Capturing the Art of Nature
The Far West (Day 8)
The countryside further to the west is very flat and open but this year it lacked the colour of the Pot Stanley area.
Category
Ontario Adventures
2012
Click on image to view gallery
Today my adventures began a bit later, 1pm. Carolyn had a gathering to be dropped off at and then I was free to explore. Once she was at her destination in St. Thomas I called up Ralph on the radio and chatted with him for a bit. Then I zipped west along Fingal line, soon I was past the furthest I had gone two days prior and into new sights.
I wasn't finding all that much colour along here even though the sun was bright and the sky clear. So I just kept driving. I decided to check out a couple of favourite spots that I had found on previous trips. Duttona Beach was one of these sites and to it I went first. As I walked the short path to the beach I startled a raccoon which quickly climbed a dead tree next to the path. I finally had a subject to photograph!
Done with the treed raccoon, I continued to the beach where I found a deep layer of open shells. The layer was so deep walking on it had the feel of walking on foam cushions. One sank in an inch or two with each step. The layer stretched away in both directions along the beach, the number of open shells was mind boggling. As I returned to the car I took a few more photos of the raccoon before departing. I had to retrieve Carolyn at the end of the day which gave me a fixed period of time to be out driving. As I still had a few hours before needing to collect her, I felt it was a good day to drive far enough to see some new areas. So I continued along the Talbot trail to new areas west of me.
The road was incredibly straight and long, that in itself was an interesting experience. As I drove west the area between the road and the lake opened into a wide low plateau with a greyish colour tone, and now I was in the midst of a wind farm with its huge rotors scattered across the plain. I was also getting close to the famed Rondeau Park and so I picked a route to it that looked like it may have some scenic sites along the way but still I didn't shoot much. The park wanted a $16 fee to enter but I only had a half hour max before I needed to return so I didn’t bother with it.
On the return drive I found a few new spots that were a bit more interesting and colourful which enticed me to gather up a few photos. As I got closer to Port Stanley the trees became more scenic and I was able to take a few last photos before parking and finding Carolyn. Though I didn't take many photos the drive was interesting and I enjoyed the variety of sights.