Chickadee Photo Art » Rocky Mountains

Prairie Province Scenes

Sharon — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 12:00:52 +0000

Some scenic photos today from Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Enjoy!
~Sharon

JAYS: Blue, Gray + a Nutcracker

Sharon — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:00:56 +0000

Ever been stared down by a Blue Jay ?

Jays are beautiful birds that remain with us throughout the year enduring harsh prairie winters along with some other hardy birds such as sparrows, nuthatches, siskins, redpolls, chickadees and grosbeaks. The Blue Jay is one of my favourites because of its brilliant blue feathers. I once saw a Blue Jay stealing a robin chick from a nest – this was hard to watch so in spite of admiring their beauty I also see them as a predatory bird. Blue Jays and Gray Jays are common in Manitoba. Gray Jays are one of the boldest birds I have come across. They have no problem swooping down beside you and stealing a snack – very opportunistic birds. The Clark’s Nutracker which is also featured in today’s posting (last 2 photos) is classified in the section of Jays and Crows. I saw these birds in Alberta this past summer and was pleased to get some photos of them.

Below: Gray Jay in Winter

Below: Clark’s Nutcracker (Alberta near Columbia Icefield)

Enjoy!
~Sharon

Bighorn Sheep

Sharon — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:00:27 +0000

It is almost certain that you have seen the Bighorn Sheep if you have visited Jasper National Park or Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies. They frequent mineral deposits and can be found alongside roads and sometimes in the middle of roads. The mature rams can also be seen but I have found they are a little more elusive than the females and young. They are beautiful sure-footed animals that have no trouble scaling rather steep mountain sides. I would not consider a trip to the mountains complete without a sighting of the Bighorn Sheep.

Enjoy!
~Sharon

Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel

Sharon — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:00:42 +0000

Another variety of ground squirrel in the Alberta Rockies is this Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel. At a glance, it looks like a chipmunk because of its striping and colour but it is much larger. Most squirrels are longer than wide but the Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel is quite rounded. These ground squirrels were living on the same rocky slope that the Pikas were on. I don’t recall seeing this ground squirrel before until this summer’s trip to Alberta.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Off the beaten path . . .

Sharon — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:00:10 +0000

Today’s photos will be a little “off the beaten path” from my usual photos of flowers, birds or wildlife. They are from a recent trip to Alberta. The first photo is of a corral for horses in the mountains. This is the location where we went for a mountain canyon ride.

Below: A lone rock embedded on some dried river flats.

Below: An piece of driftwood with unusual shape.

I see a Baboon laying on its back (left) and a lizard’s head ( top right). What do you see?

Below: Three pine cones in river sand.

Below: A highway sign warning motorists of bulls crossing . . . only in Alberta.

Enjoy !

~Sharon

Spirit of the West goes on

Sharon — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:00:22 +0000

Call them what you like . . . Cowboys, Mountain Men, Horsemen but the Spirit of the West truly lives in Alberta. I met up with these two men who were heading out and up into the mountains on a six day pack trip with their horses. For a brief moment, I thought I was on location of a John Wayne movie, being called “Mam” and all. I found out that one of the pack horses was carrying food for the horses, the other had food for the men who stated they could get by on little but it was important that their horses had feed during the trip. They were just doing the final checks before heading down into the canyon and deeper into the mountains. The photo of them heading down into the canyon is one of my favourites from the Alberta vacation. There is something very peaceful about it.

There are ranches in Alberta that offer “horse” vacations where you ride and tent in the mountains. I only went on a partial day Canyon Ride and it was absolutely beautiful. I am thinking the 4-6 day vacation would be spectacular !

~Sharon

American Pika

Sharon — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 12:00:19 +0000

The Pika is a real cutie! I had a blast watching these little characters hopping around the rocky slopes, each time carrying grasses and leaves in their mouths. Sometimes they would sit for a brief moment and eat, other times stash the greens in rock crevasses. The Pikas hardly sat still for any length of time so getting some photos proved to be a challenge. They are about the size of a small guinea pig, have furry broad feet and rounded ears. Their fur is chinchilla like and I saw some that were brownish and others that were more grey.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Rocky Mountains

Sharon — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:00:33 +0000

This summer I once again visited the Province of Alberta and, of course, Jasper, Banff and Yoho National Parks. Every few years I try to make a trip out that way as there is something about our Canadian Rockies that always leaves a mark on one’s soul. I’ll be posting a some photos from the trip which includes wildlife, mountains, lakes and glaciers during the next few weeks. Although we had beautiful clear and sunny days there was a smokey haze in the air from the B.C. forrest fires. Today’s photos highlight the beautiful colours of the late day sun on the mountains.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Bugling Elk

Sharon — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:06:03 +0000