Day 302 (1/2) - Ivory Gull It is extremely rare to sight an Ivory Gull this far south of the Arctic. This one has been hanging around Sambro Harbor for about a week. He's alone and must have gotten caught in a storm or something. His presence has the birding community here in an absolute tizzy :). I woke up early this morning hoping to sight the gull. This gull is about 2 yrs. old. He is not at all camera shy and came within 2 ft. of where I was to check me out. I was terrified to make a move in case I spooked him. Thankfully the sunlight was slightly diffused this morning which made for excellent conditions to photograph. Unfortunately, the weather was a bone chilling -20 c (about -5 f). I was well dressed for the elements though and oh so lucky to have been able to get these shots. It's a once in a lifetime experience. More photos of him in this gallery I also added a nice sailboat photo of a Frosty Morning Update: A 2nd Ivory Gull was spotted today. Wow. :) Jan 27 2009

My attempt at a photo a day. :) Will giver my best.

Gallery pages: << < 5 6 7 8 9 10 >

< 69 of 85 >

banjon > Day 307 - Honey, Honey

Funny thing is up until a year or two ago, I never really cared for honey. My mom tried, but I just did not like the taste. I did like honey cough drops and such, but not the sticky substance. I couldn't see what people saw in it.

That all changed when we bought some honey from the local farmer's market. Barb likes honey, and we started using it for a ham glaze (which is really nice). Well I was put in charge of mixing the ingredients for the glaze. Sometimes the honey would need to be coaxed off the spoon. Well, it being sweet and all, somehow crossed my taste buds.

I really liked the taste. I tried honey before, but it never tasted like this. It was sooo good we started adding it to our coffee (which gives it a nice flavor). One day while enjoying a cup of coffee, I read the honey jar. It stated the honey was cultivated from bees on the local blueberry and strawberry farms of Nova Scotia.

That was it! That was the difference. The honey had a slight taste of wild berry to it.
Much different than other honey I tasted, which is probably cultivated near apple farms.

So now we go through a medium size jar a month. My grandmother is probably laughing - see I told you it was good. :)

Feb 01 2009

banjon > Day 306 - Feeding Time

Local lobster fisherman empty out the traps, tossing any lobsters that are too young or have eggs. Also, any other non-lobster or crab. You can always tell when the fisherman are raising their traps - hoards of gulls swarm the boat.

Today we were having a heat wave - it hit 0C! The ice was melting, and the Ivory Gull was no where in sight. :( However, they found another one. So this is the third Ivory Gull this year. They are now wondering if there may be more here than we know. With more people showing an interest, more reports are showing up. Thats good.

Today I saw so many birds, I wish I had a 500mm... oh man.

Great Cormorants, Buffleheads, Long-tailed duck (winter plummage),
Common Goldeneyes, Barrows Goldeneyes, Red Breasted Mergansers,
Common Loons, Black Guillemots, Canadian Geese, White Winged Scoter, Black Scoter (I think).

There is snow storm coming, so I guess they are all finding shelter.
Hope they are around tomorrow too.

Jan 31 2009

banjon > Day 305 - A Wintery Calm

You might say, the calm before the storm. The Sambro lighthouse, surrounded by the cold North Atlantic, is sounding its fog horn every few minutes. Its a timed pattern to help any ships triangulate through the thick fog/snow.

The dark sky, or wall of nothingness, is a snow storm coming in from the Atlantic. The temp always drops a good -10C near the water. Depending on the wind gusts, windchills can hit -30C to -40C in no time. The mist is rising up off the water. I'd hate to think how cold the water is. I know you can only survive a few minutes if you fall in (I'd guess 0C or -1C). Touching the water burns your hand (well feels like its on fire).

Wearing two winter coats seemed to do the trick. Maybe I should wear two sets of gloves next time.

Jan 30 2009

banjon > Day 304 - Worlds Collide

Water and Olive Oil forced to get along, reach boiling point in no time!
A little fun during supper time.

Used a flash at 1/32 power, up and towards the rear of the aluminum pot.

Jan 29 2009

banjon > Day 302 (1/2) - Ivory Gull

It is extremely rare to sight an Ivory Gull this far south of the Arctic. This one has been hanging around Sambro Harbor for about a week. He's alone and must have gotten caught in a storm or something. His presence has the birding community here in an absolute tizzy :).

I woke up early this morning hoping to sight the gull. This gull is about 2 yrs. old. He is not at all camera shy and came within 2 ft. of where I was to check me out. I was terrified to make a move in case I spooked him.

Thankfully the sunlight was slightly diffused this morning which made for excellent conditions to photograph. Unfortunately, the weather was a bone chilling -20 c (about -5 f). I was well dressed for the elements though and oh so lucky to have been able to get these shots. It's a once in a lifetime experience.

More photos of him in this gallery

I also added a nice sailboat photo of a Frosty Morning

Update: A 2nd Ivory Gull was spotted today. Wow. :)

Jan 27 2009

banjon > Day 302 (2/2) - Frosty Morning

Frost clings to the trees along the ocean inlet. Mist slowly rises as the sun begins to warm the chilled water.

Its still cold (-20C), but feels like a heat wave after yesterday's windchills in the -25C to -30C range.

Jan 27 2009

banjon > Day 301 (1/2) - Jetty Plank

An old jetty plank lay on the shore. Some gulls now use it as a dinner table to break fresh mussels.

I included a second shot of some ice cold reflections. :)

Jan 26 2009

banjon > Day 301 (2/2) - Ice Cold Reflections

I bundled up extra warm today, double jackets, scarf, and gloves. It was enough to handle the -25C windchills at the harbour. I was looking for a rare Ivory Gull that was spotted here. I came close today, will try maybe tomorrow.

I saw some Hooded Mergansers, A Bald Eagle chasing the gulls, and Red Necked Grebe (another rare bird). It was a fun morning.

Feeling much better by the way. :) Finally kicked the cold.

Jan 26 2009

Day 302 (1/2) - Ivory Gull

It is extremely rare to sight an Ivory Gull this far south of the Arctic. This one has been hanging around Sambro Harbor for about a week. He's alone and must have gotten caught in a storm or something. His presence has the birding community here in an absolute tizzy :).

I woke up early this morning hoping to sight the gull. This gull is about 2 yrs. old. He is not at all camera shy and came within 2 ft. of where I was to check me out. I was terrified to make a move in case I spooked him.

Thankfully the sunlight was slightly diffused this morning which made for excellent conditions to photograph. Unfortunately, the weather was a bone chilling -20 c (about -5 f). I was well dressed for the elements though and oh so lucky to have been able to get these shots. It's a once in a lifetime experience.

More photos of him in this gallery

I also added a nice sailboat photo of a Frosty Morning

Update: A 2nd Ivory Gull was spotted today. Wow. :)

Jan 27 2009