crocus!

I saw my first crocus of the season emerging today.

Although the calendar says it's still winter, signs of spring are always welcome.

green

A succulent wearing green provides a pop of color.

water and ice

As the air warmed I headed for the coast and Halibut Point State Park in Rockport.

The water in the quarry wore ripples from the wind, the walls of the quarry wore patterns of ice. I'm always amazed at how long ice stays in place as the air temperature starts to warm.

More photos from today's walk can be seen in the gallery Halibut Point :: 2016.

simplicity

A camellia standing alone creates great beauