Rain, rain, rain

On the bright side, it promises to be a very green summer.

We woke, this morning, to wind and freezing rain.  I looked at the forecast for the coming week, and the days appear to alternate between warm, wet days, and cooler, clear days -- very much the pattern for the past month.  Apparently my decision not to go camping in Algonquin Park will spare me some unpleasant nights.

On the other hand, this might be perfect weather for birding in Gatineau Park or along the Carp Hills.  This pattern of weather systems should bring the raptors through the area, and I can imagine myself next week sitting with binoculars or maybe even a telescope at the Champlain Lookout.  Coming back from Kemptville last week, I spotted a Peregrine in the west end of the City, and the ravens have been building nests and robbing crows around City Hall for most of April.  Otherwise, from my urban vantage, the migration appears to have stalled.  I see the same, small flocks of grackles foraging around the canal that I saw two weeks ago, and very few songbirds.  The Field Naturalists' bird line reports large numbers of waterfowl moving through the area, and they confirm my observations of migrating bohemian waxwings in Gatineau Park -- but that report is now a week old.  One of these days, the weather will break, and then we will see a flood of new arrivals.  Hopefully, I'll still be on holiday to see them.

The more subtle signs of spring continue to evolve.  Every day the color in the twigs and buds appears more intense and more potent.  Young leaves have begun to unfurl on the honeysuckles.  More and larger bulbs force their way from the earth in gardens around the Co-op and the neighborhood, and already the crocuses are drooping.  The wait seems long, and the teasing moments too short and too few.  But, inevitably, that day will soon come when the air trembles with urgent life, and the City casts off its pallor.