Mother Nature is an Artist

The photographs taken in this post shows just how Mother Nature sculpts the landscape. These photos of the Bow Valley River were taken at Princess Island Park this week. Photos such as these intrigue me simply because of there abstractness which leads to many interpretations.

Ice Floe on Bow Valley River

Bow Valley River

The River Flows

Princess Island Park in Calgary, Alberta provides the average urbanite an opportunity to touch nature without leaving the city. The park is located in the down-town core and is a wonderful site to see amidst the towers of concrete and glass. On a recent visit to the park, I was able to capture some of the beauty and tranquillity of the river despite the corporate chaos just steps away. 

The Urban Landscape

The urban landscape can be a haven for excellent photographic opportunities that parallel those in mountainous  forested, or watershed areas. The photographs taken below with my DSLR were taken at Princess Island Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The city was blessed with above average temperatures today that made the day a perfect photographic opportunity. It was an opportunity to take the kids that I teach to an area in the city for them to practice their photography skills.

The Landscape

Water, Rock, Snow...so Perfect

A Break in the Ice

Temporarily Abandoned...Waiting for Spring

In Touch With Mother Nature

There is not much that gets you closer to nature than donning a pair of snowshoes and and travelling in snow thigh deep in some places. I was able to make this very connection with nature this past weekend at Baker Creek Resort near Lake Louise in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. A guided experience was organized by the resort as part of the Banff/Lake Louise Snow Days, which included not only the snowshoe experience by also a very extravagant meal prepared from some of the best chefs in the area.

We started on the door steps of the Chalet with a brief history of the development of snowshoes and the people in early history who used them and for what purpose. After putting on our snowshoes, we trekked to the backside of the chalet in which we were greeted with miles and miles of fresh and untouched powdered snow. Despite the frigid weather, it was not difficult to stay warm as we made our way through snow, sometimes thigh deep. We stopped several times to view fresh tracks left by wildlife and to admire the plant life in the area. Baker Creek serves as a transition point between the pine trees found at lower elevations and the spruce trees found in the higher elevations of the Rocky Mountains. 

After approximately one hour, we headed back to the chalet but not without stopping in a wide open area to boil pure Canadian maple syrup, pour it onto the fresh snow, and twirl it onto a popsicle stick to make a wonderfully delicious treat, which we then washed down with a cup of hot chocolate. Once we were back at the chalet, we all gathered around a camp-fire and heard from a local park warden his experiences working in avalanche country all while sipping on a glass of wine. Once inside the chalet, we were treated to an exquisite three-course dining experience similar to what you would experience in a large city. 

This was simply an amazing experience. I have included some photographs of the excursion.

Snow Covered Spruce Tree

Spruce Tree Donning its Colors

Dense Forest of Spruce and Pine

A Thick Wall of Spruce and Pine

Snowshoeing Towards 

Ten of us trudging through deep snow

The Baker Lake Chalet