While they do flit about, they also, yes, hover, so it’s an interesting challenge to shoot them.
I find that because they are so small, I have the most success with intially focusing manually and then letting the autofocus take over.
I love watching Great Blue Herons fishing. Saw two at Fraser Foreshore Park in SE Burnaby, BC, this morning. They were batting around .800 :-).
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After taking in a Metro Vancouver tour of the Capilano watershed/reservoir (see previous post), we headed out on our own and walked the Coho Trail along the river.
We took in a Metro Vancouver watershed tour today. We visited the Capilano Watershed, getting a behind-the-scenes look at where much of our drinking water comes from in the Vancouver/Lower Mainland area of BC.
It was fun and informative — highly recommended. We’d been to the Cleveland Dam several times before, but had not taken the tour into some of the restricted parts of the waterhed.
Also cool to see some signs of early water supply infrastructure still visible though slowly being reclaimed by the forest. . .
Capilano Dam spillway
Reservoir
Masks optional on the bus — most folks were still wearing them
Interesting seeing the forest gradually reclaiming old infrastructure from long ago. Settling ponds, a furnace for thawing frozen filters . . .
Testing the structural integrity of a back-country bridge : – )
Bear calling card
Looks like a Sapsucker was at work?
Rotary traps for moving fish
Nets for moving fish
Bald Eagle in the mist
Another Eagle
A few blossoms and berries on my walk in south Burnaby, BC, today.
I love our ‘hood — it’s wonderful living next to a ravine park with lots of birds and other wildlife Here are some shots taken today.
Barred Owl fledgling
American Robin gathering lunch for its family
Busy bee
Cedar Waxwing on the Byrne Creek dyke
Northern Flicker family on the Byrne Creek dyke
Northern Flicker Byrne Creek Ravine Park
I got a summer weekends gig through early October being an Ambassador on ParkBus that picks up hikers in downtown Vancouver and delivers them to Joffre Lakes past Pemberton on the Sea to Sky.
I give them the standard “don’t pick any flowers, pack out your garbage, and don’t pet the grizzly bears” orientation before sending them off .
They’re on their own to hike as many of the lakes as they’re able in five to six hours, and then I make sure everyone gets back to the bus and bring them home.
The Joffre Lakes trails have gotten crowded over the years, so First Nations, Parks, etc., got together and came up with a management plan.
You now need a (free) permit to hike the lakes to limit congestion, and services like ParkBus are helping to reduce vehicle traffic and parking.
It makes a lot more sense to transport up to 50 or so folks on a bus than having, say, 25 dual-occupancy private cars making the trip.
We were thrilled to come across a family of Pileated Woodpeckers sharing lunch in Byrne Creek Ravine Park in Burnaby, BC, today.
We had a SEHAB (Salmonid Enhancement & Habitat Advisory Board) meeting on the Sunshine Coast over the last weekend.
We stayed at the wonderful Linwood House, visited the Chapman Creek hatchery, and participated in a Sockeye fry release into Sakinaw Lake.
The board meets three times a year, collating information from community stewardship groups, and taking key issues to DFO Regional Headquarters to inform mangement and the Minister.
I have had the priviledge of being on the board initially as an alternate and then a full member for about 12 years now. The breadth of fishy experience and knowledge in the room is amazing, and I am always learning.
For example, I was not aware that Sakinaw Lake sockeye are on the verge of extinction. The restocking effort by volunteers and DFO is an attempt to stave this off, but the outlook is not good with climate change warming the lake to temperatures detrimental to salmon. Fingers crossed. . .
Thanks to all the local folks who shared their good work with us!