Got a phone call early last evening just as I was stepping out the door for a social engagement.
“Red-necked grebes on the river!!”
Dodging rain showers and rush hour traffic I make the rendezvous in quickly fading light. The water is like glass. Hallelujah, the Red-necked grebe pair is still there, gently cruising up and down the shoreline. Tantalizingly, they’re just metres from the water’s edge on a mile wide stretch of river!
Under heavy overcast and the odd drop of rain, the light is low and somber, the river hushed. Far from perfect conditions but I’ll take it.
A solitary fisherman, perhaps resenting our presence, queries our obsession with “ducks” as we traipse up and down the shoreline. He angles for fish while we angle for a better position. Not meaning to be rude we exchange brief, obligatory salutations. As for the “ducks”, some questions are best left unanswered.
My best encounter ever with a pair of Red-neckeds in breeding plumage. A truly magical encounter!!
Hat tip to good buddy Paul!! I owe you one!!