The (Not so) Rural Pennsylvanian

  • A Salute to Memorial Day

    This Memorial Day weekend, I traveled to the Cumberland Valley and Michaux State Forest. The Carlisle area is home the U.S. Army War College and the Army Heritage and Educational Center. I was not able to visit the exhibits at the Heritage Center due to it being closed because of “the situation,” but was able to visit some of the outside exhibits. More about the Heritage Center can be found here.

    I liked this mural on the side of the building.
    An old artillery piece on display.
    A great statue memorializing out veterans.
    One of the tanks near the main entrance.

    The Heritage Center also hosts the Army Heritage Trail, which serves as an outdoor museum. It covers about one mile and highlights nearly every era of Army history with different exhibits and large artifacts. The Trail also serves as a stage for living history presentations by historians serving as interpreters.

    Fourteen individual exhibits include full scale reconstructions of a French and Indian War way station, Redoubt Number 10 from the Revolutionary War siege of Yorktown, a section of the Antietam battlefield, a Civil War winter encampment with cabins, a WWI trench system, a WWII company area, a replicated Normandy Bocage scene from World War II, a Current Operations HESCO Bastion barrier checkpoint, and an interpretation of the Vietnam helicopter air assault at Ia Drang that includes a period Fire Support Base. Additionally, there are numerous smaller exhibits featuring armor, aircraft, and artillery from several different eras of U.S. Army history.

    A view of the Heritage Trail.

  • The Groundhog Sticks Her Head Out of the Her Hole

    It shouldn’t come as a surprise, that due the corona virus lock down, I haven’t been out much doing photography. I did manage to drive around my local community getting some photos of the spring flowers and flowering trees. I also checked up on two of my local state parks, which were well attended by people glad to get out of the house while maintaining a safe distance from others.

    The local; cherry trees are in bloom.
    Tulips are always lovely.
    This pony at Ridley Creek State Park finds things greener on the other side of the fence.
    These horses aren’t bothered by Covid 19.
    I love this barn at Hope Springs Farm at Marsh Creek State Park.
    It has a great silo.
    The horses were enjoying a day in the pasture.
    Down at the West Launch a kayaker is getting ready to shove off.
    Someone else has a faster way to get around.

    Socially distant dispersed outdoor recreational fun was had by all.

  • The Harbingers of Spring

    Some people identify the American robin with the coming of Spring. For me, it’s the late winter passing of hordes of snow geese through Pennsylvania that foretells of Spring right around the corner. In late February, hundreds of thousands of snow geese can be present at the same time at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Lancaster and Lebanon Counties. I didn’t make it to Middle Creek this year, opting instead to view geese, along with some other rarer species, that had been reported at Woods Edge Park in Lancaster County.

    You may remember Woods Edge Park as they place I went to view the black-bellied whistling duck. This time around, a pink-footed goose, Ross’s goose, cackling goose and Virginia rail had been reported at the pond in the park. These are all species I had never seen before. By the time I arrived the next Saturday, large numbers of snow geese were present. I was able to see the Ross’s goose and the cackling goose, but not the pink-footed or the rail. Still, two “lifers” in one day is pretty good.

    There was a steady stream of birders through the park that day. None that I spoke to had success spotting the rare pink-footed goose. I did learn how to identify two other species of goose and something new about the snow goose.

    This is a Ross’s goose. Note how it looks like a small snow goose with a shorter bill.
    Here’s a cackling goose. This one looks like a smaller Canada goose with shorter neck and bill.
    Some snow geese – the “blue morph” snow goose is in front. Behind is an adult white snow goose and a juvenile in the rear. I did not realize the blue morph existed.
    Are you talking about me?
    Lots ‘o geese.
    A partial view of the throng.

    A nice, short and sweet day out. This location seems pretty productive for birding despite its small size. I will probably be back again at some point.

  • Up, Up and Away

    On a beautiful October day, I stopped by the Model Airplane Field at Valley Forge National Historical Park to see if there was any action there. I frequently drive by this spot and see planes in the air on Saturday afternoons. I was treated to the sight of a number of planes in flight, including some very large ones.

    The Model Airplane Field is the the flying site of the Valley Forge Signal Seekers, one of the largest and oldest model airplane clubs in the United States. Formed in 1959 with over 150 members, more information about the club can be found at www.vfss.org. The Model Airplane field is located on Valley Forge Road in the southwestern section of the park.

    Photographing the planes was good practice for me. I haven’t had much opportunity to photograph birds in flight, and this trip provided me with some much needed experience in trying to shot fast moving objects. Plus, these planes really are just cool.

    Getting ready for take off with a drone chaperone.
    Doing some fancy maneuvers.
    Flying high over the field.
    Another plane comes in for a landing.
    Getting ready for another go.
    This is a pretty impressive set of planes.
    The big yellow one comes in for a landing.
    I love how this one looks like a smiley face from underneath.
    It was a nice day just to sit outside.
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