It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog! Last weekend we did our last steam run for the year at the railroad I volunteer at outside of Topeka, KS. A friend was back for a visit who used to run with us but moved to a different state and he was running so I was able to go around and take a few photos. This is one of the other locomotive as it was coming up the hill on a rather wet day and looking very steamy due to the chill in the air and the humidity.
I got this image back in late August while on a bike ride. A storm was coming in and I liked how you could see the rain from it in this photo.
It's Friday, TGIF! The Monarchs have all moved on now it seems. During the end of October there were several in the yard enjoying the flowers. This one visited the Hummingbird feeder which I had never seen before.I loved the bokeh in this image as well so sharing it for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious here on the Blog!
Today's photo is not one I would normally post as I am not fond at all of these though I have come to appreciate them more and their function in nature. While out bike riding in the last couple of weeks in October, there had been many young snakes in the road warming themselves. This was one of them that had survived so far unlike some others. This one was bit larger than some I had been seeing and is a Bull Snake.
It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog! Today's flower is Tall Thistle or Roadside Thistle which usually blooms in August and September. I found this bloom in mid September. It is in the Asteraceae-Sunflower family and is a biennial plant. It can grow to 8 feet tall! This one was only about half that at most. Birds will eat the seeds.
I have been seeing Red Tail Hawks a bit more often on bike rides lately. It's probably because the Turkey Vultures have gone south for the winter now. Anyway, I captured this one about a week ago and thought it turned out fairly well.
Happy Monday and happy new week! Starting off the week with one of the numerous butterflies I have been able to see in my yard lately. This is a Variegated Fritillary enjoying a Zinnia bloom.
