Snowy Tuesday morning

Thank goodness for the time change. Finally I am able to get up and out the door in time to catch the sunrise! 

Since the sky was cloudy when I awoke I didn't really rush, thinking there would be no sun anyway. Thankfully I arrived at the waters edge just in time.

What a great way to start the day! The air was pretty mild compared to what it has been. Eventually reaching the low 50's. 

 A total sweetheart. All she wanted to do was love on me.

After a few pictures at Jenness Beach and Rye Harbor I thought it would be nice to check in on the local resident Snowy Owl. Uh yeah, I think she's still here ...

Sometimes I wonder who's watching who. She seems quite oblivious to all the local paparazzi that visit on a daily basis. Every time I stop by people seem to be giving her a wide berth so as not to cause any stress. 

After shooting for a while then taking a few minutes in my car to warm up I decided to walk back over and see what she was up to. It was quite a sight to see, she was feasting on a bird she'd caught either earlier in the day or the night before. And though I shot some rather graphic images of her eating I felt it might be best to keep them out of this post. 

It's not difficult to tell she has quite a bit of blood on her front feathers, around her beak and eyes. This is all good because it means she isn't going hungry. Something that was of concern for some of the snowy owls along the east coast.

Once breakfast was consumed she started walking around and eating snow, which I didn't expect. A girl has got to get a drink somehow.

Finally, when the snowy was through pruning, snow eating, and scratching she decided to catch a little shut eye. All the while I looked on at how glorious she is, thinking how fleeting her time here will be. Any day could be her last before she heads back up north to Canada.

nap time = time to go home 

Beach stroll

Last Friday I enjoyed a beautiful late morning walk with a friend along the beach. Although I wasn't going to bring my camera along for the walk, my friend Karen encouraged me to grab it. I know how anxious she is to see a few of the shots I took, so Karen, here you go!

There's nothing like salty air, the rush of the waves, and a good friend to make everything else seem a million miles away.

One of my favorite things to photograph at the shore ... dogs. They always exude such joy. This very happy Golden Retriever had found a shell to call his own and was not going to give it up no matter what.

Brodie, above, was so darn sweet I wanted to bring him home! His mom and I were talking and it turns out her son and my daughter go to the same high school. It really is a small world here along the seacoast.

This little lady is a service dog who puts in time on a regular basis at a local retirement home. Jeff, her owner, spoke in such a loving way about his dog.  You could visibly see the bond between the two of them. 

While walking around Rye Harbor we came across this saying engraved into a large rock

Also in Rye Harbor ... a male merganser enjoying the warm sun. In all the time I've photographed mergansers I don't think I've ever seen one sitting on the beach.

Although I posted this in part for Karen I hope some of my regular readers enjoy it as well. It's been far to long since I've posted. Thank you for stopping by!

Afternoon by the ocean

Yesterday I had to go out to run an errand. Seeing as how it was Saturday, and my husband and I hadn't spent any time together all week, he decided to join me. After finishing up my errand I said I'd like to take a drive along the beach. It had been over a month since I'd seen the ocean and that's way to long for this lady!

Driving past Rye Harbor we decided to stop and grab a bite to eat. A cup of clam chowder seemed to fit the bill. It was good and hot on a dismal, cloudy day.


















~ A little coastal Instagram love ~


After enjoying the chowdah we continued along to North Hampton beach where there seemed to be a lot of surfers. More than usual, though you can't really tell by my photos.



How anyone could get in the New England ocean water this time of year, without a wetsuit, is beyond me!




I hope you enjoyed the afternoon with us. Wish you could smell the ocean. The salt air tends to have a healing effect on the heart and soul.


I'm linking up tonight with Mary's Little Red House blog for Mosaic Monday

Sunset/Lighthouse Cruise Part 1

This should be a 3 part series. I took so many photos that there's no way I can condense them all into one post.


Last night my husband and I had the opportunity to go out on a Sunset/Lighthouse cruise. Weather wise it was a perfect with temps in the upper 80's and virtually no breeze. Just the way you would hope it would be for an evening cruise.

The cruise was through Granite State Whale Watch out of Rye Harbor, NH. If you look on their website under Our Trips - Special Events you will find a couple other special cruises coming later on this year. Maybe one day I'll get the nerve to actually go out on a Whale Watch! The thought of going out so far, 12-15 miles, makes me a little uncomfortable.

