Shippensburg In Bloom

Shippensburg has entered full Summer mode. Gardens are flourishing, the Roses around town are all in full bloom, porch planters are overflowing with color, and the hanging flower baskets are up on King St. I went for a walk around town this morning to take it all in.

Red, red Roses on King St.

A porch planter on King St.

A Rhododendron in the garden at the Widow Piper's Tavern

Petunias in one of the King St. hanging baskets

Begonias in one of the King St. hanging baskets

English Ivy climbing the King St. bridge over Branch Creek

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Creek

Branch Creek/Middle Spring Creek from downtown Shippensburg to Bard Rd. out in the country. Followed by the perfect music for following creeks - "Spring Water at Jerry's Run" by Malcolm Dalglish.

Photos © 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Up One Creek and Down the Other

I decided to follow the local creeks today, out into farm country along Burd Run via Fogelsonger Rd. and back into town along Middle Spring/Branch Creek. And along the way there were definitely things to see.

I started in the Burd Run Riparian Restoration park in hopes of getting another shot at that Green Heron, and sure enough there it was, fishing in the collection pond. It caught one frog and ate it right there, and then caught another and flew up to eat it on a tree branch over the creek, which allowed me to get much closer. I spent about a half hour with that bird and took close to 30 shots, and ended up using the last one.

Of course I also found cows along Fogelsonger Rd. And I got surprised going back down North Earl St., where a very large Pileated Woodpecker flew into a tree right in front of me and proceeded to pry bark off in search of tasty bugs. He completely ignored me, so I got pretty close and shot another 20 or so photos. This ended up being a very productive hike!

The Green Heron strikes a pose

Burd Run at Fogelsonger Rd.

Holsteins on Fogelsonger Rd.

Daisy Fleabane by Middle Spring Creek

The Pileated Woodpecker digging for lunch

A Yellow Poplar, also known as Tulip Poplar

The flowery, and shady, banks of Branch Creek

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Visiting the Burd Run Restoration Park

I decided to go over to the Burd Run Riparian Restoration Project park, just a little downstream from the Brookside wetland. The Spring floods and windstorms haven't been kind to it; there are a couple of places where broken limbs and other flood debris have dammed up the creek somewhat and a good part of the paths at the north end aren't walkable because of mud or water. So I didn't get as many shots there as I usually get. I did, however, finally manage to get a shot of a Green Heron, sitting in a Willow over the wetland pool and observation deck and pretending I couldn't see it for all the leaves. It didn't work, which it finally figured out and flew across the pool to a Maple across the way and out of my range. All in all a pleasant walk on an equally pleasant day.

A Catbird nattering away on a branch over the creek

A small Willow grove by the creek

Green Hawthorn, also known as Southern Hawthorn, growing by the creek

The Green Heron pretending it's hiding

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Today's Walk

I decided to walk out into farm country on Possum Hollow Rd., out past my brother's house and up to I-81, and came back into town on Olde Scotland Rd., where I cut over to the woods on the other side of the railroad tracks to visit the old filling pool along Gum Run. The filling pool is a leftover from the days when trains ran by steam power and periodically had to stop to fill their water tanks. The old tracks ran along Gum Run; they're gone now, but the old pool is still there, way back in the woods and very picturesque.

Stripes and swirls of color in a field along Possum Hollow Rd.

The Mennonite farm across Possum Hollow Rd. from my brother's house

A Mourning Dove in a front yard along Possum Hollow Rd.

Wenger Feeds' grain silos along the RR tracks off Mt. Rock Rd.

A path in the woods near the filling pool

The old filling pool

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

A Visit to the Brookside Wetland

I went to visit the Brookside Ave. wetland today because I hadn't gone there since I switched to shooting in RAW. It being May, I was hoping for butterflies, but it was a little chilly and fairly windy, and no butterflies were out in those conditions. But I did get some good landscape shots, and a Tree Swallow portrait. And on the way home I found two kittens playing on a farm. So it was worth the trip!

A view of part of the collection pond

Walking along the berm around the pond

A Tree Swallow atop its nesting box

Another view of the pond

The boardwalk at the entrance to the wetland

Two kittens playing. You can just see a bit of Mama behind the gray one

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

A Busy Day at the Feeder Station

I had things to do today, and it was pretty windy out, so I stuck close to home. I did aim the camera out the kitchen window at my bird feeder station from time to time, though; it was pretty active and well worth some attention.

A pair of Mallards visits my back yard every Spring; the hen was there today

A Mourning Dove was cleaning up some of the spillage the Sparrows and Starlings leave behind

And here are the House Sparrows making the mess

The resident Chipmunk also likes the mess the Sparrows leave

The Cardinals all prefer the Sunflower seeds in the flat feeder

A rare visitor, a Brown-headed Cowbird stops by to sample the leavings

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

A Short Walk

After I dropped off my rent with my landlord's business manager this morning I went for a short walk into the country - up Roxbury Rd. to Old Mill Rd., then over to Bard Rd., to N. Earl St., and cutting behind the old Hoffman Mills to follow the creek the rest of the way back to King St.; altogether about a mile and a half. For me, that's a very short walk. But I got some nice views and a couple of hills to climb for the exercise, so it was worth it!

Looking north from the top of Old Mill Rd.

Middle Spring Creek looking upstream from Bard Rd.

And looking downstream from the same bridge

The barn at Willow Run farm from Bard Rd.

A patch of Wood Anemone beside the creek

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger

A Birder's Paradise

I had intended to walk out into farm country this morning, itching to get some more pictures of cows. I decided to walk out to the north following Branch Creek (which becomes Middle Spring Creek outside of town), documenting how high it was running due to the storm two days ago. Well, I got diverted. You see, we're right smack in the middle of Spring Migration here, and all sorts of birds are hanging out in the trees and shrubs by the creek. I started out trying to get a shot of a Phoebe who kept mouthing off but who succeeded in evading my camera, but other birds were more than willing to pose for a portrait. I never did make it out of town; there was just too much good stuff going on by the creek.

This male Goldfinch was chowing down on young leaves

A Yellow-rumped Warbler, affectionately known in the birding community as a Butter Butt

This pair of Barn Swallows patiently sat on that branch and let me shoot for almost 5 minutes

This Mourning Dove was trying, not very successfully, to hide from me

This female Goldfinch was another patient sitter

This just-forming Norway Spruce cone caught my eye, and the rest of the shot just happened. When I got home I brought it up in Photoshop and just left it alone, one of the rare shots that just came from the camera as is!

© 2020 by A. Roy Hilbinger