Problems again with Stats Flickr views - more or less stuck again. An issue that is being reported by others, too.

Sunday, 19 July 2020: our temperature around 2:30 pm is 20C (windchill 20C). Sunrise is at 5:44 am and sunset is at 9:39 pm. The sun has disappeared and the sky has clouded over this afternoon.

Yesterday, 18 July 2020, was such a beautiful day and a very rewarding one. My destination was, for me, an exciting one - an old ghost town that I had never seen before. A long, return drive of 454 kilometres on a pretty hot day was needed, in order to check out this new location. In order to do a long drive like this, I need to do it when the evenings stay light as late as possible, to make sure I don't have to drive in the dark. Completely tired out at the end of the day, but it was a good tiredness - and, more importantly, a journey that made it so easy to physically distance.

My favourite kind of day always includes a bit of everything - old barns, birds, landscapes, skies, wildflowers, and anything else. This day delivered most of those treats.

Leaving home by 8:30 am (later than I had hoped), most of my drive was highway travel. Not my favourite, but kind of necessary in order to get so far. Roads were fairly empty, which always makes a drive more pleasant, especially when I know I might want to stop to take a photo at any time.

It was definitely a Meadowlark day and it was nice to see one of them with a beak absolutely full of insects for its babies. Other birds included a few familiar species, but ones that are always good to see. I saw one Common Nighthawk this time, unlike the five I saw recently, but one is always enough and greatly appreciated.

Once I got into unfamiliar territory, I had to travel quite a distance before seeing any new-to-me old barns or homesteads. Found the first ones before I reached my destination. Once I reached the ghost town, I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, taking photos. It is only a small place with a handful of old buildings, but very nicely kept. One of its main buildings is a small, country United Church, kept in great condition both inside and out. I had read online beforehand that people can go inside the church and sign their Guest Book, otherwise I probably would not have gone in. Really liked the door knobs to the front door.

From there, I took more or less the same route home, stopping only to photograph a few birds en route. I arrived home at 8:30 pm, with a smile on my face and eyes that were still open, thanks to taking some black coffee with me in case of emergency (i.e. unable to keep my eyes open!)!

Tags:   Alberta Canada SE of Calgary rural rural scene building structure house homestead wooden decay collapsing weathered field grass sky clouds touch of filter added in post-processing outdoor summer 18 July 2020 Canon SX60 Canon SX60 Powershot annkelliott Anne Elliott © Anne Elliott 2020 © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved

Problems again with Stats Flickr views - more or less stuck again. An issue that is being reported by others, too.

Sunday, 19 July 2020: our temperature around 2:30 pm is 20C (windchill 20C). Sunrise is at 5:44 am and sunset is at 9:39 pm. The sun has disappeared and the sky has clouded over this afternoon.

Yesterday, 18 July 2020, was such a beautiful day and a very rewarding one. My destination was, for me, an exciting one - an old ghost town that I had never seen before. A long, return drive of 454 kilometres on a pretty hot day was needed, in order to check out this new location. In order to do a long drive like this, I need to do it when the evenings stay light as late as possible, to make sure I don't have to drive in the dark. Completely tired out at the end of the day, but it was a good tiredness - and, more importantly, a journey that made it so easy to physically distance.

My favourite kind of day always includes a bit of everything - old barns, birds, landscapes, skies, wildflowers, and anything else. This day delivered most of those treats.

Leaving home by 8:30 am (later than I had hoped), most of my drive was highway travel. Not my favourite, but kind of necessary in order to get so far. Roads were fairly empty, which always makes a drive more pleasant, especially when I know I might want to stop to take a photo at any time.

It was definitely a Meadowlark day and it was nice to see one of them with a beak absolutely full of insects for its babies. Other birds included a few familiar species, but ones that are always good to see. I saw one Common Nighthawk this time, unlike the five I saw recently, but one is always enough and greatly appreciated.

Once I got into unfamiliar territory, I had to travel quite a distance before seeing any new-to-me old barns or homesteads. Found the first ones before I reached my destination. Once I reached the ghost town, I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, taking photos. It is only a small place with a handful of old buildings, but very nicely kept. One of its main buildings is a small, country United Church, kept in great condition both inside and out. I had read online beforehand that people can go inside the church and sign their Guest Book, otherwise I probably would not have gone in. Really liked the door knobs to the front door.

