Ponds & Streams
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Brick Pond
My youngest and I decided to “carpe the diem” and take a walk yesterday, even though it was late in the day and we didn’t have much time. We chose Brick Pond, a site nearby that usually promises some rewarding sights. The mud in the pond was at one time used to make bricks, and it even rebuilt the town after a devastating fire. But today it’s a nature preserve.
My daughter took the Panasonic Lumix, a point-and-shoot bridge camera; I took the Canon T6 which, after being sent out 3X for its sub-par autofocus, actually produced some fairly focused images. Here are a few of my favorites:
This dragonfly’s wings remind me of stained glass windows whose panes haven’t been stained yet. The wings would have been completely invisible to me without the telephoto lens to show me the details… except when the sun caught them:
This one was small. I’m guessing it belongs to the category of “skimmers.” But there were some large ones about as well. Maybe these big ones belong to the category of “darners”:
This giant indigo fly seems to think it’s camouflaged…
Another treat was this green heron:
You can right-click and choose “view image” to see the picture full-size. 
It sat for quite awhile, observing us as we observed it. Usually they’re spookier than that. If I were in the habit of posting pics of my family, I’d love to share the one of my daughter photographing this bird with a gaggle of Canada geese just beyond her, all pointed in the same direction. It was quite the spectator sport.
There were some pretty flowers and berries too, and I was pleased that the camera could pick up on them.
I’m wondering if that last one is a “button bush.” A friend posted her button bush, absolutely alight with yellow swallowtails, on Facebook the other day. But the butterflies were elsewhere yesterday.
Here’s one from a walk earlier in the week, taken with the Panasonic:
Monarch on milkweed. The spots on his wings show that he’s male. 
Fritillary on thistle We’re feeling pretty blessed to have such an abundance to enjoy during these warmer months, as well as two decent cameras to capture the memories.
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Spring Marsh
It was in the 40s this morning, but the sun was inviting. We headed for a nearby marsh in search of spring warblers.
The May apples were just opening their “umbrellas,” and a riot of green shoots of all kinds reached for the sun. These ferns were fist-bumping!
Others stretched their fronds more tentatively. This one looks like it’s admiring its shadow.
We saw more than I was able to capture in photos. My camera doesn’t focus well when fully zoomed out, so I have only one semi-decent warbler picture. But we saw pileated woodpeckers and downies, red-winged blackbirds, mallards and geese, at least one flicker, and numerous yellow-rumped warblers like this one.
A bench in a strategic place allowed some time to reflect and listen.
It’s heartening to see the surge of life bursting out all over. Along with spring leaves and blooms, all the beautiful summer-dwellers are back: orioles, grosbeaks, hummingbirds. May is my favorite month, and by the end of it we’ll have seen an intricate tapestry of tiny wildflowers and ferns and mosses grow to carpet this landscape. The leaf canopy will thicken, softening some of the brightness and contrasts in the scene. I plan to savor and enjoy every phase.
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Spring Walk
It’s been a cold, overcast spring. Daffodils and forsythia are finally open, and today the sun came out and warmed us to the heart.
So we went for a walk — and discovered others were enjoying the warmth, too.
We decided to name this guy Thanos, even though we haven’t seen the new Avengers movie yet. He has a sinister look about him, even sluggish and mud-covered.
Under the water near where we stood, another snapper looked more awake, and more malevolent.
He rose to periscope depth to examine us.
We saw more agreeable spring pond-dwellers, too: a kingfisher, a number of box turtles, a deer, a green heron, and a snake. Younger Daughter saw muskrats twice, but her sister and I didn’t get there soon enough to see. We also saw bluets growing, and a goose family.
Oh for more days like this!
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Summer Falls
Wild geranium at the entrance to the trail 
The first of many stairs 
One example of the harmony between human stairs and natural stairs 
There’s always a mixture of darkness and light 
Greenery is everywhere 
There were brook trout in most of the pools, waiting for the next rain to raise the water level and carry them further down the falls 
Sun peeks through 
Peace 
Forget-me-nots along the bank 
A female mallard that plopped in for a rest while we watched 
Turning to look back down the stream This is a 3/4 mile walk along a gorge, but that short span includes something like a 600 foot rise in elevation. We climbed a lot of stairs, then walked down the other side on a more gradual trail. It was an absolutely lovely day.
