Checking to see if winter is gone yet

I did some bird-watching this and last weekend.

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) at Fletcher Wildlife Garden last Sunday.

Bird-watching in FWG

I took the long way to school today via Fletcher Wildlife Garden hoping to see some signs of Spring.

One of the first things I saw was this pair of Downy Woodpeckers (Picoides pubescens) fighting along the tree trunk.

Going outside and waiting for Spring

With rising temperature and melting snowpack, it is difficult not to think about Spring.  Nowadays, I try to go outside whenever the weather is nice and I need a break from computer work so that I can discover that first hint of Spring (from a flower, insect, bird call, anything!).

Almost a week ago, it was still pretty cold when I was walking along the Rideau River.

Male Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)

Assorted photos in February

Here are some photos I took the past several days.

The Rideau Canal Skateway officially closed for the season yesterday and ended the shortest season on record (18 days).  Thankfully I got a chance to spend some time (walking) on the canal last Friday and to test my new lens.

Updates & Visiting Mud Lake

This week is reading week at University of Ottawa, so there are no classes for undergraduate students, which also means a less hectic week for me.  One thing I was planning on doing this week was looking for Snowy Owls.  The approximate location of the Snowy Owls is not very close to where I live and public transportation does not even come close to the area, so I have been waiting for some free time and good weather in order to make this thing happen.  And today is finally the day!

Another thing that happened this week was that I came across an ad of someone selling one of the lenses that I have been waiting for a while now - the Olympus 60mm f/2.8 Macro Lens.  After some online negotiation and postponing the transaction because of Tuesday's record-breaking snowfall, I finally received this lens yesterday, and it is beautiful!  Because of the two above things, I set some goals for myself today - find Snowy Owls and test the lens.

Long story short, the first goal was unsuccessful because the road where I thought the owls may be found was not the right one and walking along a busy rural road (during wintertime) without sidewalks does not make me feel very safe (just like the time when I tried to bike to Bridgenorth).  After feeling a bit bummed and tired out, I decided to visit Mud Lake and photograph some birds (and macro shots too) instead.

Mud Lake is completely snow-covered now.  I took this photo with my new lens.  It is so much fun shooting with a sharp prime lens (not really the case for my OM 50mm f/1.8 lens).

Rideau Canal Skateway 2016

The Rideau Canal Skateway opened entirely on Friday for first time this winter.  Here are some of the photos I took on Wednesday and today.

It was snowing quite heavily on Wednesday afternoon.

Broken and slowly melting away

Life is a bit hectic at the moment.  Sometimes the only constant in my life is my love for nature, anything else will eventually fade away or break down.  Here are some photos taken during the past two weeks.

I bought a new camera lens during the holiday break - the M.Zuiko 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 II R.  It is a kit lens that usually comes with entry-level cameras, but now I can attach it to my camera without needing an adapter, which makes my camera less bulky and much lighter.

Winter bird-watching at Fletcher Wildlife Garden

I went to the Fletcher Wildlife Garden today hoping to see some birds (especially this one recorded from two weeks ago).  I did not see the owl but ended up seeing many regular wintering species, and most of them were hanging around feeders or trees with fruits.

Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

Birding at Richmond Nature Park

Yesterday I went to downtown Vancouver with my mother to get Compass Cards for public transportation.  While we were waiting to cross the street in Chinatown, I was shoved to the ground from behind by a random drunk/addict walking by.  I don't come to downtown Vancouver often, but for whatever reason, I always left with a bad taste for this part of the city whenever I do come.

After the incident, we took the sea bus to North Vancouver just to get away from Vancouver.

First (bird-watching) day of 2016

I drove to Steveston with my mother today for an afternoon walk.  We stopped at a couple of places to do some bird-watching.

I miss this view.