Category Archives: Histoy

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May 31, 2026

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Photographic Thoughts — 05/24/2026 to 05/30/2026

“In photography there are no shadows that cannot be illuminated.” — August Sander

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Short and sweet this week.

Sunday, 05/24/2026: Posted photo — Pentecost.

As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. — Acts 11:15.

Monday, 05/25/2026: Posted photo — Memorial Day.

The words are from a photo I posted a few weeks ago. I took this photo today during my hike since it is Memorial Day.

Memorial Day is a holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.

The plaque reads: “10th Mountain Division. In memory of comrades who gave their lives in the Aleutians and Italy in WWII. This elite division of alpine troops spearheaded the victorious fifth army against the mountainous gothic line fortresses and across the PO Valley to shatter the German defenses in Northern Italy. It was their love of mountains, coupled with their dedication to human freedom, that they inspired hundreds of young patriots to join the 10th mountain division. Many returned to their beloved mountain. Those heroes who did not return are still fondly remembered as brave men whose souls rest forever. Sempre Avanti.”

Tuesday, 05/26/2026: Posted photo — Lady Slippers.

Lady slipper orchids are not universally illegal to possess or grow in the US, but it is illegal to pick, dig up, or damage them on federal and state lands. These Lady Slippers are in a protective area on Wachusett Mountain. I look for them every year. Most years I am either too early or too late to find them.

During a hike this week, I came across them and took this photo.

Wednesday, 05/27/2026: Posted photo — Iris.

Irises bloom best in at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight daily. They can tolerate as little as half a day of sun, but it’s not ideal. This iris is at my in-law’s house. Like the photo of the Lady Slippers I took a photo of yesterday, some years I see them, some years I do not.

Thursday, 05/28/2026: Posted photo — Flowing Water.

We have had periods of heavy rain this week leading to the streams on the mountain flowing quickly. It is wonderful hearing the streams flowing in the distance as I hike.

This photo was taking from one of the bridges on the mountain that straddle the streams.

Friday, 05/29/2026: Post photo — Old Gardner Courthouse.

The courthouse and police station were dedicated on May 1, 1929. The courthouse and police station were moved to the new facility in 1988. The Gardner Youth Commission took charge of the building and from 1988 to 1989, dances and other activities were held there. Once the dances were discontinued, the building remained vacant for several years. A decision was made in 1996 to turn it into the City Hall Annex building. The annex officially opened on April 5, 2006.

Saturday, 05/30/2026: Post photo — Ajuga.

Ajuga, also known as bugleweed, ground pine, carpet bugle, or just bugle.

Bugleweed is a low-maintenance ground cover that is used to cover large areas of land. The small, rounded foliage comes in a range of colors and patterns, with showy flower spikes that appear in spring attracting hummingbirds, butterflies, and other insect pollinators.

The subject of this week’s photo project is “On the Ground”. I took this photo as if I was on the ground looking up at it.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

.–. …. — – —  -… -.–  .— — … . .–. ….  -.-. .. .-. .- …

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May 3, 2026

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Photographic Thoughts — 04/26/2026 to 05/02/2026

“You can look at a picture for a week and never think of it again. You can also look at a picture for a second and think of it all your life.” — Joan Miro

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 04/26/2026: Posted photo — Music.

Singing in Church is an essential form of prayer, praise, and active participation in the Mass. St. Augustine once said that singing is “Double” Prayer. This phrase highlights that singing adds an emotional and spiritual depth to prayer that spoken words alone might not.

I stay up in the choir loft with my family, my mother-in-law, and other friends. I sing softly since I do not have a great voice.

Monday, 04/27/2026: Posted photo — Monument.

The plaque reads: “10th Mountain Division. In memory of comrades who gave their lives in the Aleutians and Italy in WWII. This elite division of alpine troops spearheaded the victorious fifth army against the mountainous gothic line fortresses and across the PO Valley to shatter the German defenses in Northern Italy. It was their love of mountains, coupled with their dedication to human freedom, that they inspired hundreds of young patriots to join the 10th mountain division. Many returned to their beloved mountain. Those heroes who did not return are still fondly remembered as brave men whose souls rest forever. Sempre Avanti.”

This plaque is near the summit of Wachusett Mountain and was installed in 1975.

