Shhhh... (we're going into the Swamp)

Yes, we are going into the swamp.  Don't worry, we are going in a kayak.  We are looking for dragonflies, but we will probably get distracted.  That is the way of swamps.

Please read this in a whisper (even if you are reading it 'in your head'). That is how you should talk in a swamp, so you can listen for things like the sounds the cattails make when the wind stirs them.

It is mid-morning, so it's not too hot yet.  Dragonflies should be still, waiting for the day to warm up before they fly.  So, we'll need to search for them.  Keep your eye out for them on possible perches!

Meanwhile, the king of the swamp will keep his eye on us, and stay at the far end of the swamp.  Do you see him there... way in the distance?

 He's watching.  But let's try not to get distracted by birds.  We are looking for dragonflies.

None here.

Or here.  Though it is a fascinating miniature 'world' on a fallen log.  I wonder how many kinds of plants a botanist could identify in that small area of the swamp?

We startle two Wood Ducks, who then use their feet to paddle as fast as they can for cover.  Look at the wake they left behind!

Snapping pictures from a kayak can be challenging, and I almost deleted the next one.  Then on close inspection of it, I saw the ducks had not quite disappeared into the safety of the cattails.  Can you pick them out?

We've been very slowly floating along, only paddling once and awhile.  Now,  I'll push our kayak into some vegetation to anchor the boat for awhile.  Maybe some dragonflies will come flying by.  Instead I hear the high-pitched buzzes of Cedar Waxwings.  Where are they?

There are three Waxwings in this photo!

As they get used to our presence, they land on perches closer and closer.

They fly out and back, in a manner called 'hawking' as they catch and eat flying insects.  One eventually feels comfortable enough to preen on a limb near the kayak.

There must be tiny insects flying about, but I still haven't seen a single dragonfly!  There are other things to look at though.  I enjoy unique-looking reflections...

...and spend a good bit of time trying to get a focused photo of the tiny Bladderwort flowers.  They are only about 2" tall.

I spend more time taking a panoramic photo of the swamp, looking in the direction of our house.

I like to look at this clump of driftwood (can it be called driftwood in a swamp?) from our house, now we can see it up close from the kayak.

I keep looking for dragonflies, really I do! But there were none on that picturesque spot either.

As we float by one of the Wood Duck boxes, I wonder if there was a nest in it this year.  

I'll find out next winter when I can walk on the ice to check inside.  Now it's time to head back toward the dock.

I don't use the dock anymore (I don't think I need to explain why!), but it's still where I put the boat in and out of the water. 

But wait!  Something goes zooming by and lands on a muddy pile of 'stuff'.  

Finally, a dragonfly!  It's a pretty one, too.... red or would you say it's orange?  I don't know much about dragonflies except that I think they are neat.  My brother said he would come to visit if I found a rare one.  Well, brother??? 

I'd say, "to be continued" but that will remain to be seen!