Yesterday was a fabulous spring day, so I spent a couple of hours along the South Platte River at the end of the day. Heading out across the pedestrian bridge, I found this biker, wearing an orange jersey, stopped astride his bike on the bridge.
Canada Geese are a common sight in the metro area at this time of the year. By now, many female geese have been sitting on their nests for several days, or a couple of days, with their male partner somewhere close by. I don’t know if this is a male partner or a younger immature goose.
Farther down stream, I found mother goose on her nest. The nest turned out to be some blankets on the concrete bridge supports. I met another couple walking along the river and stopped to chat for a while. They mentioned that this was the second year that this goose nested in this location. They were curious as to how the chicks would make their way down to the water. “Maybe they jump?”, I suggested.
American Robins were found scratching around the undergrowth along the riverside. This flew up to perch on a fence, allowing me to make this image.
About this point, it was time to head back to the car. Facing the other direction, the sun was aligned with the river. I could see the spring colors reflected from the river in this more abstract image.
There were several Canada Geese along the river. This pair allowed me to get pretty close. I made several images of this pair, buy like this one as they look out across the river.
Recently the swallows returned for the summer. I heard this swallow above me. Looking up, I noticed that it was a Barn Swallow sitting on the cable strung across the river.
This female Mallard was accompanied by a male. In previous years, I’ve always noticed baby Mallard chicks on the water way after the geese hatch. Maybe Mallards mate later than geese?
It was fun to enjoy the spring day and see the birds enjoying the day too! The geese along this stretch of the river always seem to have a smile.