Yesterday morning I played hooky and headed off to the Chattahoochee Nature Center. My hope was to enjoy seeing some wildlife AND to escape the wildness of life for awhile. I have to say that the wildest creatures I encountered were the 400,000 children (slight exaggeration) who were there on field trips; but despite the loud little people, it was still a rather peaceful and pleasant outing.
The park has about five miles of wooded paths; I chose to start at the Kingfisher Trail, which meanders along the far side of the lake. As commonly occurs, my first photos were of turtles sunning themselves on logs – like this fellow…
…and of the Mallards that seem to be permanent park residents.
As I was walking, taking pictures of leaves and flowers and bugs and birds and whatever else captured my attention, I kept hearing a hawk squawking from somewhere up in the tree tops. He was staying pretty well hidden, but eventually he took pity on me and landed on a nearby branch just long enough for me to click off a couple shots with my camera. He is rather regal looking, don’t you think?
I think my favorite photos of the day were of the butterflies.
I have to say, God made a masterpiece when He painted those wings!
I am hoping to go back when the fall leaves really start changing colors. So stay tuned for more pictures of turtles and ducks, and hopefully a bird or two.
Awesome reflection in that turtle photo, and the butterflies are fab!
Wonderful shots, especially the hawk–you can really see his/her red shoulder!
Beautiful photos of a lovely walk. I especially love the hawk – well, really, I love them all! What camera and lens do you use?
I use a Canon SX50HS, which I love. It is portable and has great zoom. 🙂