Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: 24 July 2017

There seemed to be no sign of the smoke from the wildfires in B.C. and Alberta on 24 July 2017, so I made the most of it and went for an afternoon drive SE of the city. First, I wanted to call in at the Saskatoon Farm and find a few colourful flowers to photograph and then I wanted to check on birds at Frank Lake - a good job I don't make lists of what I see, as this bird list would have been ridiculously short! The Saskatoon Farm was absolutely packed! It was U-pick season and this is obviously extremely popular. I had a fairly quick wander around, including taking a photo or two of the unusual-looking Helmeted Guineafowl. I love their black and white, polka dot body feather pattern. Also love their Sunflowers, especially the orange ones. From there, I drove the short distance to Frank Lake, which was totally deserted - no people, practically no birds, either. Where were they all? I've had such bad luck at Frank Lake this year on the few times I have been there. Three White-faced Ibis and a juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron flew over, and I did see a Marsh Wren and a Yellow-headed Blackbird. I had driven there the previous day, too, and there was not much to see, though I was lucky to have a Western Grebe swim briefly near the blind. It was 34C (93.2F) at the lake that day! From the blind, I drove all the way round the lake area, hoping to find a field or two of Canola. Afterwards, one of the further roads had me passing the tiny church at Dinton. I always stop and take a few photos.

There seemed to be no sign of the smoke from the wildfires in B.C. and Alberta yesterday, 24 July 2017, so I made the most of it and went for an afternoon drive SE of the city. First, I wanted to call in at the Saskatoon Farm and find a few colourful flowers to photograph and then I wanted to check on birds at Frank Lake - a good job I don't make lists of what I see, as this bird list would have been ridiculously short! The Saskatoon Farm was absolutely packed! It is U-pick season at the moment and this is obviously extremely popular. I had a fairly quick wander around, including taking a photo or two of the unusual-looking Helmeted Guineafowl. From there, I drove the short distance to Frank Lake, which was totally deserted - no people, practically no birds, either. Where are they all? I've had such bad luck at Frank Lake this year on the few times I have been there. Three White-faced Ibis and a juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron flew over, and I did see a Marsh Wren and a Yellow-headed Blackbird. Is the season already coming to a close? I had driven there the previous day, too, and there was not much to see, though I was lucky to have a Western Grebe swim briefly near the blind. It was 34C (93.2F) at the lake that day! From the blind, I drove all the way round the lake area, hoping to find a field or two of Canola. Afterwards, one of the roads had me passing this tiny church. I always stop and take a few photos. "Although the tiny town of Dinton, AB does not appear on most maps, it now occupies a place in motion picture history. Locations Manager Darryl Solly was asked to find a “small unadorned church” for the del Mar wedding scene in the movie, Brokeback Mountain. The unassuming Anglican chapel at Dinton, built by prairie pioneers in 1906, shown here in these exclusive pre-production photos, was the perfect spot for Alma and Ennis to be married." The movie stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway and Michelle Williams and depicts the complex romantic and sexual relationship between two men in the American West from 1963 to 1983. www.findingbrokeback.com/Albums/StThomasChurch.html www.ourroots.ca/e/roots/lh6/lh6b0057.jpg

There seemed to be no sign of the smoke from the wildfires in B.C. and Alberta yesterday, 24 July 2017, so I made the most of it and went for an afternoon drive SE of the city. First, I wanted to call in at the Saskatoon Farm and find a few colourful flowers to photograph and then I wanted to check on birds at Frank Lake - a good job I don't make lists of what I see, as this bird list would have been ridiculously short! The Saskatoon Farm was absolutely packed! It is U-pick season at the moment and this is obviously extremely popular. I had a fairly quick wander around, including taking a photo or two of the unusual-looking Helmeted Guineafowl. I love their black and white, polka dot body feather pattern. From there, I drove the short distance to Frank Lake, which was totally deserted - no people, practically no birds, either. Where are they all? I've had such bad luck at Frank Lake this year on the few times I have been there. Three White-faced Ibis and a juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron flew over, and I did see a Marsh Wren and a Yellow-headed Blackbird. Is the season already coming to a close? I had driven there the previous day, too, and there was not much to see, though I was lucky to have a Western Grebe swim briefly near the blind. It was 34C (93.2F) at the lake that day! From the blind, I drove all the way round the lake area, hoping to find a field or two of Canola. Afterwards, one of the further roads had me passing the tiny church at Dinton. I always stop and take a few photos.