A ballet in the mists

A ballet in the mists The rain of the last few days is for me an event that I was patiently waiting for. As our summer has been quite dry so far, it has been difficult for me to find foggy mornings in abundance. If you've been following me for long enough, you know that this is the atmosphere that I like more than any other! A day after heavy rain with no wind is often synonymous with a wall of fog. This is exactly what I saw yesterday morning. A wall! In this atmosphere, sounds are muffled and the air is dense. You can't see the shores and there is no movement! Only the silence and the smell of the swamp to be appreciated. In this atmosphere, you have to be motionless and attentive to spot an animal. Often, we only see a sketch slowly define itself the closer it gets. My first encounter was with a doe. I was a few meters from the shore and a small veil would cover the whole forest. My gaze was caught by this discreet shape. She looked at me, frozen in reflection in the water. Nothing was moving and I could easily have never noticed it because the painting was so desaturated and motionless. A black duck had woken up from its nap, a meter away from me, I had not noticed it. Continuing my sinuous road between the small islands of the marsh, I came across a great heron. Well concentrated on a prey, I was able to take beautiful pictures of its success with a freshwater crustacean. Then, as the morning progressed, normally this fog should have dissipated as the sun had begun to clear it of its heat, but on the contrary it was getting denser. It was at this time that in the middle of the small lake, four loons were dancing. In our little bubble cut off from the world, they were diving and raising their heads. With all the delicacy of the world, they stayed close to me until I left them for the day. Although nesting is well advanced in several couples, it is sometimes possible to capture the intimacy of the daily life of these mystical birds. In the mist, all encounters are imbued with magic.