Winter wonder

My husband and I haven’t missed many of our daily walks along the boardwalk in Summerside this month despite the wind and cold. We don’t feel right if we haven’t walked by the sea and visited the chickadees and squirrels. That time in nature makes the troubles of the world disappear for a few minutes every day. Besides, the cloud cover makes a difference to the look of the day and it is always interesting to see what the wind has done to the ice the previous night.

This was the scene yesterday as we headed to the gazebo which is always our starting point. Fresh snow covered the setting and the heavy cloud cover hinted at blue sky above. 

From the bridge, where you can see a bit of the gazebo on the left, the heavy blue clouds freeze the scene in time. Without the wind to disturb the setting, it is peaceful there.

Compare the same scene to a somewhat foggy day last week when the setting had less colour and the sun’s rays provided a spotlight. Without the fresh snow, it looks stark.

Ten days ago, the sun and clouds gave the ice a sheen in places and it looked blue in other areas.

Another day, the ice rafted due to the on-shore wind the night before and piled up on the shore and shoreline. The texture distinguished it from sky. 

The winds this year have rafted ice all over the harbour. Along Water Street, the beach has piles of ice which may be there until spring. You can see the island’s red sand in the ice.

When we arrive home, we often have soup, our favourite winter meal. We’ve had a number of varieties, including mushroom, turkey, ham and split pea, French onion, and cream soups, such as potato and butternut squash. The last of the turkey soup will fill bowls and bellies today. Yum!

As always though, we wonder what nature has to offer today.

Update:

This morning, January 23/24, it was a beautiful sunny winter day!

The north shore

We were slow to return to our excursions around the island after Fiona. Trees are down everywhere and trails are slowly being cleared. Two weeks post storm, we returned to the boardwalk and later to beaches where we love to walk and have picnics. My husband and I will enjoy autumn as much as we can since we will be limited by the weather soon enough.

On one recent outing we went to the north central shore, first to the New London Lighthouse which I have featured numerous times on this blog. The old sentinel made it through another storm unfazed by the look of it. 

Not the beach and sand dunes however. In June this year, you can see the extent of the beach across the channel.

Post Fiona, the dunes are greatly reduced and the sand washed out to sea. It will be a slow return.

Closer to the lighthouse, the storm surge destroyed the Marram Grass and dumped sandstones over the area.

We walked the beach towards the cliffs where our daughter fishes for bass. We had never been to this area before and on such an autumn day, it was the perfect time to check it out.

The red sandstone stood out against the natural blues. 

The faded October grass and wildflowers at the edge of a farmer’s field cling to the red soil as long as possible, hanging over the edge as more soil washes or falls away.

A lone tree nearby shows the direction of the prevailing wind and withstood the wind speeds brought by Fiona.

A sea stack, difficult to see in its entirety from the path, is beginning to become a sea arch. If you look closely, you can see two glimpses of sea blue through the sandstone.

Anglers park along the cliffs and take a path down to the shoreline below  It is too treacherous for these old legs to attempt such a walk. We will return when our daughter is fishing there one day.

The wind was cold requiring gloves and a hat so we decided to have our picnic in a more sheltered area. On our way to North Rustico, we passed a flock of mallards enjoying the day at French River. I hadn’t seen mallards in some time, so it was a treat to watch them for several minutes 

and meet a new friend too.

The gazebo at North Rustico has a view of the harbour and is a great place to have lunch. Our turkey soup hit the spot, warming us to our toes.  

Our excursions will continue as long as possible this autumn and a hot picnic lunch will be on the menu.

Something new every day

My husband and I walk the boardwalk most days about mid morning, before it is too hot. One of the good things about the area is the breeze along the coastline which cools us as we go. The area which we frequent, is different day to day and my husband and I enjoy discovering what is new or different. 

We always start at the gazebo to see what is happening at the salt marsh/pond that morning. 

There are usually American Black Ducks but if we are lucky, one of the Great Blue Herons who return to Bedeque Bay every summer is visiting the marsh too.

Birds are some of my favourite animals. Birds of any size, shape and description are fascinating to me and I enjoy observing them. I take numerous shots with the hope of one good photo. I especially enjoy photos of birds when several species are in the frame. 

I was pleased this month to see these three species co-existing at the end of the marsh, with the sea in the background. 

The American Black Ducks live in the marsh, moving easily between the marsh and the bay. 

Gulls are always around the bay and this may be a Herring Gull. 

We watched the Great Blue Heron disappear into the bulrushes.

The same day we saw an Osprey that lives in the area perched on a pole which gives it a great view of its domain. 

We hear Osprey and see them hunting sometimes along our way.

A Yellow Bellied Sapsucker was busy among the trees as well. This one stayed at this particular tree long enough for me to take a photo.

Another of the treats that day was the chicory plant which was blooming beside the trail.

It was the first such plant I’d seen along the trail and I’ve noticed it every day since. It is a pretty wildflower which is used in medicine and as a cooking spice.

We always notice the chipmunks too. 

