Nature Moments...

[Narnia]

About 7 years ago, I was just arriving at work and saw a beautiful moment in nature, which I will never forget....

At the time I was working as a groundskeeper on a spanky estate. The estate had a 1/4 mile driveway, which was lined with tall oak trees and pines, brushes of all kinds, stones and boulders and open grassy areas, it even had a little stream on side.....

I had just parked my Jetta and when I got out of the car and turned around to walk up to the 'big house' to start my day, I was stopped in my tracks, because I saw one of the cleaning ladies driving up the driveway and flying gracefully, just 2 feet above her car, was a hawk....

It was coasting/flying just above where the windshield and roof of the car meet....it must have been flying above her car for the entire length of the driveway and when she reached the top of the driveway, the hawk proceeded to fly into the woods nearby...

WOW, that was a moment in nature I'll never forget!

So, do you have any cool stories in nature to share?

[Narnia]

One of the very first memories I have from my kid-hood...was seeing three dolphins swimming in the Atlantic Ocean.

I was standing there on the beach looking out to the morning sunrise, *somewhere in North Carolina*, I was three at the time....and there they were...three beautiful dolphins, swimming and frolicking in the warm waters of an earlier morning....and that's all I vividly remember from that trip to North Carolina....

[Mr. Brightside]

Great idea for a thread Sphinx

I took this last year in Alcudia in Majorca

certainly took my breath away

[Kiran]

There are 'power' places all over the earth...special places in nature where you can tap inot her energy and 'just be'! I have been blessed to experience many moments like that Polly...

We used to holiday in Wales as kids and saw many beautiful things which kids from London would never have normally seen.
One was a stone circle which is where it is believed the blue stone for Stonehenge came from...top of a mountain and completely isolated and for a short while, I was transported somewhere else in time! Absolutely freaky for a young teenager but it kinda confirmed what I had felt all my life!

Another place was here in Ireland and a friend and I did a walking tour of some low hill/small mountains and it was so magical! I wrote a short story about it and may post it one of these days
When you are lucky enough to find these places and you her calling you, relax and just be and be at one with her...you will never need drugs or alcohol ever again!! It is the most exsquisite, magical, mystical and natural feeling you will ever experience!!!

[Mr. Brightside]

I find the Lake District in the UK is like that, whilst walking on the mountains you feel as though you are in another world, so isolated and peaceful..

[Kiran]

And I bet you felt completely re-energised after you had been there Sean...its a great feeling isn't it!

[SoulChild]

Living in the South...coming from a concreit jungle is a nature moment in iteself! Yet, ever since becoming a runner...I have enjoyed many beautiful nature moments. Many include....the total eclipse of the moon.....when the sun sets/rises...the night sky, and those early morning when the sun has not yet risen....and I watch the earth change positions by watching the Orion star constellation slowly move......so beautiful!

[Mr. Brightside]

And I bet you felt completely re-energised after you had been there Sean...its a great feeling isn't it!

I certainly do, every time I go there Lorri, Its a beautiful part of the country..

[Narnia]

I had just moved to the country/town setting of Connecticut from Pittsburgh, to start my endeavour as art student. I was renting a room, in a 1700's New England style house, from an ancient older lady, who had this weird mix of a British and New England accents....

Anyway, her property was situated in a nice sized patch of woods, which contained a cemetery.

One night, I am sleeping away in my room with the windows wide open, and all of the sudden, I was awakened by this freakish and terrifying calling of some kind. The noise was coming from the nearby cemetery/woods....and for the life of me, I couldn't figure out what the noise was.

The next morning, the older ancient lady asked me, if I had heard the Coyotes last night?........that 'noise' was Coyotes?

It is amazing to hear, a pack of them in the middle of the night for the first time and even now, it's still a little scary to hear and still can make make my skin shiver.....how they yip n' yell and cry n' call to each other...it's an amazing sound only one can hear in nature...

