Monday, February 17, 2014

Our World Tuesday

Our World Tuesday Graphic

My friend and I headed off to Elgin because it was rumoured that there were things to see there.  Our first stop, as always, was to have lunch in a favorite restaurant Al's Cafe.  Great food, vintage and eclectic milieu, and nice view of the city.


Once our endless appitites were satisfied we headed over to the Fox River ...

The River Walk was covered in deep snow, as was the river, but we plodded on determined to see what we came to see ...




Finally we came upon the dam ... and open water


There were many water fowl around ...

Some were swimming and even diving in the frigid water ...
Nature never ceases to amaze me ...

And, alas, we saw the first sign of what we came to see ...

Eagles are know to gather around open water in the winter.  We had been told that there were Eagles here so we had to come see for ourselves.  There was one ... only one, which is surprising, but we were greatful to see the one.  The Eagles and Water Fowl will be featured in Stewarts "Wild Bird Wednesday"  ... hope you get a chance to stop over and see them.  I am home, warm in my house and waiting for the predicted 6 more inches of snow for today.  I love winter and don't mind dressing warmly for it, but this is too much of a good thing .... I am ready for Spring :)

12 comments:

Sylvia K said...

Such a beautiful, interesting place to walk -- even on a cold snowy day! I love your captures, wish I could have gone, too!! Hope you have a great new week, Andrea!! Enjoy!

Phil Slade said...

That's a super shot of the weir and freezing the action like that Andrea, "freezing" being the operative word for your set of pictures. Yes birds are amazing, those goldeneyes being able to just flaoat around and ven dive into the icy water. Hope it warms up soon for all of us.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

I', a retired nurse, also, Andrea! Your area looks very pretty, yet cold. When we moved west to the Colorado foothills last year we never expected the winters here to be milder than NY, but they are! It is 63 degrees today. I ahve only seen one eagle while living here, although there are supposed to be more. I hope that doesn't mean eagles are on the decline again?

carol l mckenna said...

Wonderful photography and glad you had a good time despite being 'winter' ~ think we are all ready for Spring ~ Happy Week to you ~

carol and artmusedog
www.acreativeharbor.com

Snap said...

There is an amazing beauty to winter. The birds are amazing. One eagle -- worth the walk!

Elephant's Child said...

What a treat. Thank you so much.

eileeninmd said...

What a nice day! A nice lunch, a walk and the eagle sighting. Very cool. Have a happy week!

Photo Cache said...

thanks for the tour and the lovely photos.

The Queen Jester said...

This looks like a really pretty area and I've love to see it...in warmer weather. It's amazing what being out of snow for two years can do to a person. I find myself viewing the winter storm footage on the news of areas back "home" and think to myself....how can a person live like that? I did it for 60 years, but have no desire to return to it any time soon.

Hootin Anni said...

Beautiful day you shared. The buildings is almost from the Dickens era. I LIKE that.

Edna B said...

Elgin looks like such a pretty city. I just love the photos you took at the River Walk. Those tall grasses are just gorgeous against the snow. It's amazing how brave the birds are to be playing in the water when it is so cold. Nature is so surprising. I think it's wonderful to be able to see the eagle. I have never seen one here in my state. Sad to say, the only ones I ever saw were in captivity. We are waiting for more snow to fall today too. And I imagine that the snow you get today will be here in a couple of days. I'm with you, please Spring, please come soon. You have a great day, hugs, Edna B.

Anonymous said...

We have seen several eagles around rivers and open water from TX to KS, MO, even OH. There is migration starting to be more noticable in the South, too.

Rain Frances Creations ... Appliances

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