Photographs by Frank

24 January 2018

Wintry Mix

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: — Frank @ 6:00 PM

Monday night into Tuesday (yesterday) we had a wintry mix of precipitation. The temperature hovered right around freezing and, depending on the moment, it was raining, sleeting or snowing.

By early afternoon, the precipitation stopped and just before sunset, blue sky began to appear.

Overnight it warmed up some and by morning most of the ice coating the vegetation was gone. I wish that I could say the same for the driveway!

The first five photos below were made yesterday afternoon, after moving the daily ration of firewood. The remaining four were made this afternoon while on my daily walk down the road.

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19 January 2018

An Interesting Mile

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Uncategorized,Winter — Tags: — Frank @ 1:00 PM

These days, I often walk the mile between our house and the bridge down by the lake.

Some times, I take my camera along on the walk.

This sort stretch of rural road contains much of interest if one looks closely.

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Passing vehicles, leave traces on our snow covered dirt road that would be missed if it were paved.

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8 January 2018

What Is White?

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: , — Frank @ 7:00 PM

A few days ago (before the “big storm”) Joan and I made a snowshoe trek on Gregg Lake. I noticed all sorts of interesting wind-made patterns in the snow on the lake. I had not taken my camera with me on this day and the sky was overcast. Thus the light was flat and boring.

Yesterday, noting that the wind had cleared most of the fifteen inches of snow that had come down in the “big storm” from the ice and that the light was “nice” (there were high, thin clouds but the light was still fairly hard), I had the notion to head out on the lake again with my camera.

I waited until mid-afternoon, when the sun would be low but not so low that the lake surface would be in shadow,  strapped on my snowshoes and headed down to the lake. The temperature was about 10 degrees F. It was about 3:15 when I arrived at the lake and already about a third of the surface was in shadow. I spent the next three-quarters of an hour chasing the edge of remaining sunlight across the lake and making photographs all the way.

The title of this post refers to the notion that, although all of the snow I saw was ostensibly white, in reality white is merely an illusion.

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15 December 2017

Between The Snows

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Winter — Tags: , , — Frank @ 10:00 PM

We had our first significant snow (three or four inches) of the season last Saturday/Sunday night. It snowed again (a similar amount) on Tuesday.

On Monday, between the snows, I took my camera along for my daily walk.

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17 November 2017

New Ice, Early Snow

Filed under: Landscapes,Monadnock Region — Tags: , — Frank @ 10:00 PM

Last Sunday (the 12th of November), after a stretch of cold nights (as low as 10 deg F), the north end of Gregg lake froze solid.

Tuesday morning we awoke to the second significant snow fall of the season. Winter is here!

Tuesday afternoon, I took my camera along on my daily walk.

Today (Friday), the ice is mostly gone and the snow is completely gone. In between we had a few days nearly steady temperatures (mid 30’s F both night and day) including a day of nice cold rain. Yuck!

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2 September 2017

Stonewall Farm

Filed under: Early Fall,Landscapes,Monadnock Region,Summer — Tags: , — Frank @ 1:30 PM

Yesterday afternoon I spent some time at the Stonewall Farm an agricultural education center (among other things) in Keene, NH. I took a walk on their extensive trail network, but I found many things to photograph right near their buildings.

After leaving the farm, I meandered toward Brattleborough and discovered a new (to me) meetinghouse, the Park Hill Meetinghouse in Westmoreland, NH. I’ll certainly be heading back here in the light of November and hunting for the ‘perfect’ sky.

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28 August 2017

Another August Afternoon Amble

Filed under: Monadnock Region,Odontates,Summer,Wildlife — Tags: , — Frank @ 10:30 PM

This afternoon I made a left at the bottom of our driveway and headed down towards the bridge. My goal, however, was not the bridge. Rather, I was headed for the old log yard and the beaver pond on the road to Balancing Rock (on the land recently acquired by the Harris Center).

