July update - Conundrum Hot Springs (July 15 - 16)

For my final hiking trip of the season, I wanted to go somewhere farther and a bit more strenuous.  I decided to hike from Gothic to Conundrum Hot Springs via Triangle Pass.  I invited my friend to come with me, and we left Gothic early in the morning and headed towards Copper Lake.  Before we get to Copper Lake, the trail splits into two and one directs us towards Triangle Pass.

View from Triangle Pass

Relearning the wildlife of Gothic

Yesterday I showed my labmate some of the common plants and insects (and birds) that she will likely encounter during her own research, which provided a good refresher lesson for me as well.

Gothic Mountain

June update - Assorted

After all that snow and rain in May, June pretty much provided the best conditions one can ask for in terms of doing fieldwork - sunny, dry, and warm.  I did fieldwork almost every single day in June, except for last Sunday and a couple of rainy days, which explains the lack of posts until now.  Now that many of my plants are done flowering and starting to set seeds, I can slow down for a tiny bit.  I have divided my all of my photos from June into six different topics.  This one is just an assortment of different photos.

Full moon on June 2nd.

Long way back to Ottawa

On Wednesday (July 23rd) when we left RMBL, we drove through Cottonwood Pass trying to get to Arapaho National Forest where Mertensia perplexa is found.  Unfortunately, we didn't make the correct turn past Taylor Park Reservoir and wasted at least an hour going the wrong direction.

Taylor Park Reservoir

Holiday update #3

I just returned back to Ottawa around midnight today, after spending a couple of hours driving from Peterborough and "mudpuppying".  I will post about it shortly, but here are three of the photos I took on Christmas and Boxing Day.

Morning snowy shadows

Snowy walk to school

Found another dead honey bee on the snow.  Rest in peace.  [Note: I just found this YouTube video and blog explaining that living bees perform cleansing flights in the winter to remove dead bees (from both natural and unnatural causes) from the hive.  All part of the nature's ingenious design to keep everything in balance.]

Happy holidays & Update from Peterborough

Happy holidays to everyone!  I returned to Peterborough last Wednesday to stay at a friend's house to take care of her pets while she's away for Christmas break.  The wifi access is limited at her place, so I walked to school almost everyday (with the dog) to use internet.  I am still taking photos everyday, but uploading them won't happen immediately, hence there are a lot of photos in this (and upcoming) posts spanning several days.

A festive photo from Ottawa two Sundays ago.

Life in Peterborough winding down

As my work here at Trent winds down, I have a very very very busy month ahead of me as I have to pack, find housing in Ottawa, and then move there, all the while arrange for my parents to travel from BC and Ontario (because they want to help me move).  I'm up to my ears in searching for housings, car rentals, travel and accommodations for my parents; therefore, I may disappear for a week or a month.

The poor weather this past week did not help with my stress, until today when the sun came out.  I decided to bike to school and visited the Trent's Wildlife Sanctuary (probably one last time).  Sigh.

Foams on the Otonabee River.

Guelph University & The Arboretum - Part 1

When I arrived at Guelph on Sunday afternoon, I first checked into the hotel, then headed to the university to get my registration kit.  Since the weather was not too bad, I decided to take some photos and tried to find the Arboretum.

This scenery reminded me of New Orleans, such as this image.

Random photos from walking to school

Walked to Trent today.

Walking along Parkway Trail.  Autumn is almost gone.

Cat and walk around neighbourhood

I am currently reading the blog posts by a Flickr photographer Crusade., who produces some of the most beautiful images I have ever seen.  This just makes me want to pick up my own camera and go outside and take photographs.  All the photos below were taken today with the OM 50 f1.4 lens.

My landlord's cat, or his nose to be more specific.

Windy Pine BioBlitz - Day 2

On our second day at Windy Pine, we first went canoeing and then hiked in the forest looking at fungi in the morning.

Kushog Lake in the morning.

Close-up on Jagged Ambush Bug

My photos from New Orleans are still in the sorting folder at the moment.  That's the problem of taking too many photos.

Let's work on something much easier.  Went to school on Saturday to drop the university vehicle off and took this photo as I was waiting for the bus.  Nice and simple.

