A Final Look At Fall 2017

One more month closer to the end of 2017.

The fall color has come and gone in my area, but thanks to photos,I can enjoy it as long and as often as I want to.

Once again,I invite you hop in my car and come along as we explore some less traveled roads.

Most often I stay on the more traveled roads, but sometimes a side roads calls so strongly that I must check it out.Such was the case this time.I had seen this one road many times, but never took the time to check it out.Please hang on as we do just that.

The scenery along the way is quite pretty.

A few brightly coloured leaves are reason enough to stop the car and get  some pictures.

I'm sure you are wondering how this road looks.Well,let me just say that I would not be trying this road after a rain, but when it's dry it's ok, just hope no one comes from the other direction.

An immature Bald Eagle does a fly-by at another location.

I am always exploring Southern Manitoba,but a few weeks ago,Steve and I went across the border into North Dakota,to check out the Pembina Valley in North Dakota,or as they call it, the Pembina Gorge. We found pockets of pretty color.

We were stopped at the side of the road and I saw the patterns in the shale hillside.I thought it looked interesting.

The mixture of muted colors gives a special look to the scene.

One last look at the layers of color. No,this isn't as beautiful as the Smokey Mountains,but I still like it.

I hope you enjoyed this brief time exploring, first Manitoba and then moving across into North Dakota.

Closing Thought:

Let's thank God for His countless blessings to us.

Pelican Lake,Manitoba

On September 17,my sister Becky and I took a drive to Pelican Lake,which is about 1½ hours west of Morden. This is a fairly large lake at about 1 mile wide and 11 miles long. I had hoped for more fall colours,but in the end I was not disappointed. Come along and see what we found.

There was some color in the bushes.

We drove to first one side of the lake and then around to the other side.I thought this was quite pretty.

When we returned to the west side of the lake I was surprised to see a great Blue Heron right at the edge of the water.I was sure he would take off immediately,so I snapped a few shots from the car.

I parked the car and slowly walked toward him.I know that many of you know that I have often said that I never get a good shot of one of these guys. I couldn't believe that he wasn't flying away.

I would take a few steps, fire a couple of shots and take a few more steps closer.The Heron was so intent on his fishing that, even though he knew I was there, he didn't care. This picture has not been cropped, so you know I was fairly close by now.

Finally,I guess he had enough of me and flew away, calling as he went.I kept on shooting. At this point,I think I was smiling from ear to ear.These are, no doubt, the best Great Blue Heron photos I have ever gotten.

Oh yes, just to prove I was at the lake,I have to show at least one lake scene.

The drive home was not uneventful either. We saw a field with many Snow and Blue Geese on it.I stopped the car as quickly as possible,backed up and jumped out of the car, ready to start shooting.

The next three photos are what I fully expected to see.An explosion of wings.

I end this post with the tail ends of these geese as they leave the area.

Closing Thought:

Hummingbirds,beetles or birds.

The Glory of God might be where you least expect it.

Just Outside My Door

Sometimes we travel long distances to find beauty and that can be very enjoyable, but,I'm a firm believer that beauty can be as close as just outside the door.

All pictures in this post were taken, either through the window of my door, or while sitting outside.

An American Redstart is enjoying a bath at the little fountain I have.

One of the many Painted Lady butterflies we had around this summer.This one is feeding on the nectar of the Mums on my deck.

A regular and very welcome visitor, the Black-capped Chickadee also enjoys the fountain.

A bird bath sitting on the deck railing, draws many different birds.Once again, the Chickadee stops by for a drink and to sing me a quick little tune.

No sooner has the Chickadee left and a Red-breasted Nuthatch also wants a drink.

I will say that this is an immature Chipping Sparrow,but welcome a correction on that.Either way, this little fella enjoyed the fountain as well.

Closing Thought:

Heavenly Father, You have put us here to enjoy and ponder Your marvelous creation. May everything You have made remind us of Your goodness, love, and care.

More Minniwasta Trail Sights

For this post,I once again invite you to join me on a walk along the trail at Lake Minniwasta.

I have included a trail map at the end.I walked a very short part of this trail.I have marked the distance with red stars.

Also,from here on I will only include the words to an old hymn, written in 1844 by Henry Alford.

Canadians have officially celebrated Thanksgiving,but my friends in America only do so next month, but in my opinion, we should be thankful every day.

Come Ye Thankful People Come

Come, ye thankful people, come,

Raise the song of harvest home;

All is safely gathered in,

Ere the winter storms begin;

God our Maker doth provide

For our wants to be supplied;

Come to God’s own temple, come,

Raise the song of harvest home.

All the world is God’s own field,

Fruit unto His praise to yield;

Wheat and tares together sown,

Unto joy or sorrow grown;

First the blade, and then the ear,

Then the full corn shall appear:

Lord of harvest, grant that we

Wholesome grain and pure may be.

For the Lord our God shall come,

And shall take His harvest home;

From His field shall in that day

All offenses purge away;

Give His angels charge at last

In the fire the tares to cast;

But the fruitful ears to store

In His garner evermore.

Even so, Lord, quickly come,

Bring Thy final harvest home;

Gather Thou Thy people in,

Free from sorrow, free from sin,

There, forever purified,

1. In Thy garner to abide;
   Come, with all Thine angels come,
   Raise the glorious harvest home.

Come Ye Thankful People Come

Walking the Minniwasta Trail

Recently,I went for a walk along the shore of lake Minniwasta. It was a lovely fall day so I felt that a walk was in order. I  am so glad I did. I invite you to come along with me.The walk will be slow,as I make frequent stops to get more pictures.We may not get very far, but I trust you will enjoy this time spent in nature as much as I did.

 As I was about to start along the the trail,I noticed a few butterflies.I soon realized that there were many butterflies,I think these are Painted Lady Butterflies. Here is a shot with four in the field of view, but they were everywhere I looked.

As I looked around me I saw so much beauty. Just enough fall color to make for some wonderful scenes.

The trail is well groomed and quite easy to walk along.You can just see a little bit of the lake to the left.

Parts of the trail are like this, trees on either side and maybe a glimpse of the lake through the trees now and then. I love being out here in the morning, when not too many people use the trail.

Sometimes I want to capture the whole scene and at other times, it may be a single leaf that catches. my attention.

Later that day I headed out of town and was able to capture a harvest scene.It is even the right color of equipment.I was born to love John Deere and that has not changed. My Dad was a John Deere fan so that is what I became as well.

My closing thought today comes straight from my heart.

I am so thankful for the changing seasons and all the beauty which God creates for me to enjoy.

I'm also thankful that because of the internet,so I can share at least some of this with you ,my friends.

Thanks for doing me on this short walk.

Finding Fall Beauty

Well,my friends, it's time to look at some fall scenes around my neck of the woods.

We do not have a lot of reds as a matter of fact, this year the color seems less than it has been in other years. I'm not complaining, though,this means I just have to look a little harder to find beauty.

As I was going to check out Lake Minniwasta,one day,I was literally stopped in my tracks by what I saw. There was some dust in the air and that combined with the shafts of sunlight made a beautiful scene.

Yellow,is the predominant color around here in fall.

This is obviously in early fall, because of the lack of color.I always enjoy that winding road through the Pembina Valley.

There are pockets of lovely color.

The hillside is filled with lovely shades of yellow and green. Of course I always hope for more vibrant colours,but I do still like what I'm seeing.

Here are some rules we would all do well to obey:

Daily Rules to Live By:

Wake up

Be thankful

Help others

Trust yourself

Worry less

Keep going

Love unconditionally

Dream big