Quick Spring Roundup

After three grueling months of recurring snow showers and below-freezing temperatures, mother nature has more than made up for the mess she created this winter. Spring (the Vernal Equinox) arrived at 1:32 PM EDT on March 21, 2010, and it's been another incredibly busy one so far. Delightful, but busy. With "regular work" kicking my ass on a daily basis, tax season, weekend travel excursions and just trying to keep up with life – I'm generally exhausted most days. This has translated into me becoming truly lazy when it comes to updating my blog, and I haven't been...

Happiness is a warm rock

After another 4:45am wakeup and a long dark drive through the pine barrens, Barnegat light was in view by sunrise on Saturday.  The forecast called for a sky full of sun, highs around 45° and light to moderate winds. I was mentally prepared for a half-decent day.  When I arrived, however, it was closer to 28° with strong 20-30mph gusts coming off the ocean… sand and sea spray coming at you sideways. Make-your-eyes-water-nasty. I'll say it again: I hate wind. Absolutely hate it. Abhor would be a much better word,...

Squirrel Appreciation Day

I had no idea this madness even existed up until this morning when I read this link. I have a love/hate relationship with the squirrel.  While they are definitely cute, furry and funny to watch sometimes, they've completely overrun the bird feeders in my backyard – making it impossible for the birds to get some grub. Every once in a while I have to give those little ratty varmints the lead pellet special or a well placed blowgun dart. Can't blame 'em for trying though. Luckily, now that Melissa has Flame (her seasonal red tailed hawk for hunting), I can give...

Barnegat, Birds and Balmy Weather

Yesterday was one of those weird days that starts off one way, takes a few turns and then ends up completely surprising you. It started at 5am when I headed off to Conowingo again, dressed in several layers of clothing intended to insulate me from the dank, damp 26° air down by the dam. For whatever reason, it always feels twice as cold by the old Susquehanna. Even though the forecast claimed it might reach 50°, I knew that the rocks I'd be sitting on and the turbulent water four feet away from me would be well below freezing at 6am. In fact, they'd probably remain below...

Early Bird Gets the Fish

More bald eagle action from this past weekend at Conowingo. Last count was well over 130+ birds, plus more on the far side that you could only see by looking down from the dam itself. I'm half tempted to try a kayak run over to that side, but there's a bit too much risk involved, such as the dam opening up, or camera + lenses falling into the Susquehanna. With action as good as it's been on "the easy side" of the river, I'll probably just continue to shoot from the rocks there. The ghille suit and lens wrap worked like a charm (when there's not throngs of other...

Eagles are back in force at Conowingo

There was a time when I used to think seeing more than one or two Bald Eagles at any given time was a rarity. Last Sunday, I was able to count 46 of them within a couple hundred yards of each another, and those were just the ones I could see. I'm almost positive there had to be at least another couple dozen roosting on the far side of the river too. It was fantastic watching them all fighting, fishing, and hangin out… catching some lazy thermals and yelling at each other with that oh-so-distinct  "ka-chuckcuchukuchuk"...

Mainely Maine

 … and a little New Hampshire. Truth be told, it was probably a 50/50 split. I love the rugged coastlines of Maine like no other place on earth, but as far as I'm concerned the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Androscoggin Valley has them beat by a country mile. We spent a good bit of time driving routes 16 & 26, jumping back and forth across the ME and NH border – passing through a lot of places with funny names that I'd like to return to someday. Pemigewasset. Umbagog. Nesowadnehunk. Allagash. Lots of incredible scenery. One of those areas where it's...

Mid-week roundup

A quick roundup of some shots from this past weekend. Saw a nice, chilly, fog-laden sunset at Bombay and a Peregrine earlier in the day. Then bounced down to the dam for a bit on Sunday. Witnessed a very ballsy Blue Heron – couldn’t believe it when he challenged not one, but a pair of baldies that had landed a fish. My new mission this winter will be to capture some quintessential eagle images, among other things. I’ve found my "old" favorite spot down at the Conowingo Dam, now I just need the eagles to cooperate a bit more I’ll be exploring the wilds...

Soggy weekend at Promised Land

Who could forget the Stephen King movie "The Shining"?  Well, I had my own mini-series version of it this past weekend. Two and a half days huddled in a rustic cabin with your wife, listening to the constant pitter-patter of pouring rain will tend to rot your head with all kinds of strange thoughts. Surprisingly, when you’re bored, stoking the fire in a wood stove and falling asleep slouched over in a camp chair can keep you occupied for quite some time. No laptop. No cellular service. No internet. No TV. No booze. AM radio (if you’re lucky). You need a...

Last days of summer

Sharing a few random snapshots from this past weekend at the beach.  The days are getting a whole lot shorter and summer is officially over as of 5:18 today, but Delaware’s beaches (in my opinion) are soo much better at this time of year.  The weather was simply amazing to boot.  As it was an official "vacation" I was just wandering around, shooting whatever came to mind.  Took only the 5D and the 85 f/1.2, nothing else. If some of these look a bit funky, that’s ok. I was playing around with some cross processing… figured "to hell...