WTD#10 - Here Comes The Sun! (please)

Whew - here it is July already, just like that  If the forecast is correct, we are finally in for some summer weather.  Yesterday I picked the first few ripe Saskatoons on the Dove Hill trail, where Dawg and I squeezed in a quick walk while the rain held off.  The huckleberries will be next, and then we will be in the hills with our buckets again.  Meanwhile we are enjoying our strolls in the valley, despite the burgeoning bug population that this wet spring has fostered.

These Killdeer were enjoying a temporary pond created by the high level of the Slocan River.  They always look so worried, and their eyes look totally fake, like they were ripped off from a teddy bear.

A Belted Kingfisher was perched on a mullein stem, overlooking the same pond.

A honeybee gathering nectar from a Showy Aster, along the Slocan Rail Trail.

The Slocan River is the backdrop for these Daisies along the rail trail.

This Western Tanager gave me a very brief moment to snap a photo before it flitted off again.  I don't get to see them that often, although they do nest in our area.

Mock Orange (aka Syringa) is in bloom everywhere right now.

The Lorquin's Admiral butterfly is also very common this time of year.  This one is perched on a Mock Orange blossom.

A Common Harebell, along the rail trail.

Side view of a Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, nectaring on Spreading Dogbane flowers.

Looking straight down on the flower head of a Birch-leaved Spirea, with some flowers open and some still in buds.  This was taken on the Elk Cutoff trail (Dove Hill).

Ocean Spray is abundant and in bloom in the Dove Hill area (and elswhere).

These two Elegant Day Moths were mating right on the Dove Hill trail.  I moved the piece of Knapweed they were attached to off to the side so they wouldn't get trampled. 

Another angle.  The wild colours remind me of  '60's tie-dye art.

This little beetle seemed to be gorging on nectar from the Spirea flowers.  No idea what it is, but it has cool markings on its back.

Low elevation Thimbleberry flowers have pretty much run their course and now the fruit is forming.

A Bald-faced Hornet is nectaring on Snowberry flowers

Tentative ID of this butterfly is an Arrowhead Blue, also nectaring on the Snowberry blossoms.  These flowers were just loaded with all kinds of wasps, bumblebees, butterflies and other insects.  Their nectar must be very nourishing, or accessible, or plentiful, to attract so many feeders.

The Tiger Lilies are fading fast now, so I thought it was worth one last look for the season.

A bee working on a Meadow Buttercup blossom.  The Meadow Buttercup is actually an invasive species, albeit long established, from Europe.

I haven't been able to identify this little butterfly resting on the wild rose flower.

There's just nothing like a day out in the natural world to soothe the soul, eh buddy?

"Amen to that!"

WTD #9 - A Few Sunny Breaks

Rain, rain and more rain.  Still we manage to go for our little jaunts around the area, trying to time it so we catch the little windows of sunshine between the downpours.  The creeks and rivers are bursting at the seams, but upland the birds and critters go about their business of making a living, rain or shine.

This Lorquin's Admiral butterfly was nectaring on snowberry blossoms along the Slocan Rail Trail

Another Lorquin's Admiral, this time along the powerline by the Kootenay Canal.

Queen's Cup was in bloom in the shady areas at Slocan Pool.

Close view of Queen's Cup blossom.

A week or so after the Queen's Cup came the Dwarf Dogwood flowers.  This is right beside Pass Creek Road.

This Chipping Sparrow near Slocan Pool has a juicy tidbit to bring back to the nest for it's babies.

Droplets on a Saskatoon leaf

Spreading Dogbane

These tiny flowers, about the size of a lentil, are called Maiden Blue-eyed Mary or Small-flowered Blue-eyed Mary.  We found them up in the Rover Creek area.

Devil's Club growing beside Connor Creek, a tributary of Rover Creek.

Paintbrush - Rover Creek area

Oak Fern, Rover Creek

We have been seeing Cedar Waxwings everywhere these days.  I think this is a young one from this year.  It has a bit of an evil gleam in it's eye, don't you think, Dawg?

"Come and have a seat on the bench - take a load off - arf, arf, arf!"

WTD#8 - More June

It's been a rainy June so far, but we are still finding sunny or at least non-raining moments to get out and about to enjoy this rich and colourful season.  We haven't been venturing far from home, just our usual walks on the Slocan rail trail, along the Kootenay River and up in the Rover Creek area.

These are huckleberry leaves just about to unfold, a bit higher up in Rover Creek.

And here are the huckleberry flowers - let's hope for a good crop in July!

Thimbleberry is in bloom - here along the Slocan River

More thimbleberry

The Saskatoons are already forming fruit, and will be ripening before long.

I learned that the name for this butterfly is Sara's Orange-tip.  I never found out who Sara is or was.

Frog Peak and the Slocan River from the rail trail near Vallican.

I got the sense that these Cedar Waxwings were siblings from the same nest, just starting to get out and about on their own.

The remains of a snail along the Slocan Pool trail.

A bumblebee harvesting nectar from a black twinberry flower, Slocan rail trail

This little Warbling Vireo has a big voice and a lovely song. 

Looking down on a cluster of Yarrow flowers.

This is a Black-headed Grosbeak.  I've lived here all my life and don't remember ever seeing one, and this year I have heard several reports of people seeing them, and then voila!  this guy flew up and perched in a tree right in front of me the other day,  Nature is full of surprises, eh Dawg?

"Look, I found some mud!"

WTD#7 - June Birds and Flowers

Dawg and I have been wandering around the valley trails and shorelines, in between the showers and downpours, watching the progression of the seasonal cycle.  It's June now and the birds have laid their eggs and in many cases reared their chicks already.  The early blooms have faded and other flowers are emerging. The vegetation is fully leafed out and lush with the rains, as we make the transition from spring into summer.

Black Twinberry in bloom

The Cedar Waxwings were feeding on Hawthorn blossoms along the Kootenay River.

Another Waxwing in the cattails

The wild Roses are budding...

and blooming

As are the Honeysuckles,

and the Tiger Lilies.

We stumbled across this Bald Eagle nest the other day.  There is at least one almost fully-grown chick in there, maybe more.  I hope to get back and get a few more photos if the rain ever stops.

On the other end of the size spectrum is this American Redstart, no bigger than an alder leaf.

Another tiny bird is the Yellow-rumped Warbler

and the Common Yellowthroat

and a Song Sparow living up to it's name.

This is a Gray Catbird in a Red Osier Dogwood bush.

And this is the flower of the Mountain Death-Camas.  The bulbs and leaves are poisonous, so beware!

What and amazing, beautiful, rich and diverse land we live in, don't you agree, Dawg?

"I see a squirrel!"