Spring is finally here in southern Ontario.  Well mostly here.  We still have a dusting of snow in some spots, and there is lots of snow left in the wooded areas.  Regardless, the remnants of snow aren’t stopping me and my family from enjoying the outdoors and it certainly hasn’t stopped mother nature from thumbing her nose at old man winter.

Sunday came and the temperature was a balmy 6 degrees Celsius with full on sun.  My wife and I bundled up the little one, leashed the dog and headed to one of our favourite spots around Kingston: Lemoines Point.

Lemoines point has always been one of our favourite spots to walk the dog and take a step into nature.  The park itself is a conservation area that covers 136 hectares and is located on the west side of Kingston near the airport.  Although minutes from the city and heavily trodden  by the local Kingstoniains, this park still seems to support a vibrant wildlife scene and maintains its wild charms.

Our walk began at the Rotary park entrance which is near the Collins bay Marina.

Immediately upon entering the park we were bombarded with a plethora or birds.  Sightings included chickadees and other smaller birds, morning doves, robins, a woodpecker, colourful blue jays and even a peregrine falcon

(couldn’t snap a shot 😦 of the falcon)

(below is a shot of the author with one of the parks residents)

Possibly, one of the most notable things about the park (aside from its bio diversity) is the resident population of tamed chickadees that will willingly eat bird seed from your hand.  Loads of fun for young kids and adults too.

Aside from the plethora of birds, Lemoines point is home to many types of terrestrial animals.  Some of which we encountered on our walk.  The little guy below seemed to have a craving for peanuts and sunflower seeds! One good thing about sharing your home with local kingstonians is that, if your cute and furry,  they make sure your well fed!

We continued our walk though the woods eager to see the next animal.  Lemoines point is funny that way; some days there is nothing but the birds to see, and then there are days like today….

As we turned the corner of one of the trails we saw movement in the woods.  There ahead of us was a beautiful white tail deer eating some of the grain and peanuts left by the parks patrons.  Lucky right? Well lucky was an understatement, because a couple minutes later the rest of the herd broke out of the bushes and we were staring at 6 healthy deer.

The deer weren’t shy at all as they pranced down the path towards us.  Obviously they were used to being fed by the parks patrons and they have lost their fear of humans.  Normally I’d say this is a bad thing, but seeing as how the park is pretty well segregated from anywhere else, I’d say this specific arrangement works out pretty well for all parties involved.  The deer get fed, and the patrons get lots to look at.

After an hour and a half, our walk was coming to a close.  On our way out our attention was captured by one last creature chattering away in the trees.  Id say this creature looked a bit “squirrely” wouldn’t you say? (Excuse the bad pun)

Its amazing some of the natural treasures we have so close to our homes. All it takes is the effort to get up and out and go see it for yourself.

Personally, I cant think of many better ways to  spend an hour and a half on a Sunday afternoon.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert