Happy New Year!

The theme this month is "picture of the year".  

Both of these were taken on a foggy morning.

Just as I took this picture of the pond, a huge owl swooped by and landed near his nest in a tree.  

 

Moonlight

Looks more like Halloween than the last day of the year.

 

Waiting for spring

This little boat was stashed in the weeds, waiting for a warmer day.

 

Killdeer

This little killdeer did not look happy on a chilly day.

 

Apparitions

Shadows in the lake.

 

Ruddy Duck

This is the time of year we get to see some different ducks.  They've abandoned the north woods, and come south.

This Ruddy Duck looks like a decoy to me.

 

Armada

The geese in Cooper's Pond swim toward people like an armada of ships.  When they see they aren't going to be fed, they swerve off to the next person.  The natural consequences of enough people ignoring the Do Not Feed signs.

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Merry Christmas!

Welcome to Raleigh at the Union train station.

Deck the halls...

Chalk art humor.

A deck of cards on the hall walls.

 

Sky

 

Lakeside

Skipping stones and rock hopping never gets old.

 

Bluebird

This little bluebird posed long enough for one picture and then zipped away.

 

Sentinels

These two cormorants seemed to be watching out for something.

 

Curious but cautious

Is it cheating to post a picture of a squirrel?  There are so many of them.  But this guy was very carefully hiding behind a tree checking us out.

 

Long leaf

Longleaf pines used to be the dominant pine species in the southeast.  Unfortunately, they are great lumber trees.  They were harvested heavily and now cover only 3% of the original range.

The needles really are long.  Here's a longleaf needle with a Loblolly needle above.  The needles can be 17 inches long and are often used in pine basket weaving.

 

Piles and piles

Raleigh is called the "City of Oaks"

We notice it most when waiting for the leaf pick up.

 

Peaceful walk

 

Winter path

Bare trees

The leaves are off the trees and most of the raking is done.

 

Fishing pier

 

The fishing pier at Shelly Lake gets some use all year.

Buena Vida

 

This mural is painted on the side of  Buena Vida, a new restaurant.  Driving by and getting a quick look I saw a pretty girl with flowers.  The more I study the picture the more intriguing it is.

Idaho winter 2

During a recent visit to Idaho, a foggy winter morning.

The trees looked like iced Christmas cookies.

 

Idaho winter

On a visit to Northern Idaho. 

 The lake was moody after a quiet snow.

 

Cracking

The white breasted nuthatch was working hard to crack open his seed prize

 

Mr. and Mrs.

There were two downy woodpeckers at the feeders.  Mr. Woodpecker has a red patch on his head.

Mrs. Woodpecker is strictly black and white.

 

Time to let go

The dog fennel was blowing in the breeze,

the groundsel was letting its seeds fly.

The West Indian foxtail was shining in the sun,

and this little seed was clinging to the pod.

 

Sky and Pond

A dramatic sky on a late afternoon.

 

In between

It's not quite winter, but there aren't many leaves still to fall.  The sweetgums are holding onto their leaves but most of the other trees have given up.

 

Hawk eye

This hawk was sitting on a fence eyeing the children's playground. 

 Was he thinking about a snack?

 

Heron (again)

According to a group of high school students walking by, they've named this heron Herold.  Makes sense doesn't it?

 

Cormorant

Usually when we see cormorants, they're in a group in one of the other of Raleigh's lakes.  This bird seemed very happy to be the solitary owner of Durant park lake.

 

Reflection #3

 

Reflection

Good day for a hike.  

Theme day: The Future

The theme for December is "the future".  When I started looking around I found futuristic images everywhere.  

It looked like a robot head to me, but it's a closeup of a bird feeder.

 

Reflection #2

Another reflection.

Boathouse at Durant lake.

 

Reflection #1

Reflection.  

This one would make a good jigsaw puzzle.

 

Dragon

This anole looks like a dragon to me.  Maybe it's the dark color against the red bricks. Or is it his evil eye?

 

Hairy Woodpecker

This Hairy Woodpecker must have been working on this tree for a long time.  He's not making a home, I think he's searching for insects.

 

Take five

Or ten.  It was warm enough in the sun to stop and take a rest.

 

Smear

I thought this looked like painting that had been smeared when wet.  It's the flipped over reflection of trees on the water.

 

They're back

The cormorants are back at Shelly Lake.   Where do they go?  I don't know.  

But all of a sudden there is a large group of them swimming, diving and eating.

According to Whatbird.com's Cormorant page, (see here)  a group of cormorants can be called a flight, a gulp, a rookery, or a swim.  

The way they were eating I think a gulp of cormorants would be appropriate.

 

Ransom of Red Chief

This little guy is peaking out of the pages of the O. Henry story, Ransom of Red Chief.

O. Henry, or rather William Sidney Porter, was born and raised in Greensboro, NC.  

He has his own plaza there now.