From there, I took more or less the same route home, stopping only to photograph a few birds en route. I arrived home at 8:30 pm, with a smile on my face and eyes that were still open, thanks to taking some black coffee with me in case of emergency (i.e. unable to keep my eyes open!)!

Tags:   bird Black Tern Chlidonias niger adult molting

© All Rights Reserved

Problems again with Stats Flickr views - more or less stuck again. An issue that is being reported by others, too.

Sunday, 19 July 2020: our temperature around 2:30 pm is 20C (windchill 20C). Sunrise is at 5:44 am and sunset is at 9:39 pm. The sun has disappeared and the sky has clouded over this afternoon.

Yesterday, 18 July 2020, was such a beautiful day and a very rewarding one. My destination was, for me, an exciting one - an old ghost town that I had never seen before. A long, return drive of 454 kilometres on a pretty hot day was needed, in order to check out this new location. In order to do a long drive like this, I need to do it when the evenings stay light as late as possible, to make sure I don't have to drive in the dark. Completely tired out at the end of the day, but it was a good tiredness - and, more importantly, a journey that made it so easy to physically distance.

My favourite kind of day always includes a bit of everything - old barns, birds, landscapes, skies, wildflowers, and anything else. This day delivered most of those treats.

Leaving home by 8:30 am (later than I had hoped), most of my drive was highway travel. Not my favourite, but kind of necessary in order to get so far. Roads were fairly empty, which always makes a drive more pleasant, especially when I know I might want to stop to take a photo at any time.

It was definitely a Meadowlark day and it was nice to see one of them with a beak absolutely full of insects for its babies. Other birds included a few familiar species, but ones that are always good to see. I saw one Common Nighthawk this time, unlike the five I saw recently, but one is always enough and greatly appreciated.

Once I got into unfamiliar territory, I had to travel quite a distance before seeing any new-to-me old barns or homesteads. Found the first ones before I reached my destination. Once I reached the ghost town, I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, taking photos. It is only a small place with a handful of old buildings, but very nicely kept. One of its main buildings is a small, country United Church, kept in great condition both inside and out. I had read online beforehand that people can go inside the church and sign their Guest Book, otherwise I probably would not have gone in. Really liked the door knobs to the front door.

From there, I took more or less the same route home, stopping only to photograph a few birds en route. I arrived home at 8:30 pm, with a smile on my face and eyes that were still open, thanks to taking some black coffee with me in case of emergency (i.e. unable to keep my eyes open!)!

Tags:   Alberta Canada SE of Calgary building church old wooden white shingles roof belltower countryside rural rural scene victorian style local farmers restored church in 1980s

© All Rights Reserved

Problems again with Stats Flickr views - more or less stuck again. An issue that is being reported by others, too.

Sunday, 19 July 2020: our temperature around 2:30 pm is 20C (windchill 20C). Sunrise is at 5:44 am and sunset is at 9:39 pm. The sun has disappeared and the sky has clouded over this afternoon.

Yesterday, 18 July 2020, was such a beautiful day and a very rewarding one. My destination was, for me, an exciting one - an old ghost town that I had never seen before. A long, return drive of 454 kilometres on a pretty hot day was needed, in order to check out this new location. In order to do a long drive like this, I need to do it when the evenings stay light as late as possible, to make sure I don't have to drive in the dark. Completely tired out at the end of the day, but it was a good tiredness - and, more importantly, a journey that made it so easy to physically distance.

My favourite kind of day always includes a bit of everything - old barns, birds, landscapes, skies, wildflowers, and anything else. This day delivered most of those treats.

Leaving home by 8:30 am (later than I had hoped), most of my drive was highway travel. Not my favourite, but kind of necessary in order to get so far. Roads were fairly empty, which always makes a drive more pleasant, especially when I know I might want to stop to take a photo at any time.

It was definitely a Meadowlark day and it was nice to see one of them with a beak absolutely full of insects for its babies. Other birds included a few familiar species, but ones that are always good to see. I saw one Common Nighthawk this time, unlike the five I saw recently, but one is always enough and greatly appreciated.