Worked on my thesis from the house today.  I was originally going to catch a bus to school in the afternoon to clean out my office space, but I missed the bus.  So I walked around the neighbourhood instead.  I only had the 50 f2 OM lens on the camera, so I couldn't get too close (or too far) from things.

Herping at Trent's Canal Nature Area

The weather this past few days has been quite amazing - warm and humid during the day and then periodic downpours (with thunders) in the late afternoon - the kind where you will be completely soaked if you happen to be outside during the downpours.

View from my office window.

The Herpetology class went out today to Trent's Canal Nature Area to survey the frogs based on their calls, and I volunteered myself to help out.  We went out  yesterday to check out the sites and heard mostly Grey Tree Frogs calling and one lone Spring Peeper.

Walking through Parkway Trail - Rose-breasted Grosbeak

As I mentioned earlier, I walked part-way to school today through the Parkway Trail.

Very 'green' nowadays

Windy Pines Conference Centre

Windy Pine Conference Centre on the shore of Lake Kushog consists of 6 cabins owned by the Canadian Studies Department of Trent University.  For more information, please visit the official site.

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to help out with season-opening of the centre, as well as exploring this area for the first time.

Back of the main cabin.  The cabin has a very homely feel to it, with a functional kitchen, bathroom, fireplace, bedroom, and more.

Snow Day in Bethany Hills

After last night's snowstorm, today was absolutely gorgeous with blue sky and no clouds at all.  Perfect day to attend the Snow Day in Bethany Hills, an event hosted by Kawartha Heritage Conservancy and its sponsors.

Waiting for carpooling.

Upon arriving at South Pond Farms, we were greeted by friendly volunteers where we registered for the event, received a brief introduction, and borrowed ski and snowshoe equipments.  It has been a while since I skied and I did not go very far (although I fell a lot) with the cross-country.  In the end, I opted for the easier snowshoeing and began my hike through the land.  After yesterday's snow, the land was pristine and gorgeous.  Everyone I meet were extremely cheerful and appreciative for the event and the beauty of nature in general.  Unfortunately, not much wildlife was heard or seen today, except for some tracks and sparrows that I saw and the chickadees that I heard.

Here are some photos taken along the trail.

Sunny snowy day & Photographed a nuthatch

Wow, this frigid cold temperature (~ minus 20 degrees C) takes some use to, especially for someone from Lower Mainland, where it rarely drops below minus 5 degrees C in the wintertime.  Nonetheless, this is exactly what I always want to experience in a "Canadian" winter, and sunny winter days are my favourite time of the season because I can go out and take photos without worrying my camera getting wet from the snow (although now I realize I need to worry about my freezing hands and fingers).

Light powdery snow on the ground.

Attending WCH volunteer orientation at UBC & Cyanide-producing Millipedes

Went to UBC early in the morning to attend the WCH volunteer orientation.  I haven't been to UBC in a while, and surprise surprise, there is still construction going on at the campus.  Since I started going to UBC in 2004, I don't think there has been a year where UBC is completely free of construction machines.  This is probably the main reason why I dislike UBC so much. 

Anyways, the bus arrived earlier than expected so I walked to the rose garden to see some sights. 

Fireweed with water droplets.

Biking to look for housing

I am quite stressed nowadays about me not having a place to stay when I return from the field in August.  I looked at two places today - one was cheaper but shared with four other graduate students; the other one was a bit pricier but only shared with two other people.  Neither are really suitable.  Plus I don't have much time left after today since I have two full days of first aid training starting tomorrow. 

Not sure what I will do...

On the way to the pricier one.  Biking past this everyday might be a pleasant bonus.

 
Saw many Red-winged Blackbirds and grackles.  But the best sighting was this Eastern Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes).
 

Quick post about past week - mostly pollinators

Long story short, I am heading to St. Louis this weekend to participate in a pollination field course in Missouri Botanical Garden. Before I leave, I had many many things to do. Most of the more important tasks are done now, and now onto posting photos and blog writing about what I did since last Friday.

2012/04/07

I biked to Jackson Park hoping it would be nice and pretty by now.

Unfortunately not. The lake/pond is still really low and the trees are just producing buds.