Hawthorns at High Tide (oil on canvas 5 x 7 in.) Sold

15 September finds me admiring a lush meadow of autumn wildflowers and a Hawthorn bush that overhangs the east side of the brook  downstream from Bev's place near Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. This is a Bailey bridge of steel girder-style railings, and the thin asphalt paving is cracking over the diagonal boards of the roadbed.

The brook is wide here, slow flowing as the high tide in the Annapolis River pushes back against it. It's as still as a mirror - only under the bridge can we see the water move. The forest on the west bank is mostly deciduous, the Ash,  Maple, Cherries, and Birch crowding down the bank as if to view their reflections.

Two bushes of English Hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna stand on the east bank of the creek above the bridge, and Fred makes his way down from the road over licheny boulders to collect a twig for the plant press. He wades through the thick Goldenrod, low bushy wild Roses, and pale green patches of Red Raspberry, a scattering of mauve New England Aster, and a tall, small-flowered white aster lodged down in thick tangles.

The textures are rich, begging to be painted, and the colours glow in the evening light which breaks through after our afternoon rain storm. Out in the middle, near the Hawthorns is a reddish patch of Black Knapweed, dark, narrow-leavered and rusty-headed. Blue Jays call across the creek and a young Song Sparrow practices a partial song. A single Spring Peeper pipes out a series of clear calls.

Now it really has gotten too dark to paint. Just as we cross back over the bridge, a Beaver drags two spreading threads of silver wake across the black reflection of dark trees on the downstream side.

Comments

  1. It is so beautiful. I love the colours, and the reflections.
    And I know about old Bailey bridges, too. LOL
    -- Kay

    ReplyDelete

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