Where were you....

Fifty years ago this month, Apollo 14 left for the moon and they landed on the 5th of February. It would be one of two landings that year. And the last time men were on the moon would be less than two years later. One of the greatest technical and scientific achievements of any age and we seemed to give up on the idea. The four remaining men who walked on the moon are nearing 90. It was such an amazing time and the recent movie, Hidden Figures, was one of those moments that you realized how incredibly hard it was and how brave were those who first flew.

“When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place— what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor” Psalm 8:3-5 NLT

Flyby

On a walk at Lake Lynn I saw this Great Blue Heron lift off from a small inlet on the lake. We were on one of the bridges and it flew right over head and since I had my camera with me, I was able to get a shot of this bird and it turned out pretty sharp. Good idea to have the camera with you!

Mr. Rockefeller's Bridges

At Acadia National Park there are nearly 50 miles of carriage roads that Mr. Rockefeller built in the early 1900’s so he could enjoy his carriage rides with no nasty cars sprewing fumes. He did not like cars and tried but failed to have them banned from the island. There are several bridges he built and all of them are designed in place to enhance the view. This is one of the smaller and it is a bit further to reach by foot than many of them. Here I took several photos from differing perspectives and last week found out that I never edited any of them. So, presenting the bridge.

Slap

This is the old post office from the hamlet of Harborton on the west side of the Eastern Shore with a great harbor leading to the Chesapeake Bay. The population of the town is 131 and there are four buildings similar to this one in size and location so, I presume, they are on or were on the main street. Anyway, what captured my attention here was the old screen door. There were three small stores -absolutely no bigger than this place, near our house where I grew up and when I was 7 or so I was allowed to walk to one of them to buy a piece or two of candy. And the old screen door would screech open and slam shut. The lady at the counter would always say, “Don’t slam the door” and by the next time I would forget and …slap, the door would echo in her tiny kingdom.

Green and Blue

Visible in this photo is Sand Beach, Great Head and the Atlantic ocean as seen from The Beehive, one of the best hikes on the east coast. We intend to be back in Acadia National Park in September if Covid and the state of Maine cooperate. Please.

Cantilever Barn

This is one of the neatest structures on the Cades Cove loop road in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. The cantilever barn is a fixture in, as they say, Upper East Tennessee. The amount of rainfall would cause crops to deteriorate in a regular barn so these, carryovers from Swiss, Swedish and German farmers, would allow the rain to run off well past the stored crops and the air circulation with the deep overhangs provided extra insurance against rotting crops. This one at the Tipton Place is a gem.

Birds & More

As promised the “Startling Announcement” plus a few less startling.

So what does 2021 bring to the Two Lane Touring site? 

First, we are ending the separate “moose” section. Sorry for those Cadillac fans but he will only appear while we are on trips or an occasional cameo. Apparently he has left for NYC to start his acting career not heeding what we said about Broadway being closed. The best case outcome is that using his keen sense of direction he ends up in Hollywood and finds work in a revival of Northern Exposure. The worst case is that he ends up with Rusty or Tom or Dennis and they send him back!

Second, Bird Week 10 was the first of any new bird weeks. From here on bird weeks will be from a single location. That might mean that there will be more bird photography on TLT - we will have to see how that works. 

Third, in addition to “bird week” I am planning four to five projects that will have a more “artful” slant. I feel a bit pretentious even typing that but I want to try some work that interests me in different ways, possibly more creative efforts a few times each year. I expect a complete project will have 5 to 7 photos. Others may not see the light of day and will end up just discarded.  

Fourth, 2020 was not good for restaurant reviews because it was not a good year for eating out. Period. I hope that we can get back to a more normal time but for now, I am searching old places and I intend to get one up each month. I have saved a few camping posts for this winter.

Fifth, and this is a big change for me, I am going to completely re-do the National Park portion of the site. I will list all the parks by NP regions, do a more complete description of our time at the park and share 1 to 3 photos. They will be set up so it will be easier to find a park you might be interested in. This will take months to finish so I will not be removing the current photos but you will see additions as I can get time to complete them. 

Sixth, I have a lot of photos that were edited years ago (and some last year) that I did not do the best job on and I hope to re-edit some older work and then post or in some cases, repost those photos. In the nearly six years at TLT I have only used duplicate photos a dozen times or so, meaning I have posted about 2500 photos and written close to half a million words. I think I have some nice work poorly presented that I want to revisit. This is all while learning two new editing programs!

