"Photos Courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey"

Cohasset, MA
(click on any pictures for a larger view)

"Photos Courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey." That doesn't mean I didn't take them... I did. I just took them while at work, in an airplane, 500 ft over the coast.

Last week I was in the Northeast. I started by calling this trip the "New England 2009" trip because it was a repeat of the Oct 2000 trip we took to photograph the New England coast. That didn't really seem to fit this trip in the end, as only about half of the survey was in New England. So it soon became the Northeast Trip 2009. Same initials "NE", larger area. 9,755 pictures later we had updated our data base for that area. No that's not a typo. 9,755 pictures... in three days. We averaged 3,250 pictures a day, but when you consider that the first day was shortened by equipment trouble and we only got 1,970 pictures the first day... it's a little more impressive. On the last day, slightly behind schedule, we pushed to finish the distance and took a record 4,676 in one day. We almost ran out of disk space.

In stead of basing out of a particular airport or Coast Guard Station each day, we flew until the light conditions deteriorated (which was about 3:00 in the afternoon, latest), found a place to stay for the night, then the next morning, got up and kept going. That had two distinct advantages. One, we didn't have much, if any, transit time during each days survey. We were near where we wanted to start each morning (at least in theory) and when we finished we didn't have to fly back to where we started. Two, we could go a lot further over all, since we didn't have to change our base of operations midway through the trip, like we did in 2000. We took everything we needed with us on the plane. Of course the plane had to ferry back home after we'd finished, but he could go straight and at speed, rather then along the coast and at 80 mph.

Knox County Airport, ME
On this trip we started at Rockland, Maine, flying in a Cessna Stationaire 207. The airport at Rockland has two runways. A commercial airline, Cape Air, flies into Rockland 3 times a day from Boston. They have a small building, one counter, a metal detector... and 12 full time TSA employees. Did I mention they get 3 flights from and to Boston a day. Now, I'm all for security, but 12 (!) full time TSA, standing around waiting for flights at 10:30 am, 3:30 pm and 7:30 pm. The people who fly out of Rockland end up in the secure areas of US air travel system. So, yeah, they need to be checked, but that seems a little like over kill. But I digress.

Cape Elizabeth, ME
We started the actual survey at Portland, Maine, flying south and shooting with a digital still camera out the copilots open window. The coast of Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts (north of Boston) is rocky and spotted with pocket beaches. South of Boston there are sandy beaches and tall bluffs.

We went all the way down to the Cape Cod Canal and then flew out to Provincetown. We flew down the outer Cape to Monomoy Island, out to Nantucket and Martha's Vinyard, before returning to Chatham and flying the southern exposure of the Inner Cape. From there we headed across the south Massachusetts shore and across Rhode Island to the Connecticut border before turning south to Montauk Point on Long Island. The Long Island coast was nearly all sandy shore. Flying it became much easier then the curvy, rocky New England coast. We headed from the west end of Long Island to Sandy Hook, New Jersey, through Maryland, Delaware and Virginia, to the North Carolina border, where we had started our survey last May... And every day the weather was fantastic. The worst we had was high hazy clouds that softened the shadows and dimmed the sun, but only a little.

Truro, Cape Cod, MA
We used a brace to hold the window open. I was mostly out of the wind. Cheryl wasn't. She got the wind full force and full cold. The first day was the worst in terms of cold. When we landed for lunch Cheryl's fingers were numb. We landed in Falmouth on the first night, early, after loosing our GPS signal. We weren't able to get it back while in the air, but once on the ground we shut everything down and when we restarted it, the GPS was back. Cheryl and Emily were able to go home that night, sleep in their own beds and get more warm cloths, which they didn't need as much of on the last day. Each day was progressively warmer. On the second day of the survey we had lunch on Martha's Vinyard and spent the night in the Hamptons. Like Cheryl said, how many USGS geologists can make that claim? We got up early on Thursday and continued west along Long Island. Had lunch in Ocean City, NJ and finished at the North Carolina border around 3:00. We couldn't have gone much farther. We were very close to getting shadows on the beach. The only thing that saved us was that there was no water behind the beaches to reflect the sun back into the camera.

