Thursday, February 12, 2015

Good Ice Fences

Went down to the shores of Lake Ontario this morning. Even though it was only -11C, the bitter wind was making it feel a whole lot worse. The wind chill was -31C.


There were lots of water birds braving it out on the open water and on some of the ice flows, but I'll save those photos for another post (hopefully to join Eileen's Saturday Critters).


All along the pier there is a good solid fence. I believe the fence went up when the town 'beautified' this stretch of waterfront. It does look nice and tidy, and under all that snow there is a concrete walkway with benches and gardens all along. It's a popular spot through spring, summer and fall ... today ... not so much.


A lot of folks come down here and just sit in their cars  at lunchtime parked facing the water (parking lot is to the right of above photo). There is a marina across this little inlet, but the boats are all wrapped in plastic for winter. Don't you wonder what happens to all this plastic when the boats are opened up again in spring? Does anyone know? You can't get into the marina unless you're a member. I don't have a boat ... well, my boat is a canoe, so we don't need membership there.


Through the warmer months we get a few large yachts and sailboats visiting our harbour. It's kind of neat to see them tied up along this pier. The only boats you'll see in the winter are barges and cargo ships far out in deeper waters heading to the St. Lawrence and the Atlantic Ocean.


This fence served a good purpose today as a substitute tripod for my camera.


Across this inlet is a long breakwater which gets pounded from the heavy waves. 


The waves weren't all that big today, but they've obviously crashed right over the breakwater throughout the winter, creating quite a masterpiece in places.


I wish I could get over there and get a good look at these amazing ice formations. Looks like something the witch from Narnia would be proud of.


Today I just contented myself with walking along the pier and using my zoom lens. 
The snow was really being whipped across the walkway out to the tiny lighthouse beacon.



Don't worry, I didn't walk along there. 
I wouldn't have wanted to even if this warning (and fence) wasn't blocking my way.


From the tracks in the snow on the other side of the fence, I see someone decided it might be fun to walk along there. A local man lost his footing somewhere along this waterfront last winter and wasn't found until spring. It was a very sad tale that had been a mystery all through the long winter as to the man's fate. You have to be so very careful around ice and water. This is our beach (below). All that portion that looks like rocky shore is thick built-up ice. 


I loved the look of this snow cloud breaking up over the lake with the harsh glare of the sun making the water look like steel.


cold


I'm glad the birds didn't seem to mind. If you think I took a lot of photos of fences, water and ice, wait till you see what I got of birds. I went a little trigger happy with the camera. The noise from the geese was astounding, and such a treat to listen to. The photo below would make you think it was the far north! As I say, I'll share more on Saturday, so stay tuned.




Thanks for stopping by!

Wendy

a room with a view

Linking up with Good Fences


33 comments:

  1. Gorgeous!
    Winter IS beautiful here..but the temperatures?!
    The wind is wicked today..stay warm tonight.
    Jane x

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  2. a very good fence and some beautiful views (albeit, brisk!) :) love the ice formations, too! thanks for linking!

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  3. Brrrrr! But, it sure is a beautiful day otherwise. Those ice formations are amazing!

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  4. Wow, that is COLD!!!!! It is incredibly beautiful though, so thank you for braving the weather to take these amazing pictures to share with us! xx

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  5. Looks cold. The ice formations are spectacular, it is amazing what Nature can create.

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  6. Gosh I just can't imagine why no one is relaxing on those benches or enjoying a picnic at the picnic table. - Seriously those are some might cold looking photos. It's beautiful but I can't imagine being out there for any length of time. The shot with the swans is so pretty and yes that Ice formation does look like something from the Ice Queen in Narnia.

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  7. So many geese! I just love these amazing birds. Your shots are just lovely, but it does look bitterly cold. Will look forward to your future shots of t he birds.

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  8. Really lovely photos I enjoyed them very much San Francisco hasn't any we had a rain storm and that was it. We have almost spring like weather today ,... Beautiful photos with love Janice

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  9. HI Wendy, I enjoyed visiting here and your walk along the beautiful shoreline of the lake. It has it's own beauty in winter. The fence is really nice with the anchors spaced on it. Thanks for visiting. Pamela

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  10. Wow - you are braver than me. I haven't been down to the lakeshore all winter. Especially today it was so cold and windy in Toronto. Yuck!