Tuesday, 04/28/2026: Posted photo — Vote.

Many people complain about this administration and the past administration. They only vote every four years, or do not vote at all. I say if you do not vote in your local elections then you have no grounds for complaining about federal elections. Voting is your voice. Article 1 of the Constitution gives us the right to vote. This gave states the responsibility of overseeing federal elections. Many constitutional amendments and federal laws protecting voting rights have been passed since then.

The only people that do not want people to vote are those who either did not read the Constitution or are attempting to silence the people. This opinion is not just mine. I have heard this from Republicans, Democrats, Independents, and others from all sides of the aisle.

Voting is your right. Please vote every chance you have to do so.

Wednesday, 04/29/2026: Posted photo — Bleeding Hearts.

Bleeding Hearts symbolize romantic love, heartbreak, and passion. It is frequently used in shaded garden borders, woodland gardens, and cut floral designs. There is a four-to-six-week period in which bleeding hearts grow. For many years, I have seen these bleeding hearts grow and by the time I get back to them to photograph, they are past.

Thursday, 04/30/2026: Posted photo — Stone Wall.

A closeup photo of a stone wall. Field stone walls are traditional, durable structures built from natural, weathered stones (often New England fieldstone) that are either dry-laid or mortared, offering a rustic, earthy look. Stone walls found in woodlands are primarily relics of 18th to 19th-century European agriculture, built to delineate property, manage livestock, or dispose of rocks cleared from fields.

Friday, 05/01/2026: Post photo — Stay on the Trail.

One of the many trails on Wachusett. This sign is on one of the steeper trails on the mountain. As you can see, the trail drops off shortly after this sign. This section has a 17° grade, which is categorized as a steep grade.

This is the middle section of Jack Frost Trail. This is one of my favorite sections of trail in the winter. Because of its steepness and location of the slope, there is plenty of opportunity to practice my winter skills.

Saturday, 05/02/2026: Post photo — First Moon Photo.

This is the first moon photo I took with my new camera. I kept playing with the setting. The settings kept jumping around on their own when I was adjusting in manual mode.

There is much to learn about this camera.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

.–. …. — – —  -… -.–  .— — … . .–. ….  -.-. .. .-. .- …

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April 11, 2026

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Photographic Thoughts — 04/05/2026 to 04/11/2026

“A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.” — Diane Arbus

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 04/05/2026: Posted photo — Easter Sunday.

Today is the holiest day of the year. This is the day that Jesus rose from the dead symbolizing victory over death and sin. Jesus did this for us all. His message was peace and justice for all. He condoled violence and those who used violence. He could have used violence by calling his angles to rescue Him and choose not to do so. Matthew 26:53.

Monday, 04/06/2026: Posted photo — Flowing Stream.

The weather has been up into the low 70’s F and down to the low 30’s F over the last few days. This has led to some of the streams on Wachusett Mountain flowing again. The flow of the streams were not as fast as earlier in the year when we had the initial snow melt.

We were waiting at one of trail junctions tonight and I looked at the stream a few feet away to see how fast it was flowing. It was flowing enough for me to take this photo. As with many of my photos, I am not crazy about it. It does keep my photo a day streak alive.

Tuesday, 04/07/2026: Posted photo — Snow.

We had some snow this morning. Just dusting and the snow did not last long on the ground. It is predicted that we might receive another dusting of snow tomorrow as well. As I noted yesterday, the temperature is fluctuating as much as 30 deg F from one day to another.

My weather app over the last few days told me that tomorrow will be 34 deg F cooler tomorrow than today on day and then that tomorrow’s temperature will be 25 deg F warmer than today.

Wednesday, 04/08/2026: Posted photo — Wind Power.

Here are some facts about the wind turbine:

  • Each Tower height is 215 feet (or 65 meters) above ground level.
  • Length of each blade is approximately 125 feet (or 37.5 meters), and each blade weighs 6 tons.
  • The turbine speed is 17-20 RPMs.
  • The maximum blade tip speed is approximately 204 MPH.
  • The minimum wind speed to produce maximum rated power output is 27 MPH (or 12 meters per second).
  • The Cutout Wind Speed or wind speed too great for a turbine is 45 MPH (or 20 meters per second).
  • The Survival Wind Speed is 133 MPH (or 59.5 meters per second).