Indian Point, ME
I love flying this part of the coast, it's so unlike the sandy southern US coastlines. Maine, New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts' coasts are alternately rocky, then sandy, then composted of high bluffs of glacial material. It's absolutely gorgeous. Cape Cod is the remains of a terminal glacial moraine. North to Race Point, Provincetown and south along the Monomy Islands, are all depositional sand spits. In the middle of that part of the Cape are tall bluffs of eroding material that are retreating steadily. It's my favorite part of the trip. I grew up going to the Cape every summer with my family. I did my senior research project as an undergraduate was on it's geologic history. Being able to fly over it, and this was the second time, is just gravy on this job. The Rhode Island coast is a lot like Maine; rocky, with large pocket beaches and mansions that make your typical "McMansion" look like a hovel. Long Island is also a terminal glacial moraine and began the long run of sandy shoreline toward the south. While I was able to comment on the geology of Cape Cod, Cheryl explained the history of Long Island. Long Island is Cheryl's forte. She was able to not only tell us about the erosional history and concerns, but a lot of the political controversies that rage on the island today. Much of her recent research has focused on Long Island. Since Cheryl grew up in New Jersey, we also heard the tales of her mischievous teenaged beach adventures.

Humpback Whales, Provincetown, Cape Cod, MA

One of the best things about the trip was one sight that had nothing to do with coastal processes. I dubbed it a "non-coastal feature". Off the coast of Provincetown there was a small pod of Humpback whales, including calves. I'd been whale watching once from Provincetown. It was pretty neat. This beat that trip. We spotted the whales as we came around the northern curve of the Provincetown spit. In 17 years of flying in Maine from the mainland to the islands our pilot had never seen whales. We all looked at Cheryl. This was her gig. "Well, as long as we're here..." We took two loops around them. I think they were as curious about us as we were about them. The mother, more then once, turned her white belly up trying to get a look at us, while we took pictures of her.

It was an amazing trip. We only took still images. No video this time. Cheryl didn't see the need for video, and since this was her project, she made the call. It was the first time I'd worked with Cheryl, even though I've known her for 10 years. It was a hoot. It was great to meet Emily as well. We made up the first "all girl" flight crew from the USGS. Our pilot said he felt right at home. He and his wife raised two girls. So he was used to hanging around women. I'm hoping that it won't be another 9 years before we fly this area again. They don't get many hurricanes up there. They do get Nor'easters, which can be as devastating as a hurricane to both the beaches and the infrastructure. I do know one thing. If they get a storm this summer, or next winter, we're ready. And I'd be glad to go back and fly it again.

Chatham, Cape Cod, MA

Rain!

We got some... a little, well, not very much at all, really, but Rain! It lasted about 5 minutes and probably won't even register in a rain gauge. Tough. We got Rain! And north of us, like two counties north, they actually had flood warnings this afternoon. Famous Florida Thunderstorm in May. Very heavy and very stationary. Lasts 30 minutes, or an hour, and dumps five inches of rain in one spot. That is a you-can't-see-across-the-street heavy rain. A Florida staple. Unfortunately, it's been so long since we had any rain that most of that will probably just run off. The ground is too dry for it to sink in.

But not our rain... we didn't get enough to have it run off. Well, it did rain hard enough to run off the roof. But that's OK. It soaked in around the house. We have to start somewhere. I'll take the small showers.

Big summer thunderstorms start with mini May showers that pass briefly by.

Be Careful What You Wish For...

Friends? Well, maybe. We do keep catching them sitting together. Touching even.


Some days, Mara seems annoyed that Nyala is so close. Other days they are sound asleep, side by side.


Next thing you know Nyala's sleeping with her face buried in Mara's belly.

When Mara was young, she always wanted to be close to Tina. Tina never really wanted any part of it. Now the table is turned. Nyala wants to sleep with Mara. Mara, on the other hand isn't always so sure. Usually it starts with Mara sleeping somewhere. Nyala slips in, and snuggles up next to her. There's some grumping and swatting, but with luck, Nyala will settle in for a nap.


