the air, on the water, and covering Brandy Pot Island helped a bit to take our minds off the cold. We saw all these black and white birds, that looked remarkably like Penguins, and we assumed we were looking at Razorbills. That is what the pilot of this tiny boat had told us about and he offered to take us out to the islands to see them. It was only later that we began to realize that not all the black and white birds looked the same, ha! They are very similar, but take a look at their beaks/bills and you will see a big difference. Actually, there were a lot more Common Murres than Razorbills, but it was great to see both species. Along with these birds were Double-crested Cormorants, some of which were sitting in their nests high up in the trees. Another bird that was new to me was the Black-legged Kittiwake - nesting time for them on the rocks, too. Once we were back home, a bit later in the afternoon we went on a short, local walk to see what birds were out and about. In the evening, we had to pack our bags and make sure that the house was going to be left in good condition. By around 8:30 am the next morning, we were down at the ferry, to start out our long drive down the coast to Quebec City. It felt sad to leave Tadoussac. Our friend, Anne B, gave us an absolutely wonderful week, staying in her summer 'cabin', taking us to see so many places and things, leaving us with endless amazing memories. What a week it was!

And Day 9 is DONE! I'm not sure what this bird is. Any help with ID would be greatly appreciated - thanks. NOTE: Yesterday, 3 February 2019, the temperature just after noon was -27C (windchill -38C!). That is -16.6F (windchill -36.4F). Today, 4 February, has been the third day in a row that has had frigid temperatures. Any routine birding wallks have been cancelled day after day, which very, very rarely happens. A nasty shock after enjoying so many milder winter days for quite some time this winter. Despite the dreadful cold, people are still going out birding on their own (i.e. not the groups). Just amazes me - guess it's a harmless addiction compared to most addictions! For me, it's no big deal if I haven't been able to go out the last three days to look for birds - it really isn't the end of the world, and I have so many things to get on with at home! This evening, I posted 15 more photos from Day 9, and that brings Day 9 to a close. Tomorrow, I can move on to day 10 of our two-week holiday in Ontario and Quebec in May 2018. I will have only Day 10, 11 and 12 to sort, edit and post. Day 9, 15 May 2018, involved a local morning walk, not far from our friend Anne's home. Just before 10:00 am, we drove to near the Marine Mammal Interpretation Centre in Tadoussac and followed the Sentier de la Pointe-de-l'Islet Trail. Not the greatest weather, including for photography. However, it was a delightful trail, much of it along a wooden boardwalk (which had quite a few steps). After this outing, we spent some time at our friend's house, watching the birds that came to her garden and then, later on, went for a short, local walk. I really enjoyed photographing these White-crowned Sparrows - they seemed reasonably cooperative. "Walk along Sentier de la Pointe-de-l'Islet Trail, a forest trail by the ocean with marvellous views of the surrounding coast and skyline. The wooden boardwalk leads you behind the wharf to the mouth of the Saguenay River. The trail provides an easy walk, stretching just under a kilometer (0.6 mi), or you can climb freely over the rocky shoreline for a more adventurous route. The point offers an ideal atmosphere for a picnic by the water. Look out into the distance to catch a glimpse of minke whales, while seals and belugas come close to the shore to feed." From link below. www.inspirock.com/canada/tadoussac/sentier-de-la-pointe-d...