Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: kayak

(+14 insets!) Volcanic Recap to Fully Appreciate Today's Images of Paulina Lake Visiting a volcanic area really requires a bit of education because it's so important to understand why it's so incredible and should deserve an awed appreciation. So the other day I explained a few volcanic terms to you including volcano (the four main types are composite, shield, cinder cone, and supervolcano) cinder cone (a tiny volcano), crater (a large, bowl-shaped cavity within most cinder cones) and caldera (a large cauldron-like depression formed when a mountain collapses after a volcanic eruption). National Geographic explains that "craters are formed by the outward explosion of rocks and other materials from a volcano. Calderas are formed by the inward collapse of a volcano. Craters are usually more circular than calderas." A Pair of Lakes in the Newberry Volcano Caldera Both craters and calderas can be so huge that you can't even see them because they can cover many miles…even the size of a small country. The Apolaki Caldera . in the Philippines is 93 miles across, and South Africa's, Vredefort Crater is over 190 miles across! The Newberry Volcano's caldara is tiny in comparison--a mere 5 miles across--but unless you are high above, you cannot see the definition of this area. The deepest depressions of the Newberry Caldera are the homes of two lakes--Paulina and East Lake. These pure water lakes are fed only by rain, snow melt and hot springs and thus, they are a gorgeous, deep blue (The most famous lake in Oregon is Crater Lake, known for its incredible blue color and pure, unsullied water fed only by snow melt and rain). Today's Pictures One day Steve and I drove 30 minutes from LaPine State Park to Paulina Lake and hiked around one side. It was an incredible day, shared by Pumpkin in her front-pack cage and all of us had a lovely adventure! The main picture shows a fellow in a kayak who was able to quietly approach a flock of fabulous-looking Common Merganser ducks. Today's Insets Although I wasn't able to get close to these birds, I did get a couple of nice group shots to share. As we walked around the edge of the lake I saw many scraggly trees bending over the water. I also got a picture of a boat owner enjoying the lake. At one point I saw a cluster of bees on a Bull Thistle and it was only later that I discovered how cool these grey-eyed bees are! Sadly, I didn’t get any great pictures of the bees' faces but this picture turned out nicely otherwise. (if you'd like to see their amazing eyes, take a look at this page: Featured Creatures: Common Long-horned Bee. ) Finally, there was a stream that actually led from the lake in a very swampy marshy area and the light and shadow against the cloud-strewn sky is just delicious! :) I am also adding the pictures I posted months ago of our walk around Paulina Lake for a more complete presentation. Some pictures show the jaw-dropping obsidian boulders, rocks and chunks we found along the trail here, one of Newberry's special features. AMAZING! I hope everyone is doing well! The rollout of vaccine continues and we are hoping to get ours sometime in the next couple of months. Please stay safe, dry and warm! And thank you very much for all of your visits, comments and stars! :) Explored on 3/25/21; highest placement #15.

(+6 insets!) (Another picture that looks nice at full size!) (Please scroll down to "Today's Pictures" for details about the insets) Frosty Mornings are so COLD! Holy Frostbite, Batman, it's COLD OUT THERE!!! :D As I sit here at my computer, I have our the space heater in front of my seat, my sock-covered feeties tingling before it and trying to get warm again. It's not that horribly cold outside compared to many places but 28.5°F / -1.94°C is still WAY TOO COLD for my liking! You would think my tromping up and down my driveway would compensate, but it's just not enough. Even with the excellent, heat-generating slope all the way up from the main road to the base of our steep hillside. Add to that the fact that my washed hair makes my head and entire body struggle to get warm, even bundled up with a hat, scarf, gloves and heavy sweaters. But I'm slowly warming up and as always, the experience out there was easily worth what discomfort I might feel for a while after returning to the warmth of the house. Sharing a Breathtaking Sunrise with Pumpkin The beautiful day began the moment I got up. Together with Pumpkin, we peeked out the window after she climbed out of her fleecy-soft tent onto my finger and stretched her wingies, accenting each side with a satisfied "Urrrrrk." We admired the breathtaking pastel pinks, oranges and blues of the sunrise, contrails from the high-flying airplanes penciling soft white lines in the sky which slowly spread out into lovely, dissipating ripples. I couldn't help uttering my amazement of this view, complete with the beautiful Upper Table Rock stretching out in the distance before us. "Wowwwwwww, isn't that just gorgeous…" I considered running down to get my phone for a picture but decided against it. I didn't want to ruin this