hikes
A Cloudy And Dreary Morning Hike in Fort Washington State Park.
I was hoping to observe, and photograph, some migratory song birds on my first visit to Fort Washington State Park. My hopes were somewhat dashed when I got up early Saturday morning to cloudy skies and light rain in the forecast. I wasn’t going to sit in my hotel room, so after a couple of…
Read MoreSpring Flowers, Song Birds And Sunshine On A Sunday Morning In The Susquehanna Wetlands.
After my visit to Fort Washington State Park last Friday, I returned to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Salem Township Luzerne County last Sunday. It was a chilly 45 degrees when I arrived. But it is Spring and I found many flowers blooming and song birds singing on my usual five mile hike. It was a…
Read MoreBirds, Blossoms And Blue Sky At The Canal In Walnutport in Northampton County
I returned to the peaceful and scenic Walnutport Canal Spur Trail for a hike on Saturday. And, for the record, the quaint town of Walnutport is located in Northampton County, not Lehigh County, as I stated in my previous blog post. A reader corrected me, and please, I am an amateur at this so please…
Read MoreBlue Skies, Brilliant April Sunshine But Some Cold Canadian Air At The Susquehanna Wetlands.
The skies were a deep blue and there was brilliant April sunshine when I returned to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Luzerne County on Friday afternoon. However, it was cold, the temperatures were in the mid 40’s with a strong northwesterly wind. The wind made it feel much colder. It felt more like a day in…
Read MoreA Lovely First Day Of May At Leaser Lake In Lehigh County.
I returned to scenic Leaser Lake, nestled below the Blue Mountain in Lehigh County last Sunday. It was just my second visit. It was a beautiful start to the month of May. It was a bit chilly with temperatures in the mid 40’s. The skies were mostly clear and the strong May sun soon warmed…
Read MoreGoslings, A Bald Eagle And Tadpoles: It’s Spring At Community Park
One of my favorite sights every Spring is the appearance of the Canada geese goslings on our lakes and ponds here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. This year my first sighting of these fuzzy balls of downy feathers was two weeks ago on a hike at the local Community Park near my home in Luzerne County. It…
Read MoreA Magical Mother’s Day Morning In May That Ends With A Morel Or Two
I awoke early on Sunday. I had a busy morning planned. My Facebook page reminded me it was Mother’s Day. I shared a post and this photos of my mom as a child. She didn’t know her mom long, she died when she was ten, not long after this photo was taken. This is mom…
Read MoreBlue Skies, Sunshine And Some Critters At Community Park.
These past few weeks we had a lot of clouds and rain here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Not this week. We had clear blue skies and sunshine for three days in a row. On Thursday. some cumulus clouds formed in the blue skies. It was still a bit cool on Monday afternoon, when I took my…
Read MoreThe Wetlands Are Alive With Lush New Growth And The Songs Of Birds.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to take my now routine hike in the Susquehanna Wetlands in Luzerne County on Friday afternoon. There was rain in the forecast. The skies were cloudy and threatening. However, I still had to do my grocery shopping at the Weis market in Berwick. I have been shopping there…
Read MoreSpring Visitors At The Greater Hazleton Rails To Trails, I Hope Some Of Them Stay
Rain was in the forecast again last Saturday here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. It was cloudy with a light drizzle when I decided to hike on the local Rails to Trails near my home in Hazle Township, Luzerne County. I wasn’t expecting to take photos on my hike because of the rain. I took my camera…
Read MoreNo Bears But A Lot Of Migratory Birds And A Snake At The State Game Lands in Dennison Township
After my hikes on Friday and Saturday I knew the migratory birds were passing through our woodlands here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. I was looking forward to my Sunday hike to try and see and photograph some more of these beautiful long distance travelers. The question was, where? I haven’t seen a black bear this Spring.…
Read MoreFog, Summer Heat And Some Critters At The Susquehanna Wetlands In Salem Township.
The forecast called for sunshine and record high temperatures here in Northeastern Pennsylvania on Saturday. I was up early and headed to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Salem Township in Luzerne County. It was sunny at my home in Hazle Township. I drove the 20 miles to the wetlands expecting clear skies but instead I found…
Read MoreMay Is A Great Month To Hike On The Greater Hazleton Rails To Trail
Last week I decided to hike the local Greater Hazleton Rails to Trail near my home in Luzerne County. It was dreary and overcast but I was surprised with the amount and variety of migrating song birds I saw on my five mile hike. There were birds fluttering in the trees all along the trail.…
Read MoreSpring Green, Critters And Flowers At Community Park In Hazle Township
I was able to get in a hike every afternoon after work this past week at the Community Park near my home in Hazle Township Luzerne County. For those of you who are first time viewers of my blog, there are a lot of blog posts about this wonderful park and it’s history. You can…
Read MoreA Rainy And Wet Walk In The Susquehanna Wetlands And An Encounter With A Mommy Snapping Turtle
It was another Saturday with rain in the forecast here in Luzerne County in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Last Saturday I avoided the rain. Not this week. I drove to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Salem Township because my interpretation of the radar maps led me to believe the rain would miss this area. I was wrong. It…
Read MoreEurope Day Two: Ireland. A Delay, A Missed Flight And I Got To A Stay In Dublin For A Night
Ireland and Dublin were on my bucket list but I wasn’t planning on visiting on this trip. I was on my way to Budapest, Hungry or so I thought when I boarded my United flight in Newark, New Jersey. It was at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday evening. After a 4 1/2 hour delay, in the…
Read MoreI’m Getting To Really Like Beautiful Leaser Lake In Lehigh County
I decided to hike around Leaser Lake in Lehigh County again last Sunday. This was my third visit to this lake at the foot of the Blue Mountain near the Schuylkill and Lehigh County border. It is about the same distance form my home in Luzerne County as is my favorite hiking trail in the…
Read MoreEurope Day Three: Finally A Walk On The Streets Of Budapest, Hungary
It was another long day of travel on my journey to Budapest, Hungary. There were long delays at security and I was advised to be at the Dublin airport 4 hours before my 8 a.m. flight. I did avoid the long security lines but it still made for a long day. I flew into Zurich…
Read MoreEurope Day Four: Budapest Hungary. Exploring Margaret Island And Shoes On The Danube.
