Virginia Beach/ Sky Watch

Virginia Beach, Ontario - last Sunday evening

One boat left for Georgina Island (Lake Simcoe) just as the ferry from the island was heading for Virginia Beach.

To see tons of beautiful skies from around the world, visit  Sky Watch

K/ Alphabe-Thursday

KALEIDOSCOPIC whimsy

When I was a little KID, I was fascinated by a toy someone gave me for my birthday, a KALEIDOSCOPE. You probably had one too, a tube you looked into and as you turned it,  colourful shapes tumbled and formed beautiful patterns.

This week I learned a Photoshop Elements trick that transforms photos into similar kaleidoscopic patterns. The design above came from this photo of some pinks:

Now that I'm a big KID, I still like to play so here's another KALEIDOSCOPIC pattern from a photo of dames' rockets:

Mauve kaleidoscope

OK, I know not all of you like the idea of playing with your photos. BUT for those of you who do, you can find the instructions HERE


I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE

June 29/ Nature Notes

Seen at the edges of the forest this week

The largest square: white admiral butterfly. Moving clockwise: devil's paintbrush,  Canada anemone, dame's rocket. white admiral (again but this time with wings spread out) and milkweed

Please visit Michelle at Rambling Woods for more NATURE NOTES.

Bobcageon Sunday/ Watery Wednesday

Bridge over river in Bobcageon, Ontario on Sunday

Sunday started out dreary but by afternoon was delightful!

I am linking to Watery Wednesday where you can find many more watery photos.

All Aboard/ My World

Huntsville, Ontario: North Bay 82 miles. Toronto 146 miles

This Heritage Railway station was built in 1924 to support the economic development of the Huntsville area. After all these years, the station and grounds are still a work in progress! Plans are underway to construct a pedestrian walkway over the train tracks to connect thus building with a nearby park and trail system..

Hung on an outside wall of the station

Some of the site's former glory will be restored when a  dock is constructed similar to the old steamship dock in the picture above. The dock will be used for boating on the nearby lakes.

The train station will be revitalized too, providing comfortable waiting area for bus and train passengers, and the old baggage room will contain historic displays of train and steamship memorabilia.

It's refreshing to see this old building appreciated, not torn down like many of the stations have been.

Huntsville is north of Lake Simcoe, East Gwillimbury is south

I am linking to My World.

Blackberry Blossoms/ Macro Monday

Blackberry blossom in the York Regional Forest

The blossoms were beautiful and there were so many of them. Now the petals have fallen to the forest floor and the berries are growing.

To see more macro shots visit  MACRO MONDAY at Lisa's Chaos.

Huntsville/ Scenic Sunday

Bridge over the river in Huntsville, Ontario

It was a warm, sunny day, perfect for boating.

To see more scenic photos visit  SCENIC SUNDAY. 

Bicycles/ SOOC

Biking over the bridge at Fairy Lake, Newmarket, Ontario

To see more photos straight out of the camera, visit Jan's  SOOC at Murietta365.

Finch and Frog/ Camera Critters

House finch wondering if he heard a camera click

New twist on the old story.  If the house finch kisses the frog, the frog becomes....

Hmmmm. You're not buying that? Well, would you believe this finch and frog are friends?

Nah! Me neither.

To join in the fun, visit Misty Dawn at CAMERA CRITTERS.

Private Pond/ Weekend Reflections

House and pond south of East Gwillimbury

I was taking photos of wild yellow irises growing in a ditch beside a country road when I turned around and saw this reflection. It's a rather nice country home, don't you think?

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James' WEEKEND REFLECTIONS at Newtown Area Photo.

Willow Wharf/ Sky Watch

Last Sunday evening at Willow Wharf Park on Lake Simcoe, Sutton, Ontario

To see tons of beautiful skies from around the world, visit  Sky Watch

J/ Alphabe-Thursday

JERUSALEM artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus)

Native to North America, the JERUSALEM artichoke is a species of sunflower that grows wild in East Gwillimbury...and, unfortunately, in my back garden. Yes, the blossoms are pretty but the plants are monsters that want to take over at an astonishing speed. They are very tall (up to 3 metres or 10 feet), gangly and tend to flop over in the wind. But they have at least one redeeming quality: the tubers have a nutty flavour and can be eaten - cooked like potatoes or raw sliced thin and eaten in salads.