Seventh, soon there will be a new feature on the menu bar, the C 2 C 2 C. In April, there is an exciting adventure that you can read about from preparation to completion beginning next Tuesday the 19th of January. 

Finally, and this is a big shift in some ways. I started this blog to force myself to learn photography & simply by putting the product “out there” I wanted to do better. I am more accomplished now than the first efforts in 2013 and 2014 and that is gratifying but I really want to learn more. So I am going to work more diligently on the photography.

The other half of the reason for Two Lane Touring, which was a new focus five years ago, was to visit and photograph all the National Park Service Units - now at 423 places. But there is a shift coming. The goal is still there yet there are places that are more difficult to visit for a variety of reasons and may remain that way for some time. Covid, of course, unsafe neighborhoods some places, costs for some areas, arbitrary changes in how or when you can visit play a part so that all together some units are just tough to do. Plus last year missing most of the parks we planned was a set back. I expect by the time we leave for a late summer / fall trip with most of the last year of part time work completed, the plan may be to go more slowly and spend more time exploring other places and things than just the National Parks. Spending a bit more time in a place just seems right for now. The effort feels a bit unsettled this year. We’ll see. Even so we expect that in 2021 we will crest the 300 park threshold or at least that is the plan! We have two new parks planned in February. 

Golden Plover at the beach.

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague 6

Today’s two birds are small with songs that belay their size. The Carolina wren and the Hermit Thrush have beautiful songs and sing in all seasons. What a joy to hear. We used to have a Hermit Thrust that nested near our bedroom and it’s song was a delight every morning. Bird Week 10 concludes tomorrow with the Startling Announcements! Stay tuned.

“Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp. For the Lord delights in his people; he crowns the humble with victory. Let the faithful rejoice that he honors them. Let them sing for joy as they lie on their beds.” Psalm 149: 3-5 NLT

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague 5

Today is the big birds and sticks edition. Both photos feature the largest birds of their kind, the Great Blue Heron and the Great Egret. And here we see them framed by bare branches. I found the GBH standing above the other one most interesting as I rarely see one head on staring back at me. And the contrast of the bright white feathers of the serene and orderly GE with the mass of tangled branches along the marsh was too good to pass over.

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague 4

I just happened on this Downy Woodpecker while walking to another place. I used a short boardwalk from a parking lot to get to the trail I wanted to take. But in the underbrush around the boardwalk were a host of birds darting about, most of them warblers - see Monday post, but there were others, a wren, a robin, some sparrows and then just beside me this woodpecker. He was quite still for just a second and I am glad as I was hand holding my camera and standing on a platform that was not completely still. Very pleased with this shot and the best bird photo for me of the day. The Downy is very similar to the slightly larger Hairy Woodpecker but the relative size of the bill is the easiest way to distinguish between them the Downy is visibly shorter than the Hairy. The tuft of red marks this one as a male.

The more expected position of the woodpecker

This is the best image of the Downy I have taken.

In the midst of Bird Week 10, we pause a day to celebrate a birthday!

Cindy is hiking in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in late October of 2020. And she looks great doing so. In 2021 we celebrate her birthday and 50 years of marriage. A companion for 50 years of journeys is priceless. We will enjoy a dinner and the evening with the grandkids here in Raleigh. And there might be ice cream or cake - oops, AND cake.

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague 3

This little guy is so hard to photograph. I made a big deal out of getting one this fall as it was fishing. Now at the CNWR in early December I was able to get another as he rested about 25 yards away. I took several shots but many of them were a bit off focus. This is one of the better. The Belted Kingfisher is pretty skittish as you approach they quickly fly off, with their rattling call echoing over the water. Frustrating to photograph they are fun to watch. One of my favorite birds to enjoy just listening to and watching fish.

I paired him up with the Mourning Dove. (the other 24 photos of the Belted Kingfisher were all about the same:) It too is often flushed out when you get too close and it also makes a call when it first launches from its perch. It is not as some people think a “morning” dove but is named for the mournful note of its call. This one was found deep in the woods and you can get a decent look at the unusual blue eye ring and the subtile colors of its feathers. Also note the characteristic black spots on the back.

