An unusually warm late October morning brought out a good number of trail walkers. While there wasn't a lot of action in the ponds etc, the fall colours made the walk even more enjoyable.
The low sun on the trees across the river certainly brought them to life
The silver maple trees offered red leaves
The sumac and virginia creeper vine provided more shades of red/orange
Freshly fallen leaves were still sitting on top of the still water
The ferns were making their way from dark green, to very light yellow-green and on to brown
A solidary egret was on the far shore, but a great blue heron was much closer
The only Canada geese were in a small skein overhead
Not sure when, or if, I have seen a cardinal at Petrie. This one was trying hide in a bittersweet bush
A good number of chickadees were hoping for a handout and a small flock of robins were flitting about in one spot for a good 30-45 minutes. I suspect the robins might have been flocking up to head south.
Plenty of mallards were in Turtle Pond, some didn't want their pictures taken and were moving on
As the leaves come off the trees, bird nests are more easily spotted. A robin's nest and a smaller bird's nest.
Still lots of highbush cranberries on the bushes. Some of the bittersweet were popping out of their skins.
I expected to only find flowers that had gone to seed, but a few bread and butter blossoms were blooming. The asters had all gone to seed.
Despite the warm morning, the only watercraft to be seen were two canoes doing some filming.
The water level was quite low. Stumps that rarely show on the river shoreline were fully out in the open
The beavers are gathering small trees for the winter and seemed to be starting a larder at the end of the trail, although no beaver lodge was in evidence (unless it was under the mud).
A muskrat lodge on the river shoreline
A mushroom I had found last month had been partially eaten and shriveled up, but was still there.
Along the river trail a wayward dock/raft had been dragged ashore
You know winter is coming when boats, large and small, are covered with plastic at the marina.
