Sunset ~ Moonrise

Yesterday afternoon I told my husband the only thing I wanted to do was watch the moon rise over the ocean. After dinner we headed to New Castle for an ice cream at the Ice House, with the intent of watching the moon come up by the Portsmouth Harbor lighthouse. Looking at the compass on my iPhone my husband didn't think we'd have an optimal view so he suggested we head down toward the beach.

Driving over the bridge next to the Wentworth by the Sea marina, I looked out towards Portsmouth to catch a spectacular sunset over the water. Just to the left of the sunset (I know it's hard to see the yellow house) sits the Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion. A beautiful place to visit on a warm day.




Within a few minutes we were on Rt. 1a parked near Pebble Cove motel. From this beach you can walk along next to the ocean over to Odiorne Point. I thought it would be a great place to see the moon rise!



Looking south towards Rye











You can expect to see a lot more Queen Anne's Lace in coming posts. It cannot be helped.




Slowly but surely the sky was getting darker. Moonrise was supposed to be at 9:02 so we knew we'd have to wait a little bit longer.







8:30 . . . the mosquitos started attacking. My husband seemed to be the object of their affection too! With 1/2 an hour to go we just couldn't wait. The bugs were brutal.



Just another shot looking toward Odiorne state park on the left. Portsmouth Harbor lighthouse is on the right, identified by the little green light on the horizon.

Now we had to book it back to the car and try for the third time to find a place to view the moon!

As luck would have it we made it to Jenness beach in the nick of time. I jumped out of the car and started shooting. Most of my shots were pretty poor seeing as how it was now dark outside but I managed to get a few decent images. Here's one . . .






And yes, it really was that orange!

Thanks for coming along with us! I hope you enjoyed Saturday night all over again. The evening was so relaxing for my husband and I, and we needed a little 'us' time.

Did you see the full moon this week-end? I hope so!

Lighthouses on the coast

Did you think I wasn't coming back? I wasn't so sure either. Lately every time I post on my blog I wonder, "will this by my last time?". December has taken a toll on me and it seems when ever I sit down at the computer to look at my photos I just go blank. Sorting them, deciding which ones to use for a post, editing, trying to find the words ... nothing seems right. Hopefully the new year will give me some renewed energy because right now I'm sorely lacking.

Though I normally photograph something almost every day, lately my camera usually sits on the counter, all by it's lonesome. My new job is still causing me some insomnia so I imagine that's not helping the situation.

Anyway, enough about all that. Last week, on my way to go Christmas shopping, I decided to take a detour and head to New Castle Commons in hopes of lifting my spirits. The view was so lovely but it was so cold at the same time. I stayed inside my car for all of the shots below.

No, this home isn't located at New Castle Commons but it was so quaint I had to pull over and take a shot or two. If it's this adorable on the outside don't you wonder what it looks like on the inside? I do!

Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse

It was a good thing I took these shots when I did because the snow had all but melted in the next couple hours.

Immature Ring-billed Gulls just chillin', literally

Whaleback Lighthouse

Like the most of the east coast we received a pretty decent snow storm last night into today. It was supposed to be a blizzard with 10"-18" but with all the blowing and drifting I don't know if we even had 7". For those of us expecting 'the big one' it was a rather weak storm. It's probably just as well seeing as how my daughter has to drive in it.

Do you have plans for New Years Eve?

Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion, continued

A few more photos from the Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion in Portsmouth, NH

In the Spring the Lilacs are supposed to put on quite a show here. Ahh, the smell of sweet, salty air . . .
Not to mention the sight of purple flowers contrasting against the golden mansion. It seems like a place I'd truly like to be come late May- early June. You should join me!

Looking out over the water towards New Castle. Just beyond the island and to the left of the bridge sits the Wentworth by the Sea Hotel.

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This anchor sits down by the water in front of the Mansion. Honestly I'm not sure what it symbolized. Yeah, bad reporting/blogging. Forgive me.
On the top of the anchor where the two cables crisscross sat a horrid spider. I refused to photograph it so Elise did instead. She was insistent, so here you go. Sorry about that.

And as I had mentioned before, here are some impromptu photos I took of Elise under that big, golden maple tree.

She's such a willing and playful model, I just love it!

After wards she took a few photos of me. My leaves-in-the-air didn't go as well as hers!

What a fun time the two of us had. I hope you enjoyed tagging along!

All within walking distance

I love a warm Summer’s morning.

I love Hydrangea’s. I love the ocean. I love a white picket fence.

I love that I can enjoy it all within walking distance in New Castle, NH.

 

 

I love this house

 

There’s a lot of love going on in this post . . .

 

*By the way, I don’t actually live in New Castle, though I wish I did. I have to drive to get there, but once I arrive it’s a wonderful place to walk around!

Early morning in New Castle

Don’t you love those Adirondack chairs? Imagine having that view on a daily basis, watching the boats come and go through the harbor, as well as the big tankers.

