Sunday Drive

There was no good news on the sports front this weekend: the undefeated Cougs lost, the Seahawks lost, and Noah's team lost to their chief rivals. So let's not talk sports this weekend.



Yesterday Forrest and I saw a flock of Tundra Swans that winter in our area right next to the road, but we didn't have the camera with us. We decided to take a Sunday drive this morning in search of photo opportunities. Of course today the swans were not nearly as close to the road as they were yesterday. These beautiful birds raise their young in Northern Canada and winter on the farms near our house. Their wingspan is nearly 7'. The swans are endangered so thankfully they're not hunted.



Snow Geese which migrate from Siberia for the winter gather in larger groups than the swans. Often fields are covered with 5,000-10,000 birds. They're harder to find this year since the state has opened up controlled hunts to keep the birds from destroying farmland. The closest fields to our house are five miles away, but on a clear night we can hear the geese bedding down for the night.



The sun was finally out today after weeks of gray, dreary, wet weather. We've had lots of sleet, snow mixed with rain, drizzle, and just plain downpours. The sunlight on the mountains was so lovely we had to snap a few pics. And I couldn't resist the alpacas and their babies at the local alpaca farm.



This was a great morning. We left the kids at home, explored our valley, took some beautiful photos, and went out for coffee. The children do not appreciate beautiful scenery. We took a walk along the slough. A few hunters were out and we heard shots in the distance, but we didn't witness any birds meeting their demise. Now it's time to get back to the business of Sunday afternoon: laundry and housework.