2022 Rides - Week Fourteen

Monday was a bit chilly, but nicer that it has been, and i was feeling motived so I went out for a longer ride up to the Chief Mistawasis Bridge and back down the other side of the river, hitting a few places I happen to know crocuses bloom (as I'd noted it was exactly one year ago that I'd found some last year) 

I saw this structure just east of the bridge. I'm not sure what, exactly, it is...? wasn't a light. it was a good way away from the road....? I wondered if it was some kind of platform for raptors to build nests on!? 

Or maybe it's a signal tower for controlling bird drones. 

I HEARD a meadowlark while riding. I climbed up and embankment to see if I could spot them. Some bird flew off - not sure what it was, but didn't look like a meadowlark. 

So heard a bird I could identify, but couldn't see it. Saw another bird, that I couldn't identify... 

Mostly stuck to paved trails as I was expecting dirt trails might still be muddy - or even snow covered. As this one was - at least the part I could see. 

There is a dirt trail across the prairie beyond the bank that was pretty dry, so I rode that for a bit. 

The mountain bike single track I could see was still covered in snow or turned into mud. 

checking out a few places I know crocusses bloom, I could see no evidence of the buds even coming up. 

There WERE tonnnes of juniper berries though! 

So Many! Everywhere!? 

As I'd gone out later in the afternoon, I checked in with Amanda to see if she was still at work, and she waited for me to get to campus and we rode home together. 

I'd had to sit and wait a few minutes for her to come out. When we went to leave I noticed my front tire had gone flat. I didn't have the energy to fix it there in the cold and wind. I tired pumping it up, and luckily it was a slow enough leak I was able to ride on it. (I did have to stop a few times - every Km or so - to pump it up a bit more).

On our way, we saw a beaver just north of the Bessborough Hotel. 

Amanda patiently waiting while I scrambled down the bank to take a picture... I'd scrambled down only for the beaver to slip under the water and swim away before I could get my camera out again.

Goose wondering WTF I was doing... 

We didn't go 50m before we spotted ANOTHER beaver. 

This one waited around a bit more. 

I scrambled down to the shore again, only to spot ANOTHER one a little further along!? 

THEN, we spotted a FOURTH beaver by the traffic bridge... I didn't stop to take pictures of that one. 

Tuesday I picked Keiran up from school on the tandem took them to an appointment downtown. 

Didn't really go anywhere by bike Wednesday or Thursday. I did get out for another, longer ride on Friday, though. 

Ice breaking up on the river. 

trail from Gabriel Dumont Park to Diefenbaker park finally drying up! 

Saw a motor boat out on the river?! 

Under the south bridges there were SO MANY geese!? including a few sitting in the sand like they do when sitting on nests!? 

I wondered if they COULD be nesting already!? 

I did find a number of pussy willows in bloom along the Meewasin Trail. 

One of my favourite signs of spring. 

Found another batch a little further along. 

Mallards on ice flows. 

This was teh water passing under the Circle Drive bridge - so windy the waves had little ripple all across them! 

Riding the PURPLE SURLY KARATE MONKEY! 

I DID find crocuses just starting to peak up through the ground! 

Should be blooming any day now! 

Once you see one, you start seeing them everywhere!? 

Chunks of river ice broken up and flowing down the river. 

Richardson Ground Squirrel

More ice breaking up. 

Saw a Magpie chasing some bluejays around. 

As I got home I spotted a woodpecker up in our tree, Couldnt' get a good enough look to tell if it was a hairy or downy woodpecker. 

Saturday morning rode with Keiran to their tap dance class. 

While they were in class I rode around the neighbourhood, looking for birds. 

people have reported seeing American Robins to me all week, but I've yet to see one. HEARD lots... but couldn't actually SEE any!? 

Pigeons 

lots and lots of pigeons. 

Later in the afternoon I went for another tandem ride with Keiran. We went downtown to the library. 

REALLY!? 

WE stopped by for a brief visit with my mom. 

Keiran is definitely taller than her now. 

Went looking for crocusses again, to see if any bloomed today 

Still just lots of buds... 

stopped and picked up groceries. 

Saw a Red Fox at Innovation Place. 

It was funny. it was sitting by the side of the road looking super chill as a few cars drove right past it... but when it spotted US - that's when it bolted!? 

More ice on the river at the weir.  

A little further along, I spotted something BIG out on an ice flow. I stopped and grabbed my camera and binoculars. It took off just as I was getting the camera out and soared off towards the train bridge... it swooped around there for a bit...

And then in came back towards us!

Swooped back and forth - but as we were on the east bank it was over the river and it was late afternoon, it was kind of backlit...

So most of the flying pictures were basically just silhouettes...

It finally landed on the island in the river between the University and CPR bridges.

The pictures weren't much better, but we did get a good long look at it through the binoculars.

As we crossed the University Bridge, we noted it was just staying put, so we rolled down by the Wonderhub/Saskatoon Lily dock to have a better look

The pictures weren't much better, but we did get a good long look at it through the binoculars.

When I'd first saw it flying it looked mostly brown and lacked the distinctive white head of a Bald Eagle so I I wondered if It was a Golden Eagle - which I have never seen in the wild. After a good look from this angle, it was clear it was pretty "scruffy looking" and mottled and maybe had white patches coming in on it's head - so I'm pretty sure it was a juvenile Bald Eagle.

Despite best intentions, I didn't go out for another ride on Sunday... it was even colder and windier... I did repair the tire on the Yuba Boda Boda, though, and soem other repairs it was needing. 

Then woke up to this Monday morning... 

Mondays, amirite!? 

Seriously, I've had enough.... thanks... 

2022 Rides - Week Thirteen

 Monday afternoon I rolled downtown with Keiran and Amanda for an appointment. When we walked out it was raining! 