FYI: the name JERUSALEM has nothing to do with the city in Israel but is a corruption of the Italian word for sunflower, girasole.

Monarch and bee on JERUSALEM artichoke

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE

June 22/ Nature Notes

A community garden that I help take care of, East Gwillimbury

It's beginning to look a lot like summer!

Largest square: a very happy bumble bee on...er...is that a weed? Sure is! Purple vetch loved by bees and disliked by gardeners because it's stems are vines that climb everywhere and the plants are are almost impossible to eradicate.

The blossoms in the rest of the squares were planted in the garden on purpose, working clockwise: alpine astr, yellow daylily, low-growing campanula, edelweiss and the last-blooming purple Siberian iris.

Please visit Michelle at Rambling Woods for more NATURE NOTES.

Ice Cream?/ Watery Wednesday

Sunday evening at Lake Simcoe

As much as she liked the geese and no matter how much they begged,  she wasn't sharing her ice cream with them. Do you blame her?

Summer begins officially today at 1:16pm EDT.

I am linking to Watery Wednesday where you can find many more watery photos.

Garden Tour/ My World

Sue's garden

Saturday the Friends of the East Gwillimbury Library hosted a garden tour and - since I am on the Friends' board - I had a part in organizing it.  One of my "jobs" (Truly it was not a job but a pleasure) was to be a greeter in one of the loveliest of gardens on the tour - actually two gardens, a sunny one in the front yard and a shady one out back.

The mosaic is a taste of what you would have seen if you had  visited Sue's gardens.

Sue's backyard retreat

It was a warm day but the backyard was significantly cooler than the front.

A closeup of the fountain in the backyard

I am linking to My World.

Delaware Skipper/ Macro Monday

Delaware skipper sipping nectar of columbine blossom

I'm very fond these skippers with fuzzy looking wings and big black eyes.

Delaware skipper on columbine leaf

To see more macro shots visit  MACRO MONDAY at Lisa's Chaos.

Huntsville/ Scenic Sunday

Gazebo on the river running through Huntsville, Ontario

Two weekends ago in Huntsville the weather was lovely!

I hope all you dads are having a wonderful Fathers' Day!

To see more scenic photos visit  SCENIC SUNDAY. 

Lake Simcoe/ SOOC

Rest & Relaxation on Lake Simcoe

Wouldn't you enjoy a hot summer day boating on Lake Simcoe? We can dream, can't we?

To see more photos straight out of the camera, visit Jan's  SOOC at Murietta365.

Toady/ Camera Critters

Toady sitting outside my kitchen door

What this toad was doing I have no clue! It was raining. Was it on the porch to stay dry? Perhaps.

Toads are welcome guests in my gardens as they eat all sorts of yummy insects. I'm pleased to see this one and hope it stays, although I hope it finds a dry spot under a green leaf.

To join in the fun, visit Misty Dawn at CAMERA CRITTERS.

Orange/ Weekend Reflections

Machinery used to maintain the depth of the channel here

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James' WEEKEND REFLECTIONS at Newtown Area Photo.

Powerful Sunset/ Sky Watch

Electrifying light on the west side of East Gwillimbury

Some of you have already seen my recent SOOC post (Straight out of the Camera) post HERE, and YES, this photo was taken the same evening.
To see tons of beautiful skies from around the world, visit  Sky Watch

I/ Alphabe-Thursday

Wild yellow IRIS (Iris pseudocurus)

Sometimes called Queen of the Swamp, wild yellow IRISES are taking over the ditches and some ponds in south-central Ontario. Brought to North America in the early 1900s, they escaped cultivation and are now naturalized in just about any place wet enough to maintain their watery needs.

Iris growing in a shady spot

Considered INVASIVE by many, they are also very lovely this time of year.

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE

June 15/ Nature Notes

Wildflowers and wildlife this week

In the largest square, a Delaware skipper sips nectar from a pink columbine blossom at the side of an East Gwillimbury road. The columbine - one among ten or twelve similar plants in various shades of pink - must have been garden escapees...BUT there were no gardens nearby! Wherever thay came from did not bother the Delaware skipper or its skipper pals as long as the nectar was tasty.

