CAMPBELL RIVER, B.C. in OCTOBER

"It looked like the world was covered in a cobbler crust of brown sugar and cinnamon..."-Sarah Addison Allen

The forest in the valley before Mt. Washington range, from my front window.

Yum Yum, one of the urban deer who lives in the green belt and regularly sleeps in the back yard after eating a good deal of leaves and fallen apples.

"...Nature has been saving up all year for its grand finale..."

-Lauren DeStefano

Dogwood Hill leading into downtown, with Quadra Island in the distance.

In the meantime, Yum Yum is still sleeping on the back yard hill...zzzzzzzzzz

On the edge of town, the bridge that reaches over the Campbell river...

"Listen! The wind is rising...

...and the air is wild with leaves,

we have had our summer evenings...

...now for October eves!" -Humbert Wolfe

Heading down the main street of Dogwood, leading to Dogwood Hill....

"Is this not a true autumn day? Just the still melancholy that I love, that makes life and nature harmonize...

...the trees are putting on the hectic or the pallid hues of decay and begin to strew on the ground..."-George Eliot

Oh look, Yum Yum has woken up from his 6 hour nap. He's eating leftover apples that fell from the compost basin....Mr. Spencer at the window with Rona shadowing him. 

....and Little Marshmallow on his new perch, looking for the older cats. Yum Yum seems to like the cats and the cats....well, I wonder if they think the deer is just a VERY BIG cat.

At the end of Dogwood Road, Quadra Island Ferry, ready for passengers.

The actual Campbell River ....

   "And I rose in rainy autumn, and walked abroad in a shower of all my days." -Dylan Thomas

Photographs 2026

                                                              Towhee  by the fence

STELLAR JAYS return at SUNSET...

AUTUMN SUNSET by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) (excerpts)

The sun sets on some retired meadow, where no house is visible, with all the glory and splendour...

where there are solitary wings gilded by it, or some brook in the midst of the marsh...

just beginning to meander, winding slowly round a decaying stump.

We walked in so pure and bright a light, gilding the withered grass and leaves,

so softly and serenely bright...

I had never bathed in such a golden flood, without a ripple or a murmur to it.

Every wood and rising ground gleamed like a boundary of Elysium,

and the sun on our backs seemed like a gentle herdsman...

...driving us home at evening.

So we saunter toward the Holy Land,

one day the sun shall shine more brightly...

...shall perchance shine into our minds and hearts,

and light up our whole lives,

a great awakening light,

as warm and serene... 

and golden...

.... in autumn.

Photographs 2026

 

INSTANTS out of TIME...

"Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still..." -Dorothea Lange

"Varied Thrush"

JULY 2026 "Untamed Nature Contest" Nominee Award

I never planned on being a photographer. Never considered myself to be one. It just sort of happened gradually, "seeing" as time went on, everything framed. Observing. Waiting. Standing perfectly still. In rain. In the shade. In snow. In the quiet. Worth waiting for. My photo totals each month are between 700-900 stills. Never thought I would ever enter any contests, never thought I would even place, never really thought much about it. Just kept working and improving, always taking suggestions from the seasoned photographers how to "feel" the images, to stop trying and just letting it happen. How to grab that moment. That instant. Always changing, always something new to learn. To keep on learning...

July 2026 "Rufous Hum Hum" #22 out of 13,391 pics world wide in the "We Love Birds" Contest. In the top 25. Every year the Rufous returns to buzz around the yard, only taking a break on the feeder. My one chance to capture him and his beautiful red coat. Hold your breath, or he may dive bomb you.

June 2026 "Marshmallow the cat" "Pause Award" Comments were: "Image is calming and causes the viewer to stop and feel the peace, in a world where there is so much chaos. It is a much needed break."

June 2026 "Violets" #1094 out of  17,427 submissions  "Spring Photo Challenge" First look at spring. First blooms. New. Pale blue. Fragile.

June 2026 "Finch" #3640 out of 17,427 submissions. "Spring Photo Challenge"
  The birds are the coolest, I think. Difficult to recreate at times, but worth the time it takes. What is the Finch  looking at? (Probably the cats)

June 2026 "Peace Rose" ( Image of the Month) #3536 out of 15,732  Full bloom rose in the heat dome year, drooping in the heat of the evening, melting colours.

"Pale Rose" ( Image of the Month) #4294 out of 15,732 Pastel painted rose, water coloured, drooping in the rain. I have a thing for rain... 

"Lavender Poppies" ( Image of the Month) #1110 out of 15,732 ( Top 10%)  Random poppies  just at the side of the road, just floating around, like lavender feathers.

June 2026 "Sugar" (Capturing Hands Contest) #970 out of 4025 submissions. Sweet pic of Sugar the kitten being soothed by a comforting hand.

June 2026 "Piano hands" (Capturing Hands Contest) #554 out of 4025 submissions. I took this at a rehearsal where two pianists were getting ready for a concert. I thought their hands were so interesting. Years of practise, years of experience, and technique. Beautiful hands.

June 2026 "Side Rose in rain" (Image of the Month) #3501 out of 15,732. Peace rose gathering rain, as it edges on the end of the bloom, on a hot, muggy summer day.

June 2026 "Sweet Simon" (Image of the Month) #2509 out of 15,732 submissions. Sweet Simon, looking to see if the coast is clear. (The cats are great subjects)

June 226 "Rose shade" (Image of the Month) # 3340 out of 15,732  Rain perches on the edges of the variegated rose. (I definitely like  rain)

June 2026 "Courtyard" (Image of the Month)  #3390 out of 15,732 The golden cat (Rona) centered in the quiet, green world, in the early evening. 

"There is one thing the photograph must contain, the humanity of the moment..."-Robert Frank

Photographs 2026. Contests from the View Bug Photography Site. See my extended portfolio on the site.

Also, check out my You tube Channel: Idylldirt ( @2BoTube2)