November 18, 2013

Day’s End at Fisherman’s Wharf

Fishboats at dock at dusk

Day’s End, Port Hardy (click to enlarge and see more details)

As a life-long west coaster, I’ve always loved the intricate and fascinating jigsaw puzzle formed by the poles, booms, gurdies, lines, drums and nets of commercial fish boats.

On summer days when the fleet is in port, Fisherman’s Wharf can be hectic as skippers and crews race to repair gear, do engine maintenance, re-provision and prepare for their next departure.

Morning comes very early for fishermen, though, so by dusk, things slow way down. You can almost hear the hush that falls over the docks, as dreams turn to what the next day might bring.

I made this photo on a quiet summer evening in Port Hardy, on northern Vancouver Island.

Like Totem Morning and Textures of Time, it’s one of the prints on display in my show, Reflections on the Coast, which continues until November 30 (details here). If you’re on Gabriola I hope you’ll catch the show, and I welcome your feedback.

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Posted by on November 18, 2013 in BC coast, Boating, South Coast & Vancouver Island and tagged , , , , , , .

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November 13, 2013

Fall Feast – for Others

Mushroom closeup with fan-like gills

Fall Fan Dance (click to enlarge)

Masses of mushrooms of many varieties continue to appear everywhere on our property, as I reported last week.

I’ve found what I think may be a cluster of Chanterelles – though lacking mushroom expertise, I’m not about to taste them. But others around our place seem to have no hesitation in turning the fungal bounty into a feast. Sow bugs are chowing down on the perhaps-Chanterelles, as you can see in the photo above and the one below (click to enlarge these images, and you’ll see the bugs).

Fan-like mushrooms with sow bugs eating them

Fall Dan Dance #2 (click to enlarge)

These are by no means the only fungi serving as meal time treats for the critters around here. Go a bit deeper into our woods, and you’ll find what we call “Mushroom Village”, a cluster that grows at the base of the same moss-covered fir tree each fall (photo below).

We think they might be Honey mushrooms, but we’re not sure. As the season progresses, we enjoy watching the Village swell up, from little button-like ‘shrooms to dinner plate-sized specimens. And as you can see, we’re obviously not the only ones who appreciate this Village: many of its mushrooms have deep excavations, indicating that Banana slugs have been taking regular meals here.

Clump of orange mushrooms with large holes and feathers

Signs of Nocturnal Visitors to “Mushroom Village” (click to enlarge)

I’m not sure what the feathers indicate. Perhaps they’re leftovers from an owl’s midnight meal – in which case, Mushroom Village might not be so lucky for local songbirds. But I guess all the residents – including sow bugs, slugs and even owls – have to make a living somehow.

You’ll find a few more mushroom photos on my Flickr site.

A reminder if you’re on Gabriola Island: My photography show, Reflections on the Coast, continues until Nov. 30 – I hope you’ll get an opportunity to catch it.

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Posted by on November 13, 2013 in Animals & Wildlife, Forest, fungi, Insects & other invertebrates and tagged , , , , , , , , , .

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November 8, 2013

Fall Magic

Wild mushrooms with fallen leaves

Magic Carpet (click to enlarge )

Thousands of mushrooms are popping up all over our property, in what’s turning out to be one of the best wild mushroom seasons in a long time.  As a result, my walks lately have been more of a slow amble – but still, they do involve some exercise.

Most of the individual mushrooms are small, so to get a good look – and especially to photograph them – requires a form of calisthenics that’s not normally part of my daily routine: deep knee bends. Dozens and dozens of them!

I have no expertise in wild mushroom ID, so I don’t know if any of the fungi I’m seeing are edible. Nor do I know – or care to find out – if any might be hallucinogenic. I’m content to admire them and to try to capture their beauty in images.

It seems that almost every day our mushroom map changes, as some disappear and others pop up where there was no sign of any the previous day. All of the mushrooms in these three photos were found around our pond, but they could be gone by the time I get this posted. Ephemeral beauty at its best!

Our fall fungi are by no means colourful or flashy, but I love their graceful lines and subtle hues. And if, in the process of photographing them, I happen to shed a few pounds, I’ll consider them magic mushrooms.

Click to enlarge:

A reminder if you are going to be on Gabriola Island:

My photography show, Reflections on the Coast, continues until Nov. 30 – I hope you’ll get an opportunity to catch it.

If you enjoyed this post you might also like:

Posted by on November 8, 2013 in Forest, fungi and tagged , , , , , , , .

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October 31, 2013

Daybreak at One Boat Bay

Silihouetted island, shrouded in fog, and sunrise reflected in water
Morning Mirror (click to enlarge – it looks better that way)

Some years ago, we stayed in a bay in BC’s Broughton Archipelago, a spot we’d never tried before and which has no name.  It was a little nook in a small island, offering just enough space to slip safely past the reef at its mouth and set down our anchor inside.

It offered privacy, as there was no chance of other boats trying to anchor beside us. And it gave us a marvelous view in every direction – so lovely that we ended up staying for three days,

Standing on our foredeck during that charmed time, I shot more photos than I could possibly count, often in exactly the same direction. Yet no two images from that sequence are alike, for the movement of sun, sea, fog and clouds brought a constantly changing panorama of light and colour. I was (and remain) smitten.

The photo above is from that magical time in “One Boat Bay”. It’s one of about a dozen new prints that I’ll be showing at the fall show and sale of the Gabriola Island Photography Club, which takes place this Sunday, November 3. I’m just one of many of our local photographers taking part. They’re a talented bunch, and if you’re on Gabriola that day, I hope you’ll join us for what promises to be a fun, visual treat of an afternoon.