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague 2

This is a Great Egret. They are common on Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge but it is always neat to see them. This one was looking for lunch in a small pool and I liked the contrast of the water with the bright while feathers. This one is also in breeding colors which you can tell by the bright yellow/orange bill when it is not, only the lower portion of the bill is yellow. The second photo has three of them in a marsh where one is about to consume the lunch it just caught.

The Great Egret in the foreground has just caught a fish and you can see its tail if you look carefully.

Bird Week 10: Chincoteague

Well the long anticipated Bird Week 10 is here. We are in double digits so it is fitting that we do 2 birds photos every day!. There must be bells pealing celebrations in the hills and valleys still no need to send extra funds. All of these were taken early in December on a weekend jaunt with four photographers and it was a lot of fun. Most of the birds I hoped to see, I did not or they were at a great distance. So I shot more tiny birds and there are not many song birds smaller than the Yellow-rump Warbler also known as the Myrtle Warbler. It is ubiquitous this time of year and you can pretty well count on the fact that a small darting bird here in December will be another one of these. Their song is beautiful but they don’t sing too much in the winter. Still love to see them flocking around the trees and bushes and adding the color of their bright yellow feathers to the rather drab winter foliage.

Oh, and there will be a startling announcement at the end of the week.

A more subtile colored female

The brighter male warbler.

"To God Be The Glory Great Things He Has Done..."

This is a rare clear view of Denali. It is said by the rangers there that only 31% of the people coming to Denali NP see the mountain. We were clearly fortunate as we saw it three times in 9 days and this was the most clear. It is taken from 37 miles away and it dominates the view. Those other peaks are Rocky Mountain tall and much closer. We were here earlier and could not see anything and various people around us were also spectulating on if that glimpse or that one was Denali. Then the sky clears and there is no doubt. Your are overwhelmed.

This is from the blessing of the infant Jesus at the temple by Simeon:

“He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!” Luke 2:32 NLT

Pleasant Surprise (2 photos)

As we re-entered Louisiana from near Shreveport on our fall trip our initial destination was the Creole historic area near the town of Natchitoches, LA. What a wonderful place the town turned out to be, just beautiful with a great history and architecture that predates New Orleans. In the town is a reconstructed French fort. It is unusual because it was rebuilt using the original plans for the fort that were found in some archives in France. So it is a very authentic reproduction. It turned out to be well worth the time to explore.The museum was well done, the fort and environs equally first rate. And, besides free parking, old folks like me were free. This town is a gem and one that I would love to re-visit and if ever required to live in Louisiana, this would be my spot. Although while I might learn to pronounce it correctly in a few months (NAW ka tish) it would be years before I learned to spell it! Learn more about Louisiana’s oldest city at https://www.natchitoches.com

This view of the fort is approaching from the VC.

Welcome to 2021: New Horizons - Same Landscape

The celebration of New Year is always a bit of a mystery to me. I know on January 2nd the same issues and problems that beset me in December are still with me and that truth quickly leads a lot of people to some sort of regret or despair. Circumstances do not change with the calendar. 

However you do need time to reflect at points in life and while March 18th or August 3rd does as well as December 31 - possibly better depending on your level of celebration, for most it is the beginning of a new calendar year where that retrospection is done. So I go along.  

I have an annual weight loss effort, not a big deal but the holiday eating adds a bit and that needs to come off, usually in a month or three. I also often pick out something I want to learn, last year I started carving. This year, a bit more knowledge about cooking or baking. Even though the Year of Learning Pie Making was sort of a disaster. I also enjoy - who knew - the carving so that will increase and I hope to gain some skill there. The painting of the carvings which I did not consider at first really needs to improve. 

My reading for pleasure is consistent over many years - about 55 books a year, however, I am going to add more history and back off a bit from so many mysteries. But not my favorite writers! And, as usual, re-read C. S. Lewis. I will need to find a new home for another 150 or so of my church centric library so if you are interested, text me.

Photographically, my goal is to always produce more consistent and more pleasing (to me) photos. To that end, while always hopeful of more travel, great light, and a huge moose to walk past, I am determined to get out twice each week specifically to take images. I am not thrilled with Raleigh from that stand point. Urban grittiness and suburban sameness are not something I would wish to do often, occasionally it is fine. I intended to shoot at the two gardens in Raleigh and the one at Duke last year and they closed in March and have stayed closed so that did not work out. There is a state park near us, while it is not an inspiring place for photography I am sure I can do better than I have in the past there. Otherwise driving 30 or 40 minutes is the norm so I hope to explore more of the smaller parks that dot the town and some additional portions of the greenway. Never-the-less shooting intentionally twice a week is the goal. I’ll let you know how long that lasts, especially with work starting again on January 4th.

