Some Geese haven't Migrated Yet

I have it on good word that the geese have been seen heading South, and over Missouri, so I went down to the river where I normally see them to have a look. Come to think of it, I haven't seen them for about a week or so. The river has a lot of ice on it but I did find this goose and a lot of mallards.

Mallards at Princes Island

Mallards at a warm spot below the dam.

Canadian Pacific Railroad

Here is the Canadian Pacific Railway #29 ready for Christmas. It was built in September, 1887 at a cost of $7000, and with tender weighs 150,000 pounds with a length of 58 feet. It is a class of locomotive known as a Standard or American-type 4-4-0. It was the last steam locomotive in Candadian service when it ceased operating in November, 1960. It was last operated in 1989 when it was over a 100 years old.

I'm going to have to study up a bit more about how the locomotive changed the United States and Canada. The impact on the Canada west was tremendous - towns grew or failed depending on where the railroad went. I know it was the same in the United States. The Interstate and other major roads have the same influence.

Cataract Falls, Indiana

This is the Upper Cataract Falls in Indiana on Mill Creek. It has the highest volume of water of any waterfall in Indiana. There is a covered bridge built in 1876 just upstream. The stone foundation in the middle of the frame is from an old mill that dates from that time. Just downstream is the Lower Cataract Falls, also very nice....

Statue of a Man with a Hat like Mine

This is a statue of a former president of Indiana University who coincidentally has a hat just like mine. Here is a fact that might not be known widely outside the area - in the 1910 census it was determined that Bloomington was the center of population of the USA. There is a marker at the Monroe County courthouse that says so.

Minneapolis Airport

View from the observation deck

Seattle Space Needle

This is the Science Fiction Museum at the base of the Seattle Space Needle. Click here to see shots of the Needle and the location where they were taken.

By the way, the Space Needle is 605 ft tall (185 m), compared to the Tower of the Americas in San Antonio (750 ft, 229 m) and the Calgary Tower (627 ft, 191 m).

Seattle, Washington

Alexander Calder's Eagle in the Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle, Washington. The Seattle Space Needle built in 1962 for the World's Fair is in the background.

It has been windy and rainy but we like Seattle...

Surfside Beach, Texas

We were bck in Texas for the weekend. This waterfront property is now available on Surfside Beach courtesy of Hurricane Ike. I have hooked my camera up to a GPS (really). When you click on the Surfside Beach link above, the location where I took the shot can be seen in in the map to the side.

Vermillion River, British Columbia

This weekend was British Columbia and this is the Vermillion River close to the Stanley Monument.

Ewes and Lambs

Ewes and lambs passing Radium Springs as they take the highway into the town of Radium. The sheep aren't the least bit afraid of cars and unfortunately that is one of the leading causes of death.

Radium Headbangers

This big fellow was taking it easy early one morning over by the Radium baseball field. They were also in people's yards, in front of the hotel, and on the golf course.

Every year the Bighorn Sheep come down out of the mountains to spend a little quality time in the town of Radium. November is the rut, and in spring the ewes go high in mountains to have their lambs after a 6 month gestation. The rams and ewes hang out in two different herds and only get together in the fall.

It is very easy to get a photograph, there are a lot of them. But it is can be hard to get one without houses in the background (unless you have a big telephoto lens like the one used here and open it wide up to throw everything in the background out of focus).

By the way, the horns on these guys can weigh 30 pounds and the sheep can weigh over 300 pounds. They sometimes charge each other, leap up, and bang heads. That would hurt almost as much as being kicked by a Missouri mule. The head butting we saw was over pretty quick. They weren't charging but would butt from a short distance with a loud cracking noise resulting. There was some procreation going on also but this is a family blog so I won't go into that.

Bighorn Sheep

This handsome fellow has a half curl and was pleased to pose for the camera.

Bighorn Sheep Times Two

Two rams just after butting heads in the town of Radium, British Columbia. There were sheep all around town. These guys were hanging around in a group of about 12 rams. The town bills the annual event as the Radium Headbangers.

Mule Deer Eating from a Tree

This doe was tiptoeing to eat berries from a tree in Radium, British Columbia as her fawn stood nearby.