There was a discussion about the wind turbines during the hike on Monday night. I decided to go back and get a photo of the wind turbines and post some facts about them.

Thursday, 04/09/2026: Posted photo — Tomatoes.

The topic of the week in my 52 week photo project is red. There are many red items to photograph. I have seen a few red Suns during my hikes this week, but I only had my cellphone with me. Cellphone photos are not the greatest. I did not bring my DSLR since it is not working properly.

I took this photo of tomatoes as a fill photo just in case I do not see anything else red that is photo worthy. In front of me now is my red tool bag, red handled scissors, a red marking machine, a red pen, and someone in a red shirt.

Friday, 04/10/2026: Post photo — Stained Glass.

I just love a stained-glass window. They are great colors and stories behind each one of them. They are not always in churches. Many people have stained-glass windows in their house, not as detailed as the one in this photo, but have interesting decorations.

Stained glass was created primarily to educate an illiterate medieval population, enhance religious spaces, and filter light into cathedrals, serving as a “poor man’s Bible”.

Saturday, 04/11/2026: Post photo — Sugar Maple Bud.

The sugar maple trees in our yard are starting to bud. These are the same trees that our neighbor was tapping over the last few weeks.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

.–. …. — – —  -… -.–  .— — … . .–. ….  -.-. .. .-. .- …

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April 5, 2026

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Photographic Thoughts — 03/29/2026 to 04/04/2026

“A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.” — Diane Arbus

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 03/29/2026: Posted photo — Psalm Sunday.

Palm Sunday serves as a day of reflection on Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. This is the first day of Holy Week. Holy Week starts with the triumphant entry and leads to the Easter Triduum: Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, the Passion of the Lord on Good Friday, of the Lord’s Passion and ends with the Mass of the Resurrection of the Lord. Good Friday is the only day of the year that a Mass does not happen, just a service.

Jesus died for all of us, not just a selected few. Jesus is a person of equality and peace for all. Some people forget this.

Monday, 03/30/2026: Posted photo — Bat House.

From https://www.mass.gov/guides/bat-houses: “Bat houses are particularly helpful in providing alternative roosting habitat for bats that are excluded from homes. In turn, this reduces the chance of human contact with bats. Installing a bat house can provide a safe environment for bats, while protecting your yard from pest insects, like mosquitoes, moths, and beetles. Bat houses give females a safe, warm place to raise their young. Since most female bats only have one pup each year, bat populations grow very slowly. Additionally, due to habitat loss and degradation, it is becoming harder for bats to locate natural roost sites to raise their young. By installing a bat house, you can provide mothers and their pups with a safe home.”

This bat house is at one of the trailheads on Wachusett Mountain.

Tuesday, 03/31/2026: Posted photo — Gold Nugget.

The gold nugget mandarin is often considered one of the best-tasting mandarins in the world. They are only available during the months of February to May.

Wednesday, 04/01/2026: Posted photo — Mushrooms.

A mushroom on some wood in our yard. I need to move this wood to the cottage to burn during the summer. It is taking up too much room in our yard.

Thursday, 04/02/2026: Posted photo — Sunset.

A wonderful sunset from the summit of Wachusett Mountain. I need to start taking up my DSLR to get better photos.

I am in the process of upgrading my camera. I purchased it over 12 years ago and is showing its age.

Friday, 04/03/2026: Post photo — Lost Hat.

Someone lost a hat during a hike. I put it on this signpost, just in case the person is looking for it. This is what is typically done if you find a piece of clothing on the tail, put it on a tree branch, or some other high location, so that the owner can find it.

Saturday, 04/04/2026: Post photo — New Growth.

Some croci starting to bloom in our yard. There is new growth starting all over the area. We grow a little later in this area since we are further north and the snow cover last longer.

I am amazed sometimes when I drive into Worcester and see how much further the blooms on the trees are from my house.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

.–. …. — – —  -… -.–  .— — … . .–. ….  -.-. .. .-. .- …

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February 15, 2026

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Photographic Thoughts — 02/08/2026 to 02/14/2026

“When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.” — Ansel Adams

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

This is a week with little words. With work and going out every night to break up the ice dam on our roof, I did not have much time for commentary. I need to get into a better habit of writing every night.

Sunday, 02/08/2026: Posted photo — Unexplored.

