Thursday, February 5, 2009

Sky Watch Friday



The cold weather has kept me indoor a lot lately. One day we had a break when the temperature went up enough for me to get out and enjoy the sunshine. I drove up to Lily Lake and took these shots of the swans and ducks in the open water, surrounded of course by ice.






At least the sky was blue and clear above, as this funny little guy strutted around on the ice.




Just a few days later the temperature rose again for 24 hours or so. We returned to the lake, and found most of the ice had melted.




Sky Watch is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Fishing Guy, Sandy, Louise and Wren. If you go to their site, here, you can join in, or view 300 or so photos of skies around the world.

32 comments:

Daryl said...

How lovely .. and the snow on your blog makes them even lovelier!

Ralph said...

That picture with the duck standing on the ice is really nice. It has always amazed me how ducks can stand and walk on ice.
Ralph

Sylvia K said...

Lovely blue skies and I love the swans! How beautiful! Wonderful shots! I'm going to try again to sign in, but I've posted pics anyway. Have a great day!

Lisa said...

Soooo pretty. If it weren't for the landscape, the sky and water would all run together. They're reflecting each other and look the same colors. Very cool.

Shelly said...

These photos are such a treat, I love swans...I could watch them for hours.
I really liked that little glimpse of summer of your last post...oh, the colors! I can't wait ;)

Anonymous said...

Lovely gathering of birds under that sky!

Leora said...

The swans and ducks look like they are having a fine time. Love all those blues. Glad you could get out and take some pics to show us.

Kathie Brown said...

Lily Lake looks lovley and all the swans look like giant snowflakes floating on the water!

Namnet said...

What a wonderful place! And your photos have an amazing atmosphere, so peaceful and neat. Love them.
Have a nice weekend and happy skywatching.

EG CameraGirl said...

So that's where all the swans have gone! ;-) I don't blame them for leaving our ice-covered lakes in search of open water.

abc said...

Lovely scenery with all those swans and ducks. Nice pictures.

Kim said...

Lovely blue sky and I adore the birds with the water and the ice!!

Corner Gardener Sue said...

I'm glad you went out and took us with you. I had fun seeing your ducks, water, and sky there. Great pics!

Thanks for the comment on my blog, too.

Anonymous said...

We really appreciate those rare, warm days, don't we? But swans manage to look elegant no matter how cold it is.

kden said...

What pretty shots even with all the freezing cold ice ;-)

Linda Murphy said...

I've been a little MIA on visiting blogs, but happy to stop by and see your Sky Watch photos and check past entries too.

By the way, thank you so much-I happened to notice your sidebar tonight and you have placed my blog as a must read. I feel very honored and always welcome your visits. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Oh no! I see spots. Am I getting a migraine? Oh wait. How stupid of me. Lots of beautiful white swans with a pretty blue sky background.

Carletta said...

Lovely shots!
It's amazing how the ducks and swans can just sit there and float on that icy water.
Nice that you went back and took contrasting pics.

Anonymous said...

Lovely blue sky shots!

Firefly the Travel Guy said...

Just wanted to let you know that we're not quite yet ready to let summer go down here in South Africa. LOL. I love seeing the difference between the icy lake and the normal one.

Linda said...

Such a pale shade of blue sky at the horizon. Whenever I see ducks on standing on ice I want to give them something warm for their feet!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful shots. I was just thinking those poor ducks must be wishing for the ice to melt when you posted the ones with it melted later in the day. :-)

kenju said...

The variety of blues is incredible, Bobbie!

Anonymous said...

Great shots, beneath those bright skies. And melting ice gives one hope that spring is on the horizon!

Dianne said...

love the funny little guy

and all your beautiful blue sky shots!

Lene said...

What a lovley place to be! And really great photos!!

Happy weekend :)

Mojo said...

Doesn't appear that the weather's slowing them down one bit!

Nice selections here. In the last shot the birds almost look like channel markers!

dianasfaria.com said...

I love the trees in the foreground of your last shots. they really give the photos nice depth. But I love the top one the best, it's like a beautiful painting. Nice work Bobbie.
; )

nonizamboni said...

Thaw! The most beautiful word in the Eng. language to me these days too. What a gorgeous group of birds and isn't there always a comedian in the bunch?! thanks for making my day.
Happy weekend!

Mariz said...

Loved your photos. Those swans are really cute, very attractive lake too. Nice capture. Happy weekend.

Unknown said...

I like the way you kept the tree trunk on the left border of the second to last photo.

Swans on a lake or river are always elegant and a treat to behold. Though I understand that because they're not a native species that they create havoc with the water environment??

Anyway, that's neither here not there. The photos are a visual treat. Thank you, Bobbie!

Quiet Paths said...

These are very lovely and refreshing! It's so great to see open water somewhere.