Last night I walked down to our dock and was pleasantly surprised to see two loons floating about fifty feet out. I only had my phone on me, but I tried to capture their peaceful gliding.
It was approaching dusk. The water was calm and the sun was sinking fast in the Western sky on the far side of the lake, soon to be below the tree line. As loons do, they floated away from me rather than toward the dock, but I was still glad to see them. Soon, two more could be seen making an arrival from the north, quickly lowering their flight path in an attempt to join the loons that were already gracefully bobbing in the lake.
Their landing is interesting, less than graceful but a success, overshooting the floating pair by only a short, but I assume, safe distance. Soon, all for were floating together. We don’t think we’ve ever seen this on our lake – four loons, presumably two pairs, gathered for an evening float.
Our lake has become busier and busier with motorized watercraft over the years. This bothers me. I know people are entitled to life their lives, have fun, and spend their money on whatever makes them happy. Still, the loons like a quiet lake.
After a few minutes of peaceful floating and me imagining their dusky, after dinner, coffee clutch, our yellow lab jumped off our dock (for the first time ever) and caused a commotion. Like their reaction to noisy boats, the loons took off only seconds after the dog cause a splash.
As interesting as their landing, watching the loons take off from the water was incredible! You could hear the “running” of their webbed feet flapping across the surface of the lake. They flew to the west, towards the setting sun.
The Apples in My Orchard 