A Mysterious Apology!

I apologize for the delay in posting the solution to the mystery turtles. For some reason, Google (in it's infinitely dubious wisdom) changed a number of blog settings without notifying me. I was having trouble posting and all the responses from mystery lovers fell into a black hole. I think I have everything reset and working properly again. 

So, I'm also sorry I didn't respond to any of your mysterious puzzle answers - I wondered why nobody had said anything. (Thank you, BetsyLee, for notifying me of response difficulties via AQ mail. It put me on the right track to solving all the various issues -- I hope.)

Without further ado, here's the original picture: 

There are two fairly obvious turtles, but at least two others peeking out of the water.  There's also a possible fifth about a third down from the top on the left. 

 I've marked the ones I saw on this second picture. So, who did I miss? :)

 

A Tiny Turtle Teaser

Just in case it's time for another little mystery. Here's a teaser. I'll post the answer tomorrow, but this is one where I might be wrong.  You may do better than I did. :)

How many turtles can you find? I thought there were two to begin with and then... 

Can You See It?

It's not really a mystery post, but it's a little hard to spot. If he hadn't moved, I probably would have missed seeing him altogether. He took a step and gave away his location. 

Who is he?  He's an American Woodcock, also known in my area as a timberdoodle. 

Everybody piled into the jeep (old 1966 vintage model with the windshield down and no doors) and took a ride on the family property for my brother's birthday and got lucky enough to see another woodcock. I was able to get better pictures of this one. 

Having green grass as a backdrop, instead of more dry leaves really helps with the contrast and visibility. 

Watching these guys bob along as they walk is such a treat (that's how I know he is a male). Also, if you ever have the chance to go out on a spring night and watch their spiral mating flights, it's an experience not to be missed! You can sneak up closer and closer when they're high in the sky and then watch them do their courtship dance in the dusk after they land. As I said, if you have the chance, do it! :)

A Puzzling Solution...

Here's the original puzzle picture again, so you don't have to back up to the last post to see if you can find what's hidden in it. 

If you click on the image, it will enlarge and you can poke around the bigger version for a closer look. 

Fairly close to the middle, sitting on a little branch next to a clump of grass is this tiny little creature. 

It's about the size of a quarter, as you can see by the size of the grass blades behind it. I'm not sure why I even saw it, but something about seeing the that roundish shape on the long stick in my peripheral vision snagged my attention and made me look again. Isn't it a cutie? Piper wasn't sure what the big deal was, but she waited patiently while I knelt down on the trail and took some photos. 

A Puzzling Post

I haven't posted in quite a while. It's been a rough winter, but I'm hoping for a more promising spring and I'll try to be better about showing up to report on small adventures. :)

So, here's a little puzzle to start things off. 

Piper and I were walking in the wetlands and something caught my eye as we were going along our way. 

Can you see it? 

Fingers Crossed

I think Stampeaz.com is back up and running as it should be. I think... I hope... 

The site is browsable, searchable and otherwise visible. I will only be fully confident again when a real customer out in the great wide world actually has a successful purchase experience going through PayPal. Fingers (and eyes after all the screen gazing) crossed. 

And speaking of crossed eyes, I may need to join Piper for a nap! This stuff is exhausting. 

I got to work on my very own puzzle mystery! 

:)

Throwback Mystery Solution

 Before we have the big reveal, let's recap the clues. 

The first clue was a little distant, but careful observation might just reveal the subject(s).

Clue two is a closer, clearer view. 

In the center of the pictures above is this sweet Mother Goose. She was nesting in the reeds and sitting very still, trying to escape discovery. 

Father Goose is off to the right and a just little closer to the top edge of the picture. 

I hope you enjoyed this small mystery throwback. :)

Throwback Mystery Clue #2

We're continuing with yesterday's mystery. 

Above is clue number one again. 

This is clue number two. Once again, clicking on the picture will enlarge it so you can take a closer look.

And remember, don't stop with just one. :)

Throwback Thursday Mystery

People have been requesting a little mystery. This one is a throwback from some pictures I took for the purpose back in May. 

As usual, clicking on the image will enlarge it so you can search more carefully. 

Oh, and don't stop with just one... :)

A Different Kind of Mystery

I had a beautiful little sparrow foraging in my yard and I am not positive who it might be.  I was leaning toward it being a female white-crowned sparrow, given its size and head markings, but the streaky breast isn't right for an adult and it was far too early in the season for an immature to be scratching around for goodies. 

I've been consulting all the bird books and online identification guides I can get my hand on and have still not come to a definitive identification. I have considered the possibility that a swamp sparrow strayed a little from the wetlands and landed in my yard to snack for a few days.  
 

I have also considered that it may be a Lincoln's sparrow on its way north to nest. But I can't absolutely convince myself one way or another. The Sibley bird guide does say that they're closely related, so perhaps my inability to decide isn't without cause. 

Any birding experts or enthusiasts out there that can help me pin a name on this little cutie? It's a small bird - I'd say in the 5-6 inch range. 
 

More Morel Mushroom Madness

The morel mystery had quite a few sharp eyed readers. Nice hunting!

Also, I mentioned a morel print I had made a few years ago and mushroom lovers seemed to want to see it, so I pulled it out and took a picture. 