Meanwhile, my solo show, Reflections on the Coast, continues until Nov. 30, and has been getting a wonderful response.  It’s been a busy fall!

Details of both shows here.

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Posted by on October 31, 2013 in BC coast, Boating, South Coast & Vancouver Island and tagged , , , , , , , .

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October 21, 2013

Textures of Time

weathered cliff face on sandy beach

Textures of Time – click to enlarge (it definitely looks better that way!)

Last week I showed you an totemic shoreline on a small island off BC’s Sunshine Coast. This week I’m taking you to a much wilder location, on the Central Coast – West Beach, on the exposed outer coast of Calvert Island.

I love what seems like a mix of hard and soft textures in the weathered granite walls, that rise up at the edge of the long stretch of sand. With their creases and rounded contours, they almost look alive.

They’re a reminder that although the earth’s crust looks dauntingly solid and eternal, it’s actually in constant change: cracking, shifting, fracturing and eroding over time.

Textures of Time is one of the 38 images currently on display in my show, Reflections on the Coast. Most are of the BC coast, but some of my favorites from our garden, forest and wildlife here on Gabriola are also included, along with a few abstracts. All are available for purchase. If you are able to get to Gabriola between now and November 30, I hope you’ll drop by the see the show, and I welcome your feedback.

Posted by on October 21, 2013 in BC coast, Central & North Coast and tagged , , , , , , , , , .

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October 10, 2013

Totem Morning: A Sneak Preview

Reflections of shoreline with totemic shapes

Totem Morning – click to enlarge (it definitely looks better that way!)

There’s nothing quite like daybreak in a quiet cove on the BC coast, especially when it coincides with low tide.

In the still of early morning, before the water is rippled by breezes, the reflections can be stunning, and you can spot horizontal “totem poles” in the natural shapes mirrored all around the shoreline. The closer you look, the more details you see: creatures, faces and other symmetric shapes typical of – and likely having inspired – West Coast aboriginal art.

I took this photo last summer in Ballet Bay on Nelson Island, on our way home from a two-month exploration of Queen Charlotte Strait. It’s a sneak preview of one of approximately three dozen photos in my solo show, Reflections of the Coast, which opens on Gabriola Island on October 15 (details here).

Not all of the photos include reflections on water (although many do). Still, I think the show title is apt, because each print is accompanied by my written reflections on the experience behind the photo.

All of the photos are presented as plaque-mounted prints. As you might expect, most are of the BC coast, including others from our Queen Charlotte Strait trip as well as the Central and North coast. But they`re not all marine in focus – I’ve also included some of my favorites from our garden, forest and wildlife here on Gabriola, and a few abstracts as well.

If you are able to get to Gabriola between now and November 30, I hope you’ll drop by the see the show.

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Posted by on October 10, 2013 in BC coast, Boating, South Coast & Vancouver Island and tagged , , , , , , , , .

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September 17, 2013

When Tyranny Reigns

hot plums in a food mill on top of a stove

A Sticky Affair: making plum syrup

For several weeks I’ve found it impossible to get a post written, and difficult to even to download my camera. The reason? I’ve been enslaved by TOTH.

Perhaps you’re familiar with this mighty force, which strikes in late summer and fall. It’s full name is “Tyranny of The Harvest”, and when it takes hold, It keeps me trapped in the kitchen for long hours and days at a stretch. By late afternoon, I have barely enough energy to cook a simple (and I do mean simple!) dinner, let alone get creative on the computer.

I know what you’ll likely say: it’s a good problem to have. I agree. So I’m not exactly complaining…just explaining.

Our garden has outdone itself, and the “waste not, want not” attitude that was drilled into my childhood psyche has been running in overdrive. Since mid-August my life has been non-stop food production: pickles, relishes, chutney, canned tomatoes, frozen tomatoes, plum butter, plum syrup, mulled plums, frozen soups and pesto of various types, more canned tomatoes…more plum concoctions… I’m putting so much food away that I’m beginning to feel like a giant squirrel.

And now our harvest of hardy kiwis has begun. Yikes!

To be honest, though, answering the call of TOTH isn’t the only thing that’s kept me busy this summer. I’ve been preparing the prints for my solo photography show, which opens October 15 and runs to November 30. I’ll be showing lots of new images as well as some of my old favorites. If you live on Gabriola, or if you have the chance to visit our island this fall, I hope you’ll check it out. Here are the details.

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Posted by on September 17, 2013 in Garden, Musings on Life and tagged , , , , , , , .

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August 31, 2013

Slow but Adventurous

Tiny snail on an echinacea petal

Snail on Echinacea

Still on the theme of “little things“, I noticed this tiny snail – about the size of my little fingernail – when I stopped to photograph our Echinacea (purple coneflowers) the other day.

Since the flower heads are two and a half feet off the ground, I had to wonder how that little snail dragged his shell all the way up there? Not to mention, why? It must have been quite the expedition!

I’m quite familiar with the adventurous nature of the snail’s much larger, slimier cousin – the Pacific Banana slug, ubiquitous here on the west coast (and a much more common visitor to our garden than a snail)

Looking outside on a cool morning, we frequently see the smooth underside of a Banana slug, half way up one of our ground story windows, heading towards the roof at a…dare I say…breakfoot snail’s pace. They also climb the outside walls of our greenhouse regularly, and we’ve come face to face with them a number of times when we’ve been on a ladder, ten or twelve feet up in the thorn-riddled Himalayan blackberry vines.

So I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at the tiny snail that scaled “Mount Echinacea”. These wandering mollusks are adventurous souls, it seems.

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Posted by on August 31, 2013 in Animals & Wildlife, Garden, Insects & other invertebrates and tagged , , , , , , , , .

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