Nature

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #150 – Wild

/ Leya / 72 kommentarer

Guest host this week, and our natural guide through the wilderness is Dianne Millard of Rambling ranger – ”I don’t want to see groomed gardens or animals in the zoo. No people or signs of people. I want to see and revel in the natural world in your posts. Where’s the wildest place you’ve ever been? Where do you go to let Mother Nature regenerate your spirit?”

Most of you know I am a great nature lover and I always do my best to protect her and … taking only photographs, leaving nothing but footprints.

But love of the wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyond reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth which bore us and sustains us, the only home we shall ever know, the only paradise we ever need – if only we had eyes to see.

Edward Abbey

Seeing how Dianne lives her life, I can only admire and love her for what she is doing. I share her love of the wilderness, but I guess I was not made for such a tough life that she is living in Alaska… Go see her amazing adventures and photography!

We can all find and love pieces of wilderness at home – but this time I went back to one of my wildest and most loved adventures. Ecuador, the Amazon and Galapagos. I will start like Dianne – with my morning view, of the Napo river.

Every morning after breakfast we went by canoe into the jungle – for a new adventure.

Most significant were the playful monkeys – jumping in the canopy above, curiously swinging down to watch us marvel.
The silence of the gliding canoe, and then all the sounds of the jungle. The diversity in tangled plants and the absolute love and gratefulness of being there… It’s really impossible to describe in words or images, and the feeling impossible to imagine if you haven’t been there yourself.
The light in the darkness under the trees – and us waiting for an anaconda to swim up beside the canoe…
(Luckily?) No anaconda appeared during these days, but every detail was a beautiful gem. Only occasionally it was possible to take decent photos. Low light, no open landscapes, only dense jungle.

Climbing to the top of the canopy, we could hear and see many birds – but from a distance only. We spent our last night high up in a Kapok tree, watching the sunset over the Amazon basin. And I was also enchanted by all the glorious wild orchids residing in the trees.


To really get close encounters with the wild life – we then went for almost a week on a sailing boat to the Galapagos islands.

Here a close-up with one of the most special animals connected to these islands – a giant!

Other special, endemic wildlife here are the Land iguanas –
– and the Marine iguanas. You never forget their faces once you have seen them…
Seals were everywhere of course. This male had a big harem, and he kept a close watch on all the females…

So many adventures we had together, mostly on the water, and incredible close contact with the animals! We met so many lovely faces, and if we only kept a two meter distance, everything was OK. My favourites here are the little yellow warbler and the Mocking bird…they used to come up to me and look me in the eye. The mocking birds tried to steal things from my bag. Paradise is not having to be afraid of one another ♥. We spoke softly together.

Late evening, and both the iguanas and the boobies seemed to love the last rays of sun – just as much as we did.

Every island has its special landscape. Grey, dead trees? Take a closer look…

And every island has its own endemic inhabitants – blending in perfectly. A survival kit we all need.

Thank you so much for sharing last week’s wonderful colours with Tina and the rest of us! And thank you Dianne, for letting me return to another wonderfully wild place on planet Earth. We are looking forward to seeing more wild things, from home or on travels, linked to Diannes original post.

Next week, Patti will be offering LAPC #151, so be sure to check out her site then!  Her theme is From Large to Small.  Pick a colour and take several photos that feature that colour.  Start with a photo of a big subject in that colour (for example, a wall) and move all the way down to a small subject in that same colour (for example, an earring).

Thursday Thoughts – Late Evening Walk

/ Leya / 44 kommentarer

After a really cold and wet spell, we’ve had som glorious evenings. I’d love to have you with me for a late Spring walk.

The light is magical in the forest now, so soft, showing off the details as well as the whole picture.

It seems never is the light perfect for photography 24 hours a day – but, right now it is.

The marshes are alive again, but it is still too cold for the mosquitos. I know the swallows are here – but do they find any food? And all the other migrating birds – how are they managing this cold and wet spring?
Milo is walking alone now –
The scent of the Bird cherry envelops the forest in an almost tangible golden dream…
…where the nightingale throws his spellbinding tunes as the sun is slowly setting.

The numerous marsh- marigolds shine in the darker areas…

…and in the last sunlit meadow, buckbean stand like candles along the path.

Time to return home before it gets too cold – thank you for letting me borrow some of your delightful company!

Thursday Thoughts – Hiking Gedaryggen

/ Leya / 40 kommentarer

We went with a hiking group last weekend. We always walk alone otherwise, but were invited by a friend to join in. 20 people in the big forest. All vaccinated except me. A great day.

Normally, the beeches would have been green by the first of May – but this year has been very cold so far. Today the Maiden Fall and the Maiden Stone were the two main attractions – besides walking in the forest of course.

