Some Flowers and Bugs

Just a walk around the yard at lunch time.  The light was pretty good for the yellows and they didn't blow out so much.

 

 

More flowers here.

Belterra Park Is Not The River Downs Of Your Daddy's Days

You know, my grandpa used to take me down to River Downs a lot.  We'd ride the bus from Government Square to the track and I always loved hangin' with gramps.  Not just for the free sodas and hot dogs he'd buy me, but for the whole atmosphere of the track and Coney Island next door.  You had the crowd, the announcer, the bugle to signal the start of the race, and then, "they're off" and the monstrous beasts would fly around the track with reckless abandon until someone came across and grandpa would lament the loss of his $2.00 or the fact that the quinella was backwards, and we'd board the bus back to Cincy and the walk back up the hill to Clifton and hit the Clifton Cafe for a quick beer before returning to grandmas most excellent home cooked dinners and the stories of the almost, and the could have beens.  All in all a most excellent time for a child.  I loved that time.

I miss the old days, of course, but it has been a blast visiting the track these last 15 years with my camera and reminiscing about how things used to be.  Just being around the track was something that made me feel comfortable, and I guess there is comfort in what is familiar.

Enter Belterra Park and the end of an era.  River Downs is no more and she will be missed.  However, even with the changes, there is still a feel of the old track.  The grandstands are about 1/3 the size of the old, but they have the same feel.  Concessions and wagering windows have been drastically decreased and access around the track is a bit more limited, but all in all, it felt comfortable and inviting for the most part.  I guess the thing I will miss the most is the 360 access to the perimeter of the track.  Still in effect are free entry and free parking, though the beer selections have not changed much.  lol

Here's a couple shots from last Saturday with Ohio Valley Camera Club.

More horse racing and equestrian shot can be seen here.  Thanks for looking.

Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park

My first visit to Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park was an amazing experience.  I had heard of the place.  Even seen a photo or two, but never visited.  Thanks to Fred Haaser of Ohio Valley Camera Club, I am now experienced.  We spent the evening photographing the area then had a wine and cheese reception at the museum on the property.  It was a very enjoyable evening. Here are some of the images I brought home.

Having a little fun here, I replace a blank sky with one from my recent trip to West Virginia.  This was certainly not what we saw that evening, but I think it makes for a curious image and certainly more interesting than it's original form below.

I think this was the most imaginative and best placed sculpture in the park.  At different angles it almost seems to float and some of the backgrounds and foregrounds that can be captured are excellent.

This last one was kind of interesting.  I treated it with a soft effect in PS and thought that combined well with the evening light.  There are a few more on my website, here.  Hope you enjoy them.

Sunday for a few sunrise shots.  I woke up at friend at 0500 and we met at a local overlook but the ceiling was too low there.  Off to another place across the river and Devou Park for these shots.

We also dropped down to the river in Covington to shoot the historic John Roebling Bridge with the fog.

Not the best morning for a sunrise, but it was an enjoyable way to start the day.  More Cincinnati photos can be found in the album here.

New River Gorge Spring 2014

We made a four day trip to Fayetteville, W.V. on 25 April with Jim Kearns and Tim Meredith.  Jim and I stopped in on Peachtree Falls on our way to Fayetteville.  It was well worth the diversion, though it is located at the end of a dirt road where there are two residences, and there was some concern about intruding.  Relying on the directions given, we stopped and asked this crusty old vet if it was O.K. to park and he proceeded to regale us with stories of coyotes and how many he had killed (68) and said it was O.K. and the falls was down the road.  A 1/4 mile walk and a steep scramble later found us in the creek in front of a magnificent waterfall.  The skies were perfect and the water was flowing.

Peachtree Falls

Tim joined us on Friday night and we were gone first thing Saturday morning to Babcock State Park.
It was a bright sunny day but we got lucky and arrived before the sun came into the valley.  I went down river a bit for this shot.

Babcock State Park - behind visitor center.

At the Glade Creek Mill

We then proceeded to Sandstone Falls.  We were able to get out pretty far and ventured to the edge of the rocks off the end of the path.  There were several streams to ford, but the view is much better.  This is my favorite shot of the day from Sandstone.

Sandstone Falls

After lunch, we drove up to Thurmond.  It was photographically not so interesting with the sun blasting but we saw some interesting birds, a prom couple getting their photos taken, and a bunch of CSX coal trains came through while there, and, it was Saturday, so there were lots of tourists.  It's always a good day to go to Thurmond though, because Dunloup Creek and it's falls are right along side the road.  So we stopped and the sun was kind enough to dip behind the clouds for a few minutes.  I shot one of my first videos there as well.
Here's Dunloup Falls.

Falls on Dunloup Creek

We tried for a sunset that night on the overlook of Fern Creek Trail but it was closed, and, with sunset upon us, ventured to the nearby "Adventures on the Gorge" where we set up just outside of Smokey's.  The sunset was lack lustre and difficult to shoot and there were all sorts of people all over.