The topic of this week’s photo project is unexplored. There are so many unexplored areas of space. I put my phone done and took an astrophotography shot. Too bad the clouds decided to come in when I was taking this photo.

Monday, 02/09/2026: Posted photo — Footprints in the Snow.

We received another three inches or so of snow last night. They plowed the parking lot at work so there was not much snow between the buildings. When I was walking from one shop to the other, I decided to take a photo of my footprints just in case it was too dark when I hiked later in the day.

Tuesday, 02/10/2026: Posted photo — Valentines Flowers.

I saw these while shopping tonight. It seems a little early to purchase flowers for Valentine’s Day. Why do we give flowers anyway. We give them because they symbolize deep, passionate love, beauty, and devotion, embodying the holiday’s essence. Strange because love lasts forever and not roses or flowers.

Wednesday, 02/11/2026: Posted photo — Starting to Wilt.

Case and point from yesterday. Saw these today and they are already starting to wilt with three days to go before Valentines Day.

Thursday, 02/12/2026: Posted photo — Lemons.

Some lemons that I saw while out shopping tonight. I do not know if anyone is waiting for a fruit photo from me every week or not. If you are, here it is.

Friday, 02/13/2026: Post photo — Sun through the Wood.

The sun was shining through some trees on our property tonight. I liked the shadows they were given off and their silhouettes.

Saturday, 02/14/2026: Post photo — Wood Cart.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Here is some AI information on Saint Valentine: “Saint Valentine, officially known as Saint Valentine of Rome, is a third-century Roman saint widely celebrated on February 14 and commonly associated with “courtly love.” Although not much of St. Valentine’s life is reliably known, and whether or not the stories involve two different saints by the same name is also not officially decided, it is highly agreed that St. Valentine was martyred and then buried on the Via Flaminia to the north of Rome.

In 1969, the Roman Catholic Church removed St. Valentine from the General Roman Calendar, because so little is known about him. However, the church still recognizes him as a saint, listing him in the February 14 spot of Roman Martyrolgy.”

By the way, I do not like using AI because it is like Wikipedia in my option, I cannot verify the source most of the time.

I had to get some wood this morning and had an inspiration to take this photo. It shows our wood cart and some paths that I snow blew in our yard. One path goes to our shed and the other path goes to our basement. The one to the basement is to give me access to our generator if I need to use it.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolateur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per camera mean.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

.–. …. — – —  -… -.–  .— — … . .–. ….  -.-. .. .-. .- …

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October 19, 2025

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Photographic Thoughts — 10/12/2021 to 10/18/2021

“Today everything exists to end in a photograph.” — Susan Sontag

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

This is a repost from four years ago. I have been busy looking through all the wedding photos that I took last weekend.

Sunday, 10/12/2025: Posted photo — Lakeside.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 400, f/7.1, 1/125 s, 32 mm.

Today we took the dock out of the water at the cottage. The water was cold when first going into it, and then it did not feel so bad. We need to go into the water to lift part of the dock off its foundation to bring it in. Many years ago, the tires on the bottle of the support legs on the dock fell off so we manually need to lift the dock out of the water.

Before the dock was removed, I went out on it to enjoy the foliage from out in the water. I took this photo shortly before the dock was removed from the water.

The day is always a fun filled day with family and friends.

Monday, 10/13/2025: Posted photo — Trees in the Sun.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/125 s, 50 mm.

This is the backside, or inlet side, of the falls at Round Meadow Pond. You have seen a few photos of the water flowing over the dam since that is one of my favorite spots to photograph. I took this photo because of the bright colors of the foliage, and I liked the way the light was reflecting off the trees.

Tuesday, 10/14/2025: Posted photo — More Foliage.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/160 s, 50 mm.

Not much to say about this photo. The foliage is starting to get to peak in this area, so I am taking as many foliage photos as I can.

One thing I can say about this photo, and my other foliage photos, is that they look very bright. The histogram looks good for these photos, but the photos look bright when viewing on some screens. It might be because I use calibrate monitors to edit my photos and the other monitors are not calibrated.

Time to do some research into this issue. Maybe I should get one or two of them printed to see how the colors come out.

Wednesday, 10/15/2025: Posted photo — Morning Dew.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/250 s, 72 mm.

