2016-04-26: Namibia by Air

I’ve seen only a small portion of Namibia, but what I did see, was absolutely breathtaking.  We utilized small plane transfers to move between lodges in different regions, and combined a scenic air tour of the coast on one of the transfer legs, in order to squeeze in a bit more sightseeing into a very picked itinerary.  I’ve posted a few photos from the air transfers before, but decided to edit the balance I had flagged and create a single post of images.

I hope you enjoy, and have a wonderful day!

Namibia By Air
Passing a deserted road winding along the hills, while flying on a 4-seater Desert Air plane to Sossusvlei. 1/1250sec, f11, ISO 400
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Gorgeous textures in the hills, and such a wide variety of colours.
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There were amazing views in every direction, and through all the flights, we only saw a handful of vehicles, until we got very close to either Windhoek or Swakopmund.
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Red dunes as far as the eye can see, topped with a fine layer of fog.
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Leaving Sossusvlei and heading for the coast.
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On of the many shipwreck along the coast of Namibia.
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I believe this was an abandoned mining community, but I’m not 100% sure. Whatever it was, the sand is reclaiming the land back to nature.
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Tire tracks along the beach of people that had recently been by to view the wrecks up close.
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We flew over several huge flocks of flamingos… I hope one day to see these birds up close to photograph them.
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Where the dunes meet the sea.
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The sand and water make such beautiful patterns.

Namibia By Air-11

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Flying along a dry river bed into the Damaraland area of Namibia.

 

You can find some of these, and others for purchase here.

2016-04-24: What I’ve seen this week

After a few fairly quiet weeks at the feeders, the backyard is coming alive again with new visitors.  The warm weather has brought in the rufous hummingbirds, and I’ve also seen a yellow rumped warbler around the yard.  There are at least one pair of pine siskins feedings on sunflower seeds as well.

Out on my walks, I’ve been seeing bunnies every day (including a pair that looked as if they were planning a bunny rendezvous in the near future) but I wasn’t able to capture any decent photos of them this week.

Onto the pictures, have a great week everyone!

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A male rufous hummingbird (with his tongue sticking out just a little bit).
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A yellow rumped warbler (Audubon’s).
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A yellow rumped warbler hanging around the back garden.
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A pair of crows I spotted on an early morning walk.
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A female rufous hummingbird.
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A pair of pine siskins.
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A ruffed grouse I spotted while out walking.

 

 

2016-04-22: Feel Good Friday

It seems I could only stray from elephants for one Friday!  Have a great weekend everyone!

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A cheerful little elephant with a jaunty walk makes his way down the roadway towards us 🙂 Sabi Sands, May 2015
1/800sec, f8.0, ISO 500

2016-04-21: Zebras

When going through some photos today, I took notice of the variety of landscapes that I saw zebras in during my last trip.  From scrubby desert to the vast wetlands of the Okavango Delta, everywhere they seemed to be thriving.  They really are such beautiful animals; I hope you enjoy.

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Mom and youngster on watch as the heat of the day builds.  Sabi Sands, May 2015.
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A dazzle of zebra gather on the airstrip in the late afternoon.  The youngsters of this group were particularly tiny.  Sabi Sands, May 2015
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One zebra pauses to take notice of us overhead, while the rest of the group continues their journey through the Okavango Delta. April, 2015
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The late afternoon sun provides lovely backlighting on a pair of zebra.  Okavango Delta, April 2015.
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A dazzle of zebra in Sossusvlei, Nambia, April 2015.  The youngsters in this group were particularly boisterous, running circles around the adults a few minutes before I snapped this photo.
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A group of zebra grazing as the light of the afternoon fades away.  We watched this group for some time as we stopped nearby for a sundowner 🙂  Sossusvlei, April 2015

2016-04-18: Monochrome Monday

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A rhino cow and calf graze back to front on a bright sunny morning on Phinda Game Reserve. May, 2015
1/1600sec, f10, ISO 1250

 

If you’d enjoy this, or another of my photos hanging on your wall, click here.

 

2016-04-17: What I’ve seen this week

It’s been a great week for birds around the neighbourhood, especially yesterday, when I managed to capture photos of 5 different species in one morning walk (plus 3 different bunnies).

Wishing everyone a wonderful week 🙂

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I actually saw a pair of flickers yesterday, and while they conveniently perched together in a tree, I didn’t manage to get any shots of the two together worth sharing, as they were so high up, and I didn’t have to big lens. This one was working hard tapping at this dead tree; I heard it long before I saw it.
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A hairy woodpecker pauses from pecking between the tree branches early yesterday morning.
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A sure sign of spring are the robins singing from the treetops every morning. I caught this one searching for worms on the roadside.
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Earlier this week, I saw frantic activity below a large pine tree; I snapped loads of photos just so I could try to identify the birds. This was the best that I managed, but I include it here as it was a new species for me, a white winged crossbill.
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The juncos are back in town, but generally don’t visit the feeder; they are part of the clean up crew that keeps that area beneath the feeder tidy (thanks guys!).
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The pileated woodpecker was tapping away at the top of this pole, making quite the racket.
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One of the 3 bunnies I saw yesterday; this one was right next to my driveway at the end of our walk. Luckily, Spencer only barks at them about 1 in 10 times that he sees them. Mostly he just patiently waits for me to finish taking a photograph.
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I’ve been hearing the ruffed grouse drumming for some time now, but this was the first time I’ve seen one this year. This beauty hung around under the bird feeder, cleaning up fallen sunflower seeds.
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I was happy I was able to quietly sneak outside and get a few photos (I was hiding behind the garden hose reel so I didn’t disturb the grouse browsing).
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Sunflower seed success.
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