A Walk on the Rail Trail

“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.” — John Muir

I haven't been up on the Cumberland Valley Rail Trail in a while, so I decided to take a short walk up to Duncan Rd. and back today. The weather ended up being the central theme of this photo shoot; when I started out the weather was warm and humid, and the sky was a clear, if a bit hazy, blue, but after a little over an hour the cumulonimbus towers were starting to build up over the mountains to the north, and by the time I'd hit Duncan Rd. and turned back it was getting threatening looking and rumbles of thunder would erupt from time to time. I stayed dry, and it never did rain here, but I suspect Newburg and parts north of the Turnpike got a good storm.

There was also some disappointment in today's walk. There's a farm on Duncan Rd. by the Rail Trail owned by a Mennonite family named Sensenig, and they've always had a little shop in the driveway selling fresh produce and eggs from the farm. Well, it looks like they're not running the stand any more; the sign that was always on the road at the end of the driveway isn't there any more, and the little shed they used as a store looked lamentably empty. I had gone up there mostly to see what I could pick up, and hopefully some fresh peaches. Oh well... I did get some shots of two roosters who were definitely full of themselves, strutting around and crowing and just generally announcing to the world what fine fellows they were. In any case, here are some shots from today's walk on the Rail Trail.

Walking on the Rail Trail

One of the farms along the trail, showing the clouds building up

The cumulonimbus clouds continue to build up over a corn field

Two very conceited, and LOUD, roosters on Sensenig's farm, lords of all they survey

A storm approaches

Heading for home on the Rail Trail

© 2019 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Wind and Clouds

We're finally settled into actual autumnal weather, and some hints of color are beginning to appear. On my weekly Sunday walk in the Dykeman Spring Nature Park I saw some of those hints. But there was something even more interesting going on up above; we had a cold front move through overnight which brought some pretty stiff wind with it, making my usual photographic subjects too difficult to get. But it added some serious drama to the sky. Come take a look.

Part of the wetland in the park

The red bridge over the creek

The trailing edge of the cold front created some serious drama over the meadow

Looking north from the meadow

Clouds and shadows on the mountains to the north

Walking east toward the exit and the grocery store. It's chicken soup season!

© 2018 by A. Roy Hilbinger 

A Saturday Walk

I took a walk through the Dykeman Spring Nature Park today on the way to the grocery store. Signs of autumnal changes are advancing - the Calico Asters, another Fall flower, are blooming; and some of the vines and shrubs are turning color, especially the Virginia Creeper. There was a lot to see on today's walk!

Yellow Wingstem Ironweed with some very busy visitors

The Virginia Creeper is starting to turn red

Mushrooms on the forest floor beside the creek

Calico Asters on the banks of the north pond

Fall colors are even appearing in the reflections on the pond

A Clouded Sulphur butterfly on Goldenrod up on the meadow

Cloud castles over the mountains to the north, viewed from the meadow

© 2017 by A. Roy Hilbinger 

Another Gorgeous Day

Today starts my second 9-day vacation stretch (I have one more coming at the end of October/beginning of November), and it couldn't have started on a better day - cooler, no humidity, a cooling breeze, and a brilliant blue sky full of puffy white clouds. And what better place to see it from than the upland meadow in the Dykeman Spring Nature Park. What a view!

© 2016 by A. Roy Hilbinger 

Clouds, and a Butterfly

On my weekly walk to the grocery store this morning there just didn't seem to be much the camera could catch as I walked through the Dykeman Spring Nature Park. There were lots of butterflies, and even a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird, but none of them seemed to want to sit still enough to get their portrait done. However, when I got up to the meadow I saw that the humidity and the heat had created some pretty impressive clouds. So I got some cloud pictures. And I also came across an Eyed Brown butterfly on the railroad overpass on Baltimore Rd. on the way home from the grocery store. Finally, a subject willing to sit patiently while I moved around to get the best angle!

