I admit that I get saturated with city life, and need to purge. Luckily, the mountains are within a short drive from Calgary. Early August offers an spectacular abundance of wildflowers and wildlife, all appearing to languish in the dog day heat. A half hour on the road west allows the opportunity to leave humanity behind, allowing solitude for those desiring a few moments of quiet. Everything slows.
All open areas are covered with a multitude of wildflowers. While Indian paintbrush stands out against the lush green,
other colours provide other accents, including brown eyed susans.
The birds were everywhere, Flickers, wood peckers, chickadees, sparrows flourish in the wooded areas.
Closer inspection shows a multitude of insects, such as these lady bugs congregating on the thistles.
Berries were everywhere. Bear scat clearly showed they were feasting on them, joined by birds, foxes and other mammals.
Some of the berries were impossibly saturated in colour.
Or perhaps no colour at all.
Open fields had large patches of the flowers ensuring that the eye was not bored.
speckled light through the aspens
The staccato sounds of woodpeckers periodically broke the silence amongst the aspen stands.
Dragon flies, the fighter pilots of the insect world, buzzed the open fields.
The quiet was nearly over whelming, counterpoint to the bustle of city life so near.
An observatory just south of Calgary, providing a panoramic view of the mountains in the distant haze.
Animal and human paths coincide, both giving way to the other.
Fledgeling ospreys waiting to take wing.
The summer will pass all too soon. At least I have been rejuvenated for the short term.
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