And right next to us .... out with the dog, in with the bumper.

I'll tell you, there are a lot of dogs at the marina that live a much better life then I do!










Looking back: In the center of the photo, on the horizon, is the small inlet of Rye Harbor.



Did I mention it was a perfect evening? The water was like glass, something you don't get that often on the ocean.

Okay, so my husband didn't want me to take this photo (even though he's the one who pointed it out) but I did anyway. Hee, hee. This lady was sitting just below us on the lower deck. Seriously ladies, if you're going to wear nylons with sandals and capris, do yourself a favor and cut them off just below the knees. Or wear Spanx.

I'd have to say, this is a 'Glamour Fashion Don't' moment. LOL! She still looked lovely anyway.
Betcha didn't think you would get a fashion tip on this trip did ya?

My husband trying to relax amongst the frenzy of photographers on board, including the one right behind him. He said it got a little crazy at one point. Must have been when the sun was setting ; )

Finally:

Where we're headed next: Isles of Shoals White Island Lighthouse

*Before I go, I wanted to tell you how I found out about the cruise. It was through this blog: New England Lighthouses. Jeremy also has a website called Friends of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse where you can sign up for his newsletters. The next event is tomorrow with an open house at the Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse in New Castle from 1:00-5:00.

What remains of a wild nor'easter

As many of you know we had a major Nor'easter rain storm this past weekend. In our town alone we had over 7" of rain! Yuk!

However, once the clouds cleared Monday night it's been nothing but beautiful outside! Come Tuesday morning I was out and about try to capture some of the mayhem. Not so easy since roads were closed everywhere due to flooding, but at least I was able to get to the beach. Seems I'm always going to the waters edge lately.

This is a view from Rye harbor jetty looking across the way towards Rye Harbor State Park (aka: Ragged Neck). See that big clump of green bushes in front of the boat? That's where I was standing to take the following pictures. I just want you to know I stayed a safe distance away from the waves.

This website gives a beautiful overview of the whole harbor area. You'll find extra pictures of Rye harbor from different angles on the right side of the page.

Alright, so let's head over to the park on the opposite side of the harbor.

As I was leaving I looked back and grabbed a few more shots. I have to say, I do love the ocean, and water in general, but it scares me. Even standing a safe distance away, the power of the waves makes me nervous. I told one guy he should back up because you never know how big the next wave will be. The tide was coming in making the waves more ferocious all the time.

I'm just so thankful that all the rain that fell wasn't snow!

A perfect Saturday morning in New England

A perfect weekend morning is dropping my daughter off at work early and heading for the coast in hopes of capturing something beautiful. They don't get much better than this morning ... slightly cool but getting warmer by the minute, low humidity, clear blue skies ....

I knew right where I was headed, Rye Harbor. There's always plenty of activity going on since several cruise boats head out along with a few fishing boats and pleasure boats.

(don't mind the blur) Guess I had already missed the AM low and high tides. And just in case you were wondering as you were headed out on a whale watch or sight seeing tour ... there's only 111 days left until Christmas. LOL!


See the man with the hat? He's the Dockmaster. The one with all the info. I'll bet he enjoys his job talking to all the people from near and far on a daily basis. Is he giving me the eye?

I spoke with the guy in the dingy when he came back in. Turns out this isn't the first time he's been photographed. Once he and his little boat (and one oar since he lost the other one!) ended up on the front page of a local paper!


I love shooting into the sun. It gives photos a black/white/grey/blue look that is really cool. See the 2 islands way off in the distance? Those are the Isles of Shoals located 6 miles off the coast of New Hampshire. When you can see them this well you know it's a clear day!


Bumble enjoying the final wild beach roses of the season. They smell so damn good I don't blame him. I'd roll in them too if I could.

Just over the rise on the left is the ocean

Plenty of Herons and other birds enjoying the glorious morning

I told you it was a perfect morning. If only I could show you ALL the photo's I took! Well, I suppose I could, but that would take a while ; )

*As you may or may not have noticed I've been on a blogging hiatis lately. Life just gets busy and it wears me down. Whether or not I'm back on a regular basis only time will tell.