Tag: Hiking

The Tower Above Oakland, New Jersey

On By mvschulzeIn Hiking, Photography, Pondering, Uncategorized6 Comments

 

Through the trees from our backyard, about 1.35 miles (2.17 km) to the west,  the “Oakland” tower is  seen a few minutes after sunset. 

In a slightly zoomed-in view, heading west and south along Rt 208/I 287, the tower is an easy mark on top of the mountain.
A short 3/4 mile (1.2 km) hike from Skyline Drive brought me to its base this afternoon, Tuesday 4/9/18

For fascinating historical information, please see Kevin Heffernan’s excellent article via this link,  here, 

As usual click to zoom in, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcomed. M 🙂

6:45 AM: Griffith Park, LA., The Observatory and the Moon

On By mvschulzeIn California, Curiosities, Holiday, Photography, Vacation1 Comment

 

Continuing a theme from my last post, once again we have the last quarter moon hanging above a fairly well known landmark –  the Griffith Observatory and Science Center overlooking Los Angeles. It was day two of a family vacation with a somewhat newer SLR film camera, early in the morning of November 11th, 1987.   

As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂

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6:45 AM: Griffith Park, LA., The Observatory and the Moon

On By mvschulzeIn 1980's, Astronomy, California, Curiosities, Photography2 Comments

 

Continuing a theme from my last post, once again we have the last quarter moon hanging above a fairly well known landmark –  the Griffith Observatory and Science Center overlooking Los Angeles. It was day two of a family vacation with a somewhat newer SLR film camera, early in the morning of November 11th, 1987.   

54.041 11-11-87 Los Angeles, Griffith day 2

54.046 11-11-87 Los Angeles, Griffith day 2

As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂

 

Rebirth in Great Smokey Mountains, Zoom-in Version

On By mvschulzeIn Exploring, Hiking, National;Parks, Photography, TennesseeLeave a comment

 

There is a wonderful five mile one-way roadway just east of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, in the foothills of Mount LeConte, the third highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, at 6,923 (2010 m.) The auto turn-outs allow access to old growth forests, streams, waterfalls, wildlife and more. Recently, Sandy Paws and I found unexpected tranquility, and almost complete silence, among the resurgence of forest life, ten months after devastating fires sorched the region.

A short walk from one of the turn-outs, leads to a small summit, elevation 2,900 feet (884 m) as shown photographically in the last picture above, and located on the topo renditions here.

Special thanks to Crow Canyon Journey and Jessica for zoom-in attributes, and Le Conte spelling respectively! M 🙂

As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂

 

Martha’s Vineyard – Gay Head (Aquinnah) Lighthouse

On By mvschulzeIn 1700's, 1800's, Adventure, Beach, Daytrip, Exploring, History, Photography, Travel, Vacation6 Comments

This past week we visited Martha’s Vineyard, a quaint, picturesque island just off the southern coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts 

Overlooking the Gay Head Cliffs, the original lighthouse (circa 1799) was modified several times to LOWER the light as to render it more visible underneath frequent fog. The current brick version dates back to 1855 and was moved a short distance away from the eroding cliffs in 2015.
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Above: The view from atop the lighthouse.
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The beach at the base of the sacred cliff is open to hiking, but protected under modern land treaties of the original Wampanoug tribe, ancestors of whom date back over ten thousand years.

A few more photo highlights of our ~48 hour visit will be posted shortly.

Credits: Wikipedia, The National Park Service, and Wampanoug Tribe info panels.

As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂

 

Pine Barrens, Lost Railroad and Civil War

On By mvschulzeIn Car, Civil War, Daytrip, Exploring, Geology, Hiking, History, MGB, New jersey, Photography, Pondering, Trees3 Comments

A few weeks ago,  I explored a small but typical part of an abandoned single track railroad constructed in the early 1860’s. It transverses the New Jersey Pine Barrens, an immense area of 1.1 million acres of sandy soil characterised  by oak and pine trees, cranberry bogs, blueberry cultivation and underlying aquifers. When new, these now forgotten rails carried some 17,000 troops to America’s Civil War.

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Images captured with an I-phone 5s, a few steps off Savoy Blvd., Woodmansie, NJ

Alien to the peace and tranquility of this warm afternoon, I could almost feel the undeniable apprehension of regiments of soldiers riding these very tracks towards the inevitable battles to the south, 155 years ago.  

As usual, click on the image for a closer look, and thanks for viewing. Comments are always welcome. M 🙂