Looking West

On Saturday we had a look at the view from Walbran Park looking east. Here, from practically the same viewpoint, is the view looking up the west coast of Vancouver Island.

Clover Point

Here's the view from Clover Point. It looks wild and lonely but it's right in the city of Victoria only a few minutes away from Beacon Hill Park. Though the water has that lovely aquamarine tint to it that makes it look warm, it was very cold. The Pacific here is always very cold - it's probably the main reason our ocean beaches are never crowded even in mid-summer.

Victoria International Kite Festival

Above is Clover Point, the always windy venue for the Victoria International Kite Festival. I took the photo last evening when they were just setting up for the festival which will be very active today. However, there were a few kites flying, the one below being the most interesting. I plan to check out the festival in more detail later today since I am always amazed at how the pros can make those flimsy things dance and swoop so gracefully..

On the Beach

I don't know whether it was the stormy weather we've had lately or just old age but this barge looks like it was lucky to make it to the beach between Clover Point and Finlayson Point. A work crew was busy this morning - looks like they were pumping it out so maybe it has sprung a leak.

Cold, Clouds and Kayaks

Before I went to Beacon Hill Park for yesterday's photo I stopped at Clover Point because the clouds were so interesting. There are almost always people in kayaks out on the water here and I admire their fortitude - it's still pretty cold on shore and I can only imagine what it's like out there on the icy Pacific. That's Trial Island in the background.

From Clover Point

Yesterday'[s photo was looking towards the west. Today's photo is from Clover Point looking eastward. Those little bumps just right of center are Trial Island.

Clover Point

We had some sunshine today so I loaded up the camera bag and headed for the shoreline. It has been some time since I visited Clover Point. Well, it was nice and bright but there was an icy breeze blowing - cold but at least we seem to have escaped the snow the weatherman was promising. Clover point is reputed to be the spot where James Douglas first set foot in his quest to find a location for Fort Victoria. It's just off Dallas Road a little east of Beacon Hill. Here we are looking westward from very tip of the point.

Gonzales Bay, Ross Bay and Clover Point

This is the view from Gonzales Hill looking the same direction as Saturday's photo. In the foreground is Gonzales Bay and beyond that is Ross Bay, bounded by Clover Point. There were patches of the luscious purple Camas Lilies blooming in all the rock crevices atop the hill.

Harlequin Duck

While at Clover Point I noticed some Harlequin Ducks. A male of the species is pictured above. These sea ducks dabble for their food in shallow waters but also dive for deeper prey such as crustaceans and worms. They often overwinter here but disappear in the summer. However, unlike most other migratory birds they do not fly north but breed and nest in the mountains, flying eastwards to their favored nesting grounds. This behavior is highly unusual - there's an interesting article about these ducks HERE.

Brant at Clover Point

I was down at Clover Point earlier in the week and was happy to see some Brant grazing along the shoreline. These are birds of passage that we only see here in the spring and fall as they move north and south. Like our ubiquitous Canada Geese, these geese are grazers. Here they are grazing on Sea Lettuce. Eel Grass is another favorite food.

Ross Bay Cemetery

On the eastern side of Clover Point is a large semicircular bay called Ross Bay. It's named after one of the early factors of the Hudson's Bay Company who had a farm on the shores of the bay. That farm became the Ross Bay Cemetery after the death of his widow and it contains the graves of many Victorians who were prominent in the early days of the city. Next week we'll look at what I saw when I recently spent an afternoon there.

Clover Point

Travelling east along Dallas Road from Holland Point, a next favorite spot is Clover Point. Sea Gulls and other marine birds are also fond of this spot. In the distance is the Trial Island Light.

First Victoria International Kite Festival

The First Victoria International Kite Festival was held this weekend at the local kite-flyers' favorite venue, Clover Point, a spot where there is almost always some wind. There were kites of all shapes and sizes. When I was a kid there was only two shapes for kites - a sort of diamond-shaped rectangle and a "box" kite. Like everything else, this has changed dramatically. Kites were invented in China a couple of thousand years ago and have been a source of entertainment ever since.

Grumpy?

Great Blue Herons are quite common in North America and I see them often on my morning walk. I like them because they are large, not too shy, and spend a lot of time standing very still - the photographer's ideal bird. However, even after a successful morning's fishing they always wear an expression of deep gloom, despair and desolation. Mallard Ducks, on the other hand, always seem to be smiling and calm. This has set me to thinking about how we interpret the expressions on the faces of birds and about human faces also. I have a particular empathy with the Great Blue Herons pictured here because I am often surprised by the expression on the face that looks back at me from the mirror every morning. With age my face seems to have settled into an expression of gloomy bad temper, a mood that I rarely feel. Yet I suspect that people seeing me often assume I am angry and dissatisfied when I am actually quite content, even merry from time to time. I am hoping that this is the case with Great Blue Herons.

Dunlin (Calidris alpina)

I'm still new enough to birdwatching that I encounter species new to me fairly often and it is always a thrill no matter how common they may be. Above are a small group of Dunlin (Calidris alpina) who were trying to catch a snooze near the shore of Clover Point a few days ago. Like the Brant Goose I pictured on Friday, they are not uncommon but I had never noticed them before. As well as differences in appearance due to gender, many birds wear different plumage during breeding season. The bird on the far left of the above photo is wearing the rich brown Dunlin breeding plumage. The bird second from the right is just beginning to show breeding plumage. The others are not yet in the mood, I guess.

Kitesurfing

Birds are not the only thing in the waters off Clover Point these days. When the sun broke through on Friday the blustery winds attracted some kitesurfers, one of whom is pictured above. Now this looks like fun but this guy must have been cold. Despite the lovely aquamarine tinge of the water, the wind was icy. Kitesurfing is on the verge of becoming an Olympic sport. People have kitesurfed across the Atlantic.

Brant Goose

Here's another common bird species that I don't remember ever seeing before I took up birdwatching. This is a Brant goose (also known as Black Brant), Branta bernicla nigricans. I saw this one and a half-dozen others grazing in the sea lettuce near the shore at Clover Point. I've seen Brant there before but never so close to shore. While I was mentioning the differences in appearance between male and female birds the other day, I didn't mention another fairly common phenomenon - cases such as the Brant where there is little or no difference in appearance between the genders.

Harlequin Ducks

Just as I finished taking Thursday's photo of the Trial Island lighthouse a small flock of Harlequin Ducks came zooming in and landed on rocks of the foreshore at Clover Point. In flight they are quite dramatic - those little white spots on their heads flashing like headlights. Above is a male and female pair, the male as usual being the more brightly colored.

Red-breasted Mergansers

Above is a photo of a Red-breasted Merganser couple, the only one I've seen this year. As usual with ducks the male is the brightly patterned one. While I have not seen Red-breasted Mergansers earlier this year, there have been many Common Mergansers here and I've posted photos of them before. For comparison, a pair of males and a single female Common Merganser are pictured to the left. All of these birds were swimming around offshore from Clover Point on Sunday.

Sunny Sunday

Fern captured some nice foggy shots over the weekend but we've had some sunny days too and surprisingly warm (temperatures around 8-10 degrees C). Victorians like to get out and walk around when it's like this and Sunday at Clover Point was no exception. Above are some fathers and sons flying kites. Clover Point is a favorite spot for this since it almost always has a bit of wind.