I was going to post another foliage photos today but decided to post a photo of the morning dew. This photo was meant to show the dew and to break up my trend of foliage photos. Too much of a good thing is not always good.

I attempted to capture the light off the dew on the grass. Please leave a comment to let me know how well I captured the light and to give me some tips to improve.

Thursday, 10/16/2025: Posted photo — Lightning at Sea.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 100, f/5.6, 15 s, 48 mm.

15 second exposure looking out to see in Jacksonville Beach, FL a few years ago.

During a past vacation, my family rented a condominium on Jacksonville Beach. My wife has relatives that live in both Jacksonville Beach and Neptune Beach, so we travel to the area relatively often. Most of the time we rent a house or condo not on the beach.

A common occurrence in Florida is a storm out to sea at night. It is such a great sight to see the lightning in the distance. On this night, I decided to put my camera on my tripod, set the exposure time to 15 seconds, to capture the storm. After looking at the photos, my only regret was that I did not leave my shutter open for 30 seconds.

There will always be another trip back to the beach.

Here are a few camera settings for photographing daytime and nighttime lightning that I have picked up over the years:

Camera settings tips for photographing daytime lightning photos:

  • Set up camera on a sturdy tripod.
  • Turn off any image stabilization you might have. If image stabilization is on, the camera will think it is moving when the shutter engages, even though there is not camera movement.
  • Focus camera lens on infinity or on an object in the distance.
  • Set the aperture of the lens to f/16 or smaller. This will close the iris inside the lens, allowing a longer shutter speed to be used.
  • Set ISO to lowest it will go, for example use ISO 100.
  • Take a test exposure using the slowest shutter speed allowed to see if the image is exposed correctly and your focus is correct.
  • Set your camera on manual or bulb.
  • Use a remote timer/intervalometer to fire the shutter continuously.

Here is an example of a daytime lightning photo. This photo was handheld since the storm arrived quickly. For your information, we did not hike down into the Grand Canyon that day.

Camera settings for photographing night-time lightning

  • Set up camera on a sturdy tripod.
  • Turn off any image stabilization you might have. If image stabilization is on, the camera will think it is moving when the shutter engages, even though there is not camera movement.
  • Focus camera lens on infinity or on an object in the distance.
  • Set the aperture of the lens to a medium value, such as f/5.6 or f/8. This will allow a longer shutter speed by bringing in more light and improve image quality at the same time by allowing the use of a lower ISO value.
  • Set ISO to lowest it will go, for example set your is to ISO 100. You may have to increase your ISO to ISO 200–ISO 400 depending on the lighting in the area. I prefer my ISO set at ISO 100 for all my lightning shots.
  • Set your camera on manual or bulb.
  • Set the shutter speed to between 5 and 20 seconds. You can set it up to 30 seconds if you are in a dark area.
  • Take a test shot to see if the scene is exposed correctly, remembering that if a strike does happen in the field of view it could light up the scene considerably, depending on how big the strike looks in the photo.
  • Use a remote timer/intervalometer to fire the shutter continuously.

Friday, 10/17/2025: Post photo — Clouds.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 200, f/7.1, 1/1250 s, 37 mm.

Today I am posting a photo of a cloud. I took many photos today, but this one was the only one that I liked.

Saturday, 10/18/2025: Post photo — Aster.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/320 s, 106 mm.

I went to my mother’s house today to make sure everything was fine at the house. I also collected some of the wood from the tree that fell on her house about a year ago to bring home to burn. Earlier in the day, I took photos at Leominster State Forest. I went hiking at Leominster State Forest last night and went back today to get some more photos. I will be posting the photos I took in this blog for you to see what I did not post for my 365 project.

When I was at her house, I noticed a lot of asters. I also saw that there was an abundant number of bees flying around the asters. What a great photo opportunity. The aster flowers (Aster spp.) add color to the autumn landscape while offering beauty with little work when caring for asters.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per cameram meam.”

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September 21, 2025

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Photographic Thoughts — 09/14/2025 to 09/20/2025

“If you see something that moves you, and then snap it, you keep a moment.” — Linda McCartney

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 09/14/2025: Posted photo — Rosebud.

A few weeks ago, I constructed a planter for some roses that I purchased. I purchased white roses and yellow roses. The white roses bloomed a couple of times since I purchased them and the yellow roses looked like they were not going to live.

