Nature, Photography, Travel

Porteau Cove Birds ‘n Beasts

I love day tripping the Sea to Sky from Vancouver up the coast to Whistler, and if time permits, points further north.

Here are some shots from a stop at Porteau Cove along the way.

If you don’t like the light, just wait awhile, it can change fast.


There’s a spot where Harlequin Ducks like to hang out. I’ve seen them here several times over the years.


Nessie? 🙂

porteau cove views

Nature, Photography

Plentiful Plumage at Piper Spit at Burnaby Lake

Lots of bird action at Piper Spit at Burnaby Lake today.

great blue heron burnaby lake


For some reason a Canada Goose got angry at the heron and chased it over a hundred meters. Lots of male birds of various species were getting into spats with spring in the air, so perhaps the goose saw a misplaced rival?

wood ducks burnaby lake
A couple of male Wood Ducks wraslin’ as a female looks on


I win, I win!


Northern Pintails were feeling their oats, too

northern pintail burnaby lake


Lots of Red-Winged Blackbirds making a ruckus

red-winged blackbirds burnaby lake

scaup burnaby lake
Scaup

teal burnaby lake
Teal

canada goose burnaby lake
Canada Geese

beaver burnaby lake
Looks like a beaver, but this is the best shot I got from far, far, away. I got the sense that it had a broad tail. OTOH is does look muskratish, too. . . Looked through my photos again, and none really displayed the tail clearly.

Nature, Photography

Evening Moon, Hummers in SE Burnaby, BC

Lovely moon on our evening Byrne Creek walk in SE Burnaby, BC. Also saw several hummers.


Max 40X zoom on my little Canon SX730HS pocket camera

evening moon
Here’s a wide shot of Southridge Dr. The moon is that little dot above the road near the treeline.

hummingbirds burnaby bc

hummingbird burnaby bc
Hard to keep the little camera steady at 40X when your pulse is trotting nicely along on your power walk. . .

Japan, Society, Sustainability, Travel

Air Travel Piling Up this Year, Guilty Feelings, Too

We’ve kept our air travel down for many years, as it’s one of the most carbon-intensive ways to move around our suffering planet.

But we’ve got several trips lined up this year, and while I’m excited, I’m also feeling guilty.

We haven’t visited Yumi’s parents in Japan for many years, so that’s on the agenda.

We have a friend in the UK who will be travelling later in the year and who says we’re welcome to use her apartment. Wow.

And there’s a bunch of us in-laws hitting our sixties this year, so there’s another travel-intensive gathering planned. .  .

And we have not one, but two, family weddings this year in eastern Canada, which shall require travel from here on the west coast.

I have an aunt who often laments the days of family all living in one village, within steps of each other.

Yup.

Yeah, there are carbon offsets. And yeah, we are probably one of the most enviro-friendly families around.

But still . . . We’re gonna have a huge carbon smack this year. Sigh. . .

Streamkeeping, sustainability, community, business, photography, books, and animals, with occasional forays into social commentary. Text and Photos © Paul Cipywnyk