If I’m not mistaken, this is the 4th or 5th time this winter that a respectable amount of snow has been washed away by an annoying day of rain. Some people appreciate it, I do not. It turns winter wonderland into winter dreary land, just like that:
From Wow! to What!? in 15mm - Quidi Vidi HarbourCam
Harbour Seals often haul themselves out of the water to rest, this uncomfortable rock wouldn’t be my first choice though:
Planking Harbour Seal - Holyrood
To me, these cushy rocks looked a lot more inviting, and evidently to these seals too:
Harbour Seals on land - Holyrood
Today was a beautiful winter day in our hometown:
Winter - Torbay
When I dropped off Marije at work this morning she asked me what my plans were for today. I replied the weather was so lousy it wasn’t specifically suited for doing anything at all. I then asked Marije if perhaps she wanted to see a seal on the blog today, which she did, so I decided to find one on a drive around the northeast Avalon.
In Quidi Vidi I spotted two Bald Eagles on the ice, but they flew off before I got my camera out of the bag. The same tune was playing in Petty Harbour, one Bald Eagle, no other wildlife. Plenty of fog though:
Foggy winter scenery - Petty Harbour
In Bay Bulls I saw a small Dovekie swimming and diving in the harbour. It was Holyrood where I finally found my seal, it was resting on the harbour ice:
Harbour Seal on ice - Holyrood
This was the exact same location where there were dozens of seals last year, but that was a little later in the season.
On the way home I passed Topsail beach, where I took a picture of the ferry and the fog coming off the cliffs:
Ferry returning from Bell Island - Topsail
A little closer to home still I stopped in St. Philip’s, where a Kingfisher was too quick for me, so I took a shot of the frozen wharf side instead:
Idle Speed Only - St. Philip's
All in all, not a bad day.
Well, that’s the end of it: after tonight I’m no longer home alone; Marije is coming back from her long visit to Holland. Today I was busy making preparations for her arrival, such as stocking the fridge with scary vegetables, icky meats and other stuff I haven’t seen for a month.
Before getting those groceries I noticed the weather was too good to waste, so I took in some fresh air and a lap around Quid Vidi Lake:
One quarter frozen Quidi Vidi Lake - St. John's
As expected, today was a marvellous day for a winter hike. The expected wind chill of -26 wasn’t that bad because my hike on Stiles Cove Path was mostly sheltered by the forest, in which of course there wasn’t much wind. The -13 Celsius was enough to freeze the water bottles I had brought though, after a few hours in my jacket pockets the contents had been turned into a barely drinkable icy slush.
Cold weather
My complaints from yesterday about a lack of colour were swept away by the sun, as you can see a little bit of blue does wonders for the scenery:
Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto - Flatrock
This shot was taken at the Grotto in Flatrock, which is the preferred parking place for those hiking the East Coast Trail due North.
Here are some more pictures from the hike:
Start of the trail in Flatrock - Stiles Cove Path
Here’s Red Head, an impressively steep cliff about two and a half kilometres from the start. From a viewpoint halfway there you can appreciate how steep it really is:
Wintry Red Head - Stiles Cove Path
On every hike I take, somehow I always end up with pictures of my shadow, I guess they’re my way of documenting that I was actually there:
Shadows on the trail - Stiles Cove Path
Cliffs at Red Head Cove - Stiles Cove Path
Everywhere I walked I found tracks of foxes, hares, squirrels an mice. One fox practically walked the same route as I had for most of the way:
Tracks in the snow - Stiles Cove Path
After five hours I was pretty much done for, I hope the good weather persists this month so I can get into proper hiking shape again.
