Off to Mosvannet

Aisya's been saving up her leftover breakfast bread daily since we last visited Mosvannet over the weekend. So today even with the temperatures touching 16 degrees, she's determined to visit the lakes again to feed the ducks. Off we went all bundled up into the car with the breakfast bread safely tucked under Aisya's arm. We drove directly to the lake after dropping Mommy off at her office in Risavika.

Armed with the Lowepro the contents of which included the trusty 400mm we briskly walk towards our intended destination after parking the car. All along the route Norwegians were either walking, running or cycling along the path either to work or from work. We must be the only three oddly overdressed folks for the summer, Ali with his face wrap and Aisya with her Laplander's headgear. The birds were obliging ...

Ali and Aisya sharing their left over bread with new feathered friends at Mosvannet. They've started naming each birds ... Flamby (the Mallard), Pingu (the Swan) and Kingsley (the Tufted Duck).

I had the shock of my life when I peered through the viewfinder to find a swan flying high above the trees over the Mosvannet. Having always seeing them gracefully paddling the lake, I somehow have forgotten they haven't lost their ability to soar higher than the lake surface.

Two Great Crested Grebe in the middle of their ritual courting, this pair dicn't quite complete the whole ritual. We saw them offering each other weeds (maybe checking out nesting material) but they didn't go further than that.

Sparkling sunlight over the waters at 16 degree temperatures.

Tufted Duck having a good splash after a good breakfast courtesy of Ali and Aisya. It's the smallest bird in the fray but was definitely the fastest, it readily splashed and dived to get to the little morsels even before the gulls could get to it.

I didn't see any new birds today but it was great fun to see the kids having such a good time connecting with the common birds at Mosvannet. I forsee that it wouldn't such a major challenge to get them to go birdwatching again soon.

At the bookstore later I found out that there's a coffeetable book, "Birds of Mosvannet and Stokkavannet" (in Norwegian) which features beautiful images of the common and not so common birds of the lakes. Apparently in the colder parts of the year, rare visitors do pop by these parts even dippers ... I better start saving more left over bread for the coming winter.