Once I got into unfamiliar territory, I had to travel quite a distance before seeing any new-to-me old barns or homesteads. Found the first ones before I reached my destination. Once I reached the ghost town, I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, taking photos. It is only a small place with a handful of old buildings, but very nicely kept. One of its main buildings is a small, country United Church, kept in great condition both inside and out. I had read online beforehand that people can go inside the church and sign their Guest Book, otherwise I probably would not have gone in. Really liked the door knobs to the front door.

From there, I took more or less the same route home, stopping only to photograph a few birds en route. I arrived home at 8:30 pm, with a smile on my face and eyes that were still open, thanks to taking some black coffee with me in case of emergency (i.e. unable to keep my eyes open!)!

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta nature wildlife ornithology avian bird Western Meadowlark Sturnella neglecta adult front/side view perched fence post field bokeh outdoor summer 18 July 2020 Canon SX60 Canon SX60 Powershot annkelliott Anne Elliott © Anne Elliott 2020 © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved

Problems again with Stats Flickr views - more or less stuck again. An issue that is being reported by others, too.

Sunday, 19 July 2020: our temperature around 2:30 pm is 20C (windchill 20C). Sunrise is at 5:44 am and sunset is at 9:39 pm. The sun has disappeared and the sky has clouded over this afternoon.

Yesterday, 18 July 2020, was such a beautiful day and a very rewarding one. My destination was, for me, an exciting one - an old ghost town that I had never seen before. A long, return drive of 454 kilometres on a pretty hot day was needed, in order to check out this new location. In order to do a long drive like this, I need to do it when the evenings stay light as late as possible, to make sure I don't have to drive in the dark. Completely tired out at the end of the day, but it was a good tiredness - and, more importantly, a journey that made it so easy to physically distance.

My favourite kind of day always includes a bit of everything - old barns, birds, landscapes, skies, wildflowers, and anything else. This day delivered most of those treats.

Leaving home by 8:30 am (later than I had hoped), most of my drive was highway travel. Not my favourite, but kind of necessary in order to get so far. Roads were fairly empty, which always makes a drive more pleasant, especially when I know I might want to stop to take a photo at any time.

It was definitely a Meadowlark day and it was nice to see one of them with a beak absolutely full of insects for its babies. Other birds included a few familiar species, but ones that are always good to see. I saw one Common Nighthawk this time, unlike the five I saw recently, but one is always enough and greatly appreciated.

"Common Nighthawks eat flying insects almost exclusively. The Common Nighthawk hunts on the wing at dawn and dusk, opening its tiny beak to reveal a cavernous mouth well suited for snapping up flying insects. It often takes advantage of clouds of insects attracted to streetlamps, stadium lights, and other bright lights. Nighthawks eat queen ants, wasps, beetles, caddisflies, moths, bugs, mayflies, flies, crickets, grasshoppers, and other insects. They may also eat a small amount of vegetation. Though they forage in low light, they seem to locate prey by sight, possibly with the help of a structure in their eyes that reflects light back to the retina to improve their night vision. They occasionally forage during the day in stormy weather, but seem to never forage at night. Common Nighthawks may forage near the ground or water, or more than 500 feet into the sky." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/lifehistory#

Once I got into unfamiliar territory, I had to travel quite a distance before seeing any new-to-me old barns or homesteads. Found the first ones before I reached my destination. Once I reached the ghost town, I thoroughly enjoyed wandering around, taking photos. It is only a small place with a handful of old buildings, but very nicely kept. One of its main buildings is a small, country United Church, kept in great condition both inside and out. I had read online beforehand that people can go inside the church and sign their Guest Book, otherwise I probably would not have gone in. Really liked the door knobs to the front door.

From there, I took more or less the same route home, stopping only to photograph a few birds en route. I arrived home at 8:30 pm, with a smile on my face and eyes that were still open, thanks to taking some black coffee with me in case of emergency (i.e. unable to keep my eyes open!)!

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta nature wildlife ornithology avian bird Common NIghthawk Chordeiles minor Caprimulgidae family adult small bill white throat front/side view lying down resting awake perched fence post feathers pattern texture field bokeh outdoor summer 18 July 2020 Canon SX60 Canon SX60 Powershot annkelliott Anne Elliott © Anne Elliott 2020 © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved