A Floating Pink Flower Landscape
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These brilliant pink flowers caught the sun on a small lake in Kananaskis while I was waiting for the heron to leave its perch to fish. The water suggested an Impressionist painting while the detail in the flowers provided sharp contrast to the dark pastels.
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A Cold Dawn at Elbow Falls
Following Saturday’s snow storm, we had a beautiful day today. Sunrise came along at 6am sharp this morning and I drove up to Elbow Falls early and met the day there. The snow was still holding onto the trees and rocks so the landscape along the river had a strong winter tone. I was hoping for the early, pink light to reflect off of the clouds stacked above the mountains into this scene. That did not happen, some clouds eastwards blocked the sunlight until the sun was well clear of the horizon. When the sunlight did reach into the valley, it was beautiful.
On the way up to the falls I even had a minute to take a nice photograph of a moose sitting up in her bedded down spot from the quick ending night. A pretty great morning in my photographic book.
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Owl flight while winter strikes back
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We had a monster snowstorm last night which made a slideshow out of the back roads and covered Bragg Creek in a fresh wrapping of winter by morning. I went out to West Bragg early and caught the mist as the day was warming up. I went to a frequent haunt for moose but crossed the meadow without finding any. Then I found a great gray owl and the next half hour was spent watching and waiting for it to take flight.
When it did launch it was fantastic. I love the power they drive off of their perch with. And then there are the wing beats… awesome.
I had hopes that when it did fly it would be a dive to hunt. Here the owl flew across the field closer to the forest. Not very much disappointment – it was great to watch and photograph.
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A Quiet Morning at Elbow Falls
I have not been up to Elbow Falls in a couple of months so I went for the sunrise on Sunday. The sky wasn’t too cooperative – the clouds hid behind the K-Country mountains instead of catching the morning light while anchored above them, but there was a skiff of snow from the night before that was a nice element to work in.
With the low water and lack of snow around the waterfall, the rocks took center stage and looked beautiful.
Here the snow can be seen in the branches and dusting the rocks. I enjoyed the palette of colors and the softening effect, here and there, of the snow in these scenes.
When the sun first cleared the eastern ridges, it was softened by a bit of haze and the veins of the falls seemed to glow under this gentle light.
A short time later it rose above the haze and this was the last image I made with the sunlight still playing really well with this landscape.
It was another good morning at Elbow Falls. One of many special places in Kananaskis and a favourite place for me to spend time. I created a small gallery on my website from this morning which includes these images and a few more, check them out if you are interested.
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Kananaskis Wildlife: Moose on the edge
After following the deer around for a little while, I walked back to the car and continued driving along the back roads that skirt between West Bragg Creek and Kananaskis. I went by a thicket beside a pasture thinking I would photograph the horses there for a few minutes. Instead, I found a moose stripping branches near the road.
She watched me for a minute, then continued moving through the meadow snacking along the way.
She wandered towards the frozen creek and then turned west and leapt over a fence before crossing the road and meandering into the edge of the forest where I lost sight of her.
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Kananaskis Wildlife: Two Bull Moose
Hiking west of Bragg Creek last weekend I ended up in a meadow that was a mix of evergreen trees and waist-high wild grasses. Navigating this open field is much easier in the winter with the frozen ground and there are all manner of animals trails to follow. It was one of these that led me to this incredible bull moose who was grazing beside a large stand of trees. I noticed him from a distance and then slowly moved closer under his occasional glance.
I was quite surprised when, as I moved around the trees to get a better view of the whole animal, I saw a second bull. I often see female moose and calves in groups of 2-10 but I can’t think of a time outside of the rut when I’ve seen two bulls together.
As I watched them, they seemed very comfortable and were not intimidating one another. I was fascinated and really enjoyed studying them interacting. I stayed with them for about half an hour and I came away with the impression that they acted like brothers. One, the first one I saw, had the larger rack and acted like the big brother. Both were beautiful creatures. I’m always happy to see healthy bulls as it means good things for the local population in general.
This encounter came about an hour after photographing a mother and baby moose a few miles away so it was a great morning in K-Country. Much more for me to learn about these beautiful animals. I love the opportunities I have to do that with them in their natural surroundings. I rarely forget how lucky I am.
