Along the way

Over the spring and summer months, my husband and I enjoyed our excursions around our island home of Prince Edward. Along the way, we encountered some curiosities which give us pause for their location or appearance. Some are man made, others occur in nature and drew our attention.

A sunflower grew at the end of the salt marsh again this year. Birds or squirrels are the source of the seed which walkers provide for them. Two years ago one sunflower grew near the location of this year’s bloom. We always marvel at such errant blooms.

On a recent trip to our favourite seafood store, the lobster tank held two blue lobsters which are real curiosities. Such lobsters occur 1 in every 2 million lobsters, the genetic anomaly from an over abundance of the pigment crustacyanin.

The boardwalk in Summerside has been undergoing repairs the last two years. This year, the western end of the popular walkway is under repair which includes the bridge over the stream where the squirrels and birds gather to be fed by walkers. We regularly take a photo of the progress on the bridge as we wait for the reopening of this end of the boardwalk.

It hopped in front of us, this Two-striped Grasshopper, an eating machine which loves to dine on crops. It was hopping along the boardwalk. No crops here! 

It was unusual to see this hot air balloon one morning through our bathroom window. We have watched them in Alice Springs, Australia, Las Vegas in the United States and at a festival in Ottawa, Canada one summer. This was the first sighting on our island home. Travel wasn’t necessary this time.

A different kind of bird greeted us along the boardwalk one morning as a Search and Rescue helicopter patrolled the shoreline. A young man was missing and a month later hasn’t been found. 

This convertible 1973 Triumph pulled into a parking lot recently as I waited for my husband. What a beauty for a ride on an warm end of summer day!

Sometimes a dilapidated old vehicle brings a smile. This one was in St. Peter’s Harbour when we visited a few weeks ago. 

Later we saw it at the lawnmower races. But, that’s another story.

Early morning along the boardwalk

The golden grand-dog is visiting again this summer and midday heat has necessitated early morning walks. Georgie loves the boardwalk with its smells known only to canines. She eagerly sniffs her way along as my husband and I take photos. This location works well for all of us.

One morning, as Georgie sniffed around, we encountered a number of animals, though not those we normally see, such as chipmunks, squirrels and blue jays. This day, there were goldfinches among the thistles, singing their hearts out.

In the stream, a muskrat was busy collecting grass to bring to its push-up or nest. While I did manage a photo, it is less that ideal.

On the boardwalk itself, this red-legged grasshopper posed as we walked by. These creatures can cause a great deal of damage to crops this time of year. We hear them in the field near our home every day now. 

Bonaparte’s gulls, an unusual sight, floated in the harbour. The flock of small, black headed gulls, was just off-shore. Like so many birds, the closer I went, the farther away they moved.

Starlings are common around the city but I have not seen them along the boardwalk until recently. They perched in the trees, as if to have a look at these unusual gull visitors.

Osprey, in a platform nest near the boardwalk, were busy. The parents watched as two fledglings tentatively tried out their wings. One of the birds stood atop the nest,  the northerly wind ruffling her feathers. We called her Einstein.

My favourite photo from this walk was of a Greater Yellowlegs in the stream where it empties into the harbour. Five of the birds hunted for breakfast in the shallow water.

The boardwalk is always an interesting place!