Susquehanna River Ice Tour, part 2

The Susquehanna River ice at this point is widely variable, thin in places, with open water, and thick and chunky in other spots.  This set of images from the area around York Haven, PA, illustrate all the variables.

We saw two brave and intrepid, and hopefully well prepared and experienced souls portaging their kayaks across the ice, testing the thickness as they went.
They reached open water and struck out into the river.
The river was up over its banks in spots, and partially frozen.  The portage goes around the York Haven Dam and the York Haven Hydroelectric Plant.
I heard them calling, then looked up and spotted a bald eagle soaring:
Its mate was waiting in the trees:
The area around the Plant is open to the public, for portage and fishing, and there is a lot of interesting and photographic stuff on site.
Any hints as to the original pu
rpose of these objects would be appreciated.



Where the dam backed up the river, the ice was arrayed in incredible formations of chunks and plates, all jumbled up together.
The trip and images have provided further inspiration for my River series of art quilts.

All of these images enlarge when cllicked, and are up on my Flickr site: https://www.flickr.com/photos/suereno/

Susquehanna River Ice Tour, part 1

The Susquehanna River has partially frozen over, and we went out to take a look. 
We visited some old favorites and some new photo op sites, all on the York County, Pennsylvania side of the river.
The Veterans Memorial Bridge, crossing from Columbia to Wrightsville, is definitely a continuing theme.  I've photographed it countless times, and made artwork featuring it. We made a side trip to another favorite site, the Codorus Forge Furnace, on the Codorus Creek that feeds into the river.

It was especially beautiful this day, partially covered with ice and glistening in the weak winter sun.
The moss and lichen coating the stonework was in high relief.
The brick superstructure , with ice, and a backdrop of bare trees: Veering back towards the river, we passed the Brunner Island Steam Electric Station.

It’s a coal fired plant built in the 1960s. 
The politics of its continued operation are complicated, as per this article in the local paper.
It’s surrounded by giant heaps of coal, brought in by rail, and large piles of ash.

Up next: a lot more ice.

Neversink Mountain Preserve Hike

Once again we took advantage of the incredibly mild January weather to get outside and ramble about.  The Neversink Mountain Preserve is a large tract of land abutting the City of Reading, in Berks County, PA.  It has a wealth of well maintained and blazed trails--the first time I’ve seen blazes in bright orange and purple--over varied terrain.  In times past it was a summer resort destination for Philadelphians, and some of the structures from that era are still evident.  The Witch Hat Pavilion is a carefully crafted folly perched on an overlook.
The round portals were great subjects for my fisheye iPhone lens.

From the overlook, a cloudy day view of the city of Reading.

Nearby someone had left paper cranes suspended in a small evergreen.

As we walked away, I turned and caught an inverse reflection of the pavilion in a raindrop on a twig.

A hike along the ridge led to a descent into a pretty valley, where tan leaves still clinging to the beech trees lent a bit of variety to the monochromatic environs.

A trail along a gurgling creek led to the ruins of a former railroad trestle.

The soil was gravelly, wet and slippery, and the climb turned into a clamber.

It was a good spot for a victory pose.

It was a lovely view down into the valley from the ledge.

I hope you have the chance to get outside and explore the world around you.  Thanks as always for reading and commenting.

Reed Run Nature Preserve Hike

The weather was just perfect for hiking, so we headed out to a perennial local favorite, the Reed Run Nature Preserve, part of the Lancaster County Conservancy.  The trailhead is former farmland that is being managed on a transition back to native woodland.  I had my macro lens handy, and captured this shot of a Canadian thistle seed pod:

A portion of the farmland is being used for experimental chestnut plantings in association with the American Chestnut Foundation,  as part of the quest to breed a blight resistant American chestnut. There are other saplings and young trees mixed in the plantings, such as this hawthorn, with ripe fruits and impressively wicked looking thorns.

Approaching the mature woodlands, we spotted a log covered in small button mushrooms.

In the bottomland the trail follows the meanderings of Reed Run, a small  gurgling stream, lined with patches of pawpaw trees.

Several years ago I made an art quilt about Reed Run, using pawpaw leaves for the imagery.  It remains one of my personal favorites.  It’s very textural, with silk, wool, and cotton that are heavily stitched, and it’s embellished with beads and semi-precious stones that reference clouds and the streambed.  It’s a quiet and tranquil piece.

The trail winds up the hill, and a turn reveals the Balance Rock.

I love its shape and semi-precarious perch.

In 2006 I made a small piece, Balance, that I felt remained very true to the experience of the granite in the the late season sunlight.

A bit further uphill, and the trail reaches an unnamed overlook, marked by twin pines.

It’s a good spot to pause and enjoy the view out over the Susquehanna River.  I was eating an apple when I spotted this:

I didn’t have time to change to a telephoto lens, but I hope you can still tell that it’s a bald eagle!  I’ve been hanging out around the river my entire life, but this was my first eagle spotting.  It was swooping to and fro, presumable scanning for fish, and the white head and tail were unmistakable.  I was just thrilled to see this evidence of their comeback that I’ve been reading about.

I switched back to the macro lens  to capture something considerable smaller and more earthbound:

Switching over the the Conestoga Trail, we headed to another favorite spot, the House Rock overlook.  I never get tired of this view, captured here with a fisheye lens:

The View from House Rock has also served as inspiration:

I hope that wherever you might find yourself, you have a chance to get outside and experience the world around you .  Thanks for reading and commenting.

Northern California Through the Fisheye

San Bruno mountains, eucalyptus trees

Earlier this summer I had a great vacation in northern California.  I took three cameras, a Canon digital SLR with a variety of lenses, a Sony Cybershot with panorama, and my trusty iPhone.   

San Bruno mountains, tree with moss

I got great images with all three, but had the most fun with the iPhone. I treated myself to a set of specialty lenses for the iPhone--a wide angle, a macro and a fisheye, and they all worked astonishingly well.

San Bruno mountains, ferns

The fisheye lens did a amazing job of capturing a curvy and expansive slice of the scenery.

San Francisco, Sutro Baths, view from cliffs

Here’s an assortment of the best ones for your viewing pleasure; they all enlarge when clicked. Enjoy!

Muir Woods National Monument, coastal redwoods

Muir Woods National Monument, coastal redwoods

Muir Woods National Monument, coastal redwoods

Point Reyes National Seashore, McClures Beach

San Francisco, Coit Tower, murals

San Francisco, Coit Tower, city view

San Francisco, Coit tower, sky view

Marin Headlands, view of Golden Gate Bridge

Santa Rosa, bunya bunya tree

View from Hood Mountain trail
 

For more northern California photos and travelogues, see my previous posts on The Armstrong Redwood Forest , Big Basin, and San Francisco.  As always, thanks for reading and commenting!