Sandpiper's Place: September 2008

Montezuma NWR 6

Continuing on...
Parts 1-5 are here:
Montezuma NWR 1
Montezuma NWR 2
Montezuma NWR 3
Montezuma NWR 4
Montezuma NWR 5

One only has to look at a map to see why this region is called the Finger Lakes Region. It looks like a giant claw reached down and dug into the soil to create these beautiful lakes.

I could stay at the wildlife refuge the whole time, but how can one visit the Finger Lakes and not go to see at least one of the lakes? So, off we went for a drive toward Lake Cayuga.

This is a major farming area. The farms look quite prosperous - well maintained, good looking crops, and very active

This is also Amish country. It's not unusual to see people with modest clothing, the women wearing little bonnets/prayer caps on their heads, or men driving along the road in a buggy drawn by horses.

This is, of course, also a great recreation area, with the lakes bringing in tourists

We drove along and the lakes seemed to go on forever

While this area's farms, in general, look prosperous, I was drawn to this old barn that had seen better days. I like rustic things like this that hold a lot of history. I can't help but wonder about those people who had the pioneering spirit that carved out their little part of settling this country.

Looking out over a crop, across the lake to another farm in the distance

The blue sky that day reflected on the water

Well, now you know it's farm country, it's Amish country, and it's lake country, but did you know this is also wine country?

This is a winery among many in the region. Wine grapes growing in the foreground

We headed back toward the NWR, passing more signs for the Amish trades

We arrived at one pond, and the below the surface, it was teeming with fish

No surprise that this Green heron was there. Talk about an easy meal.

At one point, he perched on this dead stump. Thanks Mr. Heron.

A Kingfisher flew over

I'm sure he was hoping to dive down into the water to grab some of those fish

And probably would have, if we hadn't been there.

More to come... sorry for the delays. Can't be helped. Thank you for all of your nice comments. Things are still pretty complicated here, but I'm doing okay! I hope you all are well!!

Continues here:
Montezuma NWR 7

Montezuma NWR 5

Hi everyone, Sorry that the series was interrupted. It took me some time to get back to it because my mother was hospitalized again this week. It's been a long, complicated roller coaster of a week of hospitals, nursing homes, and now she is at my house. She is okay, but "Roller Coasters R Us" lately. LOL Hope all of you are well!

Continuing - If you missed them, you can find here the previous posts: Part1, Part 2, Part, 3, Part 4

Thanks for all of your comments. I'm really glad you enjoyed the close-ups of the Harrier in Part 4. I'm still excited about seeing it so close!! If you didn't get to see it, check out part 4. It's a gorgeous bird and a rare opportunity.

A special note at the bottom of today's post.

The atmostphere was subdued, as the morning sky's soft pastels offered a peacefulness over the marsh

Birds were already at the entry. Canada Geese, a rare sighting in this part of the country of a white-fronted goose, various ducks, seagulls, and little sandpiper-type birds

The light reflected off the water. I kept looking under those trees to see deer, but never did

A duck idly floated by, as the water was still reflecting the soft pinks of the sky

And while the light was coming up, the colors in the sky seemed to hold on for quite awhile

It was pretty out there

I watched this duck splash down

Nearby, a bee buzzed on some Touch-Me-Nots, still wet from the previous night's rain.

I spied a Green Heron struggling with a fish

He seemed to grab hold of it, but would lose it over and over again

He finally got a good grasp of it

And "GULP!" down it went. Amazing how different they look when they stretch their necks

Some geese came in for a landing

A heron waded past

On this day, Mallards and Canada Geese shared the highly coveted log

Teasle

I would like to congratulate Susanne at Sue's Daily Photos for receiving this award. She well deserves it, and I'm honored that she has passed it on to me. If you get some time, please stop by and say hello to her. She has a beautiful blog, and you will get to enjoy some wonderful photography of one of my favorite places in the United States, the beautiful city of Charleston, South Carolina. It's real eye candy to visit there. Enjoy.

Pictures to be continued as life allows it. ;-) Have a great day!!

Thanks, Kylita for the correction on the flower. That's what happens when you post at 3 am. LOL - Thanks everyone for your kind words. I'm doing okay. Hanging in there. :-)

CONTINUES HERE: Montezuma NWR 6

Montezuma NWR 4

Montezuma NWR 1
Montezuma NWR 2
Montezuma NWR 3

Continuing along, I saw Canada Geese galore. I arrived here just in time to watch a turf war. The one on the left was forced to shove off when the other two hissed and charged at him

Overhead, gazillions of (what I suppose were) starlings, swarmed the sky

The beautiful blue sky that day reflected on the water

And a Caspian Tern flew overhead. Usually not seen in this area except during migration, it was a treat to watch him

A little Pied-Billed Grebe idly floated by

Suddenly, in the distance, we saw that same Northern Harrier we had seen before. We watched it glide over the grasses, and WOW! It decided to come down maybe six feet away from the car!!

I couldn't believe my luck. There it was, right outside my window, resting in the marsh grasses.

Too bad about the grasses, but when it's in the wild, you feel lucky to get pictures like this

I've never seen any pictures this close, unless the birds were in captivity, so I felt really happy about this opportunity and just kept clicking! Doesn't it have a gorgeous face?

Moving on to a different area, more Goldenrod in bloom

We went to an area where the gate is always closed to the public, but we noticed that the gate was open this time. We decided to chance it. If they didn't want us in there, they could kick us out.

We were lucky not to get caught because we got to watch about dozen or so Egrets, a lot of cormorants, and even an eagle.

The next day we went back, and just as we arrived, a park official was kicking some people out.

Continues Here: Montezuma NWR 5

I hope all of those on the Gulf coast of the U.S. are taking care and staying safe.

Montezuma NWR 3

Parts 1 & 2 are here:

Montezuma NWR 1

Montezuma NWR 2

This Great Blue Heron stood posing for me, all ruffled in the morning light

Alert to any sounds while he stood there fishing

Two beautiful little spotted deer wandered at the edge of the marsh grasses, weaving in and out, making it a challenge to get a picture. I kept snapping and this was the best I could do. I got a lot of butts, pieces, and parts. ;-) If you enlarge it by clicking on the picture, you can see its face.