They are so tiny this time of year. Could they be any cuter?

Every day our favourite place for a walk has something which is picture worthy.

Around the countryside

With my husband at the wheel, I was able to take in the countryside during our recent drive west of our home. Several items caught my eye along the way and the mid morning country roads in winter made it easy to stop, easier than it often is anyway.

This sign on a pole high above a scrap yard was an anomaly. 

This island province of Prince Edward doesn’t have moose unlike our home province, Newfoundland, where introduced moose thrived. In Newfoundland, moose and vehicular accidents are common and the reason we rarely drove on the highway at night. No such worry here so this sign reminds us of home. 

The owl statue on top of the pole is a deterrent to other birds but only works for a limited time. I didn’t notice the owl until I looked at the photo at home.

Overlooking a scrap yard, a tow truck has a jeep in tow. 

Both have seen better days and will spend the last of them here. A crow is along for this last ride.

I have never seen a two story gazebo. The view of the ocean must be spectacular from the top deck.

Most of us don’t keep one of these by the shed.

This old barn has seen better days. Farm equipment, animals, hay all may have had their time here. I wonder what is in there now?

The sound of the running water was a peaceful end to a winter drive.

After the snowfall

You couldn’t call it a storm. We’d had 10-15 centimetres of snow but without significant wind. Many of the conifers were snow laden. 

When I arrived at the boardwalk, the parking lot was empty. I felt safe in the area although I was alone so I grabbed the camera and headed to the trail for the hour during my granddaughter’s dance class. It was a great opportunity to get some fresh air after a day indoors.

It was cold but I was dressed for it. I started at the gazebo as I often did. The view out the harbour was always a great place to begin, looking out to sea in the Northumberland Strait. The sea was frozen in places but the stream and the saltwater marsh were completely frozen. An animal, possible a fox, had crossed the snow covered ice. 

As I headed out from the gazebo, I heard a woodpecker. I followed the sound to a feeder which was new to the area and the woodpecker was busy pecking at the feeder. Then he found the suet. 

A plow clears the bike trail alongside the boardwalk in the winter and early going, among the trees, was perfect. Further along, in an open area, the snow had drifted so the walk was more of a challenge.

Among the trees again, the path was perfect but the bench at the end of the trail didn’t have many guests.

As I walked back, the trail plow/salter made its way towards the drifted areas. The trail was cleared for the evening.

On my way to collect my granddaughter, I stopped along Water Street to take in the setting sun. It was a perfect outing.

Sights along the coast

On the first full day of spring, the bright sun drew us out of the house. The bonus was the lack of wind on this glorious spring day. My husband and I decided to drive along the western shore in the Evangeline region, just west of Summerside. 

There was much to see this day. We stopped at Linkletter Park again and walked along the shoreline. The ice hadn’t changed from the previous day but it was pleasant to walk there without the bitterly cold wind. It will be a few months before anyone is on these monkey bars.

A pair of huge ravens inspected their domain, as the two invading humans paused to observe them.

They spoke back and forth with their characteristic, “Cawwww.” 

They surmised we were no threat to anything in the park.

As we drove along the coast, we stopped periodically to take photographs. This unusual man and pig ornament sat atop a gate to the driveway at the side of a property. It is an unusual piece of folk art in this area.

All along the road, you are never too far from the sea. The cottages, houses and sheds or barns, stood out against the backdrop of the ice covered sea. In this photo, behind the shed, a wee bit of open water is visible.

It gives us hope.

The gazebo overlooks an area where people dig for clams in season. 

There is a sand bar exposed at low tide, making it easy to see the clam holes. You would never know this from the look of the area now.

One fenced yard next to a house had numerous old wheels and pieces of farm equipment on display. 

There is open water in the background here as well.

We returned home energized and enthusiastic for the days ahead. We could have taken a picnic this day and sat by the ocean with a mug of tea. It was pleasant enough and would have been invigorating after the long winter. If only the Nor‘easters were finished for this year!

Mahone Bay

When one looks at the community now, it is hard to imagine the time when ship and boatbuilding were in their heyday here. Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, is a small town which has some modern homes around the water and an area of older homes nearby. 

There are pleasure craft anchored in the bay while a marina further out the bay looks busy. 

During our recent visit to Nova Scotia, we stopped twice in Mahone Bay on our way to and from Lunenburg. The community of 1000 people was busy with tourists late in October. We enjoyed a walk along the bay on both occasions.

The bay was a mirror when we stopped for breakfast one morning. 

We could hear pigeons on their gazebo perch across the channel.

A flock of mallards bathed and showered in the channel, as they flapped their wings and sprayed water high into the air.

A house at the head of the bay looked its best reflected in the water.

On the bay, several floating cottages looked like ideal retreats.

The three churches, famous in pictures of Mahone Bay, were difficult to photograph because of the light. This was the best photo.

Trinity United in on the right.

St. John’s Lutheran is in the middle.

St. James Anglican is on the left. 

I will visit Mahone Bay again in pursuit of a great photo of the three churches.