Going... going...

Remember this tree?  Now, leaning severely.  But why haven't they finished the job?  Is the tree too big for them to haul away?

A leisure life is a good life

Finally got around to hanging a hammock down at the river.

After but a few minutes upon stretching out on it:  z z z z .

It's Summer!

Every June begins summertime.  Update:  those blackberries are ripe and ready for picking.  Plenty for you—there are way more of them than birds to eat them.
The River is ready for your enjoyment.

Take a look at the Garden.  It is doing very well this year.

And see the harvest after everything was picked just two days earlier.

Also doing really well are Sunflowers.  These all germinated on their own-- evidently from last year's seeds.  Several of them were transplanted to the flower garden when they were just a few inches high,   Reminds you of "... look at me now ..." from Karmin's viral video of the same name?

Though you may be wishing for better weather where you are, it's been great here at the River.  Here's those sunflowers for you to enjoy.

March goes out like a lamb?

So, it's the last day of March.  Temperature hitting 85°.  It's a beautiful day to cut the grass that's been growing by leaps and bounds.  And some dandelions that have gone to seed.  Have a look at the River for yourself:

Noon at the River (High Dynamic Range photo) -Newly Mowed Grass

Wouldn't you know that on such a summer-like day there would be an afternoon cloudburst-- with hail.  A two-minute video; so different from the earlier sunshine!
So, you decide:  did March go out like a lamb?  Hint:  later on, the sunshine reappeared just in time for sunset.
You may need to turn down the volume if you listen to this video-- the hail is very loud on the 'tin' roof.

The video is in 720p HD if you want to get a good look at the hail on the porch.

a Super day

Yep.  Today has been a Super day.

If panorama picture is too wide to fit on your screen, try clicking on the middle of the photo.  It may switch you to a photo viewer.

River panorama in the morning

Not exciting... but peaceful.   Listen to a few birds chirping early in the morning (less than 40 seconds).

Better than the rain deluge the other day.

The River is rising ... again

Here's a 12 second clip of this morning's downpour at the River. Wraparound porches are great for a day like today.

Hope the baby crops won't wash away. And hope river doesn't rise too much or become too swift to preclude kayaking this afternoon :(

Spring is here (almost) !

The garden

Lots of cedar trees have grown up in our lot  adjacent to the 'cabin'.  The picnic bench you see here has stayed close to home.  It is tethered onto a post in the ground.  Before tethering, it had floated down several lots to a neighbor's tree line during a good sized flood (before the flood of May 2010)

The garden has been tilled for 2012.  Rows are marked with string.  It's a beautiful day... mostly sunny and unseasonably warm

The sky has darkened; thunder claps are occurring, but no rain.  The dark sky brings out the contrast of the trees beginning to leaf out.

A telephoto shot reveals the River as it bends northward.

Down from the picnic bench is a path that leads over the bridge to the River's edge.  The water is higher now than in the Summer.  The path is ready to be repaired after several high waters that approached flood stage.

Kayaking

After starting the garden, it was time for a well-earned break.

Dragging the kayak to the beginning of the path at the Riverbank.

Preparing to climb aboard.  A little trickier this time as recent late Winter high waters have brought sand and mud to where there had been a good base of river rock.

Underway!  The substantial wake is created by such powerful paddle strokes

.

It was a good ride, into the setting sun.

Already planted:  lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, beets, radishes, red onions, white onions, yellow onions.  To be planted tomorrow-- potatoes.

Two thousand eleven

The first day of summer is just a few bunches of days away.  Snow blankets the riverbanks today.







But a few days ago, the River was in its winter sleep.  So calm, the River reflects clearly trees from the opposite bank.

We can't see the beavers under water.

Leafing out along the River

So many colors green in the early spring along the River bank.

(click to enlarge picture in new window)

The big walnut tree at the left is one of the last trees to leaf out in the Spring.  The river birches, with the white trunks have begun to sport new green leaves.  The several "wild" trees at the right are still getting themselves ready for Spring.
This picture shows our entire riverbank in early-mid April.  Weather has been perfect; temperatures about 10° above normal.  The river is flowing slowly.  With nothing more than a gentle breeze, the river is like a mirror; notice reflections of the trees on the opposite bank.  The year is freshly mowed.


This picture was created from twelve individual photos that were stitched together by Photoshop into this panorama.  Each photo was manually exposed at 1/800 sec., f8.0 with ISO of 400.  The photographer was standing on the cabin's roof; notice the lower right corner of the panorama.

Skimming sun in the early morning

The sun is skimming along the yard and the river.  Look carefully and you'll see

• Bin of peat moss in the Tracker® from yesterday's planting of free trees from the Perry County Soil Conservation folks: 7 loblolly pines and 3 cherrybark oak trees.
• Chair in the garden.  It is reserved for the horticultural Supervisor.  She's off-duty this early in the morning.
• Some color is beginning to show in the large trees.  They know Spring is just around the corner.