Dismal

Another day of 
poor visibility and
poor air quality

~ carliewired

For whatever reason, my eyes popped open at 3 AM. I tried to convince myself to go back to sleep. Nothing worked. Just as I was committed to getting up and dressed, something above the ceiling over my bed began scratching and scrambling around. That was it for my night! 

I was out the door heading for Tranquille before 5:30 AM. There was supposed to be a sunrise evident, but I could not see it. 

Along Ord Road, a small band of bighorn sheep were mowing down the weeds beside the road. This was a different group than I usually see. This one had a male and his harem. They zigzagged across the road several times causing me some concern. This route, usually quiet, has become an important route for vehicles involved with fire fighting. The fire crews and all the big transports move along here, sometimes at quite a clip. 

I moved on to the wetlands near the lake. The seasonal pond continues to shrink in size. The number of waterfowl is also diminishing. I spotted a small flock of heron along the edge. My telephoto had to zoom through multiple layers of smoke. Thus, the poor shot. 

A line of fire fighting personnel qued up at the railway crossing. A freight train had stopped on the tracks blocking their route. 

The herd of cattle from Tranquille Farm was out grazing. I wonder about the health of all animals in this smoke. 

I took one last shot of the hills above Tranquille. One would not guess this was a summer morning. 

Our BC Lions football team has been doing their summer training here in Kamloops for several years. This week they've packed up early to return to Vancouver where the air is clear. I am not surprised. 

Air quality is rated as 10 (high risk) and we're expecting a high of 35 C today. It's another inside day for me.