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Rocky Mountain Wildlife: Bow Valley Bighorn Mountain Sheep
Near the town of Exshaw, on the Bow Valley Trail, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) can often be seen on the cliffs and hillsides on either side. This morning my friend Jeff and I were out for a photo drive and we found a herd of about 25 ewes, lambs and adolescent rams.
They were moving across a rocky cliff face when we stopped and started photographing them. We watched them disappear over the ridgeline and then walked up and found them grazing in a wild grass meadow. As we hiked up, we could see a large group of adult rams higher up on the mountain but we didn’t continue up to them. Although it is the season for the rut so I may head back again before the end of the weekend to see if I can photograph some of the head butting that sorts out the mating season.
They kept moving across the mountain slopes but we had a lot of time to watch and shoot them before the cold wind got the better of us and we headed into Canmore for breakfast.
The lamb below was the last to leave the meadow and poked its head up over the grass for a quick look before running back to the herd.
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Rocky Mountain Landscapes: Mist on Wedge Pond
Last weekend I was back on the shoreline of Wedge Pond in Kananaskis waiting for sunrise. This time there were clouds in the sky and fog shrouds running across the water. The early light on Mount Kidd was obscured but there were many interesting pieces to play with, near and far, so I wasn’t disappointed with the misty view of the red light descending down the mountainside.
Fall has been really wonderful this year – fairly warm, great color in the trees, no snow below the peaks and an absence of strong winds to blow the leaves off. I hope to get in a couple more landscape sessions before we move into winter.
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Rocky Mountain Landscapes: Wedge Pond
I have been spending a fair amount of time in Kananaskis Country as autumn has taken hold across the Rockies in Southern Alberta. A couple of mornings I have spent daybreak on the shoreline of Wedge Pond just off Highway 40 a few kilometers south of the Nakiska Ski Resort. Before the sun rises high enough to hit Mount Kidd’s ridges, the whole mountain glows red in the pre-dawn light.
After only a couple of minutes, the sunlight reaches over The Wedge and Mt. McDougal to Kidd and then it quickly runs down the mountainside as the sun climbs into the sky.
The image above with the sun drawing a red band along the top of the mountain was from September 5th where all the trees skirting the pond were still in summer green. The first two images were taken just under three weeks later. A couple of cool days got the seasonal change kickstarted and the transformation to yellow and orange was complete in just a few days.
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Canadian Rockies Landscapes: A Kananaskis Rainbow
My wife and I took the children for a morning drive along Highway 40 through Kananaskis this morning. This rainbow followed us in from the edge of the Bow Valley Parkway into Kananaskis and along the peaks of Heart Mountain, Grant McEwan Pea and Mt. Lorette. With the clearing storm clouds still dark the rainbow really stood out against the sky.
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Kananaskis Wildlife: A Blond Grizzly Sow and Two Cubs
Following on from my encounter with the moose calf and mother, I drove further along the Highwood Pass section of Highway 40 in Kananaskis and saw this mother grizzly bear leading her two cubs along the forest’s edge parallel to the road.
The color of these bears is fantastic. Blond is not exceptionally rare but is still striking to see. I stayed up on the road and watched them move swiftly through the dense underbrush before crossing the pavement and disappearing down into the valley.
I hope their momma can guide these two cubs into adulthood avoiding the dangers of the road and the rails that have impacted the grizzly population in the Rockies. They are incredible animals.
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Kananaskis Moose: Cow and Calf
I was in Kananaskis for the sunrise on Mount Kidd above Wedge Pond on the weekend. I finished the landscape photography by 7:30 and then headed along Highway 40 up towards the Highwood Pass to enjoy the beautiful drive and keep an eye out for wildlife. Just after the summit this cow and her calf were grazing on the edge of the forest.
I pulled over and stayed with them for about half an hour. One of the beautiful things of Kananaskis is that it has nowhere near the volume of traffic as Alberta’s neighbouring National Parks. There are rarely bear jams on the road and when you find wildlife, there isn’t the frenzy of crowds agitating the animals. So, with these two beautiful moose, I was able to share time and enjoy watching them.
Earlier at Wedge Pond, I met a fellow photographer, Chuck Kling, visiting from Montreal with his wife. We met again at these moose and it was fun to share that moment. They come to photograph wildlife in Alberta frequently, a good reminder how nice it is to live in these parts.
