Guarded by Putti

Detail of a carved wooden door on the cathedral of Frederiksborg Castle.  I didn't know this before, but this figure is a Putto.  A word you will probably never use again in your life...or will you, now that you know it?

David

At the Royal Danish Cast Museum.  I really like the contrast between the oxidized copper and the bricks! 

Classy

Nothing like an open, liberal society...

Waves of Gold

Sunset along one of Denmark's beaches.  North of Copenhagen (I can't remember the exact town it was by)

Mine!MINE!!mine!Mine!!mine...Mine....Mine!

These two gulls were fighting for the best position on the hedge to eat berries from.  The funny part was that their webbed toes made it nearly impossible for them to perch on a branch, which left them teetering about as the gulls greedily gobbled berries.  Some of the gulls achieved a sort of hover technique where they didn't have to perch at all and could just awkwardly bob up and down around the bushes.

Ancient Archways

Ok, so maybe not Ancient, but they're pretty old.  Frederiksborg Castle, Denmark

Flag and Tower

Fredriksborg Castle, Denmark

City ecology

From Umeå, Sweden; when I was there a few weeks ago

rainy reflections

Brick building

One of the more ornate buildings in town.  It's tucked back from the market square so you don't see the front very often.  I'm not quite sure what it's used for...perhaps I will investigate further.

River's edge

Still no ice on the riverbank as it hasn't really gotten below freezing here yet.  I'm pretty surprised about this as I thought it would be getting frosty here a bit sooner than it does in BC.  If we had mountains here then there would be snow for sure, but there are hardly even hills.

Fly fishing

The season for salmon has opened on the Pielisjoki - the river that runs through Joensuu.  Often, fishermen young and old stand along the banks and try their luck.  A few find success!

Lapp Light

Yet another gorgeous scene from Lapland.  Lakes, trees, and perpetual sunrise/sunset.

Water colours

Yet another scene from Lapland.  I just love the low angle light, Charlie Brown trees, water, and rocks.  Good thing I'm not a watercolour painter because I think I would never leave the landscape.

Crystal...

Ice crystals of course!  Some frosty lingonberry (puolukka) will soon be buried under a snow blanket for the winter.  For now, it suffers through the crisp nights. 

Encroaching ice

The ice was taking over the lake working its way in from the edges.  It sort of makes it appear although the lake is totally calm along the edge despite choppy waves in the centre.

Lingonberry shadows

My shadow is really tall these days, even at midday.  This time, it is reflected on a carpet of lingonberry bushes below a birch forest.

Blue Moon

Not actually a blue moon, but still a beautiful sight! Inari, Lappi, Suomi

On top

Although the hills aren't that tall, nothing else is taller and it makes you feel on top of the world.  That being said, I'm sure that white-out conditions can be horrendous!

Nothing but blue skies

The endless sky matches the endless sunsets in Lapland.  It feels like the sun is just about to set at about 14:00.  Then, at 16:30 it finally did.

Mountain mist

Treeline is low on the arctic hills of lapland.  The cool air was really holding moisture that afternoon giving the hill and pines an eerie look as they blended into the distance.

Reflected light

The sunset over the lake reflected in the old glass panes of the wilderness church

Santa Village

There was an eerie cold mist shrouding the Santa Village in Rovaniemi when I visited.  It was all but abandoned, but the cheesy Christmas music was still being played over the speaker system.

Fenceline

The wilderness church was surrounded by a shaky fence.  The ground was to rocky to pound the posts in so it was instead supported with braces and beams along the ground.  The churchyard was just a pile of boulders that had to be moved to allow the church to be built.

Hut morning

After a very warm night in a slightly cramped hut, morning came slowly.  It was -2 and horizontal freezing rain outside, so everyone stayed in as much as possible.  The small hut felt like chaos with 8 people and all their stuff in this cramped space.

Like it?

Lichen coats nearly every surface that is sheltered enough to support life in Lapland.

bow to bow

A gate to the arctic trail - a snowmobile route (or animal-powered sled presumably) through Lapland to the Arctic Ocean.  The Inari river and town of Inari in teh background.

frosted tips

Ice and lichen.  Two undeniably important influences on the arctic landscape.

Summit

Cairns marked the summit of each fell, and the trails were marked by the large wooden X s.  I'm quite sure these trails double as snow mobile routes or ski trails in the winter.  The high posts are required to keep the markings above the snowpack where there are no trees to mark on.

road block

We had some issues when they blocked the trail.  Usually they were at a run, so we didn't have to wait long, but it depended on the size of the heard

morning flight

The elusive Fuzzy Footed Wild Chicken.  Aka ptarmigan (kiiruna)

Garden frost

I think it's the end of the growing season...

Silent Sunrise

Still waiting for the 8am sunrise...that's ice on the lake in the distance!

Ditch it...drain it...plant it!

Forestry is culturally and historically important in Finland.  As is forested land.  In an effort to increase forested land base (and the economic benefits of this), Finnis forestry went through a phase of ditching and draining bogs which were then planted.  Here is an example of a managed forest with very wet soils adjacent to a peat bog...with a ditch running right down the middle.  Interesting idea....this is no longer practised in Finland. 

Just like home!

Horses grazing in a sunlight field...sort of reminds me of Beaver Valley in the Cariboo Region of Britsh Columbia

fall fire

A fallen aspen leaf glows in the sunlight among the lingonberry (puolukka) and blueberry (mustikka) bushes on the forest floor

Retreat

Summer cottage beside the lake

Golden Moment

Lisa and Wenke dance ahead along a gravel road in Koli National Park on the first weekend in October (Lokakuu)

Floating Gold

On a lake surface

Growing Gold

Ruska - the season of fall colours.  Golden leaves in a birch plantation against a dark blue sky.

Looking up

Old town Stockholm architecture

Last Waltz

Where would a door like this take you?

It's a....uh....what is it?

cab like a truck...sized for a 5yr old...with 3 wheels...in motorcycle parking.  This is truly an irresistible ride!!

duck-duck-GOOSE....er...swan?

Stockholm fountain

Home sweet home...

On massive poplar on the banks of Umeå River

Autumn commute

Main street into Umeå...nothing but bicycle commuters

Haunted cottage?

This one could use a little TLC

Swedish lakeside

Umeå lake with fall colours....

LBMsssss - fungi 7

Masses of these creatures crowd under shrubs, trees, in grass, in compost...just about anywhere there is organic matter!  Aptly (and scientifically) named LBMs (Little Brown Mushrooms)! Don't try eating any of these - you never know what it may be!

Alien Blobs - fungi 6

I thought the shape of these was particularly entertaining.  It's some kind of puffball with a squishy foam-like core.  It's not the classic round shape of a puffball, but this way is much more...interesting!