The path we choose

I'm fascinated by pathways.  I never noticed this fascination until the scanning project.  But I've got a LOT of photos of pathways!  I'm sure there's some deep-rooted psychological reason for this.  Maybe. 

Oak Hammock Marsh, July 2005

Birds Hill Park, September 2004

Spruce Woods, October 2004

Old Pinawa Dam, May 2005

Portia Marsh, June 2005

(another photo taken using a disposable camera) 

Souris River Bend, August 2005

Spruce Woods, September 2004

May the path you choose always lead you somewhere wonderful.
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Back to the old Pinawa dam

I love the shield country...  It's so hard to visit any of the best spots through most of the spring and summer, at least on the weekends, though!

These spots come by their popularity honestly. 

More photos from the old Pinawa dam:

That's a blond-colored rock in the middle - when I first looked at this photo, I thought it was a waterfall!  Maybe that rock did have water rushing over it in the past... 

 

Some guides describe the area as reminiscent of Roman aqueduct.  I don't know about that, but it's a fascinating place - nature reclamation at its best!

And just in case you think it's all rocks there, think again!  There's a very pretty meadow between the parking area and the dam.

Did I mention these pics were taken in May of 2005?
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The Petroforms themselves

Wasn't sure whether to include photos of the petroforms themselves - they are more often photographed than the surrounding area.  But doesn't seem right to exclude them!

Most resemble turtles

But not all of them did.

Everything you read about these formations warns you not to move the stones.  I can't even imagine what sort of person would even think of doing that!  I wonder if they're monitored...

Actually, I like to imagine that they are monitored, continually.  Just not by any park staff, that's all!

Petroforms - Whiteshell

I had seen photos of the petroforms, and it looked like a neat spot!  Definitely worth a quick visit.  There is a parking lot right off of the highway, then you take a short trail through the woods.  You come upon the site rather suddenly, and did it ever throw me for a loop! 

I'm not sure what I was expecting, to have it impress me so deeply, but impress me it did.  The whole area feels "charged".  I make no attempt to explain it whatsoever, it just "feels" different.  The whole area is rock, with amazing vegetation clinging to life in small mats overtop.  The petroforms themselves were much bigger than I expected - for some reason, I thought they were small - a couple of feet across.  But they are large, perfectly sized to function as burial circles, the largest being about 6 or 7 feet long.  That was my first impression, though I had read that the original usage of the area remains unknown. 

It's not the first sacred site I've been to, but it definitely the most powerful.

I figure the "haze" in the following photo is some sort of light artifact, a couple of my photographs appeared a little bit hazy.  Maybe even a processing flaw.  Funny thing is, I didn't notice it at all until the photo was scanned.  It was visible on the print, once I knew to look for it, but shows up much more on the computer.

No matter, I think I'll believe this is a photograph of the resident spirits - or at least the spirits visiting at that time! 

Old Pinawa Dam

Another trip made in May of 2005 - yes, it WAS a good month!  I had a heckuva time picking out a couple of photos of this gorgeous spot!  It's one of those places where there is so much to see!  This was our first visit to the area - attempted another visit last year, but the place was so full there wasn't even any place to park!  Word must have gotten out.

We saw a pair of Common Loons to the left of where the photo above was taken, and a water snake to the right!

And just for good luck, another photo taken at Hecla (also May of 2005)

Seven Sisters - Alternate viewpoint

If you continue past the picnic area, where you can go down to the falls and see the pelicans, there is a parking area and rough trail where you can get a different view of the water.  In May of 2005, we took this path and it rained on us, turning the path into a muddy, slippery mess!  The view was worth it though, and we got to see an American Redstart up close.  Even managed to get back *up* the trail and to the car!

Another photo as a reminder that beauty is where you find it.  I think I could photoshop those power lines out pretty easily, but I kind of like it the way it is.  Photographed in Souris, April of 2004.  See the little "wisp" on the upper left hand side?  This was apparently a hair that worked its way into my camera.  It didn't show up on all of my pictures, not even the same type of picture.  Mysterious. 

West Hawk Lake before thaw

Still scanning!  This photo was taken at West Hawk Lake, in the Whiteshell, in April of 2003.  We were curious to check out the area in early spring, and it was our first visit without a TON of people around!  The water was still mostly frozen, and looked gorgeous!  So clear - you can see the first few feet of sand, before the bottom becomes pebbly.  We also saw a very bold Whitetail on our drive out of the beach area - I'll scan that photo when I come to it as well!  Wonder what it would be like to have photos in *gasp* order?  Mine are such a schmozzle... 

(Click to enlarge)

More blasts from the past, and (probably) a spark bird

The scanning game continues, about 150 today.  I think however that my estimate of 10,000 was conservative...  Thinking it's probably more like 12-15 thousand.  Sigh!

Oh well, it's fun going through them, especially the photos of spring and summer!

I don't actually remember this moment, but I marked the photo as being "hwy Bdn to Wpg", so this was either a side road along the Trans Canada, or I had no idea!  Taken in September of 2004.

See that clump of grass in the middle?  A few seconds after I took this shot, a big brown thing appeared, then hightailed it outta there - a moose!!  This picture was taken from the little turn-in right after the welcome sign at Hecla-Grindstone.  We saw our first moose within minutes of entering the park!  Must have used up all of our luck though - been back several times and have never seen another.  Photo taken May of 2005.

This may be my spark bird.  Just maybe.  A "spark bird" is the bird that makes you want to quit looking at birds, and become a birder.  This picture was taken September of 2004.  Pictured is a very lost female Harlequin Duck.  My poor old camera just wasn't made for bird photography!  This was the first bird we "twitched" (not sure if it counts as twitching if it's in your own city) after hearing about it on the Manitobabirds list. 

It was an educational experience.  How great to see the bird we came to see!  But it appeared lethargic, and seemed awkward on land.  We expressed these thoughts to a few of the birders present, and got no response.  None.  Later on the list, somebody commented on its tameness, to which I responded that it appeared "under the weather".  No response.  A later email updated us - the bird had been taken in by Zoo staff, and died later.  How odd, that a good experience for us came about due to this poor bird's own misfortune.  Some other time maybe, we shall wax poetic and philosophize over such issues. 

In the meantime, here is another photo taken at beautiful Hecla, also in May of 2005, during the same trip as the previous photo.

(Click to enlarge)