Winter Sunset

We've just come through 13 days of temperatures below 20°F (-7°C). In fact, a week ago, it was -13°F (-25°C) when we got up in the morning. Brrrrr!

Although Doug and I are perfectly content to stay home during these cold days, there are times when going out can't be avoided. When we ventured out to run some errands on Saturday, we were rewarded with a lovely winter sunset.

We're currently experiencing a bit of a warm-up, for which we're grateful. But, at this time of year, we know it's only a temporary reprieve. 

October Beauty

The photos today were all taken October 21, the first four at Ouabache State Park and the last two on our way home that evening.

Common Buckeye Butterfly

I've admired other bloggers' photos of the Common Buckeye many times but had never seen one myself until this day. It made my day.

The photo above may look familiar. It's the same path pictured in my last post but taken 11 days later and showing a bit more fall color.

The picture above shows a little fall color across the "lake." The lake has begun to fill again, but slowly. Still, the Canada geese seem encouraged.

A Closer Look at Some Autumn Leaves

The photo above shows the sunset as we started home that night. The one below shows the same sunset in its dying glory.

Random

With the lake drained at Ouabache State Park this summer, I've had to search for things to photograph on our occasional afternoon visits there. Following are a few random shots from September.

Cabbage White Butterfly

Sparrow

Snail Shells in the Dry Lake Bed

Killdeer

Clouded Sulphur Butterfly

Cottonwood Leaf Beetle (It landed on my jeans.)

This last image isn't from the park. We were driving by a small local airport on October 2, when the sunset deepened to glorious colors. Doug stopped to let me get a picture of it.

Sunset at Smith Field

October Sunset

On our way home from that October 12, visit to Ouabache State Park, we had the privilege of seeing this beautiful sunset.

A rainbow seems to be dropping from the clouds, almost like the finger of a tornado.

The brilliantly colored sky was growing dark by the time we reached this church, but I still liked the silhouette against the last remnants of the sunset.

Storm Clouds and Sunset

We were blessed with a gorgeous sunset tonight. I'm posting a series of photos taken between 9:00 PM and 9:30 PM. None of these have been tweaked in any way.

The above image was taken while looking east, away from the setting sun, and wondering about the strange cloud/light formation over the Amish farm.

The photo above is taken looking to the north.

To God be the glory!

A Few Birds and a Sunset

When we go to Ouabache State Park, it's usually in the afternoon; and we leave about 5 PM or so to go get supper at our favorite restaurant. Last Friday, though, on the spur of the moment, we went to the park around mid-afternoon and took our supper with us to enjoy later.

Toward dusk, the birds became more active. We'd hardly seen any before that. So the following pictures aren't the greatest quality because of the low light and the amount of zoom required. Still, I thought they were worth sharing.

This young Eastern Bluebird was hovering above the ground.

Another (or maybe the same) young Eastern Bluebird

White-Breasted Nuthatch

And this is the sunset that we saw on our way home that night.

To put it mildly, it was a very pleasant afternoon and evening.

Pictures from the Reservoir...Again

Last Wednesday, my friend, Pat, joined me for a walk at the reservoir. I've shown you several pictures from the reservoir, but not many of the reservoir. So I'm including a picture of Pat on the path to give you just a glimpse of what our walking path looks like.

Pat at the Reservoir

In recent years, the reservoir has become a sanctuary for several Canada geese that have been injured and can no longer fly. Somehow, they find their way into the relative security of this place. I say "relative security" because there are predators, such as coyotes, who frequent the place. But, overall, the wounded geese enjoy a comfortable existence. The reservoir is closed to the public during the winter, but employees bring grain to help sustain the geese during the cold months.

Occasionally, a flock of healthy geese come to the reservoir for a time, and the injured geese usually seem to enjoy the company.

Several geese were on hand on the day of our walk.

Most of the milkweed flowers have begun to dry up by now, but we found one full of buds that had not yet opened, except for one tiny flower.

Milkweed flower buds

The last time I had walked at the reservoir, I had seen a pair of Northern Mockingbirds flitting in and out of the trees. I hadn't been able to get a decent shot of them that day, but I was watching for them on this walk, hoping for a better opportunity.

Seeing a flash of white landing in a tree near where I had seen the mockingbirds, I took a chance that it was one of the birds I was watching for and snapped a photo. When I looked at it later, though, it appeared to be a juvenile; and I couldn't be sure it was a Northern Mockingbird. I include the picture here, though, because I liked it.



Possibly a Northern Mockingbird juvenile.

This next picture was taken this past Saturday, as Doug and I were driving by the reservoir at sunset. We stopped so I could get a quick sunset photo.

Sunset at the reservoir.

Evolution of a Sunset

Saturday was a day marked by heavily clouded skies. Doug and I visited Doug's brother that evening, in another town a little over an hour away. As we drove home that night, it didn't seem possible that the setting sun would be able to penetrate those thick clouds, but it did.

Looking East/Southeast - 8:56 PM

Looking East - 8:56 PM

Cell Phone Tower Lit by the Setting Sun - 9:04 PM

Clouds in the eastern sky being lit by the setting sun - 9:08 PM

The western sky - 9:09 PM

The western sky - 9:11 PM

The final rays of the sunset in the western sky (from another location) - 9:25 PM

Saturday Night Sunset

A glorious sunset, silhouetting an Amish farm.

Storm Glory

The rain has finally returned to Indiana and is coming now with some regularity. The downside of that is that it usually comes in on a storm, rather than just a nice gentle cloud passing overhead and dropping some moisture.

The latest storm rolled through on Saturday night. The sky grew dark; the winds picked up; and the rain fell. But afterward...oh afterward...such wonder in the sky. My photos don't do it justice.

First, there was a rainbow.

Then the sky turned orange.

Looking west, our trees prevented a view of the horizon, where the sun was setting.

Looking southeast, the setting sun reflecting in the clouds

Florida Sunset

Since we couldn't have the carpet reinstalled in the no-longer-sunken living room until the cement fully dried, and since we didn't particularly enjoy living in the mess, Doug and I decided to make a short visit to Florida.

The main purpose of the trip was to visit some friends who were spending a couple of months in the RV Park at Word of Life Conference Center in Hudson, Florida. But the conference didn't take up all our time, leaving us some opportunities to explore the area.

Beautiful beaches aren't as common as you might think, at least not in this particular part of Florida; but one day we found a spectacular one at the Fred Howard County Park. We spent the afternoon there and were rewarded with a lovely sunset that evening.