Saturday, June 20, 2009 9:28pm CDT
Saturday, June 20, 2009 at 9:28PM
74 degrees Twilight Calm
The sky is on fire with scarlets and crimsons and golds and pinks and reds. And the surface of the lake is also ablaze with the reflection from the sky.
The sun set less than half an hour ago and we are now in the wonderful "in-between" time that is so typical of summer in the north. And a time that is so special. It is not a fast, harsh time between light and dark. But a gentle, gradual change. When the sky first wraps you in a coat of many colors before the dark finally envelopes you.
Most of the boaters have gone home. There are just a few boats still on the lake, all of them just gently floating and enjoying the beauty of the evening. There are three families of geese and their growing goslings swimming out on the lake. And over there, in the middle of the lake are our loons!
The temperature was in the 90's today. So there were boats all over the lake as people came out the enjoy a long delayed summer day.
And with it, our loons were in a traffic jam, caught between boats and water skiers and jetskis. They had to watch out for boaters that possibly were not watching out for them.
But they have made it through the day. They are safe. They are healthy. And they are growing so very much. They are still covered in a gray down. But their heads seem to be a little darker. Is it the development of the first fine smooth feathers that cover a loons head and neck? And they also seem to be developing some tail feathers
They are developing so rapidly. It is hard to believe how much they have changed in only three-and-one-half weeks.
But they have a long way to go before they are truly independent. They still rely on mom and dad for most of their meals although they are probably catching a few things on their own. They are becoming more adept at diving and they try out their skills more and more often. They can easily dive and stay down for 15 seconds or more. It would be so fascinating to be able to see what they actually do when they are underwater.
But for now, they simply float. And enjoy a gorgeous evening.
So tonight you can relax. YOUR loons are safe and growing. The most famous loons in the world! And hopefully many thousands of others across the US and Canada are doing the same or will be doing so soon.
Reader Comments (6)
Ah, Larry, it is so good to hear that they are fine. With so much bad news around us, it feels good to latch onto something so very good. What is so fine as a summer evening in Minnesota!
Thank you so much, Larry, for your wonderful blogs! I have been thinking of the loons and wondering if you have been able to update all of us loon lovers on the MN Bound website. You are such a gifted writer. Your blogs could be made into a book, they are so beautifully written. They are so evident of the beautiful heart and soul you have. Thank you for your great knowledge that you share with all of us, your sensitivity and love of nature, and for You. Happy Father's Day and God bless!
You paint a lovely word picture Larry. I love the summer evenings too. I love the quietness and the warm golden light filtering through the trees on to our garden, where all the colour of the flowers seems to intensify and the shadows lengthen. I don't like really hot weather, so 90 deg. would not be for me ! It is quite cool here in England this morning considering that we are really into Summer.
It's great to hear that our Loon famiily are doing so well. Maybe this year's chicks will be returning to your raft in the future to raise a family of their own.
I expect you dismantle the raft some time later in the year. You got it just right. Enough vegetation to give some protection and cover for the Loons but still allowing a good view from the camera. I hope to have the real privilege of watching it again next year.
Larry, any chance you could take some pictures and post them somewhere for us?? I'd love to see how big they have gotten. Thanks so much for you eloquent udates.
Larry, many, many thanks for the positive update! Good news for our MN loons...surviving a busy boat day on the lake shows how SMART they really are! (and careful)
I will say it again...you really should publish your blog entries...a LOON Diary of sorts. I told you so last year and I am repeating myself this year...YOU REALLY SHOULD PUBLISH your Loon blog musings in some way. I think your writing would be well-received by all LOON LOVERS.
Thank you for a beautiful description of the lake and "our" loons, Larry. They seem to be doing very well by your reporting and that is great. I second ADK's request for a picture if you could do it. That would be wonderful.