Orange you glad they showed up?

I know I am!

Welcome back my orange friend : )

 

Where’s the Mrs. anyway?

Never mind, I can see your busy eating your first orange in a while. I’ll just keep an eye out for her.

 

Have you seen the Hummingbirds in your travels?  They should be coming along any moment now . . .

Lets Eat!

I’m thinking some Crab would be good right about now . . .

 

 

 

Hmmm . . . what next?

Maybe some Mussels . . .

 

Life is good for a sea rat like myself

 Yeah, I think I’m full.  For now anyway.

Aren’t I a looker?

See Ya!!!

Morning Walk

This morning I took a walk at our local Waste Water Treatment plant, something I’ve wanted to do for a while now but wasn’t sure it was permitted.  However, there was another gentlemen walking his dog there so I figured it would be okay. No ‘Keep Out’ signs anywhere either so we were legal : )

Since the Treatment plant borders a river and marsh I figured I would see a lot more birds than I did.  Nope.  Spotting these Double-crested Cormorants resting on a couple guide wires was a nice find though.  When they hang out with their wings spread is the best but they didn’t seem to be in the mood for wing spreading.

I also saw my first Barn Swallow of the season.  Pictures? Are you kidding? He was flying so fast I couldn’t even follow him.  It was surprising that there weren’t more of them due to the huge quantity of bugs!  Not so sure I’ll be able to walk there much longer without the threat of being eaten alive.

 

 And a beautiful view in the water.  At the plant this is just one of several ponds being treated.

It was a very nice, peaceful way to start the day and a gorgeous week-end. As I get older I find the first couple hours in the morning seem to be the ones I cherish the most each day, especially on days when I can get outside. If only every day could be this nice

Sunset on the river

Sunday morning with the Osprey

Sunday morning was beautiful, though rather cool, as I bundled up and headed for the local Osprey nest on Squamscott River (Great Bay) in hopes of getting a few decent pictures. About a week ago I noticed the pair had returned to the nesting site, and from what I could see from the road, seemed pretty active. Sure enough . . .

 

What gorgeous birds to see up close. I was in awe of their size and the sounds of their wings flapping as they flew overhead. Incredible!

The Osprey are obviously still in the breeding season as he demonstrated several times during my visit. One can only hope this will be a successful nesting season with fledging young.

According to the Great Bay Osprey Stewards, who monitor all the local nests (I had no idea there were so many in the area until I did some research), last year was the first time this nest has failed to raise any young in it’s 16 year history.

 

Several times the Osprey flew off into the distance and returned carrying a long piece of grass to add to the nest. Things need to be spruced up just right after a long, harsh winter

Making way for a family

 

 

Adjacent to my house sits some large, old, dead, or almost dead trees, a favorite with all the birds especially the Woodpeckers, Nut Hatches, or anything looking for bugs.  Quite often when I hear or see the Pileated Woodpeckers (love their call) this is where they are.  Thursday afternoon was no exception.

Look at her sitting there.  She kept going around back, playing hide and seek! At one point she completely disappeared leaving me to wonder, “Where did you go girl?”

Search, search, search . . . .

Oh my gosh, this is where she went! Isn’t she beautiful??? Talk about excited!  Joy oh Joy!  We’re going to have Pileated babies!  What a treat that will be!

Mrs. Pileated kept flying in and out.  At times she would throw some sawdust out of the hole leading me to believe the house is still under construction.  I only stayed a few minutes so as not to disturb her too much.  Wouldn’t want to scare them away!

Yesterday morning I went back over to see what was going on at the nest.  This time is was Mr. Pileated doing all the work.  He was a diligent worker too!   Ya gotta love a man who knows how to provide for his lady.

 

‘And don’t come back, you hear!!!’

I really am thrilled about this as the Pileated’s are one of my favorite birds. How can you not be in awe of their size and regal looks? Every couple days I’ll check in on them to see how they are progressing.  Judging by a couple other holes in the same tree I would say they have nested there in the past.  How on earth did I miss that?

Have a great Saturday!

Chance Moment

 

This really was a chance moment. On my way to work one morning last week I happened to be crossing the General Sullivan bridge over the Piscatiqua River. As I looked left I noticed a lobstah boat headed out towards the bridge and the open ocean. Unsure whether or not I could get to the edge of the water in time I decided to do my best.

Once parked I jumped out, looked towards the bridge and thought, “Where’s the boat!” Guess it was going a little slower than I thought, or I was really hurrying! Finally it made an appearance.

This is my Watery Wednesday contribution. Hope you enjoy it : )

A couple points worth noting: The currents under the General Sullivan bridge are some of the strongest currents on the East Coast. They can be very dangerous and a boater needs to know how to navigate them. Also the green steel bridge in the background has been closed for many years now. It’s currently used by fisherman, walkers, or bikers.

 

Just about to head 'round the bend and out of sight

Scarponi Cider Mill

 

It’s just what you’ve been looking for: a Cider Mill on 1/2 acre of land.  Beautiful location, just off the bay, with a gradual sloping landscape. 

A ‘fixer-upper’ to be sure

 

Or maybe a ‘teardown-and-rebuild-againer’

yeah, I think that’s it

Okay, so maybe it slopes a little more than you would hoped for  but you could always build some fancy extreme home that spans the brook.  But it is only a half acre.  What can you do with a half acre in this shape?

There wasn’t much of anything inside except a bunch of rusty old junk, far to dangerous to walk around in.  The building looks like it’s ready to crumble at any moment.  I’d say it’s been home to many a critter through the years! 

Great old Mill though, if I do say so myself.