My daughter and I spent the last two days on our semi-annual get away, this time choosing the Chattanooga area for our adventures. We hiked and hiked (and ate and ate!) and spent some time strolling along the Tennessee River. We also encountered a whole host of Great Blue Herons, most of which were hanging out around the base of the Chickamauga Dam in hopes of feasting on some fresh fish.
There were standing Herons…
…and landing Herons…
…and striding Herons…
…and gliding Herons.
But the one thing the Herons all had in common was their quest to snare some food with fins!
As we watched, we saw some come away with a small catch…
…another managed a medium size meal…
…while this fellow clearly bit off more than he could chew!
The above photo was taken by my daughter (Katie) who had charge of the powershot with the extra zoom. And speaking of Katie, it’s only fitting to post her picture as well!
For such large birds, Herons are remarkably graceful,
although on occasion they do display a rather awkward pose!
Our hopes had been to find some Wood Ducks to photograph, but none blessed us with their presence at the river, so we headed over to Booker T Washington State Park to see if we could find any at Chickamauga Lake.
Although we still had no luck spotting any Wood Ducks, we did find a beautiful wharf whose smell of Creosote (a word whose spelling in no way matches the southern Maryland pronunciation I grew up with!) transported me back to childhood days spent at my grandparents house on the Saint Georges river.
Oh, and we found another Heron of course, who landed on the top beam of the wharf to spy on the nearby fishermen.
“Happiness is a Whole Host of Herons” would be a fitting title for this trip , but a better one would be “Happiness is Adventuring with My Girlie.” We always have such fun on our get-aways.
Stay tuned for an upcoming post where I’ll share some of the lovely Tree Swallows we also had the pleasure of encountering. Beautiful birds!
Backyard Bird Nerd 
Loved all the photos- especially the “awkward pose”!
That one made me laugh!
I am so glad you enjoyed taking bird shots. It’s always fun to see what catches your eye.
It was great fun! I definitely want to go back again. 🙂
Wonderful set of photos! I love herons. And fabulous shots with fish. Especially that giant fish. Wow!
He spent more time guarding the catch than enjoying it!
Nice adventure! Thanks for sharing the lovely photos, Kathy! Happy St. Paddy’s Day! ☘☘😎☘☘🌴😎☘
It was great fun!
Beautiful heron captures Kathie they look so good in breeding plumage. Great captures of them capturing. great pic of Katie also, she looks a happy girl.
You would have loved it there – such a great place to take pictures!
Fabulous photography, Kathy!
The herons always have such an intensely serious look on their faces.
They do!
Wow! I especially like the shot where the shadow of the heron’s head and neck fall on the inside of its wing…It looks like the bird has a wildly patterned feather-sleeve…
We definitely hit the jackpot with the Herons. 🙂
Great photos – I am particularly taken by the heron’s muscular thighs!
That photo makes me laugh. Looks like he’s wearing tan thigh warmers. Who knows, maybe it will become a new fashion trend!
Oh yes, everything comes back into fashion eventually and leg warmers are long over-due!
WOW! Thanks for sharing!!
Great pictures!
Thank you!
Kathy…
Checking your blog each day is routine for me and my hubby as we share your love of birds.
How nice to see today you were in our home town of Chattanooga. You have a shot here of a Blue Heron I would love to watercolor with your permission.
I’ll reserve all my drawing/painting plans until hearing from you.
Billie Moan Rambling Rose Studio
Sent from my iPad
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It makes me smile that you and hubby enjoy the blog. 🙂
And you may always paint any of the pictures I post. It is a joy to share them.
Now, if I had known I had a contact in Chattanooga I would have asked for recommendations on where to look for Wood Ducks! I struck on that endeavor!
The photos of the Herons are magnificent. Great captures !
Such great photos, I think my favorite besides your beautiful daughter, is the Heron with the shadow on its wings. An amazing shot! I also like the one of the dock as it reminds me of the lake we go to in the summer. Looking forward to warmer days… Glad you enjoyed your time with your daughter. 😍
What a lovely collection of photographs!