From a crevice in the cracked sandstone ridge, a slender young hemlock tree stretches up into the light. Sheltered by the large cedars, the sunlight filters through.
New life in the forest
Tag Archives: Gulf Islands
The sun rises on a New Year
January 1, 2024
A few glimpses of the first sunrise of the year. My routine of capturing images of the mornings, day by day, continues. And my resolve for this year is to resume my postings on this website: a good project to re-launch as my retirement resumes.
Some glimpses of morning light
Each morning I meander out to the Point by our flagpole and take a photo or two as a way to start the day and record the morning's weather. Invariably I am met by beauty and wonder, whether it's dull or clear. Often too there are eagles, otters, seals, and other shorebirds and wildlife. Here's a small sampling of some recent mornings.
wonderful tangles
Winter waiting, and wonderful tangles of twigs...
We are in 'the dead' of winter, but there's life hidden within this tangle of twigs and branches. While that hidden life waits and works, I delight in the beauty of the muted colours and the texture of the tangled twigs. It's a different kind of beauty to enjoy while waiting for the green buds to emerge, which in due time, they will...
Here's one more glimpse, a little closer in to the tangle of branches....
more of the muted winter colours....a very different kind of beauty than any other time of year. -Sarah
a few glimpses of the morning’s light
These autumn days are particularly beautiful, with the stunning colours in the brilliant sun.
This gallery shows just a few of this week's mornings when meandering to the shore as the sun was rising.
-click on any image for a larger view-
tangled reflections
I took this photo last week in the warmth of the afternoon light and the stillness of Whaler Bay. What caught my eye was the complex reflections with the fallen tree, the tangled lines of its branches both above and beneath the water and the curves of the sandstone intersected by the straight lines of the wharf's shadow.
The resulting design is intriguing: another instance of the playful art of nature all around us.
huckleberry buds
Maybe because we've waited so long for spring this year, or maybe its just that these wonders are more precious with each passing year, but surely the delicate beauty of the huckleberry buds opening has never been quite so breathtakingly beautiful to me.
afternoon quiet
Yesterday we had a short reprieve between storms: the sun shone, the wind dropped and the sea settled to a mirror calm. Mt. Baker glowed on the far side of the Salish Sea.
But best of all is the sweep of clouds, with the small pale moon visible beyond them, to the left of centre frame.
thin mists…
Sunlight diffused by a the thin fog sifts through the trees. It was surprisingly chilly, yet even the winter sun can warm the ground and raise a mist to meet with the fog.
The Point this morning
The days begin with a walk to Flagpole Point before breakfast.
In part it is a necessity, to walk the dog, but equally important is that this outing provides me a chance to appreciate the uniqueness of each morning. Though it is the same place, the variation is infinite: light, colour and texture in differing combinations.
The rising sun's position is constantly shifting with the seasons, tides varying with moon-phase, wind and weather, clouds, fog, rain, or clear... Add to this, the cast of birds and small animals. I never know just what the morning jaunt will offer: kingfishers, herons, otters, harlequins, eagles, mink, seals...
It has long been my habit to record these first glimpses of the day there with a few photos, usually just on my iPhone, but sometimes with my 'big' camera. Recently it occurred to me to share some of my morning glimpses with others, so I created a Flickr Album Mornings at Flagpole Point which you can view here.
My aim is to post one a day. Sometimes, like yesterday when we had a power outage I couldn't post. There are bound to be other missed days here and there, but mostly it'll be a daily photo.
Thanks so much for enjoying these glimpses of the world with me.
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