Happy 4th of July!!

Everyone have a safe, Happy 4th of July America! ENJOY!

My Thought On Winter!

Have a great weekend blog friends and followers. ENJOY!

Where Were You In 2010?

The year seemed to fly by. I don't know where the time went. Did you stay close to home or travel far from home? In my quest to travel back in time to some of the many places I visited, I sought out images from my archives that may not have been posted on my blog. I chose many, many images before finally settling on a select few and then brought them together in a collage just for you.

Looking back at this past year. I traveled several times to Mustatatuck National Wildlife Refuge, in southcentral Indiana, to view the wildlife in the wetlands. I visited the nearby arts and crafts village of Nashville, Indiana, in Brown County, to browse the shops and lunch at my favorite restaurant, Artist's Colony Inn. There were quick jaunts to Lexington's Bluegrass Region, one snowy February weekend, and to historic Bardstown, Kentucky, to capture images of My Old Kentucky Home, in late fall.



Of course, there were frequent visits to nearby Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest located in Clermont, Kentucky. I shared photographs of the purple foxgloves blooming in the Arboretum gardens in spring, captured many images of the water lilies basking in the summer sun in the pond, and least I forget, remember that beautiful golden sunflower I photographed outside Bernheim's cafe, where I would take a break from the sweltering record breaking summer heat and grab a quick bite of lunch. Best of all, I planned a week's long trip and ventured to Cape Cod to photograph the little towns of Sandwich, Chatham and Yarmouth, and viewed their harbors filled to the brim with every shape and size of boat. But, the real highlight of my vacation was the day trip to Nantucket Island, where I spent hours walking along the Boat Basin, shopping in town and touring the island on one of the many tour buses. What a trip to remember!

It's been a busy year and a great one in many ways. But we must keep moving forward. And there's a new year coming. So again, I ask you, where were you in 2010? I invite you to click on the image to view a full screen version. ENJOY!

Mosaic Monday!

A little something that I rarely do . . . Mosaic Monday. Thought a little color in your world might brighten your day. A few of my top photos from my summer trip to Cape Cod and Nantucket. It seems like ions ago and yet it's only been four months ago. Oh, before I forget, what is your favorite photo in the collage? ENJOY!

Rose House, Nantucket

I missed this house in full bloom by two weeks. But here it is anyway. As you can see from the reflection off of the windows in the tour bus, it's not the greatest photo. What is so odd, is the driver was whizzing by so fast, I saw the house and just that quick I snapped this photo. Turned out the photo was nice if not for the reflection. Still I think it's a cute house. Can someone please tell those drivers in Nantucket to slow down a bit. Much nicer weather we're having than most of the summer. So get out and have a great weekend everyone. ENJOY!

Sunset, Brant Point Light, Nantucket

Pulling out on the ferry after a long day on Nantucket, the sun was coming down. I tried and managed to get the light in the lighthouse as it blinked by me. Hope everyone is having a good week. The weather is in the low 80's here but we'll return to low 90's later this week. I can feel fall just a bit in the air. It's around the bend. No, not the bend I went around to get this image. I've been working under a deadline, but I am seeing a light at the end of tunnel. ENJOY!

Nantucket Island Images

Such a beautiful afternoon to photograph lighthouses and beach houses. The Nantucket Island Tour host was moving fast along the road around Nantucket Island. I managed to get a few photographs in spite of her haste. This is beautiful Sankaty Head Lighthouse. Did you know this is the first lighthouse to receive a Frensel lense as its original equipment. This was back in 1848. Fishermen dubbed it the "blazing star" as it could be seen 20 miles away. This lense was replaced in 1950 by aerobeacons, but the original lense was preserved and is on display at the Nantucket Whaling Museum. I wished I'd had time to stop there and check out some of the history. ENJOY!

Reflections, Boat Basin, Nantucket

Photographing the Boat Basin was a huge treat on my day trip to Nantucket. There were so many different things to photograph. However, the reflections in the water I found mesmerizing. Even though it was breezy after the rainstorm that day, I wanted to capture some of the boats and the images in the water. My favorite image in this post is the first one you see. I realize it's not the best image, but I like the simplicity of showing only the hulls and the water. Something about the bright blue tops on the dock posts just distracts me from the reflection.

I have an affinity to wooden boats. If you can't tell from past Nantucket posts as I featured a very "big" wooden boat as well. If I lived near water and could afford a boat, it would be "wooden". ENJOY!

