Gees Bend Ferry

This was our primary destination in a daylong outing from Paul Grist State Park near Selma, AL, to Gees Bend near Camden, AL, in late March, 2007.  Gees Bend is an area isolated by a large bend in the Alabama River.  Gees Bend to Camden is only about 4.5 miles by air but over 40 miles by road and bridge.  A ferry ran here for a long time but went out of business and the State of Alabama with local help re-established the ferry. We wanted to ride the ferry which is just something we don't get to do where we live.

And we wanted to take in the Gees Bend Quilters, a group of women who have gained National prominence as stories have been told and written about the area.  Absolutely wonderful, relaxing trip with a very special ride on a ferry boat.

-Brian-

Strange Equipment

I'm not making fun of anyone or anything.  Sometimes you just run across something that is hard to understand or explain.  Such is this picture taken on the ferry that runs between Camden, AL, and Gees Bend across the Alabama River.

The ferry is completely steel.  So when I saw the axe, I just could not help myself but chuckle.  I'm sure if I took a swing with the axe, it would making a resounding noise and fly out of my hands as soon as it came in contact with any part of the ship.  I'm really guessing here, but I wonder if this is not some sort of ferry boat tradition from days when ferry boats were made of wood.

-Brian-

Taken March 2, 2008, it was a bright sunny day with an afternoon high of 76.  Lots of people were out enjoying an early taste of spring, so I grabbed the camera and stopped by the Buck Creek dam to see what I might catch.

There is a nice patch of land right below the dam that you can get to without getting wet thanks to a small, metal foot bridge.  I took this photo looking generally east across the dam at a set of buildings that will eventually hold businesses.  The dam was down to a very small trickle only a month ago, but some nice rain in January and February have helped our drought situation and produced a nice flow of water coming over the dam.

-Brian-

Historic Orrville, AL

Last year (2007) in March we spent a little time at Paul Grist State Park about 15 miles north of Selma, AL.  For an outing, we made a trip to Gees Bend which is just north and across the Alabama River from Camden, AL.  The attraction was two fold.  First, we wanted to see and ride the Gees Bend ferry.  Second, we wanted to take in some of the rural country that the area represents.

Our trip to Gees Bend meant going through Orrville, a small rural Alabama town that has seen better times.  An unexpected surprise was to find the beautiful old house you see pictured above with double chimneys - on both ends.  Obviously built in a day when fireplaces were the primary source of heating and cooking.

It is always worthwhile to travel on the roads less traveled.

-Brian-

Cheaha Deer

One of our favorite past times while we're camping at Mt. Cheaha is to watch the wildlife.  We started taking a 50-pound sack of cracked corn with us last summer, so the deer really like us to visit.  Cheaha campground is pretty rocky, so we usually pile up the corn on two or three flat rocks about 20 to 50 feet from our travel trailer.  The deer usually come in the morning shortly after sunrise and again around sunset - sometimes in the middle of the day but not as regularly.

On one trip, the campers next to us offered to loan me the use of their 300 millimeter telephoto lense.  Of course, I jumped at the chance to use it (and now I have my own), so when the deer came a couple of hours later, I snapped this shot which I think highly of.  In case you didn't notice, there is a second deer in the background in the upper right quadrant of the picture.  This is the second picture I've submitted to the Alabama Hiking Trail Society's annual conference and photo contest.

I'm amazed at how well this picture came out.  I was using a lens that I had no experience with, a camera that I'm still learning about, shooting wildlife that are only 40 feet away, not moving to frame images so I don't spook the deer - you get the idea.  But I am so proud of this picture.

-Brian-

Very Bright Sun Dog

Back in the first half of February, I had an opportunity to fly on the ABC 3340 helicopter to view and video damage in Lamar County, Alabama, as well as that at Caledonia, MS, where a school had been hit by a tornado.  Enroute back from Caledonia, we stopped to refuel at the Fayette airport, and I snapped this photo of a very brilliant sun dog in the afternoon sky.  I cannot remember a seeing a sun dog as bright or as large as this one in quite some time.

There was not enough cirrus cloud in the sky to create a double, but that really didn't matter since this one was so bright and so large.

-Brian-

Buck Creek Dam, Helena

One of the main highways through Helena, AL, where I live is 261 which crosses a bridge over Buck Creek next to a small dam.  The dam was built a long time ago and there is still some old machinery sitting on the banks from a time when the dam was fully utilized.  This picture was taken from the deck of Incahoots, a local restaurant owned and operated by Harold and Claudia Deason, on the banks of Buck Creek.

We have not seen much water flowing over the dam for about the last year as the area of Central Alabama has been in an exceptional drought condition for many months.  January and February of 2008 have seen some typical rain for these months, so water is once again flowing over the dam making a nice photo.

-Brian-

Top of Alabama

One of my favorite places in all the world is also the highest spot in Alabama, Mt. Cheaha.  Cheaha State Park is located there and we just love camping there when we can.  This picture is one I took on a little photo jaunt around the park last Fall.  The colors were slow to change, but I think you can see the hint of color there.

I'm going back to Cheaha in mid-March to speak at the annual conference of the Alabama Hiking Trail Society (AHTS).  The AHTS sponsors a photo contest at their meeting, so I've entered this photo along with one I took of my deer (actually Cheaha's deer) which I'll use to make another post.  So wish me luck on this.

This picture was taken on the very top of the picture I posted on February 10 (click here)

-Brian-

Kathryn Tucker Windham

One of my favorite people in all the world is Kathryn Tucker Windham.  She is a marvelous storyteller and is probably the person who singlehandedly got me interested in storytelling.  She resides in Selma, AL, where there is a storytelling festival each October during the second weekend - the Selma Tale Tellin Festival.  It is a wonderful two evenings of some of the finest storytelling anywhere.

The photo above I took when Miss Kathryn visited Helena, my hometown, for a special one-time event in July, 2007, hosted and arranged by Helena's Library Director, Victoria Ashford.

-Brian-

Christmas Sky

Enroute to a wonderful Christmas 2007 dinner with friends, I was stunned to see a rather complex sky with numerous waves.  I've taken to carrying my camera on a regular basis, so I pulled into a cemetery to grab a couple of shots.  The problem was that I could not see all of the sky - oh, is that a good reason to add to may equipment arsenal?  The view above is five "waves" but the series of "waves' extended both to the left and to the right of the photo you see.  My good friend, Tim Coleman, is doing research at UAH on gravity waves in the atmosphere, an absolutely fascinating topic.  In a nutshell, the air acts like a fluid, so just like the waves we see in the ocean, there are waves in the atmosphere - we just can't see them unless the moisture helps out be evaporating or condensing as seen here with the undulation of the air.

-Brian-