Saturday, June 22, 2013

Where it Leads

If the path be beautiful, let us not ask where it leads. ~ Anatole France


One day, in the middle of May, I took a walk up to a park about fifteen minutes from home. There's a man made pond there called Lake Aquitaine, which attracts many of the creatures that my local pond does, and often a few others. Mostly, it's just nice to have a different place to stroll, sit and smell the flowers. And of course, take a few photographs.


sweet magnolia
Not far from my front door, a couple of neighbours have magnolia trees growing by their homes. Frank has a beautiful tree on his own front lawn, also. I never got the chance to see his in bloom, this spring so I was pleased to be able to enjoy the blossoms closer to home.




spring blossoms2
The lovely white blooms of the Serviceberry or Juneberry are a promise that there will be a lot of edible fruit coming soon. A few posts back, I included a photo of this tree from a distance, along with a profuse growth of dandelions. A couple of you asked me what the tree was. I looked it up at the time but completely forgot to edit the post to include the information. So consider that done now. The fruit is a favourite of birds and of yours truly. I usually try to sample only a couple of them and leave the rest for my feathered friends.





new growth3
Maple leaves are always interesting when they first begin to bud. These flowers have yet to fall off despite the leaves being nearly fully formed.





newness
Another tree on the way up to the pond - full of colour, texture and life.





Painted turtle
Out on the pond, a painted turtle was sunning himself on a floating log. I didn't have a very long lens with me so this was the best I could do from a distance. Thankfully I can still zoom and crop on my computer.




helping hands
A young dad was trying to teach his little boy how to fish. The child was about three, and a bit more interested in dancing on the edge of the dock. One time too many for my maternal nerves to stand and watch for too much longer.





crab apple blossoms
At the end of the afternoon, I followed the scent of crab apple blossoms which beckoned me homeward.

Thanks for joining me at Aquitaine - even though we took this walk back in May.. I'll have more photos coming up for you soon.

47 comments:

Indrani said...

Lovely shots again! I like the pic with focus on the tiny flowers with maple leaves.
A nice father- son moment.

Cloudia said...

Maple leaves!? Quite

Aloha

Cloudia said...

Quite LOVELY!

Andy said...

I always enjoy your storytelling photos. Keep on clicking.

Sueann said...

So beautiful...love the maple tree flowers. It has been awhile since I have seen a maple tree in bloom.
Hugs
SueAnn

Brian Miller said...

oh the child dancing on the dock edge would have stressed me out...ha...but cool on dad teaching his son...and cute turtle too...smiles...

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

I love the photograph of the father and son. The perspective is perfect. And I'm always touched when I see a father and son sharing special moments together. It doesn't seem to happen often enough. Love the serviceberry and crab apple blossoms, too.

DJan said...

As always, your beautiful pictures evoke all kinds of feelings in me. I love them all and feel all warm and fuzzy right now, thank you! :-)

TexWisGirl said...

you fill your posts with such beauty and a sense of calm contentment. love!

Elizabeth Grimes said...

A change of scenery but just as lovely! Love the turtle sighting.

Leah J. Utas said...

So beautiful. And it is always a treat to see a turtle.

ellen abbott said...

gorgeous pics as always.

Maggie May said...

The blossom of the different shrubs is really exquisite and I love the turtle!
Maggie x

Nuts in May

OmaLindasOldeBaggsandStuftShirts said...

love your perspective view of things.....Oma Linda

Liz Mays said...

You make nature look exactly as wonderful as it really is!

Ruth Hiebert said...

Going for a walk with you is always a fun time. You find so much beauty and draw my eyes to it. Thanks.

Laura Delegal - Leroy Photography said...

Spring never lasts long enough. So nice to capture the moment and keep it forever

messymimi said...

You make spring walks worth taking over and over, i promise.

Red said...

I'm always amazed how you can capture the things that most people would miss. So you not only do a walk but have the story to go with it.

photowannabe said...

Each photo has got to be my favorite!

How can I choose?

The hands of Father and Son is 3 gold stars!

Love the walks you take us on Hilary.

have a terrific weekend.

Anvilcloud said...

I see quite a few parents fishing with their kids. Some kids are more interested than others. Maybe I should buy my grands cameras and we could stroll about together.

~JarieLyn~ said...

A lovely stroll as always. I'm glad you captured the turtle.

Rita said...

I was around a lot of cottonwoods, but not maples, so this was a surprise to see the blossoms on the maple! so cool! Those green turtles have a special place in my heart and the pic of the little boy with dad is priceless--but it would have driven me nuts to see him cavorting too close to the edge, too. ;)

stephen Hayes said...

Your pictures make me feel like I've plugged in one of those floral-scented air fresheners in my study. I swear I can smell nature right now! Thanks.

Leave It To Davis said...

Beautiful shots of the flowers, but I just adore that shot of the boy with his dad....that is wonderful!

Deanna said...

Your spring walk sure produced some beautiful images!!

Anonymous said...

Lovely shots - those magnolias are stunning!

Bob Bushell said...

Absolutely great, cheers Hilary.

June said...

Oh, I'm HAPPY to go back to May . . . I hate that spring 2013 is already history!
These are beautiful. As always.

Joanna Jenkins said...

I'm really loving the maple leaves photo-- so delicate and detailed.
Thanks for the tour. As always, it's beautiful.
xo jj

lime said...

oh i like that little turtle. that shot just made me smile.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photographs. Serviceberry is a favorite of mine, I have six in the back garden. Wonderful flowers, fruit - and beautiful foliage in fall, also.

holdingmoments said...

Beautiful set Hilary.
I love the Serviceberry with the blue sky backdrop.

Unknown said...

As always your photographs are stunning. So glad to see you're still blogging. I will be your newest stalker (again!).

Sharon Wagner said...

It is so lush right now from all the rain. A flower photographers delight.

Daryl said...

lovely ...

Vagabonde said...

Such lovely photos! They illustrate the season perfectly.

Crabby McSlacker said...

Wait, that turtle pic looks so crisp, like you were actually close up when you took it! Nothing I take is ever in focus enough for me to magnify and crop and end up with something anyone can recognize.

Plus, gotta love turtles.

Karen (formerly kcinnova) said...

The tiny budding leaves look like that rubber/goo "feet" that my kids used to get as small prizes -- and which they would then throw up to the ceiling to make them stick!

The pic of the father & son fishing is prize-worthy indeed.

Anonymous said...

magnolias are very special to me and i love how you have captured the softness of the petals.

Betty Manousos said...

absolutely beautiful!
your photos were enough to spread a good amount of sunshine in my day.
always a delight to pop by your lovely spot for a visit:)

xoxo

Ramakant Pradhan said...

Amazing captures. I always leave mesmerized after each visit :)

Anita said...

Your photos are encouraging me to take a walk with my camera in hand to see what I can capture.

Beau-ti-ful photos!

Kat said...

What a lovely walk. Magnolia trees are just so beautiful. I saw a YELLOW Magnolia tree a few weeks back and have been obsessing over where I can get one. ;) So gorgeous.
That fishing picture melts my heart.
Beautiful!

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful place! Love all of the blossoms and blooms...and I would have been a nervous wreck with that three year old, too!

Kerry said...

The maple blossoms are incredible. Most people don't notice them, but you do:)

Merisi said...

Beautiful!
There is just so much beauty about spring, images and memories always please the heart.