Inner Harbor, Nantucket, Massachusetts

There was considerable sunlight shining through after the storm during my trip to Nantucket Island. This is one of my favorite views of the harbor. Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend. The major heat broke this week and now we only have low 90's but this week up and coming we'll be in the high 80's late into the week and I can't wait. I've already enjoyed the slightly cooler weather considering just how hot it was at the end of last week. I'll be posting images of Nantucket the next few weeks. You are allowed to say "enough already". It's just, I'd never been to Nantucket so I can't help but show everyone how cool it is. ENJOY!

Cape Cod Trip 2010, Nantucket Boat Basin

DAY TRIP, THE BOAT BASIN, NANTUCKET, MASSACHUSETTS

As I mentioned in my last post, the sun came out in the late afternoon after an unbelievable downpour during my day trip to Nantucket. In the late afternoon I took the Nantucket Island Tour, mainly to rest my feet, but also to get my bearings on the size of the island. It is only about 7 miles wide and you realize how small it is when you can take an island tour in an hour. After I finished with the Island Tour, I walked back over to the Boat Basin to take a few images while the light was better. This first image is one of my favorite photos from my Nantucket day trip, the Cottages at the Boat Basin. It's such a uniquely different place to walk around. There are cottages, shops and then you have boats of every size and configuration. Yachts, sailboats, motor boats, and at running the risk of repeating myself, more yachts. Surreal.



This image is of the Dockmaster's Quarters. Even the Dockmaster has a flower box.



I've always had an infinity to wooden boats and this big boat docked next to the Dockmaster's Quarters is no exception. It was huge so I really couldn't get a picture of the whole thing. I think I heard someone say it offers tours of the harbor, but I could be wrong.



You have to admit, it's pretty daunting. ENJOY!

Cape Cod Trip 2010, Nantucket Island

DAY TRIP NANTUCKET, MASSACHUSETTS

This first image is the entrance to Straight Wharf where the Hy-Line Cruise Ferry arrives and departs. Close by as you walk along the Boat Basin is the Nantucket Bike Shop, only one of many bike shops on the Island.





As you walk southeast away from Straight Wharf, you'll encounter many shops along the walkways of the Boat Basin. There are shops selling handbags, artwork, decor, fashion. You can find almost anything amongst these shops. I tend to favor all of the beautiful flowers growing outside the entrance to each shop and the window boxes overflowing with beautiful blossoms. It definitely added to the surreal feeling I experienced walking along the Boat Basin.

My sister gave me a rundown of what the Island would be like as she had visited several years ago, but there is no comparison to the actual experience as you walk the Wharf areas and the Boat Basin itself, stroll the cobbled streets and shops in Downtown Nantucket and see some of the outlying island area such as Sisconset. For those you who live in New England and may visit Cape Cod and the Islands, I'm sure I'm boring you to tears, but for me it was truly a treat to see Nantucket!







One other aspect of Nantucket that held true from all of the photos I saw online while planning my trip, was the many bikes you'll find sitting idle against the lightposts and trees around the docks and throughout Downtown Nantucket.





Walking along the docks of Old South Wharf you'll find many shops scattered throughout. My favorite aspect of the shops had to be the colorful flags blowing in the breeze hanging outside almost every shop along the dock. The flags and all of the beautiful flowers and bushes added such charm to this whole experience. This particular image below is one of the main walkways boasting many a flag and is arguably one of my favorite photographs from my trip. I took some of these photos before the storm and some after. This image I photographed in late afternoon to capture the beautiful colors of all of the flags.



The oddity in my day trip to Nantucket surely was the weather. As we pulled away from Hyannisport, fog shrouded the Kennedy Compound. As we neared the Island, dark clouds loomed in the west. After departing the Ferry and walking about the Boat Basin and throughout the immediate downtown area, lightning and thunder began to break out and a huge downpour followed. Many streets and some shops were flooded. I held up in a shop happy to be out of the weather. I had had the foresight, however, to bring my umbrella. Something told me the weather was going to be iffy. As the rain let up I would trapse between shops. At one bike shop, the guys were literally sweeping waves of water out of the shop and down into the gutters. After about an hour of this scenario, the rain stopped, the sun began to peek out from behind the clouds and low and behold the rest of the afternoon and evening was beautiful. Again, surreal.

I invite you to click on each image to view a larger version. ENJOY!