Starting at the bottom left and working clockwise: turtle eggs, or what's left of them. Local painted turtles are crawling out of creeks, digging holes in the gravel at the side of the road and laying eggs. Then other critters  - mink, raccoons. otters, foxes and other medium-sized animals - are digging up the eggs and feasting. Turtle eggs have a huge mortality rate.

Blooming under sprinkling skies: yellow water lilies (Nymphaeae lutea), wild rose growing on a creek bank, American highbush cranberry blossom (Viburnam trilobum) beginning to fade - ALREADY! - and blue flag iris with its feet in the running water.

Please visit Michelle at Rambling Woods for more NATURE NOTES.

Waiting/ Watery Wednesday

Summer is only a week away!

I am linking to Watery Wednesday where you can find many more watery photos.

Logging/ My World

Mural depicting sawmill on a main street building,  Midland, Ontario

For sure, logging played a big part in the early settlement of central and northern Ontario. And the residents there are fully aware of this as evidenced by the murals painted on the outside of buildings in many of the major towns.

Saw mill north of Bracebridge, Ontario

Today, lumber mills still dot the landscape.  The big contraption over the sawdust at the rear of the photo is a dust collector. (I didn't just know that, I had to ask.)

The above mill specializes in timber and lumber from white pine, red pine, hemlock, and spruce,  and also hard wood from hard maple, soft maple, red oak, cherry, ash, beech, white and yellow birch, basswood, and poplar.

FYI: Timber is lumber with a measurement of no fewer than 12.5 cm (5 inches).

Thick and long beam (timber): 8 1/2" x 12 1/2" x 16'

Some of the boards in the yard the day I took the above two photos were HUGE!  Beams come from the center of logs after boards are cut off the sides. This beam must have come from a fairly large tree. Apparently, timber is available here in any size with lengths up to 32 feet.

Mural near centre of town, Gravenhurst, Ontario

Central and northern Ontario boasts many river and lakes, perfect in olden days for moving logs to sawmills.

Mural at entrance to Parry Sound, Ontario's business section

Another old-fashioned way to move logs was on horse-drawn sleighs in winter. Today trucks and trains haul logs to mills.

Modern day lumber ready for milling, north of Bracebridge, Ontario

This view of the mill's yard has an almost timeless quality, but the photo was taken only a week ago.

I am linking to My World.

Allium/ Macro Monday

Bumble bee enjoying nectar produced by a Bulgarian onion (Allium bulgaricum)

Bees and hummingbirds love these flowers!

A macro of one of the bell-shaped blossoms

To see more macro shots visit  MACRO MONDAY at Lisa's Chaos.

Oastler Lake/ Scenic Sunday

Oastler Lake east of Parry Sound, Ontario

Last Sunday was a beautiful day for touring north-central Ontario.

To see more scenic photos visit  SCENIC SUNDAY. 

Cook's Bay/ SOOC

Cook's Bay, part of Lake Simcoe

To see more photos straight out of the camera, visit Jan's  SOOC at Murietta365.

LLama/ Camera Critters

Four horses three horses and one llama who thinks he's a horse

The sun broke through the haze late in the afternoon. The horses didn't even notice but the llama is delighted.

To join in the fun, visit Misty Dawn at CAMERA CRITTERS.

Returning to Shore/ Weekend Reflections

Cesarea, Ontario on Lake Scugog near sunset

The conditions were ripe for interesting reflections but nothing captured my camera's fancy until these fishers returned to the boat launch.

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James' WEEKEND REFLECTIONS at Newtown Area Photo.

Beaverton/Sky Watch

Last Sunday evening,  the harbour at Beaverton, Ontario

My husband and I were on our way home from Muskoka, taking the route on the east side of Lake Simcoe, which passes by Beaverton with its beaches, harbour, pier and view of the lake.

I was standing on the beach when I clicked the shutter.

A couple of minutes later

Wasn't the sunset magnificent?

To see tons of beautiful skies from around the world, visit  Sky Watch

H/ Alphabe-Thursday

Black-crowned night HERON

This HERON is most active at dusk and at night so I feel pretty lucky to have seen this one.  I was actually photographing double-breasted cormorants nesting in some trees around the bay between Hamilton and Burlington, Ontario.
 

Black-crowned night HERON, crouched down and apparently concentrating on something

As you can see, it has short yellow legs. Not so easy to see in this light is the colour of its eyes: red.

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE