Benson Bridge

In September of 2010, Double D and I traveled to Portland, OR to see my daughter. I was filled with joy to be with my daughter again. She had many wonderful things planned for us and we enjoyed every moment. It was all nature, all the time. She knows her mama.

I don't know if Benson Bridge counts as a fence, but I just love this footbridge at Multnomah Falls. Since it keeps people from falling into the gorge, I guess you could say it's in the fence family. :) In January of this year, however, a huge rock fell on the iconic bridge and destroyed a three foot section. Since then it has been closed indefinitely. I'm glad no one was hurt and glad that I was able to photograph it before it was damaged.

Linking to TexWisGirl's Good Fences meme. Thank you!!!

Thawing

It's nice to see signs of spring here and there. These are shots I took hiking with Double D in between birding field trips.

Two boaters at Greenwood Park. I really want to learn to kayak or canoe the waterways. It looks like such a peaceful activity.

Fishing pier at Greenwood

Can any birders out there help identify this hawk?

Double D spotted him on the street light as we were returning home late one afternoon.
He quickly pulled into an adjacent parking lot like a well-trained birding assistant should. :)

Rickety bridge at Waddill Wildlife Refuge

Wildflower at Waddill

Trillium, also at Waddill

We had a not so nice surprise with our Honda when the engine light came on over the weekend. Apparently, the unseasonably cold weather caused squirrels to climb underneath the car and chew the wires--a $630 repair. I'm sure this is payback for all the Pam I sprayed on the bird feeding station. Grrrrr. Our pest control person came out and put sticky boards underneath both cars. I really hope they stay away because I don't want to deal with that mess.

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday. Thank you, Stewart!

Autumn on the Lakes

On December 1st, Double D and I found ourselves with a too-quiet house and a little leisure time on our hands. He asked where I'd like to go, and after a brief discussion, decided on LSU Lakes to see the pelicans. We only saw one lone pelican lounging with the cormorants, but that was okay because I chased a tri-colored heron all over the place and photographed some fall foliage. The heron will have its own post. Or two, or three. :) Stay tuned!

A golf ball landed in the water right as I took this shot.
I hope it takes your eye off the big white light post; I was too lazy to clone it out.

More of the golf course

I'd love to have one of these homes on the water. Actually, a shack would do just fine if I had this view.

Right at dusk I spied a wood duck floating peacefully on the water.

Thank you all very much for your kind and generous comments. I so appreciate the time you take to share your thoughts with me!

Jewell Meadows

Since I never finished posting about my Portland vacation, here are some photos from day 3 when we traveled to Jewell Meadows in hopes of seeing elk. The wildflower hike that morning had been a bit of a disappointment, but we persevered, feeling in our gut that the best was yet to come.

This nice volunteer who was kind enough to spend time educating us on the elk.
He even pulled out some antlers, showing us what they're made of and their large size.
He indicated that we might have better luck on another stretch of road, but he was highly doubtful we'd see
any elk because the cows were pregnant and very skittish.

Well, looky here! When I saw a brown dot in the field I yelled at my daughter, STOPPPPP!

We pretty much kept our distance so as not to frighten them.

We never saw the males, but there were three females total and they were very gracious.

My daughter heeded my STOPPPPP orders again and pulled over so I could shoot this.
I loved that the roof was almost entirely comprised of moss. 

Portland, OR is a beautiful part of the country. I love every minute of my time there.