Treasures of Petit Manan Light House 2012

Petit Manan  seen in the distance from Steve Resotko's 14 foot out board motor boat.

Steve Resotko spotted this flock of female eider .

Petit Manan Light house complex from a distance. During the summer months volunteers live on the island doing research on puffins and other birds.

Steve Resotko wild life photographer captured an eagle taking to flight on Green Island which is a nearby island to Petit Manan Island, summer 2012.

A flock of Terns take to flight.

We circled Petit Manan Island in a 14 foot out board motor boat taking
photos of bird life. I photographed the Friendship V out of Bar Harbor .
We waved and the passengers returned our friendly gesture.

Steve Resotko seen here on the shore of a nearby island preparing to take pictures of wild life.

The day we went out to Petit Manan the swells were 2 to 5 feet.

We waited for swells to wash ashore before we power between ledge and

Petit Manan Island.

Steve Resotko  caught this Puffin with it right leg resting on the

edge of a piece of pink granite. Both of us were using 300 mm lense.

The top "cap" of Petit Manan Lights. I scaled this picture to

give emphasis to the light's beauty.

The Friendship V appears to be close to our 14 foot out board motor boat.
Actually the V was along ways off from us. I scaled the image to make it look close by.

Steve Resotko photographed this seal as it poked it head above the surface to
check us out.

A large bouy marks the western entrance to the bay. The W stands for Western Bouy.

All Souls Chapel- Petit Manan National Wildlife Refuge Summer 2012

A rural community sign on a gravel  points the way to All Souls Chapel .

Walking along the road  toward the chapel with photographer Kirsten Palmer Thompson several rabbits

dashed across the road.

All Souls by the Sea Chapel is nestled off Church Road in the Petite Manan National Wildlife Refuge in Steuben, Maine. At first glance it is reminiscent of those found in rural  areas of England.

Walking on the beach stone steps to the chapel's entrance  caused me to enter slowly as if entering

a place of peace and tranquility.

On my left as I entered the chapel area is a baptismal font fashioned by the force of nature and sea.

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Under brightly lite windows a  narrow cloth draped  table decorated two vases filled with real flowers, two unburned candles, and a  cross  in the center set in stone helped to create a sense of simplicticy.

Front view of table.

On one wall where worshipers can see it easily, a hand written sign noted page numbers of hymns to be sung.

Kate Luurtsena organist at all Souls Chapel practices on a pump organ. She summers with her parents in the Petite Manan Wildlife Refuge.

The architecture of the chapel pews is comfortable yet unadorned.

The Chapel's Bible rests on a cedar post with matching curved braces.

An antique lamp from a bygone  era hangs from the ceiling.

Hymnals and Bibles lay on the church benches.

A small window graced with flower attracts your attention 

Near the entry way is an offering plate.
Services are led by local residents and held at 9 am on Sundays. 

"Climb Hanging Lake Trail Thanksgiving 2012" Trekker

Most of the Summer of 2012, Steve Resotko and I trekked the lakes of Washington County Maine in a motorized canoe or lake boat. I took a trip to Gleenwood Spring over the Thanksgiving weekend. My daughter Meghan encouraged me-persuaded me- pushed me- into running a 5 K race in Gleenwood Springs. The promise from her to me was there were no hills to climb on the course. With two family members Tom C. and Tom E. we headed to the race. "Yep" there were no hills to run. The entire race was all up hill and on a trail. I made it but the urge to get even with her kept me going during the race. The following days a group of us arrived at Hanging Cliff Lake Trail very early in the morning. It was cold and beautiful. From the tarmack follow the signs to the trail head. You can't miss it. "We were cold". This first view of the canyon area was impressive to me.

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I borrowed this map.

The split rail fence boardering the tarmack framed out the view of the cliffs. I have traveled some of the mountians in Acadia National Park- Maine-, but the scenry here  depicted in this photo is breath taking.

The Colorado River tracing I 70 from Denver westward is beautiful, but I admit the green water as seen here seems a miss match...but acceptable. All my photos were taken with a Galaxy S III, giving my Nikon D-200 a rest so to speak.

One member of our climbing group observed that "the water level in the Colorado this years seemed low".
I did notice areas of the river which  looked low.

Nevetheless, it is a picture perfect setting with the river on one side and canyon-cliffs on the other .

Rating the trail now near Christmas not the weekend we climbed it is not complicated.

When we climbed the trail it was hard. Looking back from this moment-now-

 I would add not too hard unless one is out of "shape"

It is rocky in some areas with snake  like crossbacks.

I live to run and do photography, plus a couple of others "things".
Un known to me, Swifts make their nests behind the waterfall at the top of the lake area.

