Summer Road Trip

And we're off!

 Miss Ava, the navigator and I (the driver) are just back from a summer road trip. Our destination was Maine but we decided not to drive all the way there in one day. Instead we overnighted in Binghamton NY because it was a somewhat convenient  halfway point. Binghamton has an amazing collection of old carousels donated to the city from 1919 to 1934.The generosity of George F. Johnson, a shoe manufacturer and great benefactor, has allowed for everyone to enjoy free rides on these beautiful treasures since then.

 There are six scattered around the city and all are on the New York State Historic Register as well as the National Register of Historic Places. With only a brief overnight stopover we were lucky enough to go and ride on just this one at Recreation Park which still has the original Wurlitzer Band Organ. Being carefully housed in this delightful building keeps it safe from the harsh weather elements but does make it challenging to take good photographs of the horses and riders. It was a quiet afternoon when we were there and we got to ride alone.

The next morning we set out for our next stop in Freeport Maine where we were to spend four nights. While on the road the navigator did a grand job of reading out the instructions and consulting the map when necessary (no gps for us!) and kept Miss Ava pointed in the right direction. Everywhere we went in Maine there were boats moored in pretty bays...and narrow winding roads with lots of signs saying "private, no parking".

 We headed towards the Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park and saw scenes like this.

 And approaching rainstorms like this.

 Walking along the trails in the park I was delighted to come across this view of an osprey nest. In chatting with another visitor who was seated eating his lunch on a park bench specifically chosen so he could watch the nest, I heard that this nest has been there for many years. At home I am an avid watcher of a livecam of a nest in the Chesapeake Bay so I was thrilled to see this view.

 On Friday we headed over to the Skowhegan State Fair which was celebrating it's 200th year. The Fair claims to be the longest running State Fair in the USA. It had all the traditional attractions: animals and other facets of rural life along with the midway area of rides and food, a special antique auto display and some different events in the later afternoon (after we left the Fair) including a demolition derby, harness racing and truck pulls. It was the rural events we spent most time at along with a wander through the antique auto display.

 The poultry tent was full of cages stacked three high holding a wide variety of poultry. Some of the cage inhabitants are clearly used to this environment (and win ribbons too) while others are carefully watched over by their young owners and taken out now and then for some cuddle time.

 This part of the farm animals display clearly had the most entries.

 Leaving the poultry tent I was halted in my tracks by this sight. Two yoked large steers being taken out of their barn area and heading for the display area. Click on the photo to get a closer view of the blissful face of the steer getting a reassuring forehead rub. We spent a good half hour watching while these and similar other beasts competed in the driving competition. Prizes were awarded for how well the pair performed, how closely they matched in size, appearance, walking and obeying commands.

 Wandering into the pig barn we found this litter of piglets that had been born only two days previously.

Other buildings were where the home gardening, produce and handcrafts were to be found. This is one of the displays from a Grange group.

 The tent housing the antique auto display was a marvelous sight of carefully polished and pampered antiques. The white wall tires were a clean white and the paintwork was like a mirror.

I imagine it is quite a different buzz going on in the late afternoon and evening when most attendees are there for the carnival rides and food or to sit in the grandstand seating and watch the demolition derby, the harness racing and other entertainment. But we enjoyed our afternoon tour of the traditional rural aspects to be found in a small Maine town area but common to many other Fairs.

When the Rain Tumbles Down in July

Weather. It is always a topic if you can't think of what else to talk about. And if you have been following the world news lately there have been lots of interesting unusual weather events with either too much rain (causing flooding in Japan) or surprisingly hot, dry weather (in England for instance).

 Here in Virginia we had a wet spring which went well into June. Then we had a stretch of totally dry very hot and humid weather that lasted around 19 days but then, yes, the rain tumbled down in July! On July 21 we had 5.86" of rain beginning around 4pm and going on and on. The weather pattern stalled and we had several days of rain. The Potomac River was full of angry, swirling, muddy water. When there has been heavy rain it occurs to me to go down to the Great Falls and see for myself how the river is running. What I also need to do is take some comparison shots so you can see what it is like during the dry times.

