Steve received a check in the mail which needed to be deposited at his bank, 17 miles away. He also needed quarters for a last visit to the laundromat before packing to head home. I do mine in the basement - very reluctantly - but draw the line at hauling all his clothes up and down those stairs as well. A morning drive was in order, especially because the cheapest gas in the area by $.21/gallon is in that town as well, along with a store we both had a list for last minute purchases from.
I had my coffee and brought breakfast along, something I could munch on while Steve was inside the bank, as ATMs don't give out quarters. Steve had eaten but wanted to stop to pick up some ice tea along the way. I brought my camera, because of course with fall colors starting to peak this early. The dog chose to stay home. If she doesn't want to go out, she makes a beeline for her kennel as soon as we start to pocket keys and phones, and unless we plan to be gone for long hours, we oblige and shut her in.
It was a long wait standing in the bank. Once Steve emerged, he begged off shopping for this morning, postponing it for a day, but suggested we could take the scenic route home while he sat in the car to watch the scenery. I'd already planned to ask him if he'd like to do that, so off we went, across 97 to 95, a different way than we'd come. Along the way we spied a pair of white birds in a little pond, one in the water, one on a muskrat house. My eyes had first been drawn by the colors rising behind. A pair of trumpeter swans was a bonus, but hardly showing in a tiny photo. Unfortunately this blog software hates larger pictures.
95 took us north with a couple minor detours on the way home. The detours, of course, had to do with looking for photogenic birds as well as scouting a location for a final shooting session for a package of combined family and senior class pictures for a friend. We'd gone out as a group on Sunday to other locations, gotten a lot of shots, but the one I had in mind needed afternoon light, and the student had to go to his job that afternoon. We rescheduled tentatively for Wednesday or Thursday after school when he wasn't working, depending on weather. I didn't mind that much because every day increased the fall colors in the background I wanted.
This is what it looked like this morning, although the exact spot has some bare cliff rock in places as well. The St. Croix River separates MN and WI for quite a few miles, much of it flat. But the Osceola side is high on a cliff while directly across is a flat area holding a park and boat launching area, newly remodeled last summer to add extra access ramps and parking. I'm hoping for afternoon sun instead of this morning's cloud cover so the colors pop better.
When Steve and I first pulled in, I spied an egret up in some dead branches lining the river. I pulled into an empty parking area across from it and got out the camera. I opened the car door as slowly as possible, but by the time I was standing, of course the egret had moved. Surprisingly, it moved closer to me! Because there was a bank down to where it landed, I went from a straight shot across to trying to creep up and point the camera down to see the bird. The first shots I got off weren't precisely focused on the birds but ripples behind it in the water where fish were busy jumping after whatever was on the surface.
By the time I got close enough to get one that actually (mostly) turned out, the egret took off. I caught a quick shot in motion, including water dripping off its feet, then a later bit of video as it flew out of view.
The way home once we left led us past the local apple orchard, so a frozen apple pie to bake in the next couple days was in order, and that led us to a favorite spot to find sandhill cranes locally. I wasn't sure we'd see any because the last time I tried that dirt road the property owner of several fields where the cranes hung out had just mowed them all. Not a crane to be seen. However by the time we hit the end of the orchard property Steve had already seen three cranes, so they must be somewhere in the area. They were.
There were cranes on one side of the road, but far back in a field. A hundred feet further there were more on the other side of the road, sharing space with a sizeable flock (murder) of crows, much closer to the road and better subject for taking pictures. The large roll of hay in the back along the trees is the only one we saw in that field - or any of them. Mostly there were just dark rows of drying plants for rolling up later, we presumed. But these cranes were busy ignoring our car and we took advantage of the opportunity.
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