Evans’ Rag

Vol 8 Issue 5

Layla in flowers– photo by Author, © 2026

There is a night heron I’ve been watching all spring. He shows up most afternoons and sits on a bare branch high above the lake. The branch never leafed out, so he has a clear view. Too far away for my camera. Wish I had a better pair of binoculars.

Every now and then his mate joins him. My theory—after watching a zillion David Attenborough stories—is that they are running a nesting operation, shuttling fresh fish and resting between flights.

Night herons are predators, and that perch they’ve found lets them watch the water and enjoy the view at the same time. Real cool entertainment for all three of us.

It’s been a wet spring heading into summer, and the vegetation is lush in the neighborhood. We can barely see the road.

The purple-flowering rhododendron in the picture was the one that got pulled over in a snow storm a few years ago. This one’s eight or more feet tall. It’s hard to judge from the photo as it sits nearly as high as the deck Layla sits on. We have three of these supersized bushes, all on the high side of the house. My best guess is they are about the age of our house, which puts them north of 70 years. Here’s to a long life!