Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: two of three

"Thirteen keen birders showed up for the trip this morning (28 January 2017) at 8:00 a.m. The initial meeting place was Fish Creek Glennfield. After car pooling, We planned to meet again at the Truck Stop south of Nanton. From here, We drove West along 533 to our starting point-William's Coulee. Most of the day was spent birding in the Western half of the Nanton Christmas Bird Count circle. Our target for the trip was Golden Eagle, and the birds didn't disappoint. We found six, plus one more bird that we thought may have been a duplicate, so was not counted. We watched a group of four adult Bald Eagles, and thirty Ravens feasting on a carcass. Sharp-tailed grouse numbers came in at 44, but the four groups that we saw only gave us quick glimpses. A late afternoon treat was a Prairie Falcon circling over the parked cars, and giving everyone a great look. A second Prairie Falcon was found in a coulee, several kilometres to the East. Thanks to everyone who came out to enjoy the day, take in the beautiful scenery, and help spot the birds. Golden Eagle 6 Bald Eagle 7 Rough-legged Hawk 1 Prairie Falcon 2 Great Horned Owl 5 Sharp-tailed Grouse 44 Gray Partridge 10 Common Raven 40 Black-billed Magpie 25 European Starling 10 Rock Pigeon 5 Tony Timmons" I absolutely love the area that we covered yesterday, and I couldn't resist going on Tony's day trip. The scenery is spectacular and, even if no birds had been seen, I would still go, just to be driven in this seemingly endless area of foothills, with the Rocky Mountains in the distance. Though this is winter, we were surprised at how little snow was on the ground. I think the temperature got up to about +11C, but the wind was very strong - too strong to be able to hold my camera steady. For me, the highlights of the trip were the scenery and a Spruce tree in which three (though I only saw two) Great Horned Owls were hiding. Also, I loved the sight of this herd of horses who made their way in our direction, against a beautifully wild landscape. How different this whole area would look in the summer time. A most enjoyable day, Tony! Thanks so much for giving up a Saturday for us - much appreciated! Pat, thank you for the ride out there, and Tony for the ride the rest of the day.

On 29 September 2014, I finally drove out to an area that lies NE of Calgary, that I had longed to go to for so many years. It must have been 30+ years ago that I first saw one particular area of the Badlands of Alberta - the Hoodoo Trail. A few times since then, I had been fairly close when I went on several botany trips out that way, but when you are carpooling, you can't just go wherever you want. So, my youngest daughter and I decided that we both wanted to make this trip, All summer, we had been waiting for a day on which she didn't have to work and where the weather forecast was for no rain on the day or there had been no rain the previous day. The Bentonite Clay in the area becomes treacherously slippery when wet. The forecast for this day was for a mainly sunny day - at last, we were going! I think this was the longest day of driving I had ever done, especially to, and in, an area that I'd never driven to before. For anyone who doesn't know me, I have battled a driving phobia for decades, plus I have no sense of direction, lol! Thankfully, my daughter has an amazing sense of direction, so I knew we wouldn't be stuck out on the prairies in the middle of nowhere. A typical question at too many intersections went as follows: me - "Do we go left?"; my daughter - "No, we go right", lol! I met my daughter at 8:00 am. and I got home shortly before 9:00 pm. Much of that time was spent driving; the rest was spent wandering round three main areas - The Hoodoo Trail, Dorothy and Rowley, in different directions from Drumheller (which is known for its remarkable dinosaur findings). The forecast was far from accurate on our drive out to the Badlands and I began to wonder if we'd made a mistake going on this trip on that particular day. However, knowing that snow would be returning very soon ("returning" because we had two snowstorms on 9 and 10 September), I was beginning to feel rather desperate and really didn't want to risk not getting out there this year. The afternoon was less cloudy and we did have some sun. So, the first of our destinations was The Hoodoo Trail, a small area of protected, spectacular hoodoos (rock formations), and then we went further, to the almost-ghost-town of Dorothy. I had longed, for such a long time, to see the two small, old churches that are to be found in Dorothy, as well as the old grain elevator. After that, we drove over 11 bridges and called in at the tiny hamlet of Wayne. We passed the old Atlas Coal Mine near the main highway, but, much as we would have liked to visit the mine, we knew that we just didn't have time. From Wayne, we continued to Rowley to see the three old grain elevators, two of which are seen in this photo, and to wander round this very small, historical place. There are actually three elevators, with these two being right next to each other and the other one a little further from them. Dorothy felt and looked almost deserted, whereas Rowley was beautifully kept. From Rowley, we made our way back across the prairies to Calgary. I had planned on getting back before it got dark as I no longer like night driving and very rarely do it, but we didn't quite make it. On the return drive, the last sighting was a Great Horned Owl that was perched part way up a power pole. Well done, Rachel, spotting this welcome bird! Not easy to see in the dark. By the time I got home, I was so tired and my arms were so painful from driving, but, what a great day we had!! "There were 1,651 elevators in Alberta in 1951, but by 1982 a total of 979 elevators remained. The 1990s spelled the death of the wooden “country” or “primary” elevator. At the end of the 1990s, as the full impact of both of the ending of the Crow Rate in 1995 and further impending rail abandonment was felt, the pace of demolition accelerated at an unprecedented rate. At the end of the 1996-1997 crop year, there were only 327 elevators left. Alberta’s largest cooperative grain companies, the Alberta Wheat Pool (which amalgamated with Manitoba Pool Elevators in 1998 as Agricore) and United Grain Growers, ultimately formed a new corporate entity known as Agricore United in 2001, issuing issued public shares. Demolition of country elevators has continued, and in 2005 there were only 156 wooden elevators of any kind still standing, only a handful of which are used by the grain trade. The Government of Alberta has recognised the significance of the traditional wood grain elevators, and has designated 12 as Provincial Historic Resources. They are located in the following communities: Andrew, Castor, Leduc, Meeting Creek, Paradise Valley, Radway, Rowley (3 elevators), Scandia and St. Albert (2 elevators)." www.grainelevatorsalberta.ca/articles/HRM-history.pdf www.bigdoer.com/8049/exploring-history/prairie-sentinels-...