I slept eleven hours my first night in Budapest. I was refreshed when I awoke at 7 a.m. and decided to walk to Margaret Island located on the Danube River. I only decided to make this trip ten days in advance of my flight so I did not have time to research the history of…
Read MoreEurope Day Four: Hungary: A Beautiful June Evening In The Castle District In Budapest
As I noted in my previous blogs, the Castle District in Budapest, Hungary is situated on a hill above the Danube River, overlooking the town of Pest to the east, and the Buda hills to the west. In addition to the beautiful views there is so much history associated with this once enclosed fortress. I…
Read MoreEurope Day Five. Exploring The Streets And Neighborhoods Of Budapest
I awoke Saturday, my second morning in Budapest, to find a heavy rain falling. The rain continued for a few hours so I had a good breakfast at the hotel, drank some coffee and edited some photos. Around 9 a.m. the rains ended. The skies were still cloudy and threatening as I left the…
Read MoreEurope Days Five And Six: Hungary . My Last Evening And Morning Hikes Through The Streets Of The Castle District in Budapest.
After my long hike on Saturday morning , exploring the streets of Budapest, I returned to the Budapest Hilton Hotel atop the Castle District overlooking the city . I spent the afternoon editing the many photos I took and reading a little about the history of the city. By late afternoon I was hungry, in…
Read MoreBack In The Woods Of Northeastern Pennsylvania. I Missed Them, Especially The Susquehanna Wetlands
I returned to beautiful Northeastern Pennsylvania on Saturday, after a trip to Hungary and Slovakia, ( it was a last minute trip with the hope of finding the villages of two of my great great grandparents, you can read about it in my blog archives if you want to learn more). On Sunday, despite the…
Read MoreEurope Day Six: Hungary To Slovakia. A Scenic And Informative Three Hour Drive With A Stop In Historic Holloko
After my Sunday morning walk I had breakfast at the Hilton Hotel in Budapest, Hungary, packed and checked out of my hotel at 10 a.m. I was leaving Hungary and my driver , Marek was waiting to transport me to the Slovakian city of Kosice. I would stay here for five days, hoping to find…
Read MoreIt’s Been Awhile, A Couple Of June Hikes In Community Park
A lot has changed since my last visit to the Community Park near my home in Hazle Township Luzerne County. I was away for a couple of weeks. The last time I was here many of the trees still were leafless. When I returned Monday afternoon I found all of the trees covered with lush…
Read MoreEurope Day Seven: Slovakia. A Morning Walk In Old Town Kosice And Beautiful Mestsky Park
The weather was perfect when I awoke early my first morning in Kosice, Slovakia. It was my first full day in the native country of some of my ancestors. The skies were clear, calm, deep blue, with a pleasant temperature in the low 60’s. Perfect walking weather. So, after a cup of coffee I was…
Read MoreA Weasel, A Chipmunk And Some Birds On A Cool And Cloudy June Hike At The Susquehanna Wetlands.
It was a cool, cloudy and very windy June day when I woke up Saturday morning. The 58 degree temperature seemed much colder with the strong northwesterly wind. The weather didn’t discourage me from driving the 20 miles to the Susquehanna Wetlands in Salem Township in Luzerne County. I wasn’t expecting to see a lot…
Read MoreEurope Day Seven. Slovakia: An Afternoon Walk In Kosice.
After my morning walk in Kosice, Slovakia, I had a late and hearty breakfast at the hotel and rested a bit while I caught up with editing the many photographs I was taking. Around 2 p.m. I decided to venture out again. I had hoped to walk to the Hornad River which flows through the…
Read MoreEurope Day Eight: Slovakia: A Hike In The Hills Outside Of Kosice.
On Tuesday morning, my second full day in in Slovakia, I decided to hike in the woodlands near Kosice. I didn’t rent a car, as originally planned, on this trip (I got my first International Divers license for the trip). I had arranged, on Wednesday, for a driver to take me to look for…
Read MoreMountain Laurel And Song Birds: A Hike To The Tank Hollow Overlook In Carbon County
It is late June, and that means the mountain laurel are blooming here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Mountain laurel is our State Flower. It’s white, and pinkish flowers can be seen throughout the mountains of Pennsylvania. in mid to late June. However, the intensity of the bloom varies from year to year. Last year was not…
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