Summer Travels 2012 – part 21

So, we are will on our way home, we arrived in Peace River, Alberta with no problems and quickly set-up and BBQd for dinner. My sister, Linda, takes the girls to the movies just as a thunder-storm opens up above us. Dale and I quickly put away everything and I realize that any shooting time I had is gone. Once again the weather has changed somethings but, no matter Dale and I hang out in the RV and organize a few things. We depart the next morning and we will arrive back in the NWT. We have a site booked at Twin Fall Territorial Park. We arrive in the NWT and get everything set-up. We all decide to just hang out for a couple of hours before dinner. After dinner, I decide to go get some images of the falls (Alexandra Falls and Louise Falls). I drive three kilometres to Alexandra Falls first. This is an area that I stop for during every trip in or out of the NWT. I leave the camera with my long lens in the truck as I only expect to capture the falls. My wide-angle should work just fine. Even though I am in a park that is traveled regularly, I carry some bear spray, although I can’t image having to use it here. I get to the edge of the river and go to the top of the falls. As I start getting set-up to capture some images I notice something moving along the river’s edge about 500 metres away. At first it looks like something floating and bouncing of the rocks but, something tells me it is an animal moving. I then see it is two animals. From a distance they don’t look that large and my first thought are bear cubs. Bear cubs would be cool but, if it is cubs where is mom. She may not be as much fun. In the next few seconds I determine it looks to small for cubs and can only be one of two things. It is either two beavers or two wolverines. Wolverines would be scary to encounter especially if I am the only thing between the river and their path. Besides all that I need my long lens. I quickly decide to take an unmarked trail back to my truck, there I grab my other camera with my Sigma 120 – 400 mm lens. I then head back down the marked trail expecting to be behind what I now believe are beavers. As I get back to the river’s edge there are two other people standing and watch something. These people followed two beavers down stream, keeping a fairly go distance. The three of us watched as it appeared to be an older beaver teaching a younger beaver different things (although there wasn’t a big difference in the size of these two). The beavers stay on our side of the river and get to about 100 feet from the falls before turning around and swimming right past us and then they head back upstream. It was amazing to watch. After the beavers move on I get back to my original plan and shoot the falls. Once done at Alexandra Falls I head back to Louise Falls (that is where our RV site is). I quickly grab some images from above the falls before head further down. At Louise Falls there is a spiral staircase which takes you to a trail just above the falls. I take the staircase down and as I get close to the falls I see some friends from Yellowknife. We chat for a bit as I take some photos. Later they come by for a quick visit. It was a great evening. Tomorrow we should arrive home and it was time to call it a night. Here are some samples of what I saw today. Enjoy, thanks for being here and as always Happy Shooting.

 

Alexandra Falls from the look out.

 

 

 

Louise Falls from the look out on the upper trail.

 

Louise Falls from the lower trail look out.

 

Louise Falls from the river’s edge.

 

A Pano of Louise Falls and down the Hay River.