Life on the Slough

A grey day arrives
to make me better cherish
those great sunny days

~ carliewired

I was up well before 6 and drinking my coffee before much light showed in the sky. No blue there today. I watched the low cloud roll out of the east from behind my mountains. I'm sure the ski hills will be happy, but I want it to warm up. 

I was off to McArthur Island just before 8. My car said the outside temperature was a mere 8 C. I parked near the Butterfly Garden and when I stepped out I got a chilly blast of wind in my face. I looked over into the shallow slough to see what birds were present today. A little group of four wigeons caught my attention. The males' iridescent green cannot be fully appreciated on a grey day. A ring-necked duck with his gold eye and dramatic black and white paddled along all by himself. A look to the foot bridge showed a big increase in the bird visits. I walked onto the foot bridge to have a look back at my mountains and my little red bomber. A pair of common mergansers showed up, he with his red bill and she with her crazy rusty crest. He did a wing flapping display in the water. As I stood on the bridge, a doe crossed the end of the bridge and walked silently down through the bushes to the edge of the water. She moved slowly and carefully, listening all the while. Her arrival scared up the ducks on the slough. They rose up and scattered but quickly settled as she was no threat. The doe observed everything around her and then sampled the water, turned and moved along the south shore. I lost track of her as she stepped into the brush. There were so many ring-billed gulls today. They were screaming and dive-bombing and soaring. They were annoying each other. As I stood on the bridge they would land on the railings and squawk to each other and stare at me curiously. I caught sight of my first wood duck of the spring. He looked purple and green and the red circle around his eye really catches one's attention. He's much more dramatic in full sun. I found a pair of mallards hunkered down in the dry grasses beside the slough. I wondered if they were already nesting. 

I was home again by 9:30. I will have a quiet day with my sewing machine. It's so grey that I have the lights on inside today. 

Our forecast indicates a day of mostly cloud with a chance of showers and a high of 14 C. Tomorrow promises to be much the same.