Meadow Grounds Lake Update

Finally, over two years after the draining of the Meadow Grounds Lake, the wheels of restoration are turning.  After two years of dedicated work the Friends of the Meadow Grounds Lake received some great news at their Monday night meeting.  Michele Jacoby, Director of the Bureau of Engineering for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PAFBC) and Tim Schaeffer, PAFBC Director of Policy and Planning along with representatives from both Senator Eichelberger and Rep. Topper's office were there to deliver the good news.

We were informed that the design engineer had been selected just hours before the meeting and that the final design and engineering costs will be negotiated in the coming months.  As if that news were not enough, Mr. Schaeffer reported that Gov. Wolf's office has committed to releasing the construction funds for not only the Meadow Grounds Lake but for all of the PAFBC high-hazard, unsafe dams contingent upon the passage of a structurally balanced budget both this year and next. 

While there is still a long ways to go before the lake is refilled and open for business, the light at the end of the tunnel has finally appeared!

Rainy day foliage

 Soon the autumn color will be gone, replaced by the browns and grays of winter. Winter's austere landscape is only a short prelude until the fresh new life of Spring arrives in all of its glory!

Colors of the Season

 

As summer winds down more colors are becoming evident besides that of flowers.  A roadside asparagus plant shows off its colorful fruits bejeweled by water drops.   

 

Poison Ivy leaves are changing colors and some have already fallen.  The ivy seed pods seen here in the background are favored food of many bird species. 

 

Virginia Creeper is one of our earliest plants to change into its autumn color.   It's crimson red color is easy to spot now while most other plants remain green.

 

While autumn is nearly three weeks away by the calendar, the seasonal change in nature is occurring every day now. 

Foliage and Waterfowl

Our autumn foliage colors peaked over the weekend just in time for the Fulton Fall Folk Festival.  I shot these photos Friday and already the color is beginning to fade as showers of leaves fall to the ground with each passing breeze.

 For the first time this fall I encountered ruddy ducks as they moved south. This female allowed me to approach quite closely with the boat.  The reflection of the autumn leaves in the water painted an appealing background to photograph her against.

The Pied-billed grebes were present as they have been for the past few weeks.  After hearing a commotion in the shallow I moved closer to find three grebes fighting over a bluegill.  I followed the grebes at a discrete distance, photographing them with the 100-400mm lens, trying not to interfere with their feeding.

The grebe tried unsuccessfully to swallow the good sized fish a number of times.  Finally tiring of my presence the bird took cover in the reeds lining the lake shore.  With it hidden from view I moved on not knowing if it was ever able to swallow such a large fish.

This group of ruddy ducks was shot at a distance and cropped heavily.  Note the molting male bringing up the rear.  Only a little of his breeding plumage remains on his back and sides while his bill has lost it bright color turning black for winter.

Spring is by far my favorite time to photograph migrating waterfowl as the birds slowly wend their way northward, many sporting their breeding plumage.  In contrast the fall migration finds the ducks with the afterburners turned, on wasting little time getting to their wintering areas, giving only a small window of opportunity to photograph them as they pass through. 

Backlit Leaves

It seems like quite a bit of time has passed since the colorful autumn foliage drifted to the ground but going through my archives I found this one touch of color that I had yet to process.  I made the image one foggy November morning.  The combination of fog, wet leaves and backlight caught my attention as I was driving along a dirt road.  I tried a few different compositions with this one being my favorite.  I hope you like it too.

Autumn Overlooks

After the rain Friday and Saturday, Sunday dawned a beautiful clear day. Finding some free time in the afternoon my wife and I visited a couple of the local mountain overlooks. With a slight chill in the air and warm sunshine it was a perfect autumn afternoon that drew more than a few sightseers to the high spots.

This first shot was taken from the Bark Road overlook on Sidling Hill Mountain just south of the Lincoln Highway.

Our next stop was at the overlook near the north end of Summit Road. The little village visible here just to the left of center is Hustontown Pa, a small rural village with only a couple of stop signs and no traffic lights

The Twist & Shake at Hustontown was our next stop where my sweet little wife could not be satisfied with only one small cone :)

Autumn Leaves

Our autumn foliage, although not at its peak yet, is colorful enough to entice one out for a nice afternoon drive through the countryside.

Our Sunday afternoon drive included traveling northbound on the Bark Road through a part of the Buchanan State Forest. In some sections the colors were quite nice

At one of our many stops my wife leaned over a small bridge with her little Lumix and shot this foliage reflection in the little rippling pool below. I think she captured the best shot of the day!