Friday, March 10, 2023

Cusp of Spring

 Pictures from John's walks and more ...

Most of my daily walks are along The Elliott Bay Trail which is along Seattle's waterfront. At the start of every walk, I snap a photo like the ones above to record the sky conditions. Then, as I'm walking along, I snap pics of scenes I like. Click on images for better view.

Critter pics ...

A Common Merganser
Haven't seen them for months, so I'm guessing they
are back from wherever they spend their winter.

A Red-faced Cormorant drying its wings.
Not a great capture, but does seem majestic.
To see more blogs featuring critters,
check out
 Saturday's Critters

The Canada Goose is one I see often.
Sometimes, I like to stop and say Hello a few times.
Most do not seem afraid of humans.

Last year's nest may be under consideration for 
these two crows. Same tree, but different days.

Really got a stare from this black crow.

Recent photos of one of my hummer visitors at home.
This is the same bird, a male Anna's hummingbird.
Movement of feathers changes appearance dramatically.

A two legged critter taking photographs.
I like the use of a tripod but it's just too much
to carry along on my walks.

Three two legged critters rolling along on the trail.
Note the young lady in brown is capturing the fun
with her smartphone.

A two legged critter on a Jet Ski.
I see this critter often, early in the mornings, coming
into downtown from the north, so
I'm guessing this might be his method of 
avoiding traffic on the roads.

Not to be missed critters ...

Although definitely not something I saw on my walks, I had to share a YouTube I happened to see online. Passengers aboard the National Geographic Endurance encountered a pod of hundreds of whales. It's pretty amazing.

Massive Pod of Several Hundred Fin Whales
When a massive "superpod" of several hundred fin whales surrounds the ship, guests get close enough to get a whiff of the whales' exhalations. Video by Eric Wehrmeister aboard the National Geographic Endurance in Coronation Island, South Orkney Islands. If you're not familiar with where Coronation Island is, I placed a map for you below.



I love ships. Lots to see here in Seattle ...

3 Container ships and a Ro-Ro
A Ro-Ro is a Roll On, Roll Off ship that carries vehicles.
The Container ship in the lower right has a very light load.

Garth Foss Tug
Foss Tug Company has a large fleet of tugs.
Maybe the largest fleet in the Port, but I am not sure.
The Garth Foss is one of the largest tugs in the fleet.

Three passenger vessels and
 a refrigerated cargo ship at Pier 90

Skies ...

Looking across Puget Sound, late afternoon.
March 2nd

Sunset, February 17th 5:21PM

Sunset, February 23rd 5:38PM

Just after sunset
February 23rd 5:39PM

About an hour after sunset.
The Moon, Jupiter, and Mars aligned
 in the western sky.
February 23, 2023 6:31PM 
 

Just before sunset
February 24th, 5:34PM

From the walk, looking East, at dawn.
March 9th 6:29AM

There are a couple of spots on the walk where I get 
a good look at the Space Needle.
Of course, the view varies with the weather.

Can't resist adding the way Mt Rainier looked on
March 7th about 7AM
It is 14,410 feet tall (4,392 meters) 
— 
the tallest singular peak in the lower 48 states.

Iditarod 2023 ...

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, more commonly known as The Iditarod, is an annual long-distance sled dog race run in early March.

The "Last Great Race" started last weekend.
The "Official" race started Sunday, March 5, at 2PM Alaska Time.
As of Friday, March 10, about 2PM Alaska Time

most of the mushers are around the halfway mark.
The race is 1000 miles (1,600 km) from Willow to Nome, Alaska.
The photo above is a screenshot from the Iditarod GPS page.
All of the mushers are equipped with tracking devices.
Leaderboard is on the left side of the screen.

There are 33 mushers in this year's race.
Iditarod Website

David Poyzer is the Official Race Photographer
His photos are wonderful.
Check out his website.

This is how they get around at Rainy Pass Lodge in winter.
Rainy Pass is one of the check points on the Iditarod Trail.
Rainy Pass Lodge

Closing thought ...

     Failure is the mother of success.
          Ancient Chinese proverb.




23 comments:

  1. Some very interesting bird sightings, especially the hummingbird. Your ship pictures are as impressive as always, and the shots of the sky are truly exquisite.

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  2. Hello John,
    I have probably mentioned this before but you have a beautiful place with lovely scenic views for your daily walks. Great captures of the Merganser, Geese, Cormorant, Crows and my favorite the hummingbirds. Great views of Mt Rainier, the ships and the Space Needle. Your sunsets and dawn photos are beautiful, gorgeous colorful skies. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.

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  3. ...February 17th 5:21PM was a time to remember! Do you rollerblade on your walks? Take care and stay well.