But before the rain, the cornfields around Buckeystown MD made for a pretty picture. Here I like the undulations of the cornrows, the road and the wires on the poles.

 For many years we liked to keep the birdfeeders filled with seed but we have gradually eased up on that as the chipmunks were getting way more seed than the birds. This summer we have spent many delightful pauses in the day watching the backyard birds enjoy our birdbaths. There are about seven scattered around the garden but this one on the back deck is close enough to really see what goes on. Some days there is quite the line of birds waiting their turn. This catbird (?) was enjoying a solo bath on this day. However I have noticed there is a goldfinch who is quite determined to have the bath all to himself and will get out to chase other birds away.

 In Frederick MD I found this picturesque fountain in the Carroll Creek Park. The fountain is set up to vary the water heights and it takes a while to figure out the pattern and be ready to press the shutter quickly to capture the image you want.

 In my garden I have lots of coneflowers (echinacea) to attract the birds. These ones looked quite splendid one night just as the sun was going down. The yellow blobs in the background are black eyed susans.

 More visitors to the birdbath. I'm thinking they are house finches but what do you think? These two don't seem to be talking to each other just now judging by the body language. For this birdbath I am trying to photograph through the window so I don't scare them off.

 After the rains tumbled down in July the coneflowers out front got beaten down on the front walk which is a pity as they were looking quite magnificent. This patch of flowers becomes quite the magnet for the goldfinches in the Fall. Perhaps I can try to prop them up again with some temporary posts and garden twine. It will at least mean that the front walk can be used for walking again!

 The standard phlox have started to bloom - that is , the ones that the deer have not found.

 With the wet spring I was late planting my tomato plants. But just see how impressive this stem of "sweet 100" tomatoes looks. Not quite perfect though as I notice some cracking on the top left one perhaps the result of too much rain.

Ah, summerthyme. Yes, look carefully and see if you can read the fork.

Overnighting in Kaikoura, New Zealand

 Rejoining our journey in the South Island of New Zealand...(see post of May 26) we packed up and drove out of wet Christchurch and headed north on state highway 1. City and suburbs were soon behind us and we began to enjoy the rural scenes. Our destination for the night was Kaikoura. This was the town cutoff from road and rail access by the earthquake of November 14, 2016.

 Once we got closer to Kaikoura and were driving along the shoreline we could see both the rugged beauty of the area but also the lingering effects of the earthquake. I am not sure if all of this rocky area was always above water for instance. The bird-life, particularly the seagulls, is abundant. There were quick glimpses of seals on the rocks but the road is such that you cannot always stop and pull over to take a closer look or a photograph.

 Despite the cold, windy and damp conditions, there were treats such as this wonderful sea coloration to enjoy.

 Stopping off at the tourist information stop before Kaikoura I could hear unfamiliar bird noises. In the creek behind the building I found all these birds and went back inside to ask what they were. The answer I was given was that they are South Island Shags.

We went inside this, the "craypot" portion of the Kaikoura Civic Building to find a treasure of a museum. For those unfamiliar with the recent history of the area there is a compelling exhibit titled "The New Normal" which features reminisces of the earthquake and the impact on the people. Amazingly the museum opened only nine days after the earthquake.

The main street of town. Many of the buildings on the left are empty and pending likely demolition.

 

That night we ate at the Pier Hotel and this was the outlook from the front windows. The variety of rock around here is amazing. Note the snow level because overnight, it changed. This first week of our trip the South Island was experiencing very unseasonably early cold temperatures and snow in what was essentially still mid autumn.

 The next morning we were up early and able to get out and enjoy the wonderful colors of the morning sunrise.