special moment with my little girl, nor did I want to wreck the serenity and peace that we were experiencing. Morning Routines and a Food-Flinging Parrot! Tiptoeing downstairs after a shower and getting dressed--I didn't want to disturb Steve, who was still sleeping at this early hour of just after 7am--Pumpkin and I shared the morning routine of preparing her food and getting my daily vitamins and pair of drinks together. Steve and I live a ketogenic lifestyle and part of this requires us to have extra potassium, salt and other electrolytes in our diet, which we get from an apple cider vinegar drink blend. It's so important, in fact, that if we don't have this drink every day, our bodies will respond eventually with fatigue and flu-like symptoms. The other drink was, of course, coffee, in the form of an Americano espresso (espresso and water). I save my cherished espresso and cream for a decadent afternoon treat. And yet, I totally enjoy my watered-down burst of caffeine I drink after downing my vitamins and cider brew. The crema and bouquet of espresso are so delicious! By the time I finish, Pumpkin's decided that violently flinging the contents of her food cup are the order of the day. I cannot help but smirk as I watch in amusement while chunks of bread and various seeds and pepper flakes are scattered over her perch and bounce into the sink. She is delighted at the mess she's made and I snicker at the maniacal, satisfied expression on her lovely face. Red eyes surrounding black pupils in her glowing yellow and orange face could look demonic if she were a nasty bird but she's an absolute doll and her mood right now is feisty and hungry. She was ready for a proper breakfast and I wasn't moving fast enough--this show was letting me know how she felt! "Well then!" Stepping boldly onto my offered finger, I continue, "Let's get you upstairs for your breakfast my dear!" Gripping my finger tightly with her large, scaly feet (we like to call them "her big, fat, chicken feet!"), we go upstairs together along with her prepared food bowl of veggies, fruit, and lots of other goodies. Pumpkin eagerly stepped onto her cage's upper perch while I put her breakfast in place. Before leaving, I turn on her music (80's and other fun songs that she loves) and tell her I love her with wishes for a happy breakfast before quietly closing the door. When I step inside after my frigid walk, Steve is bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and coming downstairs for his breakfast after having a wonderful shower with Pumpkin too! :) Our day has begun and it will be a beauty! :) Today's Pictures I'm sharing another selection from our evening walk along the water at Surfside RV Resort! My main picture today shows a perfectly synchronous pair of ladies enjoying their kayaks on the bay. I took some liberties with some creative filters and the result turned this otherwise "meh!" picture into an image I really like! Lots of insets today as well! There are three panoramas--a super wide one which made the view look like a bowl of land surrounded by water; a fading sunset view of a fingerling jetty which joined the place I stood at a 90 degree angle, and a wide view of the lovely, peaceful lagoon next to Surfside's resort. Also included is an image of interesting kelp that washed up on the shore. I have never seen anything like it and thought the resulting picture showed the fascinating shapes quite well. There are also two artistic renditions of an oystercatcher that I photographed. In the fading light, my camera's ISO shot up to a ridiculous number and the resulting grain rendered the pictures totally useless. Or so I thought. I'd never gotten a picture of this species before and I really wanted to do something with them if I could, grainy or not. Then I realized that I could break out my artistic filters and give that a try. How nice to have the excuse to play with my pictures in a purely artistic sense. I am delighted at the outcome, as these pictures were not savable otherwise. The results, in my opinion, are colorful and fun! :) I hope you like them too! (but I won't blame you if you hate them! :D) Pam, I looked to see if you have any pictures of shore birds, but I didn't see any. While I worked on my two Oystercatcher pictures, I couldn't help but think of you. I deeply admire your skill and dedication to the countless artistic images and collages that you've created over the years. I don't usually go that route but with my travel photography I am presented with the opportunity much more often. It's pretty common to find pictures that aren't up to par in one way or another, but when I switch on my creative eye, it's usually very easy to see the potential of an otherwise "garbage" shot. It's fun. I don't spend hours on them as you have with your gazillions of layers, filters, additional elements and so forth but I do allow myself the freedom to have a good time. It's really nice to do this and makes me feel as if I'm stretching other artistic muscles. Great stuff! Anyway, I hope this is a nice day for you!! *BIG HUGS* from southern Oregon! :) Explored on 2/13/20; highest placement #4.