Time in nature

My husband and I have continued our daily walks along the boardwalk in Summerside where some of the apple trees are late to bloom. 

The resident Belted Kingfisher provided lots of entertainment one day too as it fished in the stream. 

You can see the catch in its mouth in this photo. 

Meanwhile, Rockets are blooming along the trail now.

We also drove to Cavendish one morning to watch for Bald Eagles during the Gaspereau run. Gaspereau are small fish which return from the ocean and swim upstream to spawn in the waterways of the island. The eagles follow their movement and fill up on the tiny fish each day during the run.

After they’ve eaten, the satiated eagles sit in the nearby trees and let their food settle. 

This time provides a great opportunity for eagle watching and photography and we saw eight eagles, mostly immature ones, during our time there. 

This young one didn’t mind us watching from the trail nearby.

On Clark’s Pond, Canada Geese swam 

as overhead, a Osprey surveyed the pond and occasionally dived for fish.

Along the trail, Forget-me-nots greeted us 

while various species of birds sang their praises to creation. Familiar species like the Song Sparrow were visible as were Common Yellowthroats, singing in their best voices.

We had lunch at Cavendish Grove, one of our favourite picnic locations. 

We ate in a shaded area, probably not the best choice on a day when the mosquitos were biting. A table in the sun would have been a far better choice.

Next time.

Along the red dirt roads

Exploring Prince Edward Island will inevitably take you beyond paved roads to the iron-rich dirt roads. The old roads are cut deep into the red earth and this time of year, they, like all roads, are lined with natural beauty, wild and free. 

One can easily stop and admire the wildflowers along the old roads as we did recently on our way to Brander’s Pond and again at the Indian Head Lighthouse with Helen and Frank, our Australian friends.

At the pond, which is behind sand dunes, a stream flows to the beach on the north shore of the island into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The road to the area is lined with lupins this time of year and they are at their peak.

While purples and blues are prevalent, combinations of pink and rose colours vary from a hint of pink to the two coloured pink/rose petals. 

The while lupins are more rare.

With the pond in the background, this piece of driftwood looks quite seasonal.

Another wildflower which is quite obvious this time of year is Dame’s Rocket, which can grow quite tall along the roadsides and pathways. I took this photo from the car window looking up an embankment. 

At the Indian Head Lighthouse, the sea is the backdrop as the old light stands guard at the end of the breakwater. 

Lupins love this place but daisies claim their piece of real estate too.

Soon the lupins, rockets and daisies will be replaced with other names and colours but all of the blooming beauty this time of year gives me joy!

Reaching for the sun

They reach for the sun along the pathways and trails, in the meadows, around rivers and ponds and along the seashore, anywhere they can get a root hold. A variety of colours, they give their best to creation, from seeds to plants, blooms, pollen and eggs. They colour our paths and brighten our days.

Wildflowers don’t need human prompting, they manage on their own just fine. Seeds, carried on the wind, by birds or other animals, sprout and reach into the soil. Before long, voilà! The leaves and showy blooms are reaching for the sun again.

Sometimes they stick with their own kind. 

What looks like one bloom per plant, such as bunchberry, 

or numerous clone-like blooms like yarrow are worth a look.

Various colours catch the eye, such as the yellow of St. John’s wort with the tiny stripes on its buds which look to be painted there.

The pink and white of bindweed is always a nice surprise as it climbs its way up and around shrubs. This may please onlookers but not the plant it climbs. 

One notices a white plant among the bushes but the details of this male Tall Meadow rue with the lemon anthers and white stamens are beautiful on closer look.

Blue Flag iris is always a nice addition to the banks of a wetland.

Even seed heads, such as this one of Yellow Goat’s beard, which resembles dandelion seeds, makes us stop for a look.

Pinks and white of Dame’s rockets fill the ditches and pathways. The natural beauty of the wild roses, rockets and clover along this section of trail by the sea is a seasonal treat.

And the most spectacular of all is the riot of colour when a variety of wildflowers share a space such as here

or here,

or here.

Mother Nature is an excellent gardener.