When I planted them, I was hopeful that they both would take root. I took my time and fed them, watered them, and removed weeds to help them grow. The white roses bloomed in the bed again, bending under their own weight. I need to support the blooms the next time I see them start. The yellow roses are starting to have multiple blooms.

This is a photo of one of the rosebuds from the yellow plant. It looks like it will bloom this week. If it does, I will post a photo of it later this week.

I am starting to learn about growing roses. There is much to learn, and any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Monday, 09/15/2025: Posted photo — Bearded Dragon.

The bearded dragon is equipped with armor of spiny reptilian scales, which include a “beard” of spikes under its chin that puffs up depending on its mood. A Bearded Dragon represents change, rebirth, and renewal.

This bearded dragon is the pet of one of my brothers. We stopped at his house on the way to one of the two weddings we attended last weekend. One was in Naples NY, and one was in Westminster MA the next day.

Tuesday, 09/16/2025: Posted photo — Chinese Swan Goose.

Wild goose symbolizes loyalty, integrity, and love.

This goose was swimming at the Old Mill during the time of the second wedding we attended last weekend.

Wednesday, 09/17/2025: Posted photo — Centerpiece.

This is the centerpiece from the second wedding. The first wedding was more traditional, and the second one was less traditional. The first wedding had less traditional food, and the second wedding had more traditional food.

Both weddings were special in their own way. The first was for a friend, and the second was for my niece. Wishing them both many happy years.

Thursday, 09/18/2025: Posted photo — Jump Off Point.

Ontario County Park at Gannett Hill has a lookout point called Jump Off Point. There is an overlook at the point, but not much of a drop to jump off, just a steep hill.

We took a walk to look at the views before packing up our camping equipment and heading to the wedding we were going to photograph. This was the first of two weddings over the weekend.

This park is very well maintained and is growing. The campsite we had the first time we were there, and when my wife and son camped there a few years ago, is now occupied by the camp host. I can understand why he took that site, it was the best one in the park.

Friday, 09/19/2025: Post photo — Orntario St. Bridge.

This bridge is a hidden wonder. The newly married couple wanted to take photos on this bridge after the ceremony. The bridge had debris on it, so before we took photos, we purchased a broom and swept off the bridge. We later presented the broom as a wedding gift. The couple loved the idea that we gave them this broom that was part of their special day.

Saturday, 09/20/2025: Post photo — Milky Way.

Second attempt at a Milky Way photo using my cellphone. This one was better than the first one, but still not great. There still was light pollution in the area. I attempted to block the light, so this photo came out slightly better.

I will keep taking this photo in darker areas to get a good one.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

Bonus

Here is the photo of the rose in Sunday’s photo in bloom.

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me. Pulchritudinem mundi video per cameram meam.”

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Photographic Thoughts — 08/03/2025 to 08/09/2025

“A good photograph is one that communicates a fact, touches the heart and leaves the viewer a changed person for having seen it. It is, in a word, effective.” — Irving Penn

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 08/03/2025: Posted photo — Campfire.

There was a slight chill in the air, so we started a campfire. What I like to take long exposure photos of campfires to capture their warmth. When there are many sparks coming out of the fire, it makes for a better photo.

There were not many sparks out of this fire.

Monday, 08/04/2025: Posted photo — Wildfire Smoke.

Like last summer, wildfires are burning in Canada. The fires are burning in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Québec and Northwest Territories, including Yukon. Over the last few days, the smoke from those fires has reached my area.

Smoking is a health hazard for many people. The smoke also leads to some interesting colors for sunrise and moonrise. The sun and moon turn a reddish color. This makes sense that they both have the same color, since we see the reflection of the Sun off the moon.

There are four United States national parks that are also burning at this moment. Fires are burning on north and south rim of the Grand Canyon (the Dragon Bravo Fire), the Bear Gulch Fire is in Olympic National Park, the South Rim Fire is in Black Canyon of the Gunnison, and the Ash Fire was just recently discovered in Yellowstone National Park. Knowing people with red cards, firefighters in the national parks, unless the fire causes risk to people or property, they let the fires burn. Fires are just part of nature and help the forest flourish.

Lightning started the fires in the Grand Canyon, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, and Yellowstone. Humans started the fire in Olympic National Park. I have been to all four of these parks and they are worth the visit.

