A WALK THROUGH PROSPECT

Leaving our home for a walk through Prospect behind us is always a treat for my camera, and me.

Gothic Mountain, I think my favorite, appears behind the edge of Snodgrass. and our neighbor's yard.

Flowers everywhere draw my attention, and my camera, as did this Gaillardia or blanketflower.  Thanks to my good friend, Don Hempel in Crested Butte who helped my faded memory with flower IDs.

I was happy to see a variety of colors in this patch of yarrow beside the road.

Rocky Mountain Penstemon and Showy Fleabane were often side by side.

Silvery Lupine was still in bloom everywhere -

As were the bright yellow Sunspots.

The Rocky Mountain Penstemon and Scarlet Gillia or Fairy Trumpets complemented each other.

The aspens were in full leaf on the mountain sides behind a carpet of wildflowers.

We visited a new home under construction, and from its porch I took this picture of the East  River Valley.

Returning home after our walk Gothic Mountain with its smoky like cloud and the flowers on Snodgrass made a memorable sight.

As did the clouds that appeared to be emanating from the rock wall near our street end.

One last shot of the view across from our home as a final reminder of this beautiful part of Colorado,

As the clouds built up behind us to end another wonderful day in Paradise

FOG AND BEACH REPLENISHMENT

Though our immediate beach came back very well after "Sandy's destruction of the Jersey Shore" last November - the Corps of Engineers slated us for another beach replenishment this year, along with more needy parts of our island.  On a nice blue sky day several weeks ago I spied a strange looking
creature traveling south on the beach, with its head showing over the dunes.

Jumping in my car, I decided to intercept it further down the island to capture a photo.

I found it already a mile away, obviously measuring the height of the beach above the ocean and plotting the contour of the existing dunes.

Off shore were the ships that were laying the pipes which would carry the sand to the beach

Sometime later on a foggy morning we decided to take a walk towards where the work was beginning.  Some of the good and bad side affects were already beginning to show.

While this gull was having an easier time finding its dinner -

The water's edge was littered with the carcases of dead sand crabs.

The end of the pipe that would bring in the sand on shore lay on a support at the edge of the ocean,    ready to  be  connected to the pipes that were lying on  the beach.

The "monster" towered over the bulldozers as they pushed up the sand, and the cage that would be    

                                             used the filter it as it sprayed onto the beach.

This morning this whole crew had already reached our street, and the beach was closed for the work.
Since the ocean is cold and the sky is foggy between intermittent showers there are no sunbathers anyway.

                So the bulldozers are pushing up the new sand to fortify the dunes,  
              

While "the monster" awaits its turn to continue its measurements.  We will see what nature has in       store for us this year as it redistributes the new sand to its liking over the winter.

4TH OF JULY IN SURF CITY

July 4th on our blocks in Surf City has a tradition of more than 40 years in duration. It begins with a parade around our 2 ocean blocks of all residents, children, grandchildren, pets and guests, singing "God Bless American" with all the enthusiasm and accompanying noise we can muster - and there is always plenty of that. Passerby's honk their horns and more people join us every year.

The leaders always carry a flag , followed by everyone  dressed in the colors of 

of the flag, children; adults, babies in carriages - young and old, with smiles.

Sometimes too "Uncle Sam"  joins in the procession to the beach where after the singing of our national anthem and saluting our flag, games are held for the children - of all ages.

There is always the famous "Sack Race" - different heats of course for different ages.

                                                              And the wheel barrel race,

The water balloon toss

the crab race,

and the pie eating contest and finishing with a Tug-O-War, boys against girls, with somehow the girls always winning.  Help always seems to arrive when it is needed!!

It is a great way to spend the morning with family and friends and celebrate America's Birthday.

EARLY SUMMER ON LONG BEACH ISLAND

We have been back at the New Jersey Shore for almost 2 months and I have totally neglected my blog. Thus far the weather here has been very "iffy" and my camera has not left our house very often. But in spite of our late arrival, I did get the flowers planted before the rains settled in. Generally it has been abnormally cool on our island for this time of the yer, with cold water and a strong south breeze, but if one wants some heat all one has to do is cross the bridge to the mainland. We know it will be coming.

However, when we arrived, anxious to see the recovery of the beach after the devastation brought upon most of the Island by "Superstorm Sandy" last November we were pleasantly surprised.  The beach size was ample with the addition of a pseudo smaller island in the water at low tide.

Brenda - a well know surfer and beach walker had added shell topping to the fence in front of the home where she lives.

The tides had left their marks in the wet sands at the end of the tidal pools.

And the "Laughing Gulls" paid little attention to any temporary changes in their beach.  They were just happy to have it mostly to to themselves before the summer crowds arrive.

But the small local children love playing in the pools and beach away from the main ocean waves.

A yearly visit from our Pittsburgh "cousins" and their friends is always a special treat, and you can see from their tans that they had taken advantage of the sunny days.

But then the rains started!!  The flowers on the dunes bloomed with the added moisture, but some of the annuals in my pots drowned.  But rain came many, many days - rain I would have liked to send to Colorado as we watched the terrible fires on TV.  Thankfully, for us,  the fires were on the other side of the Rockies from our town of Crested Butte.

HEADING BACK TO NEW JERSEY

A late trip East this year -  Mid- May!!

Several days before leaving our home in Crested Butte Colorado,

we awaken to another big snow storm.  Beautiful as it was we were anxious to get on the road 

in a few days and not anxious to travel in bad weather.  After all it was mid-May.

However, within a day or so it had mostly melted and the colors of early spring were shining through.

                                 But then the fog set in giving an eerie light to the mountains.

The morning we left our home was silhouetted against the White Mountains, enshrouded in fog.

As we drove down the valley towards Gunnison I was fascinated by the play of light and shadows  between the clouds and mountains.

But further south the cows were quite happy grazing in the fields

     And the rivers, free of ice, continued to make their way down to warmer temperatures..

Heading east over Monarch Pass, there was new snow on the trees, but the highway was clean.

  The Eastern slopes of the Rockies were beautiful with their red rock accented by the blue sky.

All remained well until the next day when we were traveling through Kansas.  The sky darkened
and looked threatening.  As the hail started we kept tuned to the news channel to stay abreast of what was happening just south of us in Oklahoma.  It wasn't good!!  Trying to take refuge from the hail, under the overpasses, along with other vehicles, we were chased out by the police.

Breaking the speed limit, we decided to "get out of  Dodge" as quickly as we could.

                               Soon the sky cleared somewhat and we were among the wind farms.

The next day we waved at people on the overpasses who were waving at us with American
flags.  Seeing  motorcycles on the highway decked out in red, white and blue we finally saw where they were going.  Passing one small town we saw the street lined with American flags and a procession forming as vehicles exited the highway.  Had we had time we would have joined them.

 The next day as we reached the fresh spring green colors of Pennsylvania, my home state, I knew we were getting close to our summer home on the New Jersey coast.  What a beautiful country we have!!