In what seems like “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” I was just a kid wanting to photograph the common loon. The actual year was circa 1978, maybe 1979. I was living in Minnesota. Loons have always been a big part of the natural world here in the north country.
This photo of an adult in breeding plumage was taken recently on the lake my sister and her husband live on. This magnificent bird is displaying a behavior known as wing rowing, something I had never seen, let alone photographed, in my early days. I’ve spent a little over two months in a small cabin on their property, taking care of my mother and father as we sort out some difficult medical issues. That’s a whole different story, but suffice it to say, the mornings and evenings I’ve had with as many as six different loons is more than I could have hoped for.