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  4. Hello John, and good morning from Portugal. Here it is 10. 30 and the sky is dark with rain clouds. Your sunset images are all delightful and you did such a great job of capturing the sky shot of the alignment of the Moon, Jupiter, and Mars. Your critter post has a good selection of birds, but my favourite is the little Hummingbird with the iridescent feathers. I forgot to say that I liked the dramatic sky shot you took on the 2nd of March, and the image of Mt Rainier on the 7th which is always a pleasure to see. It is an impressive height. I live about 2000 meters above sea level. I enjoyed seeing the different kinds of ships, and I'm so glad you treated us to the sensational video of the pod of whales, it was immensely enjoyable, and the pictures and info about the yearly Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race which is an arduous trail both for those magnificent Alaskan dogs which I have always admired, and also the Mushers.
    Have a great weekend John,
    All the best

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  5. Your walks never fail to enchant us vicariously, John, with its various sights along the way, all assembled with your usual flair into a blog post that delights us all. Thanks for allowing us to join you once again. I am very happy to hear that the Canada Geese are being courteous and friendly. After all, we Canadians have a reputation to uphold! All the best - David

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  6. A great group of photos!
    I especially enjoyed the sky shots!

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  7. You share so many amazing sights on your posts! I love the whales! That's really something to see. And the little hummers just love your part of the country. I never see them here in the winter months. Love the ships of course and beautiful skies. I wouldn't be able to keep up on a walk with you. I would be taking too many photos! lol Enjoy your weekend my friend!

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  8. You cover a lot of territory in a week. When you get out walking on a regular basis you find lots of photo opportunities. I don't know how many hours you are out but it must be quite a few.

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  9. Hi John, I love your photos. The one of 'After Sunset' and 'Mt. Rainier at 7am' were especially nice, I thought. Living somewhere so picturesque as Seattle certainly helps, but I have a feeling you'd manage to capture wonderful images like these wherever you were. Thanks for sharing, and hope all is well.

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  10. your walks transform my day completely always dear John :)
    i love nature so deeply ,sky shots are spiritual experience for me ,special thanks for them friend!
    Hummer is utterly pretty :) i wonder why you did not find the shot great but i absolutely LOVED the bird spreading his wings ! yes majestic indeed.
    massive thanks for sharing the video of whale groups ,never saw something like this before wow .i really enjoyed the video !
    dog race sounds amazing as well .
    keep sharing your adventures .health ,peace and joy to you and loved ones!

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  11. So nice to see all the photos from your walks.
    Those sky shots are awesome.

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  12. What a wonderful post, filled to the brim with delights! I especially appreciated seeing the superpod of whales. It simply warms my heart to know they are there, looking healthy and hearty. And your beautiful sunsets take my breath away! Thanks, John, for giving me such a treat!

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  13. The Iditarod is a fascinating race. The longest snowmobile race in the world, in Labrador, had to be cancelled this year because of melting conditions. Scary thought.

    Loved the bird shots, especially the cormorants. They aren’t back here yet.

    The ships you feature always fascinate me. A sure sign of world commerce!

    Have a great week!

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  14. Thanks for alerting me to your latest blog post. That video is amazing. Oh but, I enjoyed all the pictures.Thanks again.

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  15. Hello John
    A lovely post.
    I especially enjoyed the whale video and details of the Iditarod, many thanks for sharing those.
    Your sky photographs are amazing, nature provides such delight and truly wonderful colours.

    Both Eddie are I are finding March is flying by, Easter will soon be here :)

    Have a good week ahead.

    All the best Jan

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  16. Dear John,

    I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thank you for your amazing blog. I always look forward to reading your posts and seeing your fantastic photos. I particularly loved your recent post about roller skating (in Dutch skeeleren) - it reminded me of two girls I saw skating along the canal here in the Netherlands. I'll have to share that story on my own blog sometime!

    And of course, I always enjoy seeing pictures of that beautiful mountain in your area. Thanks again for sharing your stories and photos with us.

    Best regards,
    Aritha

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  17. Me gustan tu caminatas y esos pájaros me han enamorado. Te mando un beso.

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  18. I enjoy the lovely walks you take us along.
    Your beautiful photos are always a joy to look at.

    Happy Monday, John.

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  19. A good walk full of interesting things to see!
    Hi via Red's blog. I like your comment. Good question

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  20. I stopped back by to thank you for your comment. We love HTP and appreciate that you took the time to research the place and share the information. Wish you were here to take a walk with me there. Did you get a chance to click on the link for the magazine article at the end of my post? I think you would enjoy it! Let me know! Happy Sunday, Diane

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  21. Muchas gracias por preocuparte. Estamos bien te mando un beso.

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  22. A wonderful walk, and I like the way you capture the highlights as you make your way along. Beautiful skies, and I'm fascinated by ships as well (but not living close to the water, there's not much I can do about it). Never heard of a RoRo. Thanks again for your kind comments on my blog!

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  23. Being on the "Cusp of Spring" I am looking forward to this season's bird migration, the sightings and their sounds add cheer to places I walk. Your hummingbird photos are so pretty and they surely must bring much joy to watch. Having grown up on the east coast of Canada, (now living out west) ocean vistas always capture my heart! Thank you for sharing your piece of paradise!

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