Auld Lang Syne: Forgetting Past Acquaintances

"What does this song mean? My whole life, I don't know what this song means. I mean, should old acquaintance be forgot? Does that mean we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happened to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible, because we already forgot?" ~ Harry Burns, When Harry Met Sally

I thought I would mark the passing of the year with two of the first shots I took in 2014. These were taken in Mississauga on New Year's Day. The Credit River passes through the Streetsville area on its way to Lake Ontario. The footbridge below passes over it. This parkland is very close to my aunt and uncle's home.

This being an Ottawa photo blog, though, I must also close out with a shot from Ottawa. I decided a shot of my occasional series subject, the Bank Street Bridge, would do. This shot is from early January. The pond is near the bridge, and linked to the Rideau Canal. When water levels in the Canal drop, it does the same here in the pond. About a year ago, a resident in the area erected an inukshuk on this mound facing the bridge there in the background. The inukshuk has stayed in place since, and when the water levels came back up in the spring, the head and shoulders remained above the waterline. I don't think the ice on the pond is quite set for walking yet, so I haven't been up this close in awhile.

Happy New Year! Don't have so much to drink that you end up kissing someone you actually dislike at midnight!

Let Us Cross Over The River

And now I'm quoting Stonewall Jackson for post titles. Go figure.

The Credit River descends from headwaters on the Niagara Escarpment, flowing down to Lake Ontario. It's a river I've known quite well, as I grew up not far from where it flowed through Halton Region. Here in Peel Region, the Credit passes through Streetsville. This footbridge crosses the water, which is largely open in this stretch of the river.

My aunt and uncle live a short stroll away from this bridge, up at the top of the valley. They walk in this area most days. 

Below the bridge, morning sun lights up the open water and the ice lingering here. Ducks and geese make good use of the water.

I have mentioned before that Canada Geese seem to be cowards for bolting as far as they can south when the first frost shows itself. These ones, at least, stick around north of the border.

I will have to come back to this place again to show you the river in other seasons.

Tomorrow we get started on Winterlude...

Ice Storm Damage In The Valley

In the morning on New Year's Day, I took a stroll through Streetsville. Signs of the ice storm that hit southern Ontario before Christmas were all over the area. This included a large tree that had smashed through this fence.

Nearby, I took a trail down into the Credit River valley. The paths are snow covered this time of year, and with bent and broken trees around, it took some care moving about.

These grasses and thistles caught my eye amid the snow.

I've walked through this valley before. The ice storm did more than its share of damage. Some trees here have been damaged beyond help. Others may pull through in the spring.

More from the Credit River tomorrow...