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It’s hard to believe this is my 12th Skywatch post!  In some ways I feel like I’ve been watching the sky for way longer than a few months.  In other ways I still feel like such a newbie/amateur.  But skywatching is in my blood now.  Not a day goes by without some sky observation - whether out loud, or just an internal conversation (you know - with the voices).

I was heading out the door on Sunday and Prince Farming said "if you want a cool sky picture, you should take it now" (or something along those lines).  My arms were full of stuff - so I handed him the camera, and this is what he got.  I always enjoy how the mist hangs around here in the mornings - but these layers were particularly interesting and appealing and mysterious.

Last weekend we were driving into an amazing sunset.  By the time we could pull over for a shot it was too late to see the fantastic display, but I got this picture.  I love silhouette shots (probably because with this kind of light and my kind of camera - and my kind of skill - that’s all I can get).  This isn’t stellar - just a sort of "happy spot" for me - so thanks for obliging me.

This one didn’t turn out too badly - still silhouette-ish though.

The light in the late afternoons has been stunning - really highlighting the awesome colors.  I keep threatening to go for a "walk-about" to get some different fall shots.  But here is a familiar view - the light makes the place look less like a farm and more like a park.  Or it would, if I knew how to take this shot differently.  How blessed are we!?

That pile of something near the tree is where Prince Farming is digging out a tree stump.  Aren’t you glad that tree isn’t there anymore?  You wouldn’t see much of the pond if it were.  The stump was a bit hazardous to the equipment.  Prince Farming had borrowed a little excavator (you remember - for the barn plumbing job) and tried to dig around the stump enough to get it out.  No luck.  He’ll have to wait his turn with the dozer to get it out the rest of the way.  And the cows have moved to the far field - those black specks in front of the far tree-line is part of the herd.  They seem to be loving life.   Last week I saw them run - just for the sake of it.  Don’t know if it was to warm up a bit, or because something spooked them.  I looked for dogs, but saw none.  They just sort of took off.  Too funny.  The herd is going to double some time this month - our farmer friend "Uncle Robert" has been holding on to a small herd for us.  When it’s convenient he’ll load them up and bring them over.  I hope their introduction to our farm is less blog-worthy than the current herd.  You were spared the details because they came during my pre-blogging life.  But they inspired me to start blogging because of all the adventures (and mis-adventures) they created.

You can see more amazing sky pictures from all around the world by visiting here.

If any of you have missed posting a Skywatch entry for one week, you might understand how I’m feeling.  It is amazing how many skies there are to share, and missing one week just really makes a person feel behind.  But I’m going to shake these feelings of behindness - goodness knows they’re manifesting all over in my life - and I’ll just enjoy the opportunity I have now to share.  So glad to be back.  Life feels a little out of balance.  There’s nothing like a few skies to browse to wash the tension out of my shoulders (only to have it wrenched back in when I realize how much time I’ve spent visiting sky blogs and how much behinder I just got!)

Fall is in full swing.  The colors haven’t been as intensely varied as in years passed, but I’m still enjoying the colors.  And the cool air (it’s been downright COLD this week!).  The skies change too - I’ve never taken the time to observe the sky changes before this year.  It’s been so much fun!

The clouds seem more dense on some of these fall evenings.  I love to watch them - these were traveling at quite a clip.  They had some other places to see.  Wish they’d take me along!

These clouds were content just to sit and watch my pond.  And the cows.

With the sun coming up a bit later, it’s easier for me to see some colors from the Library window.  I love how the mist just hangs in this picture.  This is quite typical of where we live - sometimes it takes quite some time to burn off.

The color on this evening was SO dense it made the whole farm feel orange. 

Happy fall, and happy sky watching!  Thanks for stopping by.  You can see more amazing sky pictures from all around the world by visiting here.

Last weekend we, with a group of friends, all went to a nearby mountain top (about 40 minutes away) where Elk are frequently spotted.  We went right around sun-down, and were not disappointed!  Our house is situated in a community called "Elk Valley" and apparently Elk used to be quite a nuisance here.  They have since been hunted to the point of no longer calling this their home.  It was wonderful to go and see a variety of Elk at this viewing area.

You can see the fall colors starting to show their splendor too.

There were several bull Elk.  We even got to see a bull fight - horns clashing, dust flying and all.  I couldn’t capture a non-blurry shot of the event (it was getting pretty dark) but the experience was awesome. 

When I turned around to face the west, the sunset was stunning.

The colors were HOT but the air was refreshingly cool.  A very nice contrast.

This is about the time of the bull fight.  My camera (with the current lens and unskilled photographer) couldn’t capture anything below the skyline.

For good measure, and to make this post complete, here’s your Gredemeer pond fix:

This was taken just this morning (Wednesday).  You can see a small inkling of the amazing color that’s going to grace us very soon.  It’s been a bit rainy, which makes the colors more vivid, I think.  Lovely fall weather.  If it weren’t such a short season, I think fall would be my all time favorite.  But fall is the pre-winter season, and cold is not my favorite thing, really.

Happy Skywatching!  You can see more amazing skies from all over the world by visiting here.