#FrameItFriday (week 33, season 3)

#FrameItFriday (week 33, season 3)

Well, we finally got away. In fact, we still are away and it's been outstanding weather. Road trips have been replaced by early morning paddles. I'm not an early riser but have managed to get up and out on the water a few times before 8am. In the nature world that is a bit late but we still managed to hit the motherland of wildlife on a couple of mornings which was super cool. Yesterday though we went out and saw pretty much nothing but the waters were smooth like glass. It was almost like all the wildlife took the day off so it was a short 3 hour paddle out and back to party island, our inflatable raft.

This time of year here the babies of the wildlife world are more like unruly teens that want to play about. They are also in training by their parents. They're learning to fish, learning about humans they come in contact with and learning how to flee danger. I've also discovered a few with routines that have been predictable in their water travels. What I mean is that the Merganser family silently paddles along the shoreline every morning from an undisclosed location in search of their favourite fishing holes. Bobbie the beaver glides in from the opposite direction doing patrol of his territory. I tried following him along from a safe distance until he finally slapped his tail so hard in frustration I took his hint and backed off. He has a huge territory he covers that eventually leads him to the back of the next bay to his mound of mud and twigs he calls home.

We "stumbled" upon a large family of otters which was a pleasant surprise for me but they were not happy to have us around. They made that quite clear by all the huffing noises they made as they stood up and craned their necks at us. I guess that was them threatening us. I just thought it made them look cuter. They ducked and dove beneath logs along the shore and tried to lure us away from their secret lair. We'd lurk about for a bit trying to get some shots and then let them be.

What was somewhat of a surprise and most likely due to the whole covid thing is the fact that there were quite a few more people camping on the crown land that dominates our end of the lake. We'd be paddling along the shore that was thick with trees and bush and hear a "cough" and shortly discover an enclave of tents with campers sitting fireside enjoying an early morning coffee. Crown land is becoming more popular since the provincial park campsites are all booked up. Our travel/vacation options being limited, a lot more people are choosing camping, cottages and RV travel. Nothing wrong with that because our country, our province has so many beautiful spots to discover and play in. Just if you do go out PLEASE take your garbage home with you!

I'll be posting some of the sweet creatures and landscape I've spotted over the next few weeks, stay tuned as I've got some of my best ever loon shots coming up. In the meantime I'm awaiting the arrival of 2 of my kindergarten buddies and we're off for a day of paddling, photography, gossip and a hangout on party island. I'm pretty excited, I hope they arrive soon! Have an amazing weekend and be safe!

Peace, love and kumbaya

Heather

#Mergansers #Ducks #Procession #BirdsoftheLake #BaptisteLake #HastingsHighlands #Bancroft #Ontario #KayakCameraGirl #CanonGirl #ShotOnCanon #HeatherCardlePhotographer

P.S.-wish you were here!