Pond Life Today

It was very quiet around the pond today. The Sand Hill Cranes have been missing for a few days. I guess they have moved on to greener pastures. The odd duck was about waiting for the Pond Demon to chase it.

 The grouchy crow was sitting there probably thinking that fall and winter are getting closer.

 Yep, this guy is a real sour puss!

 If the ducks are in a hurry, it's because Brooklyn is in pursuit.

 What say? Shall we make her swim some more?

Making Do

One thing I miss about the Acreage is the ability to step out the door into a wild life abundance. Without the Acreage, I now have to adapt. Who says an old dog can't adapt?

On the way home from Edmonton, I decided to pull over and rest my back and stretch my legs. It turns out there was a small pond beside the road, full of interesting critters.

 The Shovel duck was relaxing

 And showing off his beautiful feet.

 A couple of Mallards took no notice of me

  A Blue Winged Teal decided to preen a little

He was even managing to get to those hard to get at places.

And then finally, a perfect pose!

Oops, make that two poses!

Build It and They Will Come!

I finally got enough get up and go to build a temporary bird feeder. It is set up just outside the patio doors. It's only been up a few days, but has attracted lots of wildlife.

 The blue heron looked regal.

 Wood ducks were present

 Even a Barrow's Golden Eye showed up!

The Canvasback seemed to like the view.

Seriously, this is just wish full thinking with some of the birds that I have carved over the years. We will have to wait and see what real stuff shows up. :-}

Fall Scenes

Apple? Did you say apple? I'm coming. I love apples!

 First I have to get by Boots!

 I am the fearless horse watcher! You want an apple? Give the password!

 Meanwhile, back at the pond, Brooklyn is learning those pesky ducks can now fly the length of the pond!

 The trees are turning fast! Another night with the low temp being -3C ( 26F). Pretty soon they will be bare sticks.

 Why can't I catch a duck? I am bigger, smarter and cuter!

 Meanwhile, back at the ranch acreage, Mr. Coyote was enjoying some sun.

 He and I are going to have words if he doesn't quit yipping under my window at night!

SWAMP DOG 2

So much for the water being too cold, and the ducks being uncatchable!

 The chase is on again!

 You can see how the trees are turning to their fall colours.

 Gonna get da duck, gonna get da duck!

 Needless to say, no ducks were hurt in this photo session.

Update

The hope that Elaine would be home this weekend kind of diminished. It turns out that she is reacting badly to the Parkinson's medication , Cinnamex. This leaves her very nauseous. To compound it, her thyroid count was way off. She is staying under house arrest in the hospital for another two weeks.

The weather here has turned back to rain and cool, more like the typical fall days, with a high of 14C (57F) and a low around +2C (36F).

Either Brooklyn has realized that she can't catch ducks or the water is getting too cold. After all, she grew up as a city gal. Anyway, this is possibly the last swimming picture of the year.

I have been reading blogs, but not commenting very much and not posting as much as I would like, but there seems to be a shortage of time in the day.

Just in Time!

Yesterday, I listened to the weather forecast and decided to pick these. The forecast was for a severe frost warning!

 It only got to -1C (30F), but it was enough to wilt off the pole beans.

 It also got the bush beans.

 I figured that Brooklyn might not want to swim. This was a bad assumption. The ducks were enjoying the warmth of the sun on shore, but not for long.

 Around and around she went, trying to catch one of those pesky ducks.

Still in hot pursuit.

 The muskrat was not involved in the chase.

 Nor were these ducks that were hiding in the weeds.

 The ducks are getting very close to flight. There have also been several large flocks of Sand Hill Cranes way up high "V" ing their way south.

It would appear that fall is upon us!

Monday Morning Walk

Swamp Dog! 

Exercising her ducks

Follow the leader

Don't give up! ( Notice the duck laugh)

A Good roll to finish it off.

Too tired to chase these. Besides, they are faster than ducks!

Another Wednesday!

Anybody know what this dude is?

 It doesn't look like it's very attractive, let alone edible.

 Rotary Park is almost deserted in the mornings now. A great place for a dog to be a dog.

 A few retrieves of a stick and we are almost ready.

 A good shake and we are very ready..

 to harasse some ducks. This is much more fun than a stick.

 Gonna get the duck! Gonna get the duck! Total focus is involved. Fortunately, the ducks are better swimmers!