Landscapes
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Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge
Back in mid-August, my husband and I visited this large wetland that hosts a variety of waterbirds, monarch butterflies, migratory birds and wildflowers.
There’s a nature center, as well as an observation tower from which you can get a sense of the spaciousness of the marsh and the gracious heights of some of the woodland.
Of course, viewing from the ground up offers a more accurate sense of one’s importance in the grand scale of things.
We walked the few main trails along the edge of the marsh and the nearby canal, then drove slowly along the dirt road through the marsh, stopping periodically to take pics of flowers or look at distant egrets through binoculars. This gallery captures some of the wildflowers and birds we came across.
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Outdoor Wanderings in the Outer Banks, NC
Nag’s Head Ecological Preserve
This year we took our “summer” vacation in September. Our first walk was to a familiar preserve, but at a more leisurely pace than previous visits.
The butterflies were active; I never got a shot of either a yellow or grand swallowtail, though they were fluttering everywhere. The ones I did photograph seemed a bit faded, though still lovely. Lizards, turtles, frogs and flowers were a feast for the eyes.
Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge
In our second walk, I hoped to see some migratory birds. Some of our regular customers here in the Northeast have already departed, after all, and those further north have been moving southward for even longer. But we soon discovered they either hadn’t reached Hatteras yet, or had taken a different route. The seaside wetlands adjacent to the ocean were populated by egrets, geese, ospreys, terns, gulls and other waterbirds, but no warblers or songbirds that we could see.
Once again, the turtles in a little pond at the start of the trail stole the show. It’s fascinating how interested the snappers were in looking us in the eye, and how different their faces were.
Elizabethan Gardens
This was, I think, our third visit to the Elizabethan Gardens in Manteo. Its ordered, geometric, flourishing glory makes me abandon all attempt at photographic discipline. Every vista seems to leave me open-mouthed, drinking in the beauty. I snap pictures indiscriminately, knowing I’ll return to them for visual nourishment when winter comes.
We arrived just as they were concluding a butterfly release of painted ladies that had been shipped from Michigan. Many of them were sitting groggily on leaves, adjusting to their new paradise.
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Walking the Gorge Trail
Exploring Buttermilk Falls involves a steep ascent through many layers of Devonian shale and sandstone that have eroded for thousands of years under the relentless progress of water. It’s a lovely climb, but first, you take stock from the ground, where you’re greeted by a welcoming pool sporting an unnecessary warning not to jump in. (It’s too chilly even to be tempted.)
You take note of things like reflections on calm water, and the lazy drift of fallen leaves.
Then you start to climb. A humanly-constructed stone staircase ascends next to the natural staircase of the falls.
It’s short but steep, and you welcome the chance to stop for a bit, turning back to survey the view from a new elevation.
You can’t really see it yet, but from a little higher up you’ll discover a large mall with a Home Depot just beyond those trees at the bottom.
As I look, I remember a family photo experiment in the grass of that park when our daughters were young. We set up a tripod with a camera that shot a series of pictures as we dashed toward it, trying to look ominous but succeeding mostly in looking goofy and disorganized. So many walks trigger memories! The landscape bears an intimate record of our activities — not just the bad stuff, like dumping chemical waste or garbage, but good stuff from the times we spend together.
Turning to look across the stream, you note the daredevils: trees crowding to the edge of a cliff that will only ever crumble.
What comes next? The ascent is nowhere near completed. I’ll share more in the next post.
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Scenes from the Outer Banks
We visited several highlights at the Outer Banks, in North Carolina. This black bear was in the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. It was our second time visiting, and we still haven’t seen any alligators — but the bears are certainly impressive. They can be observed from the car as you travel the roads of the preserve.
We also took a dolphin watching cruise one evening. Though we saw a dolphin or two, the most striking natural phenomenon was the rapid incursion of a cold front that blasted us with wind and a major temperature drop shortly after the cruise began. The sky stole the show.
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Visiting Chincoteague
Despite being a diehard Marguerite Henry fan as a child, and revisiting the books and movie with my daughters as an adult, I’ve never been to Chincoteague. Till last week, that is. We stopped on our way back north from a vacation further south, spending a night in “America’s happiest seaside town.”
While there, we had an absolutely stellar experience touring the waters around Chincoteague and Assateague by boat. Our guide, a lifelong Chincoteague resident, shared a wealth of knowledge and keen observation that gave us a sense of the local and natural history of the place, the ponies, the diverse coastal birds and other wildlife, and the way the community has evolved into a primarily tourist economy. These pictures capture only a small part of what we were able to observe.
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Morning
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Late February, Late Afternoon
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Outer Banks in June
I thought I’d posted these earlier in the summer. Better late than never! These are a few select pictures of a great experience at the beach.
To scroll through the photos manually, click on a photo and move forward or back in the sequence using the arrows.
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Winter Beauty
These photos were taken back in December. I was trying out a wonderful Christmas gift of a new camera. I’m posting them months later when the chill has lifted, and I can enjoy them without my teeth chattering!
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Niche
Some people have a talent for creating beautiful domestic niches in the midst of a wild landscape. These images are from a visit with some of those people.
