Which came first ?

City kids meet country chickens. They always thought that chickens came in a box with a batter coating!

Taken last Thanksgiving.

Gold Dust

In keeping with with the gold theme that seems to be occurring here this week...

The glare of the filament is diffused by a coat of dust. Do you dust your light bulbs regularly!

Golden Tree

The last of the evenings light catches these branches, turning them gold.

The Rose

From my archives. One of the roses I got from my husband.

Under a spot light, no flash and a low light setting. No tripod either, dont know how I kept my hands so still! No editing at all on this one.

This is one of my favorite photos.

Foggy Start

When the morning is foggy, that's a sure sign that the day will be clear. The temperature was up to 13C today. The warm air against the cold ground makes for a right pea souper. There must be alot of condensation from all the melting snow. The fog burned off by mid morning. As I type this, the clouds have started to come in again, but they are glowing pink and gold as the sun goes down.

Chain Link

The steel of the fence on this dull day has a very cold feel to it.

Thin Ice

This sign is present year round. I like how bright the red is amongst all this gray and white. It is lodged amongst the rocks on this dike bank. We had to keep the dog on his lead here as the ice is thin. But no THIN ICE sign ! Good job most of us Maple Ridgers are clever enough to think this one up on our own.

MRDP Dinner

It's what's for dinner in Maple Ridge tonight. Well, at least in this house. Seved alongside grilled salmon and brown rice, very tastey and colourful.

Seating

This is the seating area at the local bowling lanes. They are so old, they are back in style again. Comfort wasnt a priority when they designed these seats.

Lawn Mower Repairs

We went for a ride down a back road we had never ventured on before and came across this little home business. There were probably a huindred mowers on this property. All out in the open. Now tell me if we are just too fussy, but we keep ours under shelter. I am all for private enterprise, but I am glad he is not my neighbour!

Icicles.

This is the underside of our back steps. The gutters and drainpipes must be frozen. As the snow on the roof starts to melt it is running over the top of the gutters. We have a trim of icicles all along the gutters. And when they drip at midday they wet the back steps, which now are a solid block of ice. No going up or down them! The view from below the stairs is incredible. So many icicles, they remind me of stalagtites in caves.

45 rings

I enlarged this picture and counted 45 rings on one of the trees and it was'nt the largest one. Such beauty, cut down in its prime.

These logs were at the Pole Company. They are used for telephone pole and also for the construction of manufactured log cabins.

In the distance, on the upper right corner, there is a train loaded with logs.

Mailbox

Looking northward towards the Golden Ears Mountains. I edited this shot. I made it black and white except for the hint of red in the mail box. It almost looks like a sketch now. I also like how the B&W shows up the ridges of the hills better. I am posting a small shot of the original for your comparison. Which do you like best?

Tug on Glass

Is it the eye of the storm? After all the wind and storms, suddenly all is so calm. The Fraser River has a very strong current and is tidal so it is always flowing. Here it looks calmer than I have ever seen it. This tug boat appears to be floating on a sheet of glass. Best viewed enlarged, just click on the photo.

Footbridge Over Kanaka Creek

A perfect morning for a walk through the woods. Here is the wooden footbridge, iced in a coat of white, powdery snow and blue skies. It was so peacful. If you would like to see more pictures of this gorgeous area, you can do so at my home page A Thousand Wordsworth. Thanks for visiting .

Horse Capital

Maple Ridge has the nick name Horse Capital of Canada due to its high ratio of horses to people. Seen here is one of the nearby horse boarding stables. All bundled up for the cold. Do horses get cold feet? I havent been out in the fresh snow that arrived yesterday. My car is frozen shut. This was taken last month, but today we have even more snow than what is seen here and it is also a nice clear day.

Yet More Snow!!

As I worked through the night, I kept glancing out the window. I watched as the snow began to accumulate outside. We have had such a strange winter with hurricane winds and numerous snow falls. This is very unusual weather for us on the West Coast. Some winters, we barely get the occasional frost. When I got home, I shoveled the path and front steps, then, I took these photos. This is our back yard. The photo of the snowy maple tree posted a couple of days ago, is in my front yard. We are fortunate to be surrounded by trees. Now I see the snow is coming down fast and hard again.

I need to get to bed for a few hours sleep soon, so this is short.

Notice in this photo, that the canoes are snowed on too. They are protected from most of the weather by the huge weeping Maple.

Maple Ridge WIldlife

Here we have a typical Maple Ridge Teenager. This strain of spiecies is unique to the Maple Ridge area. I was very lucky to capture this shot as they tend to avoid cameras when their hair isnt 'done', Unlike teens in other parts of Canada, The Maple Ridge Teen, perches upside down. Much like its distant cousin the possum. Apparantly, this stance allows for more efficiant flow of blood to the brain and improved digestion also. You will notice the petulant look on the face which says, without need of words, " Whats wrong with me sitting like this?" Have you any unusual wildlife in your neck of the woods?

Kayaks

One day last week we had one crystal clear blue day. A perfect day for photographs. Sadly, I had to sleep through it as I had worked night shift. This picture is from my archives.

We have a wonderful dike system in this area. Much of the low lying ground was entirely swampland before the dikes were built by early Dutch settlers.

Now we get to enjoy a relatively flood free place. We still can be washed out occasionally when the rains are particularly bad. The sloughs that idle alongside the dikes are wonderful safe water ways for canoes and kayaks.

More Snow.

We got a little snow overnight. I love the way it looks so pretty and clean. Here it dresses up our Maple so nicely. But this snow is the wet slushy type. Not the fine dry powder that we got with out last big dump. It is raining now, so i don't think it will last too long, unless the rain turns back into snow as the temperature cools overnight.

Bare Branches

Today begun with huge black clouds hung low in the sky, obscuing most of the day light. Gradually the clouds broke up and drifted away. Now it is clear and blue. The kind of day where you feel refreshed, just because of the weather.