The old log yard which was bare just a few years ago is now full of wildflowers and berries. I was expecting to find meadowhawks here and was not disappointed. I observed more than a dozen; more males than females. There were also a few darners flying about and hunting overhead.

At the beaver pond, I found a single spreadwing and a single female bluet along the outlet stream. I sat at the edge of the pond near a log with an exuvia clinging to its underside and watched three male slaty skimmers having spectacular dog fights over the bit of pond shore I was watching. Every once in a while one would perch nearby for a very short interval before heading back into the battle for territory.

As I arose to leave I noticed some ode like movement out of the corner of my eye. My departure was delayed as I watched a lone female common pondhawk unsuccessfully hunting. After about five minutes she flew out of sight and I headed home.

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Hattie Brown Road

Filed under: Monadnock Region,Odontates,Summer,Wildlife — Tags: , — Frank @ 11:00 AM

Yesterday afternoon, Joan and I walked up Hattie Brown Road to the beaver-made wetland. The weather was partly sunny and the temperature was in the low 70s F; there was a light intermittent breeze. Perfect weather for late August and for odes.

As I expected there were meadowhawks present along the road. We saw roughly a dozen individuals, both males and females in approximately equal numbers, perched from the ground to eye-level on the vegetation. We also saw a single meadowhawk mating wheel.

Additionally there were similar numbers (at least a dozen) of Canada darners present. Most were patrolling / hunting out over the water. However, we observed two ovipositing females and a couple of individuals (one with prey) perched in the roadside shrubbery.

Lastly, we observed three or four spreadwings perched low to the ground in the roadside vegetation.

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24 August 2017

Good Odeing

Filed under: Monadnock Region,Odontates,Summer,Wildlife — Tags: , — Frank @ 11:00 AM

Yesterday afternoon was sunny, warm (temperatures in the mid 70s F) and windy. Good weather for odeing… except for the wind.

I headed out and decided to stay away from the water where the wind would be strongest. I split my time between Elmwood Junction in Hancock (near where Moose Brook flows into Powdermill Pond) and the field at the boat launch on the Contoocook River in Greenfield (near the covered bridge).

The numbers of individuals was fairly small but the variety of species I observed was amazing. I photographed nine species between the two sites.

At Elmwood Junction, I photographed a single male slender spreadwing, a small number of male variable dancers and meadowhawks (probably autumn meadowhawks) of both sexes. The damselflies were located down near the water, in a spot protected from the wind. The meadowhawks were in sunny spots along the road. (The first five photos below are from Elmwood Junction.)

At the field by the boat launch, I observed (and photographed) a couple of male Eastern Forktails, one (and maybe two) male Eastern Amberwings, a small number (maybe half a dozen) male Calico Pennants, a single female Widow Skimmer (which allowed me exactly one exposure before it flew off to part unknown), a number of meadowhawks (mostly male but a few females) and a single male Slaty Skimmer.

I also photographed (see the last photo) a female Common Pondhawk. I saw this elusive “gal” on three separate occasions over about a fifteen minute period, but was able to make only two exposures on the last time I saw it.

I saw no odes down by the river at the boat launch, but it was quite windy so this is not unexpected.

At both sites, meadowhawks (most probably Autumn Meadowhawks) were, by far, the most common species I observed and males outnumbered females by about three to one.

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16 August 2017

On the Road… Again*

Filed under: Early Fall,Monadnock Region,Summer — Frank @ 5:30 PM

Yesterday afternoon I turned right at the bottom of our driveway and headed down the unmaintained section of “our” road.

As I walked, I noticed small patches of color on the road. I began to photograph them.

As I made photographs, I began to think…

Journeys can be measured by distance or by time.

While I walked roughly two miles on my afternoon journey, the small patches of color on the road reminded me that autumn is almost upon us, yet again, and that the annual cycle by which we measure our lives marches on relentlessly.

This neither good nor bad… it just is.

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* Literally and with a modicum of  apologies to Messrs. Kerouac and… Nelson.

 

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