All too often it devolves quickly. Nyala was raised without a Mom-cat. She and Brother were left to themselves until they were six weeks old, with only a human-mom-surrogate. There was no one to tell them "don't jump on me (swat)" every time they woke up. So that's what they did. Every minute of every hour they were awake, they were chewing on one another. That's what kittens do. When Nyala came home, that's how she approached Mara, as a giant chew-toy, just like Brother. Mara was none too happy about that.

Things have gotten a little better since then.


Nyala still chews on Mara.


Sometimes she puts up with it for a a few minutes. In the end, Mara usually gets up and leaves. After all, with kittens, there is always some chewing before sleeping. Mara's patience has grown. She even chews back, sometimes.


In the meantime, there are chases around the house. Sometimes it's Nyala doing the chasing... and sometimes, with tail high and ears forward, it's Mara. I think she likes having someone to play with who is her own size. What's more, when the chasing is done, Mara has someone to nap with, if Nyala would only stop chewing on her.


So you get your wish, Mara. Sadly, you are the big cat now, and someone wants to sleep with you.


Maybe, one day, she might even learn some manners. And that wouldn't be all that bad... would it?

Hope...

Hope. It is why we are here tonight. Hope for others, hope for ourselves, hope for the future. It is a group none of us want to be part of, and yet, with each new member, we open our hearts, our arms and our lives. Hope walks around around this track all night. You can hear it in our voices. Hawkers calling wares to raise money. Babbles and games... Cakes and coffee. All for a good cause, the cause that brings us together at this time, on this night, for this purpose. In many places, on this night, there are walkers. In each place dark skies hover over lit fields. The lights, like a barrier against fear, comfort our hearts, warm our spirits and accompany our steps. We are many people, we have one purpose: Victory. And on the way to that victory we share love and companionship, support and strength, joy and peace, and sorrow for those who can no longer walk, those in whose place we walk together... with Hope for a Cure.

Back Yard Visitor...

We had (well, still have, while I write this) a visitor in the back yard this afternoon. He's sleeping in the Ficus tree, where there is all sorts of leaf litter and twigs, caught in the space between the trunks. Poor guy sounds like he has a cold, he's coughing and sneezing. The tree makes a nice nest for him. The neighbors dog woke him up. He's been out there for several hours now, just sleeping.
















This is his "night". I've never been that close to a sleeping raccoon before. Just like the cats, he's lying upside-down... and you could see his whiskers twitching. Makes you wonder what Raccoon dream about when they sleep.

Avian Paparazzi

A bald eagle is a marvelous creature. Especially in flight.

There is an eagle's nest on the way to work. It resides in a cemetery in St Petersburg, FL. At a time when our wild lands are disappearing, being torn down for development, this nest sits in a place where no one dare disturb it. Generations of guardians stand silent vigil, on sacred ground. In the middle of a city, calm prevails. The pair could not have picked a better spot. They laid their eggs on Dec 12. The stake out began then.



I had seen a number of pictures from a friend who had been visiting the nest. Finally I asked him where it was. Turned out I drive by all the time. I visited the nest for the first time on the morning of the coldest day of the year, before sunrise. It was worth it. The sky was clear and the moon a sliver in the brightening sky. One of the birds was perched in a dead pine tree a few yards from the nest's tree. He sat there, noble and graceful, waiting to greet the sunrise.










Since then I've stopped by once or twice a week. More often then not, one or another of the adults is perched nearby. Posing. At the beginning of February we stopped by the nest with visitors from Massachusetts. The sun was out, the pine tree the nest is in a striking green against the crystalline, cloudless, blue sky. When I offered to show our guests the nest, I had crossed my fingered that at least one of the adults would be there and visible. They didn't disappoint. In fact, both adults sat near or on the nest. About a dozen photographers stood on the ground near by, an assortment of lens pointed skyward, hoping to catch the perfect shot. Our visitors loved it. They had never seen an eagles nest, nor eagles that close.