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  11. Those ice formations are amazing. Your photos capture perfectly the cold beauty of the day, and I'm looking forward to seeing your photos of the birds. And now....I'm going to go and put on a sweater! Brrrrrrrrrr......

    Blessings,

    Victoria

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  12. You really captured amazing scenes today Wendy! It looks like a giant beautiful crystal world!!! And you are one brave lady!! That is what the temp is here and I was running to my car today to get warm! Such a beautiful place to just get lost! Happy day friend! Nicole xo

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  13. I don't know how you do it! I like snow for skiing, but I do not think I could live in such cold. I guess you adapt because otherwise you would miss the beauty of your area in winter.

    Lovely photos.

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  14. Your pics are amazing !!! NAd what the snow and the ice do alla round !!!! You're brave to live there in such a cold area !!!! I wish you now a very warm day .... !

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  15. Wow, it looks so cold there. I love the views and the cool ice formations.. The birds must be used to the cold water and ice. Great fence shots.. Have a happy day and weekend ahead..

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  16. Cracking pictures, Wendy. 'only -11' made me smile- we think it's cold here when it drops to -2! I loved the ice formations on the other side of the water, absolutely amazing! We get nothing like that here :o)

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  17. Isn't it funny how one can look at a photo and just know it is bitterly cold? This must come from years of first hand experience. :-) At lest there is open water for the birds and ducks etc. I often use what is at hand for a tripod too, including hubby's back or shoulder. I'd like to look at a unipod, have you ever considered one of these?
    Happy Valentine's Day.

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  18. Wow, what beautiful winter and ice pictures!
    I fell in love with # 8 and 9, never saw prettier
    icicles :))
    Have a fine day and keep your hands warm :)
    【ツ】Knipsa

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  19. Helo Wendy

    Thank you fo muh for sharing your amazing and beautiful winter photos with us. I love them.
    -11 with a wind chill of -31C and I think it's cold here.

    luv
    irene
    xxxx

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  20. You convey beauty and feeling (COLD) through your lens. Winter does have it's beauty as no one can do it quite like Mother Nature. However, I like that beauty of Winter when someone else has it. :o) We are 2* F this morning and clear as a bell. If I had something as lovely to view I might dare a walk.

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  21. your photos are just fabulous Wendy and you captured the beauty of winter as well as how cold it must feel. What a pretty area to just sit and watch everything-when it warms up that is lol
    that is a good thought about all that plastic-hopefully they have a dumpster just for all of that and it gets recycled. I loved the fence too with the little anchors-looks expensive.
    stay warm

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  22. Wow, really nice photos and some perfect shots for link up with Good Fences. Excellent job of capturing the cold! Neat post! Thank you for stopping by my blog and your kind comment.

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  23. So beautiful, but oh so cold. I just can't do that cold. I'm part lizard or tortoise I think. I don't want a lot of heat, but I do want some.

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  24. wow fantastic photos of Narnia !! I feel a bit chilly now after looking at them ... I love the bird images especially...Gail x

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  25. Narnia nature. Hard, heavy and cold. But so beautiful.

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  26. Must have been a chilly walk but well worth it for the beautiful photos.
    Amalia
    xo

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  27. Amazing photos Wendy, I love the geese. I don't know how you managed to take so many photo's in such cold weather did your hand not freeze you are a braver person than I, looking forward to the next batch. :) xx

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  28. Beautiful photos! Nature at its finest x

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  29. You take beautiful photos and it's lovely to see what it is like there in those kind of temperatures. I admire how you can even go for a walk in it, let alone take pictures! I guess you are a lot more used to the cold. The ice formations are amazing. :-)

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  30. Wow what amazing photos, it looks so cold but soooo pretty :)
    Jillxo

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  31. You took some really beautiful pictures! Looks so cold,have a wonderful week! phyllis

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  32. Wendy, just discovered your blog. Always nice to find another interesting Ontario blogger. Great series of pictures. That one in the middle with the icy shoreline is neat!

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Thanks so much for leaving a comment, it's nice to know when you've stopped by! :)

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