Photos: Lake Lagunita (4-29-2011)

Photos: Egret at Lake Lagunita

Photographs at Lake Lagunita
Stanford University, April 29, 2011

By Peter Y. Chou
WisdomPortal.com

Preface: On Friday, April 29, 2011, a friend and I walked to Lake Lagunita on the Stanford campus (6:50-7:55 pm). We came here on April 27 after Leon Botstein's Presidential Lecture/Discussion "Music Between Nature and Architecture" at the nearby Stanford Humanities Center. The lake's water has dwindled to less than half its previous size. There were fewer ducks swimming in the lake. Could that white patch across the lake be the egret at its favorite spot? Suddenly that white image rose up and flew across the lake. I was hoping that it would land nearby to take a closeup photo of this beautiful bird. But it continued soaring over the trees and was gone. Will the egret return to the lake today (4-29)? Will we spot the jack rabbit that greeted us three times last year behind the giant oak? Will we see that hare with those foot-long ears leaping across Campus Drive East two days ago near 4 pm on our way to Botstein's lecture? My friend even wore rabbit ears to entice the hare out from its hiding place. There were no clouds above Lake Lagunita but our hour-long walk around the lake was rewarding in seeing the egret again and two bush bunnies. The egret flew across the lake twice and I managed to catch it airborne with my camera three times. When it left the lake at sunset (7:54 pm), I caught it in my camera's view finder and snapped two photos. Missed it on the first click but the second one got him flying overhead. May the twelve photos of the Egret of Lake Lagunita convey the blessings felt seeing this beautiful bird in its purity and whiteness.