Alaska At Sunrise

Early Morning Musings

Ron Day — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:14:21 +0000

Not getting enough sleep at night is beginning to make me weary. This morning I was awake again at 3 o’clock, watching as the light of the new morning began to creep slowly into the bedroom.

Couldn’t get back to sleep, though.

So I quietly got out of bed, went down the stairs where I warmed up a cup of yesterday’s coffee in the microwave, then I grabbed my camera and sat out on the deck for a while.

The scattered clouds in the sky were beginning to turn pink already, the sun comes up early in this part of the world in the summertime, and I enjoyed watching them change shapes and colors.

The birds were awake too, singing joyfully at the top of their voices. I heard Robins and Chickadees, as well as a few Sandhill Cranes as they flew overhead. There were even a pair of Kingfishers swooping swiftly across the sky as they flirted noisily with one another.

So I just sat there on the deck being mellow, enjoying my coffee while taking a few pictures whenever something caught my interest, including the one above. It’s of a small spruce tree with the distant Chugach Mountains blurred out behind it, the rising sun turning their peaks and flanks pink for a few moments. I used a flash to light the tree and I kind of like the way it turned out.

Yes, it was all nice for a time. But as the sun rose higher everything began to lose it’s magic. Neighborhood vehicles began passing on the road as everyone went off to work, the sky lost it’s luster and color, as well as it’s clouds. Even the birds turned silent, they must have found perch’s in the trees somewhere, catching up on the sleep they missed because they got up so darned early.

Smart birds.

Somehow I wish I was one of them.

Brown Bear – Catch Of The Day

Ron Day — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:29:49 +0000

Squirrel’s and birds are nice, but sometimes we might need something a little more exciting to photograph. This handsome brown bear had just caught his evening meal from the waters of Prince William Sound. When he ambled up the rocky shoreline with it clutched between his sharp teeth I was there waiting for him, with my camera of course. Maybe I’ll be lucky again this summer, too. One just never knows.

Squirrel World

Ron Day — Wed, 23 May 2012 18:34:52 +0000

I don’t get many guests at my home during the week, just a few little birds…and of course this red squirrel. He’s a shy little fellow that likes to sneak into one of my bird feeders and munch happily on suet block attached to the side of it. Each morning around 10 a.m. I walk down to the feeder because I know he’s usually there at that time. He lets me walk withing about six feet before he gets nervous and scampers up a tree branch, stopping at this exact spot every time, where he lets me take a few pictures even though he’s scolding me. When I leave he’s usually still there and hollers out “See you tomorrow!” before he scurry’s back down to the feeder to finish his breakfast.

Purdy Burdy

Ron Day — Tue, 22 May 2012 22:22:59 +0000

It was early morning and the birdie was happy, chirping and calling out to its mate…or anyone else who would listen. What a great and beautiful way to start a day. We should take lessons on happiness from the birds and animals in our world.

A Little Bull

Ron Day — Fri, 18 May 2012 14:27:40 +0000

When we suddenly found ourselves face to face there in the forest, we each took a moment to study the other, then he wheeled and left for another world, his own…and I did the same.

Mama Kestrel

Ron Day — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:37:09 +0000

She’s still out there taunting me, this mama Kestrel, but at least she’s getting a little closer now. While I was out on the deck yesterday she buzzed overhead a few times then briefly settled on this nearby branch of a cottonwood tree, giving me the “eye” for a few moments before taking flight once more.

One of these days Mama, I’m think gonna get a real good photo of you.

Evergreens And Red Flowers

Ron Day — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:32:07 +0000

Grand vista landscapes are awesome to photograph, but I like the simpler things too. Like red flowers and evergreen needles coming to life under the morning’s new sun.

Springtime Assurance

Ron Day — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:16:38 +0000

Spring leaves and blue sky after a long winter. I’m sure this is God’s assurance that everything is still good.

A Cat’s Life

Ron Day — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:01:57 +0000

We give her the run of the entire house, yet this is where she prefers to bed down.

Cat’s.

Ya’ just gotta love ‘em no matter what kind of mischief they create.

Osprey vs. Bald Eagle

Ron Day — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:49:36 +0000

Here are some interesting photos showing a sequence of events that happened in the sky directly over my studio this morning. I happened to glance out of the window and saw a Bald Eagle trying to swipe a fish from the talons of an Osprey so I quickly grabbed my camera and hurried outside. The action only lasted a few moments before they disappeared behind some thick trees, the Osprey still clutching his breakfast and trying his best to evade the much larger eagle. Just thought my readers would enjoy seeing these scenes from Alaska.