For trips, I really hope we can escape the virus restrictions and those dictates become less needed each day and that brings me to the biggest event of 2021, our 50th wedding anniversary. We have decided to celebrate it in Disney -ish fashion and have a year long adventure. In January we have Kellen’s high school graduation & Cindy’s birthday. In February we travel to Florida to actually have an event at Disney with some of our family. April brings a big trip as C and I fly to Los Angeles then tour parks in CA, NV, and AZ for a week ending back in LA where I will drive back to NC with Kellen while his dad, who drove west with him, will fly back to NC with Cindy. Watch for the C-2-C-2-C adventure on TLT. Our actual anniversary is in May. We also hope in the fall to tour the northern Mid-West, spend a bit of time in our home area near Pittsburgh, travel across New England and return to our favorite place, Acadia. 

I have some vague plans for Two Lane Touring web site but those will be pulled together by late January. 

Still there? Happy New Year to you.

Where do we go this year?

2020 Photo Review and More... (2 Photos)

It has been a year - interesting, challenging, different and difficult. January and February were months of work at Waypoint for me that continued across the first six months of 2020. Yet by March the work was changing and now I saw most people in little boxes on the computer. And all of that also effected photography. At first during the colder winter, I had not planned much shooting and by March I was uncertain what was wise and what was not. I did meet Dennis Mook (www.thewanderinglensman.com) for a day photographing near Roanoke Rapids and it was odd just being out. By June I was anxious to find a place to travel and we took the trailer to Lancaster, PA and stayed for several days at one campground for a home base and traveled around the area finding photo opportunities. Dennis and Kathy joined us for that outing. It was so nice and felt so safe we went back a month later with Tom Light. He stayed in a cottage at the same campground and we again had a super time. Finally in mid-September we embarked on a five week trip that I outlined Tuesday. Then in November we spent a few days in Massanutten with Tom and Dave & Jean Faith. What a nice time and we toured a bit of the Blue Ridge, Shenandoah and some of the small towns nearby. Finally a short trip to Chincoteague NWR with Dennis and three of his friends (all former police officers who were trainers and leaders) and me. I was honored to be asked and had a really good time with the four of them. 

Most of the photos I took were during those times of travel. My best ones were likely those at the Great Smoky Mountain National Park but I took a lot of others too. 

One of the things I gained this year was shooting photos more carefully. Taking a bit more time with composition is important but equally is thinking about the settings you are using in camera. In both of those I improved this year and I can see the changes in my images. Lots to still learn but grateful for growth. One thing that makes me happy is when I look at a scene and try and image the settings in camera, set them and find out it they were right is something I could not do a year or two ago at all, now it is a skill I am learning. 

My software used to process photos is also changing and that is less than a happy thing but I press on. 

My second learning task for 2020 was to try wood carving. Something else I knew nothing about. The project has turned out to be enjoyable and I have done 49 carvings this year (still have nearly all my fingers) and have forced about half of them on unsuspecting people. I plan to continue carving so look out. 

And, if you see this terrific young man anywhere today, wish him a happy eighteenth birthday. So very proud of him. Much more on Kellen later.

These are Christmas “sweaters’ I carved for Geof and family. The first three are themes that Cindy has been following for ornaments since they were small and later two are Disney -ish. Minnie and Dapper Dan’s Hat. Geof ran marathons with his friends dressed as the Dans.

2020 Two Lane Touring Site Recap (4 photos)

First, thanks to each of you who occasionally or regularly spent a bit of time on Two Lane Touring. I appreciate your time and will strive to make your stop here better in 2021. (Announcements for 2021 - this Friday!)

