Morning Light at Vaill Point

 

Took a morning walk an hour after the sun had rise at Vaill Point Park.  The morning sun was shining through the trees casting a glow on the palm plants and river.  The water was still and shimmer with reflections of the clouds above. 

Salt Water Springs "Into Each Life Some Rain must Fall"

I took a quick trip to Salt Water Springs.  It was raining so there were very few people at the park.  It was lush with hanging moss, oak trees and flowing bluish green spring waters.  It has been a rainy week in Florida with many a thunder storm pounding the landscape.  The famous words "Into each life some rain must fall" is by poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  It was too wet to do any hiking but the scenery was beautiful even with dreary grey clouds.

The Rainy Day

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Morning Glory Rain

"The morning glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books."  Whitman, Walt
These morning glory flowers were growing outside my window so I took these pictures after a morning rain.

After a Morning Rain

After a morning rain.
the morning glory bows,
Rain droplets falling,
The dawn is breaking,
Sounds of leaves rustling
As the misty wind blows,
Clouds bathe in light,
The silent sun comes,
As treetops glistens,
A new day has begun. 

by PL Fallin

Gathering Storm Clouds South Ponte Vedra Beach

I am taking an Oil Painting Class with instructor Artist Linda Holmes at the Cultural Center in Ponte Vedra.  Driving on A1A is a very scenic coastal drive from St. Augustine to Ponte Vedra.  Today the massive thunder clouds over the ocean was astounding and I had to stop and take pictures.  I applied a dry brush technique to give the photos a painting effect.

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

These pictures were taken during the summer when we visited friends Tom and Melody in Marquette Michigan.  The Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is located is located on the south shore of Lake Superior in upper Michigan, between the communities of Munising (west) and Grand Marais (east).  It was a two hour boat tour and worth every minute.  We saw spectacular multicolored sandstone cliffs, pristine beaches, sand dunes, waterfalls, and caves.

Mt. Victoria - Wellington and Miramar Peninsula

 

 

Took a bus tour of Mt. Victoria and the Miramar Peninsula on a beautiful sunny day.  The view was spectacular in all directions.  Wellington was on the west side and the Miramar Peninsula was in the east. Later in the week, I drove the complete route around the Peninsula to see the beautiful bays of Seatoun.

Rimutaka Hills - Following the Yellow Brick Road

Driving the Wine Trail to Martinborough takes you through the winding Rimutaka Hills.  I am not an experience driver in mountain ranges, particularly with heavy commercial trucks passing me left and right and tail gating me.  This is the only road in the upper hut to travel to Martinborough.  I looked for alternate routes and there are not any.  I had the pleasure of traveling over the Rimutaka Hills twice.  It gave me courage and you have no where to go except to follow the 'yellow brick road.' 

"The yellow brick road,
a journey into the unknown.
Courage, brains, and a heart.

All we need to do is tap the ruby slippers
to reveal who we truly are. "

Pakuratahi Forest

 

 

The Upper Hut was scenic with the wine trail, Kaitoke National Park and Rimutaka Hills.  The Pakuratahi Forest covers the western side of the Rimutaka ranges north of Upper Hutt and includes lands in the Kaitoke basin as well as the main Pakuratahi catchment. The road into the forest was very rough and had many pot holes.  It was not maintained and the forest had been burned in several areas. On the opposite side of the forest was a valley of rolling hills and pastures. Most parts of the forest are isolated, exposed to wind and rain and without cellphone coverage.  The road was too damaged for our car to continue so we could not venture very far into the camp ground and hiking areas. 

Silencing Frogs at Frog Pond - Tales from The Shire

 

 

Frog Pond has a lot of frogs and they can be very noisy.  Shots for Lord of the Rings were interrupted due to the noisy frogs.. When filming for the Hobbit was about to commence, the frogs were all relocated. I didn't see that many frogs but it was a hot summer's day which reminds me of an Aesop's fable "The Frogs' Complaint Against the Sun" that explains why we only have one sun.

 

"ONCE UPON A TIME, when the Sun announced his intention to take a wife, the Frogs lifted up their voices in clamor to the sky. Jupiter, disturbed by the noise of their croaking, inquired the cause of their complaint. One of them said, "The Sun, now while he is single, parches up the marsh, and compels us to die miserably in our arid homes. What will be our future condition if he should beget other suns?"

Even though there are over 40 hobbit holes, tourist are only allowed to open one door, but as you would expect there is only dirt and some supporting timbers behind. Every hobbit yard was designed in detail with flower gardens, gates, mail boxes, tools, pottery, wood, and benches.  The doors are an array of different rainbow colors. The hobbit hole doors vary in size according to which actor has to be in the shot, so for example the actor who plays Samwise Gamgee is quite big, so his door was big.  Samwise Gamgee’s hobbit hole is the one with the yellow door.  Peter Jackson was meticulous with the set. Every day he got people to walk up to washing lines to tread a pathway in the long grass, so it looks Like hobbits have been using it. Each log on the piles had to be in the same place, so the set was constantly checked against photos so it looked the same.

The oak tree on top of Bag Ends is fake with thousands of leaves that had to be attached.  At least the leaves don't fall all over Bilbo Baggins Hobbit Hole!

Seatoun Coastal Drive's Blue Horizon

I drove the entire loop of the Seatoun and Miramar coasts.  Seatoun is an eastern suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. It is on the east coast of the Miramar Peninsula.  The coastline was rocky with dark sand against a blue horizon and deep blue sea. For summer, it was not crowded except on the weekends.  Very different from Florida's white sand beaches with people from all over the world.  Quiet, peaceful and serene and the array of blue on blue gave it perfect harmony.

 
The Tide Rises The Tide Falls
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The tide rises, the tide falls,
The twilight darkens, the curlew calls;
Along the sea-sands damp and brown
The traveller hastens toward the town,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
Darkness settles on roofs and walls,
But the sea the sea in the darkness calls;
The little waves, with their soft, white hands,
Efface the footprints in the sands,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls
Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls;
The day returns, but nevermore
Returns the traveller to the shore,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.