SO MANY GULLS

Amanda and Keiran, patiently waiting in the cold rain while I take pictures of gulls. 

It let up while we were still riding, but Amanda was still very cold and rode very fast to get home. 

Keiran trying to keep up with Amanda. 

Amanda going way to fast to get a picture of that isn't blurry... 

Just past the Sid Buckwold Bridge - I spotted a beaver. 

Despite the cold, Amanda actually stopped to check it out. 

Briefly. 

Keiran and I stayed a little longer to watch the beaver. 

Finally it gathered up it's sticks and swam off... 

Tuesday I woke up to THIS BULL SHIT!?

(by mid afternoon it had warmed up and most of it had melted.

In the evening I went for a walk to meet Amanda who was just finishing up her last yoga class. There were hares in the park - one was starting to lose it's winter fur and blend in a bit better with it's surroundings. 

I guess while there are still patched of snow this might still work, though. 

There was no wind and the river was quite calm. 

CAN'T STOP! COBRA CHICKEN MIGHT EAT ME!!

So many geese downtown now. 

Thursday I met Amanda on her way home from work. This was her "unimpressed with the weather" face, apparently. 

When we got close to home, she went straight home and I continued to the south bridge. 

Then it REALLY started snowing...

and snowing... 

Lots of miserable looking geese near the south bridges. 

I brought out the BIGG GUNZ this time... I'm pretty sure at least one of the ones I was looking at was a California gull. 

Pretty sure... 

Maybe I need to bring out the old spotting scope!? 

New graffiti on the Traffic Bridge presumably for International Day of Trans Visibility?

Man... EVERY time I take this street... I know, it LOOKS like the cycling side is SUPER wide - it narrows considerably - right at the bend where this pedestrian is... 

I'd gone out for a ride to run errands in the morning but was feeling like going for a longer ride for fun (and to look at birds). Kerian said they'd be interested to tag along - if we took the tandem. So I quickly pumped up the tires and we went for our first tandem ride of the year! 

They patiently waited with the bike while I stopped to look at birds a few times. 

Keiran wanted to stop by my folks place and wave at my mom. 

Saturday morning I rode with Keiran to their tap dance class. While they were doing that class I thought I'd ride along the rail line and look for birds - there are a lot of trees between the train tracks and the neighbourhood just to the North. I was planning to go as far as the grain elevators and hoped I might spot a hawk - looking for one of the nice juicy pigeons that hang around the elevators looking for spilt grain. 

There WERE two hawks there when I arrived, but they were circling pretty high up and I could not identify them before they flew off. 

I did stick around for a bit and drew a picture of the elevators. 

Later in the afternoon I went for a second ride on my own - just a quick look to the south bridge and back up the other side. I happened to spot a large flock of gulls out on the ice just opposite these benches - so I sat there for a bit and looked at them through the big binoculars. 

pretty sure most were California Gulls... 

When I got to the South bridges, I found the island beneath them was filling up with geese looking to next and there were HUNDREDS of gulls out on the ice south of the bridges. 

The Meewassin trail on the east back from Diefenbaker Park to Gabriel Dumont park was very wet and soft. Will be avoiding that for another week or two! 

Sunday I waited around for Amanda to finish up the Yoga thing she was doing most of the day (from 7am to 2pm) as she had said she'd go for a tandem ride with me. When she was done, she decided she was too tired... so I went out for another ride on my own. 

It was probably for the best. I went for a longer ride than she would have cared to, and I stopped A LOT to look at gulls and other birds and take a LOT of pictures... I tried to filter it all down to just a few.. 

There were people out ON the water - these canoists - and I also saw someone in a kayak and another person on a stand up paddle board!? That water has still got to be VERY cold! 

South of the Queen Elizabeth II Power Plant I found a stop I could get down closer to the water without having to scramble down a steep bank through thick bush! 

Lots of gulls out on the ice. 

Had a really good long look at these - and others - pretty sure I saw both California Gulls and Ring-Billed Gulls. 

I decided to head out of town - or at least until I got to any muddy roads - which I would have turned back at. 

This hasn't looked promissing, but it was well gravelled and despite a few wet patches and a few spots where there were grooves from meltwater running across the road - it was totally ridable and it was the only wet roads I encountered! 

I will definitely have to get the Salsa fixed up for some longer country rambles! 

Murder Tree! 

It was nice to get out into the countreyside! 

long roads stretching out to the horizon. 

Fields of stubble. 

I got to the Chappell Marsh Conservation Area and was surprised to find it all melted (I noted pictures in my facebook memories from a year ago this week when it was still all frozen over). Also surprising was that, despite the water being totally open, there were NO BIRDS!?

The water level is still REALLY low! It's usually much higher than this, but we had a considerable fry spell last summer and i guess this winter's snow wasn't enough to replenish it much!? 

Across the road there was a bit more water... but still not birds - not even and ducks of geese!? 

I eventually found one pair of Canada Geese silently paddling around. 

Hading back into town by a different route, i passed by the city yards. This looks like giant piles of dirt, but it's actually piles of snow that was cleared from city streets slowly melting... the snow was so filled with sand - that the city spreads on the streets for traction that as it melts into water and drains away, much of the sand remains and just sits on the surface of the unmelted snow and ice and ends up looking very dirty indeed! 

Back to the river. More Gulls on ice. 

The South Bridges from the south. And Gulls.

SO. MANY. GULLS.

SO. MANY.

back in town - large flocks of geese flying overheard (you might have to zoom to see them!) 

finally a bird drawn in chalk under the Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge. 

That's it for this week. 

Two weeks of 100+Km. I'd like to get that up to 200KM/week by the end of the month. I have to get that Salsa fixed, though! 

Crocuses should be out this coming week, I'll have to plan some trips to a few of the places I find those!