I plan to go back again to photograph them if possible.

I'm proud to say that I climbed the trail. ..but not all the wat to the top.

Moreover a good friend of mine took her baby on the climb.

"Neve"-her duaghter- will not remember her mother climbing the trail with her.

But one day in Neve's teenhood her mom will tell her.

 In my book that will be a special moment for both of them.

Of course there were dogs on the trail. Here you see some of our climbing party making it over the boulders and rocks.

Liz and one of our daughter's friends from Maine make their way up the trail.

Sometimes the  climb was nearly vertical. Alissa in the blue is an ax-woman. Google her name.

She has an all female axe women show

which travels the USA.

See my link in the right margin.

Having crossed a wooden walk way our mountaineer climbers group- mostly from Maine -were spread out.

At this point in the ascent, we have not met anyone coming down the trail. Later we would.

Meghan Palmer top and Alissia Jones "The Axe Woman's Show" gave me an opportunity to take this shot of them hiding in vacant limestone pockets.

Looking at this side trail off the main trail, one would admit that to climb it would take alot of scrambling.

I'm not good at scrambling.

Climbing toward the top, one runs into pockets of snow, then melted snow which has been frozen

making walking slippery. The contrast of snow and rocks can help make a photograph.

Here is a rustic shelter. It could provide a place to be if there was a rain shower. ..but not much protections from the wind.  Looking rustic, I thought it would be a interesting photograph for my friends back in Maine to see.

The names and carvings are not petroglyphs in wood. I'm making fun of my thoughts here.

 I was temped to carve that trekker had visited here from Maine.

Looking off the side of the trail, I captured this photo which has an element of mystery to it 

created by  mist coming off the forest floor and snow.

Coming down the trail, I photographed this bench marker. All blurry. With a Galaxy S III, one needsto enable voice activation of the camera. "Just say click or smile" and the shutter goes click.

Of course I did not do that so the camera moved at tich...thus a blur..

We are going down trail almost to the tarmack.

Our hike is over.

I loved every moment of the climb and decent..

See some of my other trekking on this blog .

Trekking Pinkham Bay Marsh - Steuben, Me.- Joe Palmer & Steve Resotko

Pinkham Marsh located between Steuben Road and Pigeon Hill Road off US route 1 in Steuben, Maine, is alive with eagles, herons, small fish, marsh grass, beaver, and ducks, and Canada Geese. You will enjoy an exciting trekk across the marsh. 

View of Pinkham Bay Marsh December 27, 2012 from east side

looking up marsh.

In this picture Pinkham Bay Bridge is seen in the distant background. Steve Resotko and I began our discovery trek through the Marsh about 9 AM on a fall day. Wearing rubber knee boots is most helpful. Steve guided me along the marsh  creek toward two beaver dams he wanted me to see.

The marsh has several inlet flowing into it on the east side. You can see small fish and crabs in the stream inlet.

Steve leads us away from the steam eastward though a clump of tree and undergrowth.

One of the first sites is a large pool of "fresh" water behind a beaver dam. The water is low exposing tree which beavers had brought down years ago.

Looking closely you will see two ridge fomations barriers. One near the foreground has a outlet. The barriers are similar to each other. You already know these are beaver dams. "Where are the beavers,' I asked Steve.  "Most likely

they have been trapped." Beavers are amazing engineers.

Leaving the beaver dam area, we walked toward the stream again. Coming from across from the other side of the marsh we could hear Canada Goose.

 

We headed back toward Pinkham Bay Bridge. In it special way the wooden one lane bridge is nostalgic. Every week I go extra miles off US Route 1, just to drive over it and look South toward the open bay.

View of Pinkham Bay December 27, 2012 looking toward east bank
South of Pinkham Bay Bridge. Boat of shore.

Knowing that geese are skid dish, Steve and I eased our way toward them slowly pausing now and then.

We loaded 300 mm lens on our cameras.

Honestly this was an exciting part of trekking the marsh. We wanted to capture photos of the geese before they took to flight and as they got airborne.

Finally we got really close to the geese. Camera on the ready. And we fired away, click, click.

The geese were just beginning to take flight.

I love this photograph. It reveals the beauty of the geese and their power to fly confidently just above the marsh grass; then sore higher. By now I'm imagining they are in much further south and west of Maine now.

We had a great day. I will be back to this blog as soon as the first snow storm hits the area to capture more of the marsh's beauty in winter.

I leave you now with this thought:

“In every outthrust headland, in every curving beach, in every grain of sand there is the story of the earth."
Rachel Carson

Looking for new adventures.