Charlevoix

November 7th we returned to standard time. Consequently our afternoon light disappears an hour early (sunset is just after 4 pm in Quebec City)! Ugh (definition - used to express disgust or horror - synonym is yuck or yecch)

However our late October walking in Charlevoix was marvelous (definition - wonderful, astonishing - antonym - rotten or Ugh). The sun shone and winds ranged from gale-force to calm. Temperature was near zero but very comfortable for climbing Mont du Lac-des-Cygnes, La Chouenne and Mont du Dôme.

In the large photo I'm shooting north as we climbed the tourist path up Mont du Lac-des-Cygnes. Picture center is Mont du Dôme that we tackled the next day and found more rugged with a scenic outlook to the south where you see Paulette, Karen and Lorne picnicking below.

Canon 7D at 22mm focal length, ISO 320, 1/1000 sec, f/ 10 ( I kept a fast shutter speed to freeze the walking action of my subjects. It wasn't necessary for shots of mountains that move very slowly even in Charlevoix)

Go to flickr to see a small Charlevoix album.

Cap Tourmente, Québec

November, dark and damp, is upon us. This picture from Cap Tourmente helps me hang on to the warm colours and temperatures of October.

Two times annually (and more) Paulette and I drive an hour downriver (NE compass bearing) to this Federal natural wildlife area where we commune with the snow geese ( Chen caerulescens atlantica ).

Their fall migration begins in September after breeding on Baffin Island and passes directly over Cap Tourmente where they feed (primarily on the rhizomes, or roots, of bulrushes) for three weeks in October before continuing south to their winter range along the Atlantic seaboard of the southern USA. The photo below shows a small sample of the 40,000 geese in the area on October 17.

A myriad of ducks, great blue herons and peregrine falcons feed in-and-about this small marsh (Marais de la Petite-Ferme) shown above.

Canon 7D with 70-200mm lens, focal length: 109 mm, ISO 640, 1/200sec (a little slow for hand holding a non-stabilized lens), f / 5.6. Taken at 4:30 pm

See my May 14th post for spring migration pictures.

Autumn Leaves Leave

By 3:45 pm on October 18 the sun was low in the sky. Paulette and Carole walked ahead of me as we returned from a brisk loop in the Parc naturel du mont Bélair. I asked them to advance slowly into the backlit scene as I adjusted my camera settings and composed this shot.

I love the red maple leaves carpeting the path and the transition from shadow in the foreground to the bright highlights in the background.

Taken in RAW I developed it using Lightroom 3: light cropping and straightening; lowered exposure, medium contrast curve; increased vibrance to highlight the reds; a little output sharpening and voila!

Canon 7D, 15-85 mm lens at 46 mm, ISO 200, 1/100 sec, f/5.6

Autumn Leaves

October 14, our walking group was heading north from the small rural town of Saint-Ubalde towards Rémi's chalet on Lac Émeraude. The weather was hovering between light rain and sunny passages. This gravel road undulates along the lake's north shore. The red leaves on the roadside and the warm tones in the middle distance invite you to walk up the next rise.

Canon 7D with 15-85 mm zoom: 1/60 s, f/7.1, ISO 400, focal length 24 mm

Acadia National Park

Acadia National Park shares Mount Desert Island with a number of fishing villages including Bar Harbor. Samuel de Champlain named this mountainous landscape Isle des Monts Deserts in 1604. In 1919 it became the first national park east of the Mississippi River. Today it's one of the top ten most popular US national parks with three million visitors a year.

Paulette and I stayed in a rustic cabin not far from the park entrance. We did the touristy things: window shopping in bustling Bar Harbor; eating clam chowder one night and succulent lobster the next; watching the to-and-fro of harbour traffic.

We also hiked on two consecutive days

• Day One First we walked along the Ocean Trail in gentle rain, past the very popular Thunder Hole then up to the summit of Gorham Mountain before lunch at The Bowl (the lake in the photo). More gentle climbing along a pink granite ridge took us to Champlain Mtn (1058 feet). Squat, gnarled pitch pines grow in the very thin soil and right up to the summit. The odd sugar maple and low-growing bushes glowed red in the sun.

• Day Two In early morning sunshine we started off from the Sieur de Monts Entrance. It was level walking past The Tarn, then steeply up the granite stairs of the Ladder Trail. Schiff Trail took us more gently to the top of Dorr Mtn (1270 feet). We unlaced our boots and rested while our socks dried. Using our poles we carefully picked our way down a steep ravine and back up the other side to Cadillac Mtn (1530 feet). Cadillac Mtn, a short drive from the Park Loop Road, is a favourite spot to view the sunrise and gives wonderful panoramic views of Bar Harbor and the many island dotting the Maine coast. Paulette and I ate our lunch on a warm rock away from the crowds. In shorts and T-shirt we ambled back down to the loop road following the North Ridge Trail.

We debated staying for a third day but, with rain in the forecast, we packed up and headed north towards home. There are many more hikes in this area so we will surely be back.