Saturday, March 10, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #10


Longboards Hanging on Cedars...
Henry and his longboard buddies were on the same wavelength as me yesterday. Earlier in the day, I went over to the Main Beach to take some pictures and got locked up on the grove of cedars just inside the entrance to the right. I found myself wondering if there is some history to that grouping of trees or if they are just naturally occurring.

I believe they are Eastern Red Cedars which are native to most of the Eastern US. I thought from my initial internet search that they might be Atlantic White Cedars, but those are quite rare this far inland - hugging a tight band along the East Coast. There are only a few isolated stands along the Magothy and Severn comprising only three hundred trees or so total. I'll have to do a little more research (please chime in if you know something of trees or the history of these), but my best guess for our Cape grove is Eastern Red Cedar, which is actually not a cedar at all, but a variety of juniper. (I really wanted them to be an undiscovered Atlantic White Cedar grove).

At any rate, I took a few pictures of the cedars as possible Photo of the Day candidates. Then this morning, Henry showed me this picture he took with his phone camera when he was out longboarding with his buddies yesterday. They had stopped for a break at the Main Beach and hung their boards on the tree that has the really crazy trunk.

I asked Henry what inspired them to do this. He replied, "One of the guys hung up his board. I thought it looked cool, so I hung up my board. Then the other guys thought it looked cool, so they hung up theirs. And then it looked so cool that we all took pictures." I love the flash of creative impulse that overtook this crew of 12 and 13-year old longboarders. I also love the picture.

Here are a couple of the ones I took. The longboards and helmets of Henry's elevate the subject to a whole different level, not to mention adding color and interest. So far, my kids have had a better eye than their mother for Cape snapshots. I did get one of the cedar grove that I like very much which I will post as tomorrow's Cape Photo of the Day. I think it's an ideal Cape Sunday morning shot.

Crazy trunk tree/longboard rack

Grove viewed from the NW.
Grove from the east.

Friday, March 9, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #9


This was not the best picture I took today, but it had the most appeal. We held on to just enough of the warm weather from yesterday to make it a decent day to get out and wash a car, or in this case a fire engine. The Cape St. Claire Volunteer Firefighters were scrubbing down what I believe is their new 2500 gallon pumper truck - Engine 19. If someone knows otherwise, please correct me. I know they acquired a new one at the end of last year. Good to know because my house is about as far from the fire station as any in the Cape. A broken down pumper truck would mean lining up a bucket brigade between my house and Deep Creek to put out a fire. Kudos to our local volunteer fire department for all they do to keep us safe, not to mention for transporting Santa around the Cape during the holidays to throw candy to some very excited Cape kids. We are lucky to have them.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #7


Laika was my partner in crime on this lovely March day. We took a walk over to the Deep Creek marina and strolled down the pier to check things out. Most of the boats at Deep Creek stay put for the winter, so there are only a few empty slips. They will start to fill in as we get into April and May. Laika had seen enough and was ready to head back to the boat ramp where a few geese and ducks were also enjoying the pretty day. This is her, "Put down the camera and come on," look. I'm getting a lot of that from my family these days.

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #6


This time, I turned my daughter loose with the camera as we were driving into the Cape on Cape St. Claire Road yesterday. She too captured some lovely shots in the late afternoon light. I'm starting to understand why photographers love the morning and afternoon. To be honest, Kathryn was just randomly taking shots through the windshield, but when she went back to review the images, she showed me this one and said, "I really like this tree." I really like it too. I'm dreading the day this lovely open field on the way into the Cape gets developed, but hopefully this beautiful tree will be spared when the inevitable happens.

Monday, March 5, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #5


Since I don't anticipate getting out today for more photos, I will use another of Henry's from yesterday. This was our second choice shot from the ones he took. We loved the colors of the boats in the afternoon sun, and the views of the Magothy never get old.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Cape Photo of the Day - Photo #4


I turned my son loose with my camera as we were driving around the Cape this afternoon and told him to shoot away. I expected a lot of trash shots, but when I downloaded his photos, I was amazed at the number of really good ones. It was hard to choose one for Cape Photo of the Day. We decided this one of the Lake Claire pier won out over the others. It was late in the afternoon with the sun getting low in the sky and a crisp breeze keeping it chilly and choppy on the Magothy. In just a few months, those empty slips will fill up with boats, and some of this view will be obstructed. Nice work, Henry!