Blazing Gazes

Sunset. Moonlight. Starbright. Reflections on a glassy lake.

That is what awaited us this weekend after our drive up to the cottage. We pulled in and as we unpacked our car, we were overwhelmed by the black velvet sky scattered with what looked like millions of diamonds. Then we heard our first owls calling out.They were hidden in the dark but they were on our property. Hubby was in his glory. The lake had its own goodnight reserved for us. We stood on our deck taking in the beauty of the absolute stillness and the spectacular glowing moon that sat lower in the horizon lighting up the lake with its golden reflection. I tried to capture it with my camera but the image ended up a pale, somewhat blurred imitation.

We had debated if we should make the trek north to the cottage this weekend and I am so happy we went. It did not disappoint. The weather was filed under perfect - cool but brilliant sunshine with blue skies and dead calm waters. The trees were speckled orange and red already and alot of the birches were well underway to bare.  We walked with our incorrigible little schnauzer, breathing in the fresh autumn air and marveling at our good fortune for these stolen moments spent immersed in nature. It sounds cliche, but it really does revitalize the soul and you can feel anything that ails you ease out to make way for calm and serenity. 

This weekend delivered some exciting feathered sightings ... a golden eagle in flight; a blue heron that I disturbed in the marsh; a pair of loons that followed hubby and I as we paddled around the lake; and the usual chickadees and ducks. The hummingbirds are gone but I managed to get a shot of one a few weeks ago, which made my day. 

So now that I listed all of the positives, I will interrupt this programming to express one complaint --- it was cold as heck in the cottage. The first night it was only 6 degrees C inside. We cranked up the space heaters, I wore fleece and socks underneath the down comforter and by morning when I awoke I couldn't see my breath thankfully. Hubby made a fire and soon the cottage was warmed to a toasty 16 degrees. Once we discovered that it was actually warmer in the sunshine on the deck, we fled the coop and ate our lunch out there.

Now, back to our regular scheduled post ... it was a wonderful weekend all around and I hope that wherever you may be, that yours was good as well. Now here are a few images I snapped of the early days of a Canadian autumn.