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Sunday 8 September 2024

Waning days of summer

It is that time of year again when many of the tourists have left the island for another year. A few remain but cruise ships will bring thousands of voyagers for daily excursions over the next two months. Autumn is knocking on the door and we are enjoying these waning days of summer at some of our favourite places and one place which was new to us.


We’ve watched the fishing boats in the bay this past week as the lobster season in this part of the province continues. One day, gulls stayed close to a boat, expecting offal to be cast away which they could eat. 




Another day, we saw a trap coming out of the water. 





Fresh lobsters are a common meal in homes and restaurants this time of year.


Meanwhile, along the shoreline, a Great Blue Heron was fishing too.





On a visit to Cavendish for a walk and a picnic, we watched a squirrel chasing a chipmunk which disappeared into a tree. The chipmunk poked its head out as we watched, hoping it had escaped the squirrel.





Nearby, a fallow field has become a mass of Queen Anne’s Lace and Red Clover. It is mesmerizing, in a good way.





At the Oceanview Lookout, 





newly built since Hurricane Fiona destroyed the previous one, one can see the length of Cavendish Beach nearby.





We visited the Borden wetlands last week as well. This area is new to us, but is an area popular with birders on the island, especially at low tide. We saw Semipalmated Plovers and Sandpipers. I was happy to see this juvenile Caspian Tern. 





The Canada Geese coming in for a landing were a beautiful sight too.





The wetlands and beach are in the shadow of the Confederation Bridge, which connects the island to the mainland of Canada. The curved line of the bridge is a massive structural wave high above those of nature.





On the way home, sunflowers were the highlight. They can grow tall, as you can see by these specimens growing beside this old Volkswagen van.





Also along the way, the sunflowers in this patch were facing the morning sun. We find ourselves doing the same as we enjoy the last few weeks of the summer spectacle.





Have a great week!

36 comments:

Boud said...

Wonderful pictures again. The sunflower close up is a keeper.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

The field of Queen Anne's Lace and Red Clover looks like one of those stereogram pictures you have to squint at to see the concealed image!

DJan said...

What fabulous pictures, once again. I so enjoy being able to "visit" your area through your pictures and commentary.

Bill said...

Wonderful narrative with beautiful photos. I love the little chipmunk peeking out of the tree hole, what a great capture.

tz_garden said...

Lobster is common for dinner, I think I should move there! The sunflowers hugging that old bus is really fabulous- you should frame that one.

MARY G said...

I look forward to your photos, always, but that heron is special. Just a wonderful capture of the bird doing its thing, and perfect in evey detail. Mind you, I love the birds with the boat shot just about as much. A story in evey photo.
I remember a wonderful day on Cavendish beach when my girls were small. My parents funded a week's vacation for them and me on PEI. I have an hilarious shot of my dad, speaking of story photos, being hit by sand as he sat back on the loose stuff. He just laughed, but the girls got a glare from their grandmother, not captured for posterity.

aurora said...

Wow, such keen observation. Your timing and photography are wonderful! Amazing that you get to experience and capture so much of natures wonder, week after week. Thanks for taking the time & sharing!!

Elephant's Child said...

You live in such a beautiful part of the world. Thank you for sharing some of its wonders. That bridge makes my tummy turn though...

Billie Jo said...

My goodness, my friend. Your photos are absolutely amazing! I love seeing the beautiful place you call Home. Have a cozy, autumn afternoon!

Celia said...

Love your photos. Especially the van and sunflowers. Summer fading away.

At Home In New Zealand said...

Beautiful photos to celebrate the end of summer with. I hope autumn will be a pleasant season for you as well.
Keep up enjoying your outdoors :) xx

peppylady (Dora) said...

Soon we can watch the leaves start to fall off the tree.

Red said...

Nice collection of photos showing the beauty of where you live.

Rose said...

I always enjoy your posts so much. That bridge is LONNNNG....I did look it up to see how long it is. I love the field of flowers, and oh, the sunflowers, both with the VW and also the last shot. That last is wonderful.

Joanne Noragon said...

Your field of lace and clover would make a lovely quilt.

Anvilcloud said...

I am surprised that a chipmunk eluded a squirrel in a tree of all places.

Wow! to those sunflowers by the van

Helen said...

