Why life? Is this self-organizing matter a natural outcome of a universe? Is it the nature of a universe to desire consciousness? The Great Gulf Wilderness was carved out by ice in the last glacial period, leaving a world of rock. Yet, in spite of this harsh terrain, life thrived. Layers upon layers of organisms colonized and built this beautiful world. Unlike the eroded mountain it inhabits, it diversified into unimaginable complexity. Click on the image for a larger view.
Tag Archives: Nature
The Fall
With the riot of fall color, comes a melancholy. The vitality of life that burst forth in summer seems to have burnt itself out. The fern that erupted from our forest floor in May, fades back into the soil. Click on the image for a larger view.
Foliage Season
Foliage season has come to New England. The season peaks in mid-October, but I have always enjoyed the period at the end of September, when the blaze of reds and oranges are contrasted with the lingering greens of summer. With the vivid blue skies of autumn, the season is a celebration of color. Click on the image for a larger view.
Calm
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Autumn Beach
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September Seas
From Schoodic Point in Acadia National Park. The scale of this place is hard to imagine. The rocks in the foreground would dwarf a human. Click on the image for a larger view.
Wood, Rock, Water
The west branch of the Peabody River flows down the Great Gulf Wilderness Area. It is not so much a river like the bodies of flat water that meander through landscapes, but more of an oversized mountain stream moving through and over rocks and boulders. Click on the image for a larger view.
The Northern Forest
Naomi and I took a trip to the Great Gulf Wilderness Area last weekend. Instead of standing on the head wall of the glacial cirque, we had entered the base of the valley. The Northern Forest is a unique ecosystem that stretches from the Adirondacks in northern New York, through Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and into the Canadian maritime provinces. At the base of Mt. Washington, the forest is mixed. The structure is complex: life carves out spaces in a three-dimensional world that stretches from the forest floor to the canopy. Even glacial erratics, large rocks dropped by retreating glaciers, become home to fern, moss, and trees. Click on the image for a larger view.
Day’s End
Yesterday was overcast and rainy. After dinner, I noticed the clouds breaking. I walked out to our field to watch the fading light of the day.
These events are fleeting. Clouds from the valley climbed the ridge and would obscure the view a few minutes after this image was taken—you can see those clouds just above the trees. And while we imagine the vivid color of the clouds would show some tenacity, that color can drain from the sky in seconds. Click on the image for a larger view.
Under a Full Moon
Last Sunday I went to our field. The night was filled with the rhythm between silence and songs: an owl, frog, and whip-poor-will. The sweet scent of goldenrod mixed with the slightly acidic scent of a skunk—I whistled to discourage a meeting. Click on the image for a larger view.
