Out and About-

Mum felt able to visit the beach on Thursday. She had the dog and her cane and a bag for rocks. 

 Obi was slightly bored cuz he wanted to walk a bit, but Mum said she'd take care of him.

 Obi's favorite thing to do, when he visits the Inlet, is to bark at the waves. He was very glad when mom took him near the water.

Mum was watching ripples near the shore and asked me to take photos of whatever it might be, so I did. They were pretty much in the same place the entire time we were there.

 I also picked  up some shells. Shells are rarely found on the Arness beach. I really like the odd one that looks a lot like a real heart. I couldn't find what it might be when I was online, though- Most of the rest are empty barnacles.

 Beach loot of shells and rocks. I found some things I've not found before, I think it is because of the recent really high tide we had. One of the rocks resembles rough petrified wood. It is rock, but not exactly.

At home the fallen tree had what I believe is Chaga on it. I removed as much of the growths as possible. Once it was cleaned a bit, I broke it into pieces for drying. 

I asked mum to stand in front of the fallen tree for a photo op. I really wanted her with a background of fireweed, but mot of that is already done blooming! 

 On Wednesday we went to the most awesome amazing spot in Soldotna. It is a small building near Fred Meyer with several businesses in it. A bookstore (where I purchased a book), a boutique (I got something there, too), I think a bakery (but I'm not sure, I didn't go in there), and the absolutely best place to eat I've been to in forever. It is called Fine Thyme Cafe and I highly recommend it. We met there with Sharon and some of Eileen's kids. It was good food and fun. Mum was very glad we met with them. (I didn't get a picture of everyone in the group, but I took several with their cell phones!!) The flowers are from their outside area. 

 The dragonfly is just cuz it was being nice and didn't land on me. These giant things clatter and are rather startling. Beautiful, but I much prefer to photograph them not on me! (it was back out at mom's house-)

It has been a busy week, starting with the downed tree of my last post! 

Sand and Ice

This has a LOT of photos. I was fortunate enough to visit the beach again on Good Friday. It was fairly warm, but there was still a great deal of ice out there.I was also happy to see how much snow there is on the mountains! 

Even fishermen were out. These nice men said I could take their photo. They were hoping to catch some halibut. You can see the ice on the shore behind them  From there you needed to jump down  to get to the beach. 

I took a great many ice on the shore photos. They were full of rocks and sand and dripping water. Powerful pieces of winter waiting to melt into spring. 

On the way back to the car, I found out the best footwear to use when walking on the beach are rubber boots. It is much less stressful to wade in the waves instead of dodging them. Although, dodging them IS fun!!! 

I had to take a photo of this white thing...it is a seashell! A clam half with a bit more. You rarely find shells on this beach! I was at the one down by the Tesoro docks. No ship today. just lots of sunshine and beautiful rocks. I wasn't going to bring any home. I managed to stop at 3. 

                                          

Out of the Blue and then there were Two!

The sky was a brilliant blue, the sun was shining, and I wanted to visit Arness Dock again. I mentioned it to mum and she opted to go, too. The clouds were incredible billows of cotton--I had talked to my friend, Kel, and it was hard to believe Soldotna had rain! 

 I set the camera down and took a surfside shot of a view from a rock. The Inlet is dark, but the scenery is stunning (as  usual).

 Mum picked up rocks and Obi? He barked at the waves.

 They appeared to not be too scary, he wagged his tail as he barked!

 A nearby bit of log driftwood provided a resting spot for mum--and she found more rocks to bring home. :o)

 When we got back to the house, we noticed moose tracks across the driveway. I was annoyed. I had come across tracks twice today with no moose sightings. As we organised the rocks, though, a cow came around the edge of the garage! We quickly locked Obi in the shop and watched her take a wide turn to a mowable part of mum's yard.

 It appeared she had a calf! They stayed put for quite a while.

 Here she is listening to Obi's distant bark from inside the shop. Eventually, mum put Obi on a leash and he was rushed into the house. I'm pretty sure he didn't notice the moose. He was barking in the shop because he was locked up. I kept close to mum's vehicle and made sure I had an escape if she objected to my photography. (I really wasn't as close as the camera suggests)

 Here, she is looking at me.

 We hoped this was a parting shot, but alas. It wasn't the end of their sojourn in the immediate vicinity.

 The rain Kel mentioned a couple of hours earlier, descended upon man, duck, and moose. So, the young one hunkered down for a nap under the watchful eyes of mom.

 Then, after about half the Mariners game, I looked outside to see if they were still around. Yup, the cow had settled down, too!!!

I didn't see them after the game and mum took Obi out on a leash. Everything appears calm for the moment.