Fall walk

Vancouver Island fall colours, a palette heavy on the russets and cordovans, soft yellows and mosses that range from whispers to screams in their green-ness. Lovely, leathery salal and mushrooms galore, of course… perfect hideaways for wee folk. The forest duff is dotted with stones wrapped in moss mantles. Nature getting it right, as usual.

Patricia Bay walk…follow me

Today's airplane bokeh

Almost warm enough to wade... in October!

Yet another reason to love life next to an airport

Today the path, tomorrow, the beach

Who's a lucky dog?

(P.S. Have joined the throngs on Instagram so if you want to follow me  I'm v.isle)

it's eight o'clock

Time to go… he said. The dishes can wait. The night is dry and clear —you'd be mad to waste it tidying up the kitchen.  If we don't patrol the park for raccoons, then who will?

Cairn on the rocks

 

 

Lying on the hot rocks at Patricia Bay, marvelling at the sky as blue as New Mexico; so unlike the whispy-watery blue so often seen over Vancouver Island. Oh August… please don't go.

Walkin'

oh yes indeed, we're walkin.  Whoever said… blue and green-should never be seen? I've puzzled over this since childhood, why in the world would anyone think it an unpleasing combination? Somebody forgot to tell design giant Barbara Barry…

Time for a trim

My first animated gif (and probably my last) :)

Becker the dog. He's animated enough already.

Field day

August in the meadow near the Sidney airport, a regular walking spot for me and B.

A cairn terrier camouflaged against tinder-dry grass and a wildflower clock warns that time is inexorably marching on towards fall. 

Walkin' on sunshine

Oh yes indeed, we're walkin'. Vancouver Island's July was the sunniest on record; with 430+ hours of sun compared to a normal of 320 hours. Huzzah to August looking spectacular too, and then sliding into homeplate with September and October almost always dishing up very nice high pressure systems, clear skies and sun.
Bring it on. Take that, we(s)t coast.

Meadow Mad

I live at the ocean; thirty steps and we're there. In a fit of upside-down contrariness, though, I choose to walk most days inland, away from the water and the persistent south-easterlies that necessitate layering up with wool topped with featherdown. On June 27th. Yes, it's that cold.

Luckily for us there is a galaxy of wonderful places to walk on our little chunk of southern Vancouver Island. One of my favorites is the Mills Rd meadow path bordering the Victoria International Airport.

I can meander along in a reverie, counting the numbers of different seed head on the grasses while my four-fur-feet companion looks for mice, (and occasionally finds em).