Most days I visit the nest the adults are nearby, without feeling a need to be anywhere else. Generally this is good, because it gives me a chance to get a number of shots, and to sit an enjoy the view. It wasn't until a week ago I actually saw one of the fly off, on some errand only he understood. I didn't have the camera that day. I was going to have to come back.



Two days ago, I stopped by the nest on the way home from work. It was another crystal blue day. When I got to the nest site, two other photographers were there. Both of them had much larger lenses then I did. They looked like pros, and I felt a little like an amateur, hoping for a snapshot, while they were there for portraits. I didn't see anyone on the nest at first, but wandered over to the two fellows anyway. "Anybody home?" I asked. "You can see the chick..." and I could, from their vantage point. "... the adults should be back soon, they just flew off". I got a few pictures of the chick and waited, I didn't have any more then 5 minutes. Then it started, "Here he comes." one of them said, pointed east, and we were off like paparazzi snapping pictures of an approaching celebrity. Each one of us jockeying for position as he got closer, ducking behind trees on the way, dropping his feet for balance as he wheeled first right then left. My camera was set on multi-shot, full auto. Press and hold the shutter button, 3 frames per second, the camera does the rest. The sun was behind us. The light was perfect. 5 seconds later, 10 shots... with each one the eagle flew closer... He banked around an oak tree with a flash of great brown wings and I lost him. He was only checking on the nest.

There's always a tradeoff when watching life through the lens of a camera. You can miss the details right beside you while focusing only on what's in front. But sometimes, you can use that camera to get a different perspective. One you might not normally see. And find yourself a member of a group you never expected to join... hunting national symbols in a graveyard, through the lens of a camera, capturing the beginning of life, while you're surrounded by memories of the dead.

Found a Visa....

On my way over to the gym I found a visa card on the ground, on the sidewalk. Don't even remember the name. June Throughgood or something. I picked it up and looked around. No one near. I turned it in to the Director of the Gym, who checked his student list of Campus Activities Center users, then turned it over to campus police when he couldn't find her.

The card was unsigned. I've never been a fan of that. People claim that if the card is lost or stolen someone can't forge their signature from the one on the back of the card. Of course someone dishonest could then sign it and use it. Of course the signatures would match in that case. Not smart in my book. Stores don't check for a second ID if it's signed. They barely check the back anyway to see if its even signed to begin with, never mind if the signatures match even remotely. I've also seen people who "sign" the back of their card with "Check ID" or "Check Drivers License". Still not a sound practice in my book. Fake Id's are still easy to make. All it needs it to be convincing.

When I was working at a kiosk in the Mall I got a call from a credit card company investigating some fraudulent charges on a card that had passed through my cart. Strangely enough, I remembered the kid, maybe 17 or 18, and his friends. They were purchasing a necklace, somewhat pricey, but not overly so. I don't know what tipped me off to remember them. I think it was the fact that at the time, now more then 15 years ago, a teenager with a credit card was somewhat unusual. A teenager buying that particular necklace seemed a little out of place. So I looked at the signature closely. I remember thinking, it's a little off, but not that far. Who among us signs receipts exactly the same way as on the tiny back of the slippery plastic cards? I let it go through. I didn't think at the time to ask for another ID. Identity theft had not yet reached the epic proportions we "enjoy" today. When I got the call from the credit card company the woman on the other end was vaguely condescending, toward me, and a little racist toward the teenager. I made it clear I didn't share her view, of either of us. Turned out they had caught the kid. He'd stolen the card from an adult acquaintance. She was fishing for evidence to press charges. I told her I remembered him, and questioning the signature. I never did hear anything about it again.

When I found the card today, my first thought was "Oh, someone is going to be upset. They're going to be frantic..." I know, I've been there all too recently. It's not a nice feeling. It'll ruin your day. I considered calling the 800 number myself and reporting it "found" so that they could close the account. I figured that wouldn't work either. So I gave it to someone I figured would do the right thing with it. Wish I'd thought of the campus police myself. I will next time. Even if they don't find the owner of the card, at least I can feel good knowing I might have saved someone a lot of hassle from a misused card. Guess that's my good Samaritan deed for the day.... It's what I would want someone to do it they found my credit card on the sidewalk.