I’m just having fun messing around with Picnik. I like it so much that I subscribed for a year! Using Photoshop constantly is starting to wear on me, plus my younger daughter loves what she can do with Picnik and all her profile photos for facebook.

Don’t you love a juvenile Robin? Those spots are too cute!

My blog has been active for just over 2 years now, and as much as I hate to admit it, I’m starting to lose my drive. How much longer I’ll stay with it I’m not sure. Hopefully I’ll get a second wind, soon! 

Going to New Castle on a warm summer morning was something I loved doing last year, and went many times. This year I’ve yet to go. Of course lately it’s been so darned hot and humid in the morning that I don’t want to go anywhere! After last Summer’s month and a half of rain, I’m trying not to complain. Yesterday and the day before it was pretty brutal outside.

Speaking of Adirondack chairs, I’m about to paint ours, from a deep forest green to a red color. I’ll try to show it to you when I’m done. We’re also going to paint the house yellow (it’s a grey-green right now), re-stain the decks, and repaint the railings on the front porch. Just saying all that makes me sigh. Luckily my husband is quite ambitious.

Are you enjoying the Summer? Doing anything special? Is it blazing hot where you live, too?

Sunset/Lighthouse Cruise ~ The End

And so we journey to the end of a wonderful evening cruise. By this time is was getting pretty darned cold and I think most people had gone down onto the lower deck to try and get away from the wind. Once the sun finally set, all the photographers went down there as well.

Around this point there was a photographer frenzy on the boat. My husband said it was pretty intense. LOL! I just shot what I could and hoped for the best.




Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse and Fort Constitution, formerly known as Fort William and Mary




Whaleback Lighthouse ~ 1872








The sunsets behind Wentworth By the Sea hotel




Approaching Rye Harbor my husband looks out at the remains of an incredible sunset. Besides us, the people behind us were the only ones left on the upper deck, and they were wearing jackets.

Thank you for coming along with me and leaving such wonderful comments. In real time the trip was 2 1/2 hours long. In blog time it was much longer! LOL!

Magnolia by the Sea

A week or so ago I happened to be driving through New Castle past the Wentworth By The Sea, a grand hotel overlooking the ocean, built in 1874. Just for fun I thought I'd take a drive right past the front entrance when I saw this fantastic old Magnolia tree!

I have no idea exactly how old it is but judging by the size of it I'd say it's been around a long, long time. I'm actually surprised it survived the recent violent windstorm we had. I'm not really sure if you can see just how large it is but I'd say it's the biggest Magnolia I've ever seen around here.

For many years the Wentworth By The Sea sat empty. It was a pathetic, sad sight. We couldn't imagine anyone would ever restore it to it's current glory but they did. If you have a chance be sure to check out their website.

The tree is in a rather fragile state, held together by cables. The cables appear to have been there for quite a while too since the bark is growing around the bolts.

What a spectacular view from this very spot. Just imagine the sights this tree has seen throughout the years. I thought there might be a plaque somewhere giving some information about how old the tree was but I couldn't find one.

Now for a few updates:

*I apologize for being so absent lately. I've been having a major blogging block! Who knows why that happens but when it does I just have to go with it.


*Tonight I finally bought myself a Wacom Bamboo Fun Tablet to use with my laptop. I'm hopeful that it will help with my carpel tunnel. I can't use the mouse pad because ... well, I just can't. And using a regular mouse is too much clicking when I'm working on my photos. My niece who went to school for photography said they HAD to use a tablet so she suggested I try it. She uses a Wacom tablet so I did some research and it turns out people are very satisfied with it! I have to say though, as with anything else there is a bit of a learning curve. That is unless you happen to be a teenager, as my daughters will attest.


*Thank you for all your input on the birdcage! You too, Jay! For now I have decided to keep it black. Who knows, that may change at some point, but the black looks good for the moment.


* And finally, the Chickadee's didn't nest in the house : ( Tonight I finally pulled the nest out and left it on the ground. We have a pair of Bluebirds in the yard who I'm hoping will choose one of the houses to nest in! Whether or not they'll nest in a house with a previous birds nest I don't know but I don't want to take any chances. If they take up residence I'll be sure to let you know!

Mosaic Monday ~ Newcastle, NH

All of the following photos were taken last summer in Newcastle, NH. One of my favorite places to visit anytime of year!

For more wonderful mosaics check out Mary's Little Red House for Mosaic Monday participants.

Sanders Poynt

Remember when I said in my last post I was trying to get to New Castle/Great Island commons to take some sunrise photos? Well I was almost there when I just had to stop Sanders Poynt next the Wentworth By The Sea golf course. The clouds were absolutely amazing Saturday morning.

Way off in the distance are two breakwaters. One juts in from Fort Stark on the left while the other one comes in from Odiorne State Park on the right. Though they look like they are almost touching, they are actually quite a distance apart from one another.

I stood there and took picture after picture until finally I decided I better get to the park before the sunrise left me in the dust!