View from Grassi Lakes, Alberta

We took a hike near Canmore, Alberta and this is Chinaman Peak as seen from the path to Grassi Lakes.

Note: 1/3/2010
I found out that the proper name is Ha Ling Peak. In 1896, Ha Ling was working as a cook in Canmore. He was bet $50 that he couldn't climb the peak and return in less than 10 hours (he made it in 5). The peak was subsequently named after him.

Rock Climbers

Rock climbers on the face of the mountain above the Upper Grassi Lake.

Canmore Creek above the Falls

Teresa crossing Canmore Creek above the falls.

In the background and below you can see the Bow River valley that leads to the foothills and finally the prarie. I've posted a story of one of the first settlements on the prarie, now abandoned, here.

Canmore Creek Falls

These are the Canmore Creek Falls. To reach the top you follow the path forward, up, and to the right of the falls. A small bridge crosses the creek at the top and leads to the Grassi Lakes.

A Snowy Path

There are two paths to the Grassi Lakes. This is the start of the more difficult path. There is another easier one that follows a road. But the more difficult path gives better views of the Bow valley and the Canmore Creek Falls.

Male Hairy Woodpecker

Seen at the Cochran Ranch, site of the first really large cattle ranch in Alberta.

Doors

I haven't done a collage in a while so here are some doors from around downtown and neartown Calgary. By the way, I looked up the difference between montage and collage and I'm not sure I understand the difference.

I shot all of these while walking around this weekend after the Digital Expo. At the DE they had all the newest and coolest Nikon stuff but I restrained myself and didn't buy anything (yet).

There were a couple of pro landscape and wildlife photographers there and we listened in on their seminars. They gave interesting talks and willingly gave away some of their "secrets".

Old House

This house has seen better days for sure. It is located across from the Calgary Convention Center, not far from the casino, and close to the Stampede grounds. The parking attendant who works beside it told me that the old caretaker there "went crazy" and broke out all the windows. He said the house has nice hardwood floors. I like old buildings and ghost towns.... As for houses, here is an old Alberta farm house on the prarie that was a little less grand.

Golden Arches

There are golden arches and then there are golden arches. While we do have the commercial ones, this one is on the path to the river from our apartment. Thousands and thousands have passed through it.

They don't serve burgers at this arch but there are some refreshment stands close by in the summer. BTW, we call "cokes" pop here. And we go to the washroom and not the toilet, restroom, or bathroom.

And another interesting thing, whole places close down for the season - for example the whole town of Waterton pretty much shuts down for the winter. Where do the people go? I think they go skiing or to the hockey rink. In other words, to other cold places.

There was a pretty heavy snow on Saturday but by Sunday it was clear and pretty again when I took this picture.

Magpie

These magpies are common around Calgary and are very pretty birds in the right light and quite elegant. This was one of a pair down by the river and I followed him up and down the bank for a while trying to get a good shot. I took his picture just after he lifted off from a rock and was probably only six or seven feet away. This is a very distant Australian relation.

Late Afternoon in the Park

It warmed up today, the snow is long gone, and it was a nice day for a walk.

Dirt Road

On the road heading into the mountains outside Canmore we saw a wolf, a bear, and several white tailed deer. I didn't get a picture, but it was enough to see them.

Zombies on Stephens Avenue

Yesterday was the Zombie Walk on Stephens Avenue. See more zombies by clicking here but be forewarned! Some are pretty gruesome (but they all seemed like they would be nice once you got to know them). One cool thing about them was that they all seemed to be following a theme like Alice and the Mad Hatter or Star Trek.

I explain how I took the photos on my One Photo a Week blog....

The Rut

The male elk was in the brush and bugled a few minutes before this picture was taken. Then he came running at the young male in the foreground who was grazing with the cows. The little one was out of there....

The picture was taken at Jasper National Park - I've posted some more in a slideshow.

Snow Monkey

Dear Stu Monkey,

It is cold and snowy here in Canada. My bananas are freezing and I wish I was in Florida.

Best regards,

Snow Monkey