 Seagulls seemed to feature quite frequently in photographs taken on this trip. We went back down to the bay area in the morning to see if we could see any of the fur seals. This gull is striking quite the pose for the camera by balancing on one leg. You might note that the snow was a little thicker than the previous day.

 Roaming round on the rocky foreshore we could not at first find any of the expected fur seals. Chatting with other people there I heard that there were several sightings the evening before but none so far that morning. But persistence and a careful eye paid off when I noticed movement at the top of this rocky outcrop. It was quite some distance away (thankfully I had the telephoto lens with me) but eventually I was able to see that there were a couple of seals up there and this one in particular seemed to be putting on quite the show. If you can't see it click on the photo and that will maybe make it bigger and you can see the seal in the middle.

The shags were out and about too. Unlike yesterday though these ones all seemed to be by themselves. This morning I tried my friend google to see what I could find out. For starters there is no entry for a South Island shag but I am wondering if this might be a pied shag. There are a number of different types of shags and they are all part of the cormorant family.

 In our careful exploration of the foreshore we came across this which looked similar to what, in New Zealand, is called "silver beet" but here in the USA is called "swiss chard". I am going to call it wild silver beet but someone might know it as New Zealand spinach. Let's see if there are any comments about it.

 We really needed to get on the road if we were to get to our next destination, Blenheim, during daylight. This photographer clearly had more time than I did but I have to say I took this shot mostly because of the fascinating rock-form.

 Now heading north we made a quick stop at this local landmark. 20 km north of Kaikoura is this roadside caravan apparently selling crayfish and other local straight from the ocean items (green lipped mussels, battered fish etc) and wonderful chips (aka french fries). In this spot since the mid 1970's  it was sadly not open on this day. I guess the weather had kept the fishing boats tied up. If you look carefully in the beached dinghy you can see a crayfish pot which is what the Kaikoura Museum building is modeled on.

The road to the north and the south of Kaikoura is still under repair because of the extensive damage caused by the 2016 earthquake. You may recall seeing the images on the news where entire portions of the highway literally broke off and fell into the ocean or were crushed by rockslides. The road is passable once more but there are frequent spots where traffic is one way and you have to stop and wait whihc might be for 20 minutes or more. This is an example.

We had a great time on our South Island trip and looking back on it there were some places that we seemed to linger in and enjoy more than the others. Kaikoura was a favorite which is why I could not edit this post down to fewer photos.

Coming soon, our next stopover in Blenheim.

A Memorial Day Salute

 Yesterday we took an impromptu trip into Washington DC to take in some of the atmosphere following the annual Rolling Thunder parade. I was hoping to get some images of all those motor cycles lined up but I guess we never did find where they had parked them. But we certainly did get a good flavor of the day as we wandered around and did our own self guided tour of the memorials  from the most recent 100 or so years of war. 

 There was a display of the Poppy Memorial which featured some very poignant verses and commentary and I am going to feature some of them beginning with this from WWI above. The exhibit commemorates the 645,000 Americans killed in conflict since the beginning of WWI and was created by the USAA.

 The WWII Memorial.

 Speaks for itself.

 The Korean War Memorial.

 The Vietnam War Memorial aka The Wall continues to draw huge crowds. Many visitors have a specific person's entry that they are searching for and then taking a quiet moment, among the crowd, to pause and remember their loved one. In the rear of the crowd the man up the ladder is taking a rubbing of his special person's name.

 While we did not see the motor cycles we did see who might have been riding them. This is a good day for people watching. And remembering those for whom there has not yet been an official closure.

 A time for personal reflections.

 At the apex of The Wall.

 Veterans left their personal memorials in various places.

 At last, some of the Rolling Thunder bikes leaving the scene at the close of the day.

 This marine stationed himself by The Wall to give commentary and answer questions.

 Remembering all facets of the Vietnam War.

 This morning I created my own small floral salute to the day.

Maybe you would like to leave a tribute.

Never forget those who gave their all so that we could have freedom.