Some people go to the county fair to go on the rides. Some go for the food or vendors. I go mainly to see the animals. One event I do not want to miss is Dock Dogs.
This dog almost caught it before he landed in the water.
Just like humans have competitions at the fair in 4H raising animals, baking pies, and doing artwork, dogs have their events. One of the Dock Dog events at the fair is one in which the owners throw an object, the dogs run the length of a long dog to go after it, and they are judged by how far they jump off the dock before they land in the water.
I believe this was a senior dog.
Focused Brown Dog
This dog just seemed so focused on the task and serious. I had to include several images of him.
Running for the toy.Almost catching it before he landed in the water.
Frisbee Dog
This dog’s preferred toy was a frisbee. He was able to go quite a far distance in the pool. O love the expression on its face.
County Fairs have a lot to see. If you have not been to one in a while, make sure you visit one next year.
“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.”
Winston Churchill
The colour of the water appears to change in minutes when out kayaking on a lake. A lot of things come into play such as cloud cover, sunlight, time of day, what is nearby on land will all affect how the colour of the water appears. If you wait around you just may get to see the water appear to be different hue.
This is a loon from Upper St. Regis in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. In other pictures that day, the water appeared green and different shades of blue etc. Change sometimes is good.
from the song Stuck in the Middle With You written by Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty and performed by Stealer’s Wheel
These Adirondack loons were pausing for passing planes and eagles as well as motor boat and jet ski action on the lake. I am sure the mom was teaching the baby about safely crossing the lake. The baby should be well prepared for life. Other things I saw the mom do this trip were attempt some fish hand offs in the water instead of above water, and having the baby attempt to fish in the buoyed area of the lake that boaters avoid due to boulders near the water’s surface.
We have had a cooler than normal wet summer. It has rained a little to a good amount most days. Get out and dodge those storms. Enjoy what you can.
Stuck in the Middle With You performed by the Steeler’s Wheel
Another picture I got on the day I went to a friend’s house to watch hummingbirds. I went up to 1/3500 of a second an still did not stop wing action.
They are fast little buggers. Since they are mostly seen at her feeders in late afternoon it is hard to go up on the ISO too high. Then it become grainy. Get out and enjoy the critters. Just around the corner they will be leaving.
When I first saw this, I thought this hummingbird was spitting out water. Turns out it is sticking its tongue out. This is only a problem when they can not retract it. I took several pictures in a row and I believe this is the only one with its tongue out.
Thanks to a friend who has hummingbird plants and feeders and her very gracious invitation, I was able to photograph multiple birds visiting her plants and feeders. She finds this time of the year is the best time to see them. The best times to view is between 2-5 p.m. She usually sees them frequently in August after they babies fledge.
It is amazing what you can catch coming to a feeder! Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
What college campus has several hiking trails and ponds open to the public? Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondack Mountains does. Black Pond is on an area of land controlled by Paul Smith’s College. The public is able to access the trails to hike and the ponds to kayak or canoe with no cost.
Black Pond’s parking lot can be accessed off Keese Mills Road in Paul Smiths, NY. It is a small lot that holds maybe 6 cars.
Close to the parking lot is the boat launch. It is more for canoes as the dock is higher off the water. It is a little tricky for kayaks. There is an area next to the dock you can step in the water with a depth of about 1 1/2 to 2 feet next to shore that is rocky on the bottom. When I say rocky some of the rocks are big, so be careful.
The area to paddle from the dock to the lean-to on the pond is narrow. I count this as a passageway and not the pond.
Above is the entrance to the larger portion of the pond. The lean- to will be on the left of the entrance.
This is at the end of the entrance to the pond.
Lean-to
There are two lean-tos along the trail/lake. This is the first one near the entrance. You have to reserve them. They provide the firewood and toilet paper. There is a nearby privy/ outhouse. I don’t think any other sites in the ADK along lakes provide toilet paper and firewood .
They leave firewood in the lean-to so it stays dry. Since it rains in a short thunderstorm almost daily, that is a good practice.As you can see you get a good view of the pond from the lean-to. There is a fire-pit in front of it and the water is shallow in that area and you are able to get out of your boat there.Contact information to reserve the lean-to.
Pond
The pond does get some wind, but I found it less windy than larger nearby ponds. This pond did not appear to have access to other bodies of water.
The water under this bridge appears to go to Little Black Pond. The bridge is too low to go under and too high to get on from a kayak. There was no access point on shore to the trail.Lone tree on an island.
Due to downed trees I did not see an access point on the north side of the pond to Long Pond. I don’t know if it was normally able to be accessed via kayak.
Wildlife
Wildlife is always a bonus for me. This pond had loons. There were ducks on the narrow part near the boat launch that were camera shy. They may have been black ducks. Adult loons may have one main pond, but will travel to other nearby ponds and lakes to socialise with other loons and fish. I believe I also saw a kingfisher.
This is a pond I would return to. I would bring a picnic lunch and bug spray. I got bit by mosquitos on land when hiking the trail, but not while kayaking. The lean-to was unoccupied and the area has a picnic table. It is also in close proximity to other larger bodies of water if you are trying to go to more than one body of water in the same day. If you are in the area and are looking for a shorter paddle, kayak or canoe Black Pond.
I find it fun watching loons. This parent had babysitting duty while the other parent was at another section of the lake in the Adirondack Mountains.
The loon below is power napping. It ate a few fish in the middle of the lake and then it then swam to the side of the lake with the parent. The parent kept watch while the baby napped.
The parent needs to keep watch. After I started kayaking away, the parent started giving a distressed call. I looked up and the eagle circled and landed in a tree nearby. Then it decided to fly off to a tree on the opposite side of the lake. On my few trips to the lake I have now seen the eagle multiple times either chase an adult loon flying or circle and get close to the baby and parent causing the parent to go into alert mode. I hope these loons make it through their time at the lake without the eagles getting one of them.
I made almost a week long trip to the Adirondack Mountains in New York. I am not kayaking as far as I did last year. Luckily I do not have to go far to see loons on the lakes I visited. All the pictures below are from one lake. These were over two days. Some were in the evening and others during the morning.
Parent cut off a piece to give the baby.Spitting out waterPatiently waiting for someone to bring it a fish.Riding the waves.
Slow down and enjoy nature. Sometimes you do not have to go as far as you think.
I saw an egret coexisting for a short while with a heron on a tree. Is this a little blue heron or a tricoloured heron?
These are not the best shots because of the direction of the light and cloud cover. I could not go elsewhere. It was facing land and I was in a kayak.
Looks like the heron is smaller than the Great Egret here.
Still looks smaller than the egret.
The great egret was not bothered by the heron sharing the tree.
In the above picture the heron appears to have a white underbelly. It looks like maybe a bit of a stripe down from its neck to its chest, but not the best angle to see. The eye seems reddish with yellow around it. The feathers around the head appear to be mostly grey with more purplish tones in the back of the head. The sun poked out from the clouds and we have a better view of its colours.
I am guessing this means this is a tricoloured heron. Correct me if I am wrong. What do you think? Either way it is the first time I have seen a tricoloured or a little blue.
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