The following morning found us bound for Laurel Creek Falls.  We were lodged fairly close to Saturday Rd., which is the access to the falls.  It was about a 10 mile drive with the last two miles on a pretty bad rock road.  We left Tim's car where the pavement ended and good thing.  This is definitely 4WD country.
Once parked it took a while to decide how to proceed down into the creek.  It's not easy, and actually, quite dangerous, no matter where you descend.   We went downstream about 100 yards and scrambled down some pretty loose rocky walls till we finally hit bottom, then walked up stream to the falls.  The walk in the creek was a breeze after the descent.

Laurel Creek Falls

Following Laurel Creek Falls, we ventured to Laurel Creek along CR16, where there are a number of falls in a short span of highway.  I didn't shoot there, as the sun was out of control and I already have some nice shots, but went exploring downstream a ways while Jim and Tim shot.  Later we went to Cathedral Falls, where we parted company with Tim.  Jim and I proceeded to Kay Moor and Marr Branch.  Here are a couple from there.

Falls below bridge at Kay Moor trailhead.

I believe this last one is called Upper Marr Branch Falls, but not sure.  Both of these last two required some work to get to, with Marr Branch being the more difficult.  It's pretty rocky on the descent, but we found a trail on the other side of the creek that gives access to the top of the falls and you can cross the creek there when it's low.

All in all, a rewarding day.  I was pretty beat by the end but it was worth it,if, for nothing else, to visit Laurel Falls.  It was a beautiful place and I'll never forget that day.

The next morning Jim and I went for a hike on the Endless Wall Trail.  It's the same as for Fern Creek, which was closed the day before.  We found out that it was closed for a fire investigation.  You couldn't see anything from far away, but when you hike the trail, you can see the damage that was done, probably by some careless hikers, as we found a large camp fire on Diamond Point.  It's not hard to imagine  that someone kicked fiery logs over the cliff, or something even more nefarious.  Just glad it was confined.

Following our hike, it began to rain cats and dogs.  We settled in at a local restaurant for some food and then hit the road.  It was obviously not going to be a good day to photograph.  Pretty gnarly weather.  It rained off and on all the way back home, as it did on the way there.  I guess you could say it was our cue to make a move.  All in all, a rewarding four days with good friends, a number of new visits and some returns to cool places, like Sandstone Falls.  Looking forward to the next trip already.

All my West Virginia shots are in this gallery.

Acadia National Park

I'm about a month home from this trip and just getting around to writing about it.  It's amazing how many things get sidelined in the fall, in favor of taking photographs and traveling, but that's the way of it when you want to go adventuring.

I started planning this trip almost a year ago this month.  I had been there once in the early 70's, but just for a day, with no camera and no real time to explore.  I always remembered what a beautiful place the loop road was and wanted to return.  It had passed into the nether regions of my memory until a friend brought it up one day during a phone conversation.  Her family is from Bar Harbor and she gave me many great tips to get me going.

A house was rented for a week and it was a spectacular place located right at the top of Sommes Sound.  Seven other people made up our company, and a grand company it was.  Some of the nicest folk I have met in quite some time, spending a week together with much fellowship and photographic comradery.  Basically, we had a blast.

My twelve day adventure began with a trip to Blackwater Falls State Park where I stayed in the park lodge for one night (great place), followed by a stop at Frank Lloyd Wright's famous Fallingwater, which had been on my bucket list for decades.  My posts on those stops are here and here.

Arriving at the rental, all the folks were out shooting sunset, but, there wasn't any regret at missing anything.  My first few shots in the area consisted of sunset shots from the back deck of our rental.  The rocks in the forground are just a couple feet from the edge of the deck.  Great location.

The next couple of days consisted of our touring the park with the majority of our time being spent on the loop road along the coast.  Good thing too, because they shut the park down two days into our trip.  However, all managed to achieve some memorable photos of the coastline, with Otter Cliffs being a prime subject.

Evenings had us celebrating an outstanding day with the local delicacy.  Nuff Said!

Rich Sears with the evenings repast.  Photo by Constance Sanders

We ate a lot of lobster, and make no mistake, it's easier, more fun, and cheaper to cook 'em yourself.

Lobster, boiled and buttered garlic potatoes, corn on the cob, broccoli and a great tossed salad.  Don't forget the Pinot.

Partying aside, I spent a lot of quality time with some quality individuals.  We had a great group, and even when they closed the park, we all made the best of it.  We visited all the surrounding harbor towns and even took a sunset cruise on the Margaret Todd.

Margaret Todd at her moorings in Bar Harbor.

The ladies of our group enjoying a nice sunset.

Mornings were spent shooting sunrises. Evening, doing sunsets. I think my favorite shot from the trip was from one of the last days we were there, and we ventured to the shores of the Schoodic Peninsula. Naturally, it was closed as well. There was however a small fishing village with a rather picturesque lighthouse. We had to walk out on a field of rock to get the proper angle, but it was worth the effort. This is the Prospect Harbor Light near the village of Corea.  This place definitely offers some perspective about life in these parts.   One of our crew spotted a Bald Eagle and chased it down with his long lens.  Mine, naturally, was too far away.

Prospect Harbor Lighthouse

You can see all my photos from the trip, which included Blackwater Falls, Fallingwater, and Bennington, VT in my photo album.  Hope you enjoy and if you think you might like to go with us this year, drop me a line.  You're sure to have a great time.