Do you see the eaten cones on the stump? Never in my life I have seen this many! We saw one every 5th meter. The forest must be a complete mice den…but, we did not spot a single mouse scuttling around.

Our eminent guide, Bo, is a real nature’s man – and a natural forest man. He sleeps in a hammock under the canopy several nights a month – and he asked how many of us who wanted to try it in June…and got some three – four positive to the idea!
This was really a great hike, and the resting places were beautiful. Young and old had their imagination filled with new mysteries, and climbing through the stone was an adventure. The sites have their own story about the young maiden, Elsa, hiding there and staying in the forest to escape followers during the Scania war 1675-1679. Nobody knows if there was a happy ending though…the story does not tell…
After 6 hours of hiking Gedaryggen (”The Goats Back”) we were rather tired and some had sore feet. My left foot (operated on a couple of years ago) told me this was enough for the day.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #146: Focusing on the Details

/ Leya / 107 kommentarer

This week, Patti invites us to join in for LAPC #146, Focusing on the Details. We can include photos of details from one subject (a person, a place, an object) or many subjects.

The beauty of life is in small details, not in big events – Jim Jarmusch

I want to take you along with me to a 10x10m area along this trail. Maybe it doesn’t seem to have much of interest…looks rather empty except for the trees, doesn’t it… But, let’s start looking for details – and this time I know what I am looking for.

The first details I see are these late blooming twigs…and I notice that the trunks reflecting in the water, show the sandy waves at the bottom of the creek instead of the patterns on the trunks.

What we are looking for in this forest is the fiddlehead fern or ostrich fern, 100–170 cm (39–67 in) tall and 20–35 cm (7.9–13.8 in) broad, long-tapering to the base but short-tapering to the tip, so that they resemble ostrich plumes. They would have been very difficult to find if last year’s leaves hadn’t been sticking up like brown feathers.

They are giving me the fern look…- I am being watched. They know I will soon be coming for them, because these ferns are edible, and absolutely delicious. It’s the only edible fern in Sweden. Here, in this wet area, they grow abundantly and in a couple of weeks, they will cover the whole forest floor below the trees. They should be picked when new and fresh, like the tallest ones in my images. Boil and eat, maybe with some delicious meat…soon!

Details are important, always.

A special thanks to Priscilla of Scillagrace for her fabulous Getting to Know You! challenge last week. As always, your posts were varied, surprising, delightful, and inspiring. On Saturday, May 8, Amy will host LAPC #147, so be sure to visit her beautiful and thoughtful site for more inspiration.

Until then, have a wonderful creative week and please stay safe.

Life in Colour – Purple

/ Leya / 26 kommentarer

This month Jude will be looking for Purple. A secondary colour made from red and blue. Here we go – this is one of my favourite colours.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #145: Getting to Know You

/ Leya / 69 kommentarer

Priscilla of Scillagrace is our lovely guest host this week: ”The artist’s gaze, the photographer’s eye, when cast on a subject begins a relationship.” And from then on, the road leads to Getting to Know You.

When I was young and just had met my husband to be, I did not know much about the part of Sweden he originally came from, Blekinge. All I knew was the great number of oaks living there – and as I always was a tree lover, I was looking forward to seeing them. The Oak Tree was later voted the Province Tree of Blekinge.

Of course I fell in love with the landscape – forests, farmland, water and a renowned and prize winning park.
Many walks and many beautiful views – I never get tired of the Park in Ronneby Brunn with its numerous grand Rhododendrons.
Our summer house is an old fisherman’s cottage.
I have come to love it very much, and Midsummer is spent with the family here every year.
Ronneby is an old (700 BC) summer town – called the town of roses. The cobbled streets are steep and every house is adorned with roses in one way or the other.
We have got to know many lovely friends in Blekinge – some surprises as well…
To my great joy, our garden is filled with wild flowers, just like home, but different species from where we ordinary live. The soil is more sandy here as it is close to the sea.
The warm evenings are filled with walks and late evening swims. The swims mostly for the children and the youngsters nowadays…
I have also learned to love the sunsets in Blekinge. As we have no sea close to where we ordinary live, this is a special treat.

I know, I have learned much about Blekinge, and I have come to love it very much.

Thank you Tina, and all of you interesting participants, for last week’s Taking Flight. A great variety and so much fun! We hope you will join us this week for Priscilla’s inspiring “Getting to Know You Challenge.” Please visit her site for the details of the challenge and see her expressive and beautiful photos.

Next week, it’s Patti’s turn to lead the challenge. Next Saturday at noon, welcome to the “Focusing on the Details” challenge. Until then, have a wonderful creative week and please stay safe.