Tuesday, 08/05/2025: Posted photo — Bass.

My nephews were fishing tonight and one of them caught this bass. They like fishing but do not like taking the fish off the line.

When I was growing up, my father would take my six brothers and me on fishing and camping trips. The techniques for fishing have not changed much over the years. The equipment has changed some due to improvement in materials. The reason for fishing has not changed. Fishing relaxes you and teaches you to be patience.

Wednesday, 08/06/2025: Posted photo — Nifty Fifty.

A present for me, a Nifty Fifty. This is a Canon EF 50mm f1.8 STM lens.

I will be using this lens to take portraits and for astrophotography. I plan on using this lens in low light situations since it has the largest aperture of all my lenses. I am looking forward to learning all that I can about my nifty fifty. Many photographers have a 50mm lens and say good things about having one. Now it is my turn to find out.

Thursday, 08/07/2025: Posted photo — Chicken.

I cooked chicken on the grill tonight. Since I have my new lens, I took a photo of the chicken. In need to practice with this lens, since I will be photographing two weddings this summer.

I am not happy with this photo. It seems to be out of focus. I am wondering if it is the lens, my camera, or me. I need to work on my camera settings to get a sharper photo. I have used this lens twice and have not been happy with the results either time. Sometimes I am my worst critic.

The next step in the process is to send my camera out to have its sensors cleaned and electronics checked out. I purchased my camera in 2014 and have used it well past it shutter life. A Canon EOS 60D camera is typically rated for 100,000 shutter actuations. This means the camera’s shutter mechanism is designed to reliably operate for that number of shots.

Friday, 08/08/2025: Post photo — Hobblebush.

The Hobbleberry is a species of edible viburnum common as a woodland understory plant.  It produces delicious edible berries. I have never tried to eat them. I just found out today that they are edible so I might have to try them next Monday when I am hiking.

Saturday, 08/09/2025: Post photo — Smokey the Bear.

The Tuesday night hiking group hikes up Wachusett since we knew someone famous was going to be there and we knew this was the one time of the year that people were allowed in the fire tower. Smokey the Bear was at the summit. He was visiting on his birthday.

Smokey Bear turned 80 years old last year. I went to see him then, but the line was too long. I was on the mountain photographing some trail work for the Appalachian Mountain Club and they had to get back to work. Smokey says, “Only you can prevent wildfires”.

It was interesting to see how the area fire towers triangulate to determine the location of a fire. One tower spots the smoke and relays the message to the nearest towers in that direction. They then take a bearing on the smoke and then triangulate with string to pinpoint the location of the fire.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

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July 27, 2025

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Photographic Thoughts — 07/20/2025 to 07/26/2025

“Photography has nothing to do with cameras.” — Lucas Gentry

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 07/20/2025: Posted photo — Bed of Roses.

A few weeks ago, I posted a photo of the roses in our front yard waiting for a flower bed to be installed. This is the flower bed that I put in. It is not as raised as I would have liked, but the frame still allows me to protect the roses during the winter.

Once I am sure the roses are stable, I will design the protection for the harsh winter weather.

Monday, 07/21/2025: Posted photo — Horsetail Falls.

Horsetail Falls is a waterfall located on Horsetail Creek along the Columbia River Gorge in Multnomah County, Oregon. It is 224 feet tall and is just down the road from Multnomah Falls.

The bottom of this fall is a good swimming hole. There were many people cooling off under the falls. We did not go swimming since we arrived at our campsite and wanted to see both Multnomah Falls and Horsetail Falls.

Tuesday, 07/22/2025: Posted photo — Trying to Hide.

This group of Chicken of the Woods mushrooms was trying to hike in the burl of this tree. They are doing a good job blending in. Once the mushrooms age, and turn brown, you may not be able to spot them.

Wednesday, 07/23/2025: Posted photo — Trail Marker.

I am amazed sometimes about the time it must of took to carve words into rocks on the trails. This marking has the name of the trail on Wachusett Mountain.

There are many other graffiti carvings as you get to the summit. There were a few hotels on the mountain and the kids must have carved this into the rocks, just as in modern day kids use spray paint. Only that carving in the rock would have taken much longer to do.

Thursday, 07/24/2025: Posted photo — Echo Lake.

