A Roller Coaster of Fun!

Its been a real roller coaster winter.  Really not nearly a bad as winters in the past...I remember some very limb numbing, frost biting ones and this particular one isn't really all that bad.  But its up and down, up and down...I suppose a lot of us just want to get of and rest up for spring anyway!

Winter in the valley here has been fairly quiet but pleasant - we have been waking up to Coyotes running through the pasture and yipping up a chorus to locate their buddies...and the Great Horned Owl pair that nest nearby each winter/spring have been hooting up a chorus together as well, but these are pleasant interruptions to our winter sleep...even becoming parts of dreams and making things really interesting.

The Bald Eagles have been fairly prevalent.  Seeing them along the roads on unfortunate raccoons that stepped in front of someone, or waiting near confinements...hoping for some free bacon I guess!  The river and creeks have had open spots for fishing but the up and down temps have closed and opened them enough to frustrate fishing somewhat I'd guess(?).

American Bald Eagle in the neighborhood.

photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison

 

The character above is what I'm guessing is a male (do to a slightly smaller stature) that was hanging out near a farm yard north of us, on a fairly nice Sunday afternoon.

I am finally starting to get back to the easel and other artwork in the studio.  I've have a few birds I've been wanting to get back to for the oil based color pencils and since I have a case of spring fever and looking through customer requests, decided to do another Baltimore Oriole.  I'm fortunate here that we get great populations of orioles through the spring and summer, so I have a lot of files I can refer to and draw from.

 

"Baltimore Oriole - male Portrait"

color pencil drawing - © Bruce A. Morrison

 

Here is my latest drawing and am pretty happy with the way it came out!  I started doing these more true to life size and working more for head and bust rather than just head and shoulders.  I have been giving more thought to complete birds and activities in color pencil but have yet to work up the courage...I have done some in the past at much smaller than life size in color pencil but not life size birds in their habitat.

It is actually only about 5 weeks till spring!  Isn't that amazing!  Time just keeps dripping through my fingers like a sieve...I need to find a way to slow its flow...I'd like spring and summer to last much, much longer!!!

Have a Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow - hope to see you on the Tallgrass!!!

Glaciers still in the yard but its Spring!

Great Blue Herons in the valley

 (photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison)

 

Spring has finally arrived the the valley here and we have been most fortunate as far as our flooding here.  A week and a half ago we were taking on water pretty fast and the valley in front was threatening lake front property once again, but fortunately all the culverts broke open in time to spare the road and its been dropping back to the channel since.  

 

We are so, so lucky and count our blessings as we watch the dire situation in extreme western Iowa and the eastern half of Nebraska...a perfect storm did happen after a heavy snowfall and rains exacerbated the completely saturated soils from last year's record rains - it was all downhill from there for anyone in the flood plains of the Missouri River and its tributaries.   Our hearts and prayers go out to everyone affected by the flooding going on right now.

 

Things are starting to look "normal" here for a change...we still have 4 foot drifts covering most of Georgie's barn garden but she was able to get into the yard garden and peek under the snow flattened hoops and see that the spinach did survive the winter this year - YAY!!!  Last year the mice had set up shop under her row covers and dined on spinach all winter...we have strong mice out here!

 

Juvenile Bald Eagle

 (photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison)

 

We have been seeing a few Great Blue Herons returning to the Waterman Creek rookery the past few days, but in low numbers so far.  Yesterday we had 8 herons riding a thermal high above the rookery.  The last time we witnessed this there was "Eagle trouble" brewing.  Well, sure enough, a couple juvenile Bald Eagles were harassing the herons - one flying around the hovering flock and another sitting smack in the middle of the rookery!

 

Eventually the two trouble makers tired of the game and headed off right over the studio deck where Georgie and I were watching - giving us great neck bending looks as they passed.  In the next hour 8 more Bald Eagles flew past the acreage - bee lining straight north on the wind.  On top of that uncounted flocks of Canada and Snow Geese streamed past heading north as well - spring is definitely in play now!

Grateful that Spring has arrived - prayers to all those being faced with loss to flooding.  

 

Take care and be good to one another!