American Pipit - II

Perhaps you are not as enamoured of this unassuming little bird as I am, but stay with me. He does some nice posing.

American Pipit

This is the sort of bird that, if you saw it in your backyard you'd be underwhelmed. But here, sitting on this rock so close to us, he is quite impressive.

Headed out Kougarok Road

On the windy, treeless plains and hillsides surrounding Nome we find lots of life. Not just the birds and mammals I've photographed, but also the summer explosion of flowers.

Along Council Road

I thought you'd like to see a few scenes along Council Road, just outside Nome. Nome sits on the coast of Alaska that faces south west. The road to the village of Council runs along the coast for a while headed south east. Along this coastal section, there are lots of small cabins that seem to be built to house folks for fishing.

Phalarope and Sparrow

Another commonly found bird on this trip is the red necked phalarope. these are neat and prim little birds that can be found in bodies of water of most any size from the large roadside puddle on up.

Along a River

In the river next to the sandpiper we saw in the posts yesterday, we found a couple red breasted mergansers. They make a handsome pair.

More of the Semipalmated Sandpiper

We soon discovered why the sandpiper was figgety: she had a nest in the stones beside the road and was quite anxious about our presence. However, she eventually gave up on trying to lead us away and went back to her nest.

A Couple Birds from the Nome Trip

I thought I'd bring you some more birds from my Nome trip. With all the travel this year I have plenty of variety to bring to the blog. Since travel down times leads to lots of repetitive sorts of photos of flowers and such. Enjoy the senseless switching from place to place while you can.

Above is another image of a willow ptarmigan. These birds like to perch on clumps of willow not far from the road, so it was fairly easy see them.

Votivkirche, Part II

It is a huge place. On this day, I was nearly alone here. You can almost imagine how, at night, without the light filling all the windows, this can seem a much cosier place.

Votivkirche

There was an assassination attempt on Emperor Franz Joseph in 1853. To thank God for his survival, his brother, Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian (who became the emperor of Mexico about a decade later) initiated a campaign to raise money to build a church. The church was dedicated in 1879 on the anniversary of Emperor Joseph and his wife Elizabeth (also known as Sissi and much loved in Hungary). Alas, Maximilian did not live to see this happen since he was killed in Mexico in 1867.

A Sunrise of Color

On one of those mornings where there is a layer of clouds that does not reach the horizon in the east, we have clouds lit from below in the predawn sky. 

More from a Daily Walk

This east-facing coastal town had little in the way of an inviting beach to offer. But if you are a lover of fishing, golfing, or small town life, this is the place fo you.

Dunbar, Scotland

When you read this, we will have recently left a house sit in Dunbar, Scotland. I thought I'd mi things up a bit with some photos from here as I continue to prepare future posts from the summer.

A Visit to Hoh Rainforest and back to First Beach

We drove to the Hoh Rainforest one day and took a short walk through the impressive forest. Here, the trees are bigger and denser on the ground. But it was so dry, you could hardly tell that this was a rainforest.

By the Beach on a Cloudy Day

With a little in-camera adjust with a graduated neutral density filter and a slightly longer than usual exposure, we get a dramatic look at the sea and sea stacks.

Second Beach

This is what much of the forest trail looks like...lots of trees in various stages between life and death.

From First Beach Headed toward Second Beach

It is still surprising to find logs washed up on a beach here and find that it had been basically ripped out of the ground by the roots.

On First Beach at La Push

Naturally, since this is a beach in the state of Washington, it is covered in (at least partially) with stones and lots of logs that have washed up in the many storms this area is known for.

Now, for Something Totally Different...

Jumping ahead a few weeks, once back from our European jaunt, we went on a short vacation (like we needed another one) with the entire family. We stayed at the Quileute beach resort in La Push, WA. Neat little cottages along the pacific shore looking out on several sea stacks.

Zentralfriedhof - X

As we come to the end of our tour of the Central Cemetery, we find several imposing gravestones.

Zentralfriedhof - IX

I find that these grave sites that are covered with old vines and lots of ferns to be very much in the spirit of a 19th century cemetery. At least the spirit that we have from the literature of the age.

Zentralfriedhof - VIII

Now, back to the museum....Here is a scene that was often seen at a 19th century funeral.

Zentralfriedhof - VII

 

Also located at the cemetery is small but interesting museum filled with all sorts of things associated with death, and burial.

Zentralfriedhof - VI

Away from the more frequently visited areas, we find markers that are in need of some maintenance. However, the lush vegetation does give it a quality that the more neatly tended graves don't have.

Zentralfriedhof - V

 

The cemetery is also home to a modern, but quite splendid church, the Friedhofskirche.

Zentralfriedhof - IV

 

I cannot tell you who this marker is meant to remember. I was so jarred by the appearance of a naked woman sitting on the knees of a skeleton facing the deceased that I failed to note the resident. Many body parts of distorted and misshapen. This is a really strange gravestone.

Zentralfriedhof - III - Moving Toward the Musicians

This stone appears to have a fairy along with a cherub to admire and mourn the resident.

Zentralfriedhof - II

This cemetery is filled with finely crafted statuary of young women mourning the loss of family.

Zentralfriedhof

One of our best outings in Vienna took to the the Zentralfriedhof, the central cemetery. This place plays a role for Vienna similar to the magnificent seven cemeteries in London but was later. It was opened on All Saint's Day in 1874.

Along the Nome-Teller Road

In the bushes along the sides of the road, we often spied rock ptarmigans monitoring the surroundings for predators approaching their nests.