The primary difference between a pond and a lake is in their depth and the penetration of sunlight. Ponds are shallower, allowing the sunlight to reach the bottom, while lakes are deeper. A pond generally has a uniform temperature while the temperature profile for a lake is not uniform. There are no definitive definitions for the differences, just the general rule of thumb.

Echo Lake is not very deep. I can see the bottom while looking at it. It may be called a lake by those that named it because they did not know the difference. They did use this body of water in the winter months to cut out blocks of ice to be used in ice boxes before there was reliable refrigeration.

Friday, 07/25/2025: Post photo — Communication Towers.

Here is a photo of some communication towers on the summit of Wachusett Mountain.

I do not know if they are active or not. I have heard conflicting reports about their use and cannot find any information on their use. I should have gone to the building and looked for any signs. I have seen signs on the stone building next to them, but that was a few years ago.

As with most things, you see them many times and then you just see them. I have gone by these towers hundreds of times and can tell you many things about the building, but what is on signage.

Saturday, 07/26/2025: Post photo — Wind Energy.

This is a photo of one of the two wind turbines used by the Princeton Municipal Light Department and are located at the trailhead for the Stage Coach Trail on Wachusett Mountain.

Selected information on these turbines from the PMLD website: Each blade on the turbine is 125 feet long and weighs six tons. The blade tip speed is 204 mph with the turbine turning at 17-20 rpm. The annual energy output of the two turbines is 4,000,000 kWh’s. The wind speed needed to start producing energy is 7 mph. The cutout wind speed is 45 mph. In 2010, the turbines produced 6,001 MWh of power and in 2023 only produce 2762 MWh of power. I cannot find out any information regarding the reduced power output.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”

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July 20, 2025

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Photographic Thoughts — 07/13/2025 to 07/19/2025

“Photograph: a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art.” — Ambrose Bierce

Here are more photos from my adventures this summer.

Sunday, 07/13/2025: Posted photo — Columbine.

The Columbine was chosen as Colorado’s state flower because of its beauty, its representation of the state’s natural environment, and its symbolic significance. It was officially designated on April 4, 1899, following a vote by Colorado schoolchildren in 1891.

I saw many columbines of different colors during my hike today.

Monday, 07/14/2025: Posted photo — Madden Peak.

I finally conquered this 12K peak. The peak is 11,982 feet tall, close enough to call it a 12K peak. There were great views at the summit. I drank plenty of water and had snacks to avoid altitude sickness.

This was my second attempt at the summit. A few years ago, I was about 400 feet from the summit when it looked like a storm rolled in. That was a good choice to turn around since there was hail, thunder and lightning and heavy rain.

Tuesday, 07/15/2025: Posted photo — Road to Mesa Verde.

This is the road that leads into Mesa Verde National Park. I just liked all the switchbacks on the road.

Wednesday, 07/16/2025: Posted photo — Mesa.

This is the view of the Mesa in Mesa Verde National Park. My brother-in-law and I hiked to the edge of the mesa. My BIL works at the park.

It was a warm down hike after hiking on the 10K Via Ferrata and the 12K Madden Peak.

Thursday, 07/17/2025: Posted photo — Shoshone Falls ID.

Shoshone Falls, known as the “Niagara of the West,” is a majestic waterfall on the Snake River in Idaho. This was a wonderful side trip on our way to camp near the Oregon Trail.

Friday, 07/18/2025: Post photo — Oregon Trail.

The Oregon Trail was a 2,170-mile (3,492 km) emigrant route to the Willamette Valley in Oregon, used by hundreds of thousands of American pioneers from 1841 to 1880. It stretched from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon. Tonight’s campsite was just off the Oregon Trail.

There was a visitor information center that featured some covered wagons. This is one of them.

Saturday, 07/19/2025: Post photo — Multnomah Falls OR.

Multnomah Falls is a waterfall located on Multnomah Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, east of Troutdale, between Corbett and Dodson, Oregon. According to Native American lore, Multnomah Falls was created to win the heart of a young princess who wanted a hidden place to bathe.

The upper falls is 542 feet tall and the lower falls is 69 feet tall.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

“Sumens imagines consolatur et inspirat me.”

“Quod scripsi, scripsi. Ingeniarius sum, non scriptor.”