Marie, these photos are exceptional and have made me even more excited about our visit that is getting closer day by day. I expect the changes over the next two weeks will be quite rapid.
I would love to see that field of Queen Anne's Lace and red clover.

David M. Gascoigne, said...

It’s great to see the new boardwalk. Let’s hope that the hurricanes behave and don’t come along and destroy it.

contempladoraocidental.blogspot.com said...

I am not sure which picture to classify as the best. You are a professional photographer!
:)

eileeninmd said...

What a lovely variety of scenes and photos.
I love the gulls around the fishing boat, the heron, the tern and the geese. The flowers are beautiful, love the sunflowers they are a favorite. Pretty view of the beach! Take care, enjoy your day and the week ahead.

photowannabe said...

Oh, those sunflowers are magnificent.
The bridge is definitely a photo op at its best. I love how it disappears off into the distance.
The gulls swirling around the boat makes a great action shot. That is a wall hanger for sure.
Sue

Granny Sue said...

I did not know there was a bridge to connect your island to the mainland. It looks very impressive.
I was listening to Rick Steve's on the radio the other day, and the discussion was about how to avoid swarms of tourists in popular places. Apparently there are even places in Europe protesting being overrun by tourists. It sounds like your island has many too. I love to travel, although we have done little, especially since the pandemic,and now I am thinking about how we can minimize our impact when we do travel again. It's food for thought, certainly.

Debbie said...

you have been capturing some really impressive images my dear friend. i enjoy watching the fishing boats come in, the picture is the same scene we see here with the gulls. awesome shot of the heron but today, the chipmunk stole the show!! i adore those gorgeous sunflowers!!

Maebeme said...

Every one of the photos is simply amazing! The shot of the Heron is incredible and the wee chipmunk is a cutie.

We did a driving tour of the islands in 2015, visiting Nova Scotia (drove the Cabot Trail), New Brunswick where Hopewell Rocks ad the Bay of Fundy were the highlights) and an abbreviated stay on Prince Edward Island. We were there in late September and were a little too early for the fall colours. One of our party became ill while we were on PEI, so we drove her back to Moncton to catch a flight.

We did visit Charlottetown, a park on Cavendish Beach, the red sand was incredible, and of course the Green Gables house. Based on your photos I am certain we missed out on sooo much. Hopefully I'll get back again in the next few years.

Hena Tayeb said...

Beautiful photos. Must be nice to have the tourist gone and peace and quiet restored.

The Happy Whisk said...

The critter in the tree is cute. Great collection of photos. Looking forward to getting out with Tim to get some fall shots.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

The Confederation Bridge brought back memories of our spring trip to Prince Edward Island and driving across it, Marie. We also remember the toll 😲 Cute capture of the chipmunk which I always find an elusive photo subject. Sunflowers are always a beautiful sight to see. It's always nice when all the tourists leave a popular area and life returns to "normal."

Stewart M said...

Love the image with the gulls around the boat - its a classic image. If it's late summer (or early autumn) with you, its early spring with us.

Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

Debbie Nolan said...

Marie I never tire of seeing your gorgeous photos of your part of the world. You certainly live in a beautiful spot. Adore those sunflowers...they do grow enormous. Have a lovely end to your summer days. Hugs!

Pattie @ Olla-Podrida said...

What a GORGEOUS heron picture! I cannot believe you were allowed to get so close. Your nature photos would make a great calendar, or covers for notecards.

margi said...

Wonderful photos! The chipmunk is my favourite.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Wonderful photos. You certainly live in a beautiful area. I love the photo of the curved bridge!

Liz Hinds said...

That is some bridge and those some sunflowers! Love the mesmerising shot. But that lookout looks perilously close to the edge given the frequency of storms.

gluten Free A_Z Blog said...

Marie, I love the way you weave an interesting story around the photos. The photo of the gulls around the boat is so lovely and I think we are all feeling the change of season in some way or another.

Ginnie Hart said...

I will never forget this time of the year many years ago, Marie, when my former partner and I took a Royal Caribbean cruise to your neck of the woods, including PEI and all the way to Quebec. It is something I'll never forget! I love how much Nature you include in your posts, calming the soul. But that Confederation Bridge would take my breath away!

Sherry's Pickings said...

oh that beautiful heron and the cute chipmunk... We used to see chipmunks when we lived in Philly for a bit. so cute.