Through the Mist

Originally I was planning on stopping by this little pond for an early morning landscape shoot but upon arrival the morning mist over the water was so thick I couldn’t even see across to the other side. The shot I had in mind was not going to work out since the mountain backdrop was lost in the fog. As I was about to leave I noticed a faint little speck in the middle of the pond moving ever so slowly. I sat back and watched as a common loon inched its way closer toward me. It would continuously dive beneath the surface leaving only a trail of bubbles on the water revealing where it had swam. Nearly every dive it would come up with a small fish in its beak. It is actually quite impressive how effective these birds are at fishing. Not realizing my presence, it spent the better part of twenty minutes fishing right in front of me within a matter of feet. I sat tight against the shrubbery along the bank and took the occasional photo, but mostly just enjoyed the fresh morning air of the mountains while immersed in nature. Sometimes when a plan doesn’t work out, we are blessed with something better. Spending the morning watching this loon in its natural environment was far greater than the plan I originally had.