Leaves Ablaze In Autumn

More fall colours today. Here we have the Rideau Canal, both east and west, taken from the Bank Street Bridge.

This is taken out a back window at my place- the tree is in a neighbouring yard.

These are views in Dundonald Park.

While these are on campus at Carleton University.

I leave off today with this tree in Centretown.

Red, Orange, And Gold

More fall colours today. These first two shots are of the same spot in Centretown.

This grove of trees is along Riverside Drive, west of Bronson Avenue where it crosses the Rideau River. Some days ago I featured the area in a couple of blogs.

Crossing over the bridge brought me past Brewer Park on the east side. These bushes were turning red and orange at the time. You'll notice in one shot some street art- the area beneath that portion of the bridge is a designated graffiti area.

The Colour Of Autumn

I'm starting with some fall colours today, and I've got a lot, so with the odd interruption, I'll be posting well into November, though the peak of it all is around now.

 I was crossing the Rideau River at Billings Bridge one gloomy morning and caught the sight of the fisherman on the river contrasting well with the fall colours. As you can particularly see with the second shot, water levels have been low.

These are from different street locales in Centretown.

These two were taken in Dundonald Park in Centretown, always a good spot for fall colours.

This one was near my home in Old Ottawa South.

And I'll finish today with this one, outside the Billings Bridge Mall.

A Morning With Fog

We had one of those foggy mornings one day early this month. I crossed the Bronson Avenue Bridge where it spans the Rideau Canal, close to home. The view west over Dow's Lake was obscured, as was the view east on the Canal.

Downtown, the fog was slowly lifting, but you can see it in the distance to the east here at the two streets that make up part of the Transitway.

This view north is from a couple of blocks south of Wellington Street. There are hints of low lying fog off to the north- I should have gone up for a look That fog would have been thick lying over the Ottawa River.

Sunset Viewpoints

On the same day as yesterday's shots, as I walked north up Bronson, the late day sky caught my attention. I photographed several dusk shots over the campus at Carleton University.

Birds Of Silence

This seems an appropriate counter to yesterday's post, since falcons are the subject of this post as well. I occasionally photograph from the bridge where Bronson Avenue crosses the Rideau Canal. A short drive south from there, the road crosses the Rideau River. I can't recall ever mentioning this bridge, which is considerably longer than the first one. At the south side, a series of panels were placed here a couple of years ago by a local artist, Christopher Griffin, with falcons as the theme. These four large panels are poured concrete, and the artist worked the details into the surface as the concrete was drying. These panels have been placed beneath the bridge, between the bike path and the road.

He also placed three concrete statues of these birds, with more of an impressionist feel, up above on the bridge, upon two outlooks for pedestrians. On the west side, one of these birds stands as a sentry. Each statue looks like the eyes are covered, as you'd see with typical falconry.

While on the other, two of them are together, overlooking the river. This spot is about ten minutes or so of a walk from my door, but I rarely get out this way, and haven't photographed them before.

For an alternate take, here are the two east side statues at night, taken a couple of nights before the previous pics.

Bird Of Prey

I was walking along the north side of the Greyhound-Voyageur bus station downtown one afternoon early this month, and noticed this fellow sitting up on the wall, quite at ease and peering down at pedestrians passing by. I made inquiries with a bird expert who writes a weekly column for the Ottawa Citizen; he informs me this is an immature peregrine falcon.