© 2016 by A. Roy Hilbinger 

Drama Overhead

We had a cold front move through yesterday evening. Blasted through is more like it - straight line winds up to 70 mph, horizontal rain, even some lightning and thunder. But it was still humid in the aftermath, and today there's a secondary front moving through to finally usher in cooler, drier air. The result of the secondary front moving through that humid air was some pretty dramatic clouds, especially looming up over the mountains. I went up to the upland meadow in the Dykeman Spring Nature Park to capture some of that drama. In black and white, of course; nothing else captures the drama of cumulonimbus clouds quite so well!

© 2014 by A. Roy Hilbinger 

Sunday Scenes

Another single day off with lots to get done because my work schedule doesn't provide much extra room for errands this week. So there are only two photos today, shot on the way to the grocery store. Enjoy!

A young Muskrat foraging along the shore of one of the Dykeman Spring duck ponds

Clouds over South Mountain

© 2013 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Out and About on Sunday

A few things that caught my eye on my Sunday walk after doing laundry: a cloud castle; a little stream way back in the woods; and another Halloween Pennant dragonfly.

I also managed to capture the quintessential soundtrack of deep summer - Cicadas. The woods are almost deafening with the sound of them, although you can hear a Cardinal holding his own in this clip.

© 2012 by A. Roy Hilbinger

A Drop-Dead Gorgeous Day

A cold front blew through yesterday and took all the heat and humidity with it. Today is just a drop-dead gorgeous day - blue skies, puffy white clouds, clear blue distant mountains.

Fall is coming. Can you smell it in the air?

© 2011 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Castles in the Air

Photo © 2011 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Sight & Sound - Sunday Washout

Our biweekly bird walk didn't last very long. I got this shot of the very odd clouds overhead on the way to meet the others at the Norman Bird Sanctuary. It started spitting during our first stop and really started coming down at our second stop. By the time we got to Gooseneck Cove at Hazard Rd. we didn't even get out of the cars. Oh well...

Photo © 2010 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Sight & Sound - Stormy Weather

Not a sight you want to see if you have any outdoor plans for the weekend.

And the best version of "Stormy Weather" ever, by the great Lady Day!

Photo & text © 2010 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Theme Thursday - Castle

So... Here I am living in the midst of the US's largest collection of the "castles" of the 19th century commercial Robber Barons, so you automatically assume you're gonna see Newport's famed Bellevue Ave. "summer cottages". Well, you almost did, but... As I was signing up on the Theme Thursday blog Sunday, I got hit with a major brain-wave as a line from Joni Mitchell's song "Both Sides Now" lit up like Fourth of July fireworks: "... and ice cream castles in the air..." Some of you may know that I have another passion aside from birds and graveyards - I love taking pictures of big, fat cumulonimbus clouds piling up in the sky on a Summer day; I use my circular polarizer filter to give the clouds more definition, and I usually either shoot in black & white or convert to b&w (the preferred method) because it makes the clouds look more dramatic.

So today I'll show you some of my favorite castles. They may not be built of stone to last for millenia, but their very fleeting nature makes them all the more precious and beautiful. Oh yeah, and if you really feel the need to look at Newport's "castles", you can go here, here, here, and here. And don't forget to go check out the other Theme Thursday participants.

Of course, that means my first video offering is obvious - Joni Mitchell singing "Both Sides Now".

The other song that occurred to me almost immediately is Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower". I picked Jimi Hendrix's version because frankly, everybody, including Mr. Zimmerman himself, considers Jimi's version the definitive one. Enjoy!

Photos & text © 2009 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Down to Ochre Point

Today started out overcast and gloomy, with little schpritzes every now and then. But I went down to the Cliff Walk anyhow; I like the ocean when it gets moody in Autumn's unsettled weather. There was some surf, and the surfers were out, but the only shots I got that had any of the kind of drama I want in my surfing photos were two shots of the waves whacking people. Heh, heh! More dramatic was the action of the waves on the rocks, so there are two nice shots of that phenomenon, too. And to round it all out, a shot of how dramatic the sky was looking when I was down there. Yup, drama was everywhere today down at Ochre Point.

© 2009 by A. Roy Hilbinger

Don't forget to check out my new post on the Just A Song blog - "What a Wonderful World", featuring both Louis Armstong's original version and Eva Cassidy's beautiful cover version.