Blog Archives
Circle of Ice
Friends, life goes around and comes around to the beginning, again and again, the circle of life like these rocks on the ice. Not sure how they got in this formation, but I thought on New years it was an appropriate symbol for making resolutions, Reminds me of the fish traps on a nearby river built by the native Americans, they flooded the traps, caught the fish and drained the traps and started the cycle over again. I feel that there is a more profound message in this image, but with this headcold, my brain won’t function. til Tomorrow MJ
New Years Eve Kissy face
Friends, I think these two pieces of ice look like a couple involved in a big wet kiss, the woman on the right and the man (single eyebrow) on the left, i have saved this image for New Years Eve cause there will be lots of kissy face going on at or near midnight today. My husband and I will not be participating cause we are both sick (cold), but we will be out there in spirit celebrating a new year and sometimes new paths to be taken. til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, this view is typical in our country this time of year. A mixture of ice and open water, and some bare sticks for trees with the ever present pines. The sky seems to stay the same but fewer days with a blue sky showing, and way too many clouds. But Christmas is coming and all the little children are counting the hours, til Tomorrow MJ
Ice Cracks
Friends, this ice is still black ice, meaning very thin and easily cracked. These cracks were started by an otter crawling over the surface leaving a concave path which has expanded due to warmer water underneath. When i see this kind of ice, i remember my father loving to skate on this kind of clear sheet before the snow made the ice surface rough. He would skate and skate until he was tired while we children would stick to the shallows. I don’t swim well and did not enjoy watching the fish swimming below me, but he loved it. I think most of his childhood memories came from skating away the winter with his friends and siblings. Most of my skating memories stem from chasing my father while he skated backwards, taunting us to catch him. We never did. til Tomorrow MJ
Hardy Snipe
Friends, this hardy Snipe is still hanging around on the icy edges of a pond that has not closed up yet, but the temperature this morning was only 9 degrees above zero Fahrenheit, so the water will soon close. Hope he gets his breakfast and hurries on his way south, it is not healthy to stay too long. Below is another image of him enjoying the bitter cold sunshine, he was holding up his foot trying to warm it under his body. Enjoy the sun while you can, til Tomorrow MJ
Missy Muskrat
Friends, the morning this was taken, the ice had covered the flowage and this little muskrat was perched on top, munching away on some vegetation that was protruding from the ice. I like the light of the evening sun. These rodents make houses of the reeds and sedges that also stick up out of the ice. They say that the height of these houses predicts the snow fall depths this winter. til Tomorrow MJ
Dysfunctional Swan Behavior
Friends, not the pretty swan picture that you are accustomed to seeing, but normal behavior during the breeding season, chasing away the competitors, and this takes place in Crex Meadows before the ice melts on the lakes, i like to think of them chasing away the cold weather and ushering in the warm, no Pasque flowers yet but 66 degrees F yesterday so warmer times are coming 🙂 I am ready, til Tomorrow MJ
Green-winged teal
Friends, this sassy fellow is a green winged teal waiting on the ice for spring to begin. They are migratory and appear to be resting up after their long flight to our northland. I love the little detailed feathers along his side and his beautiful green eye stripe. Does this mean that spring is around the corner, no, it means i made this image last spring. :), til Tomorrow MJ
Swans on the Ice
Friends, The ice (and snow) are still on the lakes and covering Crex Meadows, but the Trumpeter Swans return anyway cause they know it is nearing time to nest. Last spring, we watched a pair of swans build a nest in Crex, lots of pulling up vegetation and piling it on a muskrat house. When they first return a lot of chasing behavior establishes the area boundaries and eliminating possible competition for mates. This specie was almost extinct and has rebounded well in the last few years. Lead poisoning is still the biggest threat so please make sure your fishing weight is secure and doesn’t land in the bottom of the lake. til Tomorrow MJ
Birth of a Pine Cone
Friends, this is a macro image of a young pine cone among the needles of a white pine tree and encased in ice. As this preparation thawed, smaller bubbles appeared, not sure why that happened. but i like the detail in the small cone forming and you can start to see the scales forming on the surface. White pines have both female and male cones, but I am not sure how to differentiate them especially when they are very young. If you look closely at the needles, you can see the white lines on the needles and on White Pines the white lines are present on two sides of a three-sided needle.Can you see them, i can. til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 