Andrew Clem.com home Photo gallery Winter, 2004:
Snow, ice, and more snow
Rainbow
Augusta County farm

Sunday drive, February 8: A prosperous cattle farm in the bucolic hills of western Augusta County, about ten miles from Staunton.

A short while later, I came across several short-eared owls that had been roosting alongside a remote country road. They quickly flushed as I approached and took refuge in a nearby tree. Fortunately, one of them came back into camera range, and I was able to get this shot; the close-up on the right is enlarged about 8 times.

Short-eared owl
Owl place
Afton view

View toward the southeast from Afton Mountain, where I-64 crosses the Blue Ridge just east of Waynesboro. Charlottesville would be off to the left side.

James Madison University's ultra-scenic lake, which would probably have frozen over completely this winter if it were not for the fountain. The parking garage on the right used to be obscured by a huge tree that was recently felled to make way for some kind of drainage project. To see what this scene looks like in the summer (from a slightly different angle), roll the mouse cursor over the picture.

JMU lake ice
Princess in nest in sun

During the winter months, the angle of the afternoon sun is such that Princess gets bathed in direct solar rays for almost an hour when she is sitting on her nest. Fortunately, her feathers provide adequate UV protection...


Rainbow