Change of Scenery

It has been a few weeks since I posted and although I kept thinking "oh, I could write about..." somehow I did not actually get around to doing anything about it.

But last week I went on a four day trip to Deal Island on the Chesapeake Bay and I thought you might like to see some photos from that trip.

The purpose of the trip was strictly a quilting retreat and with the way the weather was (raining and stormy) for most of the time it was just as well.

We stayed at Pieceful Cottage close to the very end of the island.

There was a lot of rain but when I went upstairs late in the afternoon on Friday to my delight I saw a beautiful complete rainbow out the bedroom window. I alerted everyone else to come see and then it occurred to me I could be taking a photo. In the time it took to go back downstairs and find my camera the best of the rainbow was gone - one of my friends took a photo that showed the complete arc but I was only in time to get this section. The difference in coloration between inside the rainbow and the outside of the rainbow was a reminder of the wonders of nature.

I was fascinated by the tree frogs that clustered all day long on the front of the cottage either side of the front door. Our guess was that they were there to feast on the many bugs that are attracted to the area when the lights are on at night. The frogs continued to sit there all day and I was checking on them frequently.

On Friday night someone looked out the window at dusk and saw a deer. I grabbed my camera and went to the front door but opening the door scared the deer off. But certainly this sunset was a much more thrilling sight to see.

The small harbor is a working harbor. Fishermen go out from here to catch crabs and likely other fish as well but with the piles of crabbing baskets we saw we know that is what they catch in certain seasons.

Deal Island holds an annual Skipjack race on Labor Day. Skipjacks are a traditional working boat from the Chesapeake Bay and here is an example on the left of the photo. But the vessel in the right foreground is a more common sight.


These boats had not gone out on Saturday morning.

And here we see one lone sailor setting off out through the breakwater in his small dinghy.


We kept hoping to find some beach, but this, folks, is it. So in conclusion, you do not go to Deal Island for the beach.

Enough already Hughie!

I have been trying to gather pretty garden or critter photos for a posting for several days. But today I abandoned that idea as we have been inundated by rain. Reports of the rainfall today vary from 4" to 6" or more within my local three mile surroundings and the rain is expected to continue through the night. While some readers may think this is not unusual this is very dramatic for this area.

The rain turns the front walk into a swiftly flowing creek.

While out back there is a veritable waterfall over the edge of the garden planter box where my only remaining viable tomato plants are.

If you click on this photo what appears to be walkways is actually flooding water.


This is a shot that I usually take with snow piled up on the railing. But not today! The clay colored rain in the road gutters is coming from the house construction site further up the road.

And my title? When we lived in Australia I heard the saying "send 'er down Hughie" which is a good thing to say as it is usually heard when rain finally arrives in an area that has had no rain for months or maybe years.

In the past few weeks we have had a hail storm that all but destroyed my tomato plants in pots on the deck. Then came the earthquake. Followed by Hurricane Irene. And now today's deluge which I think is courtesy of Hurricane Lee.

So enough already Hughie!