[planetlove]

I have been a few places in my short lifetime so far

Seeing the northern lights in Winnipeg MB / Dryden On and Churchill MB Canada and once while flying is Absolutly mind blowing ....

St. Elmos Fire - is an experience that i will never forget

V

[Kiran]

I'd love to see the Northern Lights too

[Jester Black]

I have been fortunate in that I have travelled all over the world and have personally seen most of the great natural wonders of this earth, from the himalayas to the the victorian falls, to the andes, the northern lights, st. elmos fire, the Rocky Mountains, the grand canyon and Death valley, to the sahara...name it Ive been there.

But two places in particular come to mind. One is the Luminescent Bay in Puerto Rico, a well hidden bay on the southerns end of the island which has luminisecnt microornisms that cause the water to glow when you touch it (an utterly beautiful site, both for its unique properties and its seclusion) and the other is a small outcrop thats just about 500 yards away from my house in Howard Beach in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge thats a roosting place for migratory birds from all over the world. If someone told me 20 years ago that black egrets visit New York City, I would have their heads examined...but they do, and in this very secluded place, you can almost feel like youve stepped off the road to civilization and somehow ended up in the Gallapago Islands. The only thing that breaks that effect is the fact that you can hear the planes taking off from Kennedy Airport which is less than half a mile away from the spot.

[Kiran]

Oh Jay...can I come next time?? lol Sounds wonderful my friend

[Narnia]

Many years ago, I was visiting 'Goat Rock Beach' north of San Francisco...and I swear, there was magic in the air....

This place was so beautiful, it was like a dream, I'll never forget it! It was a classic Northern California foggy day! We arrived at a small, lonely parking lot. We walked along a path cut through a grassy field that lead toward the cliff trail that hugged the cliffs to an expansive, lovely beach. The amazing thing about the cliffs and the rock formations that jutted out of the water, was the colour and texture. It was green and soft and incredibly smooth. There were dozens of sea lions hanging out on the edges of the rock formations barking at each other as the waves splashed on them...it was like walking into another world and wishing to never leave.....

It was so peaceful there!

[Kiran]

When I first moved to Ireland, a friend and I went to visit some mountains in the Midlands and what a magical day!! It was one of those misty, drizzly day and we walked through the woods towards a waterfall. As we walked through the woods, we could almost 'feel' eyes upon us from unseen beings...hear the gentle whispers as they called us. It was almost as if we were transported back in time and could 'feel' the Druids around us performing their rites and rituals.
I will never forget that day as long as I live! Magical!!!

[Narnia]

One thing, I love about winter is the number of backyard birds you get to see visitng the feeder.
I just love the Nuthatch! (pictured above) The Nuthatch is a small tree climbing bird.
It's so darn cute and its so fun to watch them scamper about on tree bark looking for grubs to snack on.

[Kiran]

What a gorgeous picture Sphinx! Thanks for sharing

[Narnia]

What a gorgeous picture Sphinx! Thanks for sharing

Yes, it is a gorgeous picture, although I cannot take credit for it, thanks must go to Google Image Search and mccullyheritage.org, I think! I wanted to use another pic, but it was too big!

But, yes the Nuthatch, is always dressed and pressed for a photo shoot anytime! I like to think that they are wearing their 'Sunday Best'!

[Narnia]

WHOOHOO! I have a rare bird sighting to report! I saw a.....

Northern "Yellow Shafted" Flicker this morning preening its plumage in the early morning sunlight! The Northern "Yellow Shated" Flicker is in the 'tree clinging' family of birds, I don't know much about it yet, other than it's very pretty and rare to see!

'Why?'.....You ask, is this so exciting.....its because I've never seen one before and its a rare occurrance to see one! I'll try and find a decent image online for you guys! So, you can see what I am talking about!

[Kiran]

Very beautiful bird Sphinx...I got to see a Sparrowhawk in close proximity a couple of years ago in the UK and it was so overwhelming to see it!!! Very rare to see in the wild now!