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Chipmunks or deer?
New Monarch 
Resting deer 
Water droplets 
Bracket fungus (also a nice shelf for a nutshell) 
Squirrel Nutkin 
Lichen-covered stump 
Weird yellow fungus 
Bracket fungus 
Fall garter snake 
“Not in my back yard!” 
Sassafrass 
Tiny toad 
Dragonfly 
White-throated sparrow “What would you say?” I asked my daughter on our way out of the woods. “Was this walk mostly about chipmunks or deer?”
“Chipmunks, probably,” she answered.
But three deer, resting and grazing, were the first things we saw — after the monarch mudskipping in the parking lot. Later, we heard the snorty scream of a deer warning call, followed by some banging sounds, and then a young buck running through the woods across the creek from us. Could he have been clashing antlers with another deer? Or did he get stuck in a tight spot somewhere? Strange. We back tracked to see if we could get another look at him, and though we did see him we didn’t get any pics. Still another young deer bid us goodbye as we left the woods, too. They were surely out and about.
The chipmunks were definitely impossible to ignore, however! They scampered everywhere and chirped till the woods rang with it, warning everyone that we were intruding. The little guy pictured in the log was close enough to his safety zone to indulge his curiosity about us somewhat before disappearing inside.
The other story, for me, was the busyness and color of the woods. It shows up especially in the stream/bridge pictures. It’s difficult to find a single area of the scene that isn’t already brimfull of other outlines. It reminds me of those art class exercises where you are instructed to fill every space with a different pattern.
Not a ton of color this fall — mostly yellows and rust colors. It’s been dry. But it’s enough to tint the sunlight, giving it a beautiful burnished glow before it hits the ground.
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Virescent Green Bee
This brilliant green fellow landed just as I was photographing this aster. I learned his name here. He’s just another example of how you can live in the same place for years and years before noticing something common and very beautiful. He adds a new dimension to the already rich fall colors.
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Fall Marsh
“I’m not here.” 
“Too hungry. Truce.” 
“You STILL here?” 
Flicker 
Woodland sunflower 
Lilies 
Droplets 
Forget-me-not 
White wood aster 
Lady’s thumb 
Flicker foreground 
Ready to launch -
Spring Thaw
It was in the 60’s, the snow was melting, and the sun was out. We decided to head out and see what the woods looked like on such a welcome spring day.
A stop at the vernal pool didn’t seem like it would be too promising. But despite the ice…
…I saw the first tadpole of the year.
There’s something incongruous about the stealth of such a plump fellow darting along in his underwater world. I was glad to see him.
He wasn’t the only one enjoying the water. A big snapping turtle was floating on the pond, bleary-eyed. There were many ducks around the area, and I wondered if they realized he was there. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near him if I was a duck.
We took our dog Lucy. She had a blast, of course.
We certainly appreciated her supervision playing in the stream. Where would we be without someone to catch every splash?
But I felt an unexpected sadness, remembering how our old dog, Katie, who died over a year ago, used to love coming here too. I remembered how we had to leave her at home toward the end because she was so unwell, and she’d stand at the back window and watch us drive away. Memories are a part of these familiar places. Rest in peace, Katie.
We needed the warmth and sun, and we saw a number of other people out and about in the woods too. All of us are ready for the snow to be gone — even though it means the season of mud begins. It was good to be out and feel the balminess and promise of spring.
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Adirondack Album
We visited the Adirondacks in July. Here is just a sampling of the beauties we enjoyed.
Bog 
Distant haze 
White-throated sparrow 
Mystery trail 
Hidden art 
Broad-winged hawk 
Maze 
Roadside frill 
Crowded hilltop 
Mountaintop view -
Green Heron
