Yesterday, Naomi and I took a trip out to Grafton Notch State Park in western Maine near the New Hampshire border. The park is home to Old Speck mountain. The Bear River descends into a valley on the eastern side of the notch. Screw Auger Falls is one of a series of waterfalls along the course of the river. Click on the image for a larger view.
Tag Archives: Pentax 645D
Lupine
Lupine, Lupinus, is a symbol of summer in Maine. The common blue variety can be seen along the roadsides throughout the state. It is an elegant plant—the tip extends upwards as the blossoms unfurl. The flowering head takes a wonderful color gradient as the blossoms darken with time. Click on the images for a larger view.
Maple Seeds
One of the great joys of summer is maple seeds, those wonderful natural helicopters that children love to play with. This seed is from a silver maple, Acer saccharinum L., and is about 2.4 inches (6 cm) long. What can a tree know of aerodynamics? Click on the image for a larger view.
Blackberry Blossoms
Our blackberry canes are in blossom. The white flowers can be quite striking against the monochromatic foliage of summer. These are probably our most productive plants and give us almost a year supply of fruit, from the fresh berries at the end of the summer to the pies and smoothies we make from frozen berries throughout the rest of the year. Click on the image for a larger view.
Wild Strawberries
The first fruit we can harvest every year is wild strawberry. Not a very larger fruit, about the size of the tip of your little finger. This plant is found throughout our garden, woods, and meadow. It is also a favorite of the chipmunks. Our Newfoundland dog Kai also loved these berries and would sit out with us as we gathered them. We only get a few handful of strawberries each year—they are time consuming to harvest in any quantities, but they are fun to snack on when we are in the garden. Click on the image for a larger view.
Summer Wind, Summer Forest
Yesterday was beautiful. I believe that trees evolved to be tall simply to play and dance in the wind. Click on the image for a larger view.
Where the Land meets the Sea, part 5
On a moonlit night at Pemaquid Point, two figures look out to sea. A soft wind presses against their bodies. The rhythm of breaking waves fills the air. “I would love to spend the rest of my life searching for beauty,” whispers the woman to the man.
Click on the image for a larger view.
Where the Land meets the Sea, part 4
We imagine the end of the day along the coast having the fiery reds of a sunset. But water, whether liquid or vapor, is a conjuror of color. When the sun is blocked at the horizon, color transmutes into something magical. Click on the image for a larger view.
Where the Land meets the Sea, part 3
For all of Maine’s lengthy coastline, what is rare is sand. Seawall Beach comes between the salt march of Bates-Morse Mountain Conservation Area and the Atlantic Ocean. Many threatened seabirds need the dunes behind these beaches to reproduce, which makes these areas along the coast extremely important. However, what are not rare on the Maine coast are mist and fog. Click on the image for a larger view.
Where the Land meets the Sea, part 2
Maine’s coastline is a contorted into bays, peninsulas, coves, and islands. Bailey Island is the terminal point along a string of inhabitable islands jutting out into the Gulf of Maine. Many small uninhabitable islands dot the coast as well, like these rocks on the other side of Jaquish Gut—a small waterway between Bailey Island and Jaquish Island. Click on the image for a larger view.
