A river walk

The last time I took my camera to the river it looked like this:

All of the snow and most of the ice had melted and it was gorgeously flooded.

Today the river is several feet lower. It's verdant and full of wildlife. I saw several geese on urgent missions and lots of small birds wheeling and diving for insects. I also came across this bird on the far bank:

A Great Blue Heron! Can you see it? I think if you click on the image it'll be easier.

I watched it wade cautiously at the water's edge for a long time. Its neck straightened, then curved into an s-shape. Its long breast feathers shifted in the wind. It stared at the river intently but nothing happened. I was literally on the edge of my toes and so close to the water I was almost in it.

See here. One inch closer and I'd be in the river.

After a long wait the heron changed its mind and flew to better hunting grounds farther downstream. I followed it, but my camera ran out of batteries just when things were getting interesting. A small family of ducks interrupted the heron's concentration! And it caught a fish!

I'm glad my camera battery died, because I always forget to really look at what I'm seeing when I'm focusing on it through my lens.

I took notes today. And I found these fossils:

I visit this river a lot, but I'd like to find new places to explore.

Where do you go when you want to see a bit of nature? I'm interested.

Note: I removed the image of the heron flying. It had to go.