Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: mystery

I missed posting any photos yesterday, as I was just too tired the day before to look for and edit images. Today, I am a little more prepared and organized, but still posting late. It always puzzles me when I/we come across "discarded" or lost foot-ware, even more so on a cold, snowy day. I don't know if these were on the ground when someone spotted them or if they were already on the park bench. Perhaps the young child was in a stroller and kicked off his warm boots, but I would have thought the person pushing the stroller would have then walked into them. Very strange, but I thought I would post a photo here, just in case someone happens to see my photo of their child's lost boots. These were seen yesterday, 14 November 2017, while friends and I were on a morning birding walk in Weaselhead. What a dull, miserable, overcast, cold, gloomy, somewhat foggy morning it was - just the opposite to what the weather forecast had said. I don't know why I went, other than that I knew I should get out on a walk, especially before real winter sets in, and I hibernate. Did we see endless, amazing birds? No, of course not, despite doing a much longer walk than expected! It was very quiet bird-wise, with the "usual" birds seen, such as Chickadees and Nuthatches. The only photo, out of maybe half a dozen shots, was this photo of little boots.

This object has been a puzzle for more than two years, lol! This photo was taken by my friend, Eric Brown, who lives in England and knew my Brother. He and his wife, Anne, were two of the friends who went through my Brother's house in such meticulous detail after John died, saving everything of interest and importance, including a huge amount of paper documents and photos. When they had completed this enormous task, they made sure that everything was packed carefully in 12 boxes and shipped over to me here in Calgary. This object, actually, is not something I asked to be sent, even though I found it fascinating. It is quite large and probably heavy - it looks like it was photographed on an ottoman/stool. Since then, Eric has been searching for an answer to "What is it?", but has not yet been able to solve the mystery. We are hoping that someone might just know or be able to make a suggestion. A long-time friend of Eric's did tell him what he thought it was used for, but I won't add that till later.

This is what the weather was like on 15 July 2012, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. The gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx

This is what the weather was like on 15 July 2012, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. The gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx

This is what the weather was like on Sunday 15 July, when five of us took a long drive NE of Calgary, to spend a few hours botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park! The day started off overcast, then turned to drizzle, which then turned into non-stop rain. There is a gate at the top of this area, which is closed when it has been, or is raining, as everywhere turns into one slippery surface. Bentonite, ancient volcanic clay ash, is prolific, and when it gets wet, it becomes very, very slippery and treacherous. Our feet slid on the surface of the gravel road that we had to walk on, and we weren't able to leave the path to explore. Yesterday, the gate at the top was unfortunately closed, so we had to walk all the way down to the floor of the badlands - which meant, of course, that the return walk was all uphill, which I never do well with. I'm always so thankful for very patient friends! By the time we reached the bottom, the rain was heavy and after just a few minutes, I was soaked to the skin and remained that way for the rest of the day, ha. Thanks so much, Sandy, for introducing us to a new, fascinating area of Alberta and for the ride - made a great day, despite the rain! "Dry Island Buffalo Jump is so-named because of a flat-topped mesa called a "dry island" that rises 200 metres above the Red Deer River. In the distance you can see the grassy cliff-top of an ancient buffalo jump. Cree Indians hunted bison here by stampeding them over the high cliffs, providing enough meat, skins and other products to sustain them. The park is a mix of badlands and riparian forests where cacti and other plants typical of Alberta's grasslands are found in proximity to species normally associated with the Boreal Forest Natural Region. Prairie falcons nest on cliff faces in the park. Due to the high content of bentonite (a clay-like material) roads and trails in this area can become very slippery when wet, sometimes making them unsafe or impassable for both vehicle and foot traffic. As a result, the access road from the viewpoint to the park's day use area is often closed during wet conditions." albertaparks.ca/dry-island-buffalo-jump.aspx Art (Leapfrog!) - wish I could send you a few days of this cool, rainy weather!