As expected viewers were down this year v last year. I think the combination of less travel and not going to Alaska for a 4 month trip were the main reasons. There certainly was a lot of interest in the Alaska journey. We had a decline of just under 7% in individuals and about twice that in pages viewed. But things were still pretty good for TLT this year. We had more than 5200 visits and 15,000 plus pages visited. And we increased regular viewers by nearly 40 to 96 who visited more than 30 times in a year. Most views come from the US where NC and VA count for the majority with nine other states over 100. We had guests on the site from all but two states, DE and KS. There were also visitors from 29 additional countries with Norway leading the way and Canada a close second.

in order to do the site we travel and in order to travel we use our trailer and vehicle to pull it. The Oliver slipped past 59,000 miles this year and has held up really well. A blown tire did damage to some fiberglass but it was expertly repaired and the damaged water heater replaced. Our 2007 Ford Explored Sport Trac was retired from service. It did a wonderful job and the 60,000 miles we added were not easy ones. We were impressed with the truck and it did a super job to Alaska and back. We sold it to a woman from Maryland who was searching for that exact type of truck. She was happy. We replaced it with a Toyota Sequoia with more towing capacity and lots of interior room. So far so good.

Sometimes you get 300 or 400 spaces to yourself on an overnight!

The new owner of a great truck.

The new Official Two Lane Touring Transportation Pod

In case you were worried, we eat well on the road. Very well.

2020 Park Recap

As with every paragraph that begins with anything about 2020 it is required by law (or Dr. Fauci) that it begin with a disclaimer: It was not a good year and nothing that was planned happened. In our case plans were disrupted but we have done well. Being in the home more, while we missed friends, travel and an occasional restaurant, was not really bad and in many ways pleasant. But we know that is not the norm for many people. 

Our travel plans and the parks we intended to visit and photograph were completely changed. 2020 was supposed to be the year we completed the upper mid-west parks (most of which did not even open) and visit Hawaii (most of which did not even open)- which would be our 50th state to visit and view the parks there. Those plans were canceled. However we did get a trip done in September and October.  Hauling your own bed, bath and kitchen (i am so tempted to write “beyond” here, oh, guess I did:) enabled us to be comfortable and safely travel. A big plus for a trailer in a difficult situation.

We started with a park near Atlanta, Kennesaw Mountain NBP where the visitor center was open and we walked a short hike and drove around the area. Then, after a stop in Birmingham for a wedding and the Birmingham Civil Rights NM we crossed Alabama to Mississippi and Vicksburg Battlefield. This was a revisit but first time photographing. Most of the roads were open, the VC was not nor the museum at the ironclad. Our next stop was the Natchez NHS. Neither of the two main buildings were open but the grounds of the mansion were. No VC and no exhibits. We did tour a private home, Rosealie, that was very nice and a neat history. The travel also included several miles on the Natchez Trace Parkway. We stayed near Jackson but did not know about the Medgar Ever’s home now the 423rd park. On to Louisiana and Poverty Point. Like most of the mounds in the NP system, it is not too visually exciting but the culture it represents is fascinating. From there we took a side jaunt to the Chennault Aviation Museum in Monroe. It was pretty well done for a small museum and we also watched volunteers across the street rebuilding historic aircraft. Then on to Arkansas Post. The NP site grounds were open and the state museum of the same name a few miles away had some exhibits and buildings open. Next stop was the Central High School in Little Rock. The civil rights VC/museum was open and well done, the school was not but walking the grounds was fine. We then spent two days at Hot Springs National Park. Only parts of the park were open yet the downtown was interesting and kept us occupied. The last stop in Arkansas was President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home NHS. It is the longest name of any park I recall and the least to offer. The house was closed. The VC open with eight or so banners with information on people important to him. That was it. The property is crowded by highways and streets and generally one of those that make you wonder how on earth it became a NP unit. 

Back in Louisiana we arrived at the Cane River Creole NHP and what an intriguing place. We visited two old and nearly intact plantations, explored the town of Natchitoches - which was beautiful and just excellent -good food, nice people, great time there. That completed the NPS units in Louisiana for us. We still visited Baton Rouge, stayed a night at John “Bo Duke” Schneider’s movie set and toured Mobile and nearby state parks. Traveling to Montgomery we were able to visit parts of the Freedom Riders NM, then north a bit to Horseshoe Bend NB, Little River Canyon NPRES and, completing Alabama, Russell Cave near the Tennessee line. Of the four only the VC at Russell Cave was open. The drive around LRC was fine but the state park nearby was quite interesting with a nice campground. Stamps were few - available either outside on a table, in the VC if open or just not there at all. 

Finally we spent two weeks in the Great Smoky Mountain NP: five days on the south side, one week on the north side and two days on the eastern end. A big bonus of the trip was that we visited with several friends and that was special.

So for the numbers, 13 new parks bringing our year end total to 279 of 423.

Splash of Yellow