Exploring

 March will soon be behind us and I think many of us will eagerly say 'goodbye'!  

~~~~ G O O D B Y E ~~~~

(I think in caps that means I am screaming 'goodbye'!)

I'm beginning to see buds forming on some of our trees and watching the squirrels gather nesting materials.  Soon, all the backyard critters will be crazed as the mating season nears.

I am so far behind on my blogging activities that I have images from Maine that I still want to share with you.  While there, The Professor and I took a drive one cloudy, cold afternoon to an area I wanted to scope out for some summer hikes.  One area was Ducktrap River.  Too much snow to do any hiking, we clamored down to a little jetty to capture the Ducktrap River Bridge near Lincolnville on Highway 1 (first image).  Turning 180 degrees, I faced Penobscot Bay where numerous islands lie beyond, one being Islesboro in the above photo.

This summer, I plan to take the ferry that takes visitors and residents to the nearby islands.  The Margret Chase Smith ferry carries folks from Lincolnville to Islesboro.  But there are a number of other ferries to carry one to Monhegan Island, the home of beautiful landscapes for artists and Machias Seal Island, where one can get up close and personal with the Puffins.

The Professor and I wrapped up our day adventure with a late lunch in Belfast.  A huge bridge spans Belfast Bay along with a pedestrian bridge, from which I took the above photo.  In the summertime, one can indulge in delicious huge fresh lobsters at Young's across the harbor from Belfast.  A favorite indulgence of The Professor and I.

So, as March dissolves into April, let us have no more scenes like the one above.

GOODBYE   M A R C H !

HELLO   A P R I L!

~~~

A million and one

A million and one odds.

That's about what I would have given myself in trying to capture the above photo.  But as luck would have it, I spied my first eagle up here in Rockport Harbor the other day and quickly grabbed my 70-300mm lens and shot a dozen or so images.  He was quite a distance away and the  images were definitely not sharp.  But after I downloaded them, I realized I captured one image of the eagle near the U.S. flag, and I couldn't have planned it better.  I haven't seen him since, but hope he has a nest nearby and becomes a frequent visitor.

We hiked up Mt. Battie and enjoyed the view of Camden's harbor and beyond.

It's been a nice spring break although Spring definitely has not arrived here in Maine.  

But no matter.

Maine seems to exude beauty no matter the time of the year.

The Camden Harbor sits empty right now

except for the large schooners which have been shrunk wrapped 

to protect their wood hulls from winter's harshness.

 Rockport Harbor, which is the harbor we overlook,

has only a half dozen lobster boats that remain in the harbor 

throughout the winter.

 But come this summer, 

this empty harbor will be active once again

with sail and motorboats,

providing us with much entertainment of their

comings and goings!

And maybe, just maybe, 

I may have an old sailboat

this summer to explore

the many islands that surround us!

By the way,

have I mentioned how much I love Maine?

*smile*

(And for those inquiring minds, all the images were edited with DistressedFX.)

Spring Break

It is spring break week for us.  

Although today, I use the word 'spring' sparingly because another winter storm 

is charging up throughout New England.   

Right where we are!

The Professor and I retreated to Maine this week while many others flocked 

to the sunny beaches of Florida.  

I can't say that I wish I were on those sunny beaches.

I find my view here as delicious 

as anywhere else I could be.

A few moments ago, an eagle was gliding high in the sky over our harbor.

And if you look closely in the above image,

you will notice the egret stand in the lower right hand side.

They will be coming back in a few weeks and begin preparing their nest.

Another cycle of life will begin.

Once again.

And another winter season will pass.

Once again.

Buds and birds

 It won't be much longer before these bare branches 

are filled with waving green leaves. 

That makes me smile.

But then on the flip side of that, 

it will become more difficult to spot my little feathered friends

as they take refuge 

within the armored branches.

 Such is the cycle.

~ sigh ~

I've been keeping an eye out for

the little female Cardinal who lost her tail.

 She continues to come and feed.

Here you can see the beginnings of her tail growing back in.

These photos were taken last week.

And as you see this week, 

it's coming along just fine!

By the way, the birds love this feeder but I don't know how much longer

it will hold up but I hope it makes it through this season.

I need to start looking for a similar one!

Great weekend for a hike

Since we were treated to an awesome weekend of warm weather and friendly skies, 

The Professor and I went for a long hike, something I haven't been able to do 

for the past year due to my knee.  

It was sweet to be able to walk again without pain!

Of course, most of my motivation for hiking was to try to capture some interesting photos.  

March doesn't usually lend itself to much beauty.  

The earth is filled with too many shades of unremarkable browns 

but with a little editing with DistressedFX on my iPad,

 there was hope for some of the images.

We came upon this old building along the stream.  

It didn't appear to be an old mill 

and I'm not sure what's its purpose was in its glory days.  

But it did lend itself to some interesting images.

I wonder who 'ALBERt' is?

And why all caps except for the 't'?

My little female Cardinal who lost her tail, still comes to feed.  

You can see her new tail growing back (dark area under her wing tips) 

in the image below that I captured during our snowfall on Friday.

And thankfully, that snowfall melted pretty much away by the end of the day 

giving us this beautiful weekend.

 Makes me swoop with delight

that spring is around the corner!!!

It's snowing .... again

 It's snowing today.

 The daffodils and crocuses

are confused.

 The cardinals and junkos and finches and doves and nuthatches and chickadees

don't much care.

As long as I keep their feeders full.

The squirrels are absent,

staying warm 

in their nests.

And me?

I'm going to get a massage today

and imagine

 S P R I N G

Have a great weekend, my friends!

There are moments

there are moments
when the world sighs
and the winds change

altering
us forever

love, death, birth

new worlds
knocking at our door
unfamiliar in our hearts

redefining
reshaping

we open
our arms wide
and embrace
and invite
everything to change

and then
there are
the small moments
that go unnoticed
with a passing whisper

a kiss goodbye, a wave, a touch

a summer sunset

that weave our days 

into a tapestry of routine

filling us up
to reach out for
another day

~~~