I apologize that it's not a perfectly squared up picture. I tried to photograph it from straight on, but didn't manage to get it quite right. Anyway, it gives you a pretty good idea. I wanted to have the morels just a little bit hidden the same way they are in the wild, so they're tucked into the leaf duff, grass and twigs. It was a fun and challenging carve. :)

A Minor Mother's Day Mystery - Mapped

Here's the clue from yesterday, if you missed it - or so you don't have to toggle back and forth to check for the mystery's subject(s). 

The subject in question at the moment is close to the middle of the picture. Not quite perfectly centered (there had to be a little photographic balance, after all). And there is more than one, but the others will be frustratingly elusive from this angle. 

Every year, our family would spend Mother's Day weekend wandering around out in the woods looking for treasure. It was a search to rival any Easter egg hunt and we children had as good a chance to make great discoveries as our parents, since our eyes were lower to the ground and provided an excellent vantage point. 

This is the one you should be able to spot in the mystery picture. I tried to get another picture at the same angle, so you can look for shape and shadow. It's the one that put me on alert. 

Once a little lower to the ground (children's eye level) in an effort to gather the first specimen, its friends were easier to locate. 

My brother and I harvested nearly two gallons of black morels in our afternoon of hunting, but a lot of crawling along on hands and knees through brambles was required to accomplish the feat. 

However, there's nothing quite like a pan of fresh morel mushrooms fried in butter for hors d'oeuvres as a reward for the effort. Yum!

I have made morel mushrooms the subject of one of my block prints, and it was fun to try to keep some of the mystery of the hunt in the final image. If anyone's interested, I can post a picture of it. :) 

A Minor Mother's Day Mystery

This little mystery is especially for BetsyLee (which, in itself, might be a dead giveaway). 

As always, you can click on the image to enlarge it. I left it as big as I possibly could. 

This is on my family's property and reminds me of the group outings we would always take on Mother's Day. The reveal will come tomorrow. :)

Happy Mother's Day!

A Puzzle with a Solution for Saturday

There wasn't a second picture for this little puzzle, but I think it can be solved with just this clue, if you look carefully. This is right outside my house off the back deck. Can you find who is hidden among the snowy yew bushes?  Eating them? 

Clicking on the picture will enlarge it and allow for a better look. She was really quite bold. I realize there is also a tangle of grape vines and butterfly bush stems to make it more challenging, but keep an eye open for the - eye. Everything should become clear, once you find that. 

I'll put a bit of space between the clue and the solution. 

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It's a yearling deer - last spring's fawn. Probably the one I carved nursing from its mom, since they both hang around the neighborhood. Do you see it? The dark diagonal right in the middle of the photo is its neck and the ears are  pointing back toward its shoulders right above that diagonal. Her right eye is peering out between branches closer to the right side of the picture. 

I had been looking out the back window at her mom when I realized someone was hidden among the bushes right against the house. Her nose is literally an inch from the outside wall. 

I guess the yew needed a bit of a trim... 

Apologies and the Solution

Sometimes life just does life things.... So, I apologize for being a little late with the solution, although I'm pretty sure most of you saw the star of the puzzle pretty easily. I'll go through the usual process, just in case. :)

Clue number one showed the larger view, and if you check out the lower left branches on the big tree on the right, you can see something perched there. 

Clue number two zooms in a bit, so it's easier to see who might be out on a limb... 

Here's the final payoff. The great blue heron was preening and primping, so it stuck around for a long time, allowing me to get a pretty good focus and a few nice pictures. 

Piper was also very patient as I snapped a bunch of shots of this guy. Pretty handsome bird, don't you think? It was really fun to watch. 

 

Another Episode of Spying

As our mysteries usually go, first I will post the original picture clue, so you don't have to backtrack to see it. 

So, there it is. (And I think I forgot to mention yesterday that you can enlarge the picture by clicking on it.)

I know that some of you saw it yesterday, but this somewhat zoomed version should make it a lot easier to spot, just in case you haven't already found it.

I'll post the close-up version tomorrow. That should make a confusing start for October! :)
 

Scenic Sunday Spying

Here's a fairly simple little hunt, but I thought it was sort of a fun one. 

Even without the mystery, it's a pretty scene, looking out over the marsh. But, there's something in particular to find. 

Did it catch your eye? 

Getting Satisfaction on Sunday

 Finally, the big (or little) reveal! First our original clue:

Then, we have the zoomed hint:

The little mystery you're looking for is pretty well centered from top to bottom, but is a bit to the right of center when measuring from side to side. 

This cheeky chipmunk was far enough from the trail that it felt safe standing in the open to watch our progress along the path. Piper had no trouble spotting it, though she can do some fancy cheating with her excellent nose! 

I hope you enjoyed this minor weekend diversion. :)

Saturday's Second Installment

As usual, we begin with a reminder of yesterday's clue, so you don't have to backtrack. 

As an aside, it was a lovely walk, with the sun filtered through the leaves, giving everything a soft glow. 

Then, here's the second clue, zoomed in on our mystery, just a bit. :)

A Friday Morning Mystery

The world is a mysterious place and there are all kinds of wonders hidden in plain sight, if we keep our eyes open. Piper always keeps her eyes open - and her nose on high alert!

So, here's the first clue teaser for today's little diversion. We hadn't done one of these in a couple weeks, so I thought it might be fun. :)