Solitude On My Deck. #7

Hello everyone! I hope you are all enjoying a nice day! It is beautiful here today, sunny and warm with not much wind. I like when there is not much wind, makes the day much more enjoyable. It was like this yesterday as well, so I went for a walk to the river. About time really, I will be making more frequent trips to the river from now on.

It is just so beautiful down there, a great place to just sit and enjoy the scenery, listen to the many different birds singing, squirrels chattering and the noise of the water as it flows past. That is all solitude at its best. I went past Scramble’s territory, a dark part of the forest with a thick canopy of pine branches overhead. I called him and he came running along one of the many fallen logs that lay all over the forest floor in this area.

Scramble uses them to great effect as his own highway system. I tossed him some peanuts and he came over and got them right away. If I came down here more often he would be taking them from my hand by now. But he gets closer all the time which is nice. He certainly has a beautiful summer coat this year. There were a couple other squirrels along the way too, but they are not as friendly as Scramble.

Not many people have been using the path to the river this summer so it is well grown over with long grass in many places. Except under the pines where nothing really grows very well. Mushrooms grow there however. The river is still very high, looked even higher than the last time I was there. It is supposed to be falling however, last week the level dropped by half an inch (12mm) apparently. If it stays dry the rest of the summer our lake and river levels should be back to normal by mid August to mid September.

It will be later if we get normal rainfall and if it turns out to be above normal rainfall like they are predicting for us, then the high water will go right into winter. Down at the river there were pelicans, a lot of them, very unusual for this spot on the river. However, their normal roosting spots, which are bare rocks, are all underwater. And here there are rocks for them to sit on to rest and preen their feathers. So I was able to get some nice pics of them.

There were also ducks close by, a female mallard with her brood of little ones, and some common mergansers sitting on a half floating log among trees out in the river. If the water level stays this high much longer I think some of these trees will be falling into the river, they are really starting to lean that way now. And that one gravel embankment keeps falling into the river, the path is only a foot away from the edge now, I would not be surprised if it gives way completely soon.

I walk further back from the path. It was so tranquil sitting by the river though and listening to one of my favorite bird songs from the hermit thrush. I love that song. Too bad those birds do not like coming into town. I got a lot of photos on that walk yesterday, some very nice, interesting pics, at least for me. It was certainly a time of solitude, the walk, and sitting by the river. Just beautiful. I hope you enjoy the pics with me over the next little while. Have a great weekend everyone and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2022 Steve McLeod.