we went to Johnville

in autumn

we looked at

the ponds

we breathed in

the woods

In winter, the boggy back trails of the Johnville Bog & Forest Park freeze over.

The park management opens them up for foot traffic.

Far off the well-beaten track of boardwalks and open bog lands, the boreal forest is full of hops.*

We examine some rabbit poo. They seem to have been eating mostly bark and needles.

Looking around, I have no idea what else rabbits could possibly eat.

*Rabbit tracks

I tried to take some photos of the kids on this log in mid-September, but the lighting was lousy.

Fortunately, I come here often enough to try, try again.

  *    *    *  

I think I’d be happy to come here every day for a long, long time.

After some time, other people might require me to go alone.

Lately, every time we go to Johnville Bog, it rains. This time, we try to be prepared.

Upon arrival, the children check the weather. We might be prepared.

Some might think a bog an odd location for viewing autumn foliage, but that is likely because they are looking up.

I love the bog in all seasons. In autumn, I hear my friend Sunshine’s voice in my head:

“In Fairbanks, autumn happens on the ground.”

The Johnville Bog & Forest Park is a little slice of boreal forest in the Eastern Townships of Quebec.

I take some overcast portraits of my always adorable children—
#1

& #2

Then I head on, head down. Akiva is also head down.

Unlike his sister, he does not always enjoy walking.

But I take this opportunity of slowness to keep my eye between the cracks.

The light is low. My focus is off. I can’t get close enough. I wish I brought a tripod.

But I never bring a tripod: it is difficult to carry both a tripod and a 50 lb. child.

Cottongrass hovers in the spruce grove.

Pitcher plants nestle among mosses.

Mosses snuggle between the cracks of the decaying boardwalk.

In a boreal forest, autumn happens on the ground.