Yesterday morning was beautiful, albeit in the low 30s (F) when we rushed to our hidden spot on Great Cove’s shore to set up a big lens on a heavy-duty tripod. We were osprey hunting, waiting for activity in their local nest. We had dressed for cold spring weather, but we hadn’t taken into account that a southwest wind with estimated 30-35 mile-per-hour gusts was blowing in from the sea down there. It packed a wicked wind chill.
As it turned out, the gusts were too strong for big birds to fly safely; the ospreys probably had chosen to roost inland for the duration rather than sit on their exposed, swaying nest. We should have known that they would be no-shows from the flock of sea gulls hunkered down in the middle of a field near us. Nonetheless, optimists that we are, we waited and shivered without seeing an osprey. But, the story doesn’t end there.
To ease the boredom and discomfort, we took target practice on an old mooring buoy out in the Cove:
And, maybe it was a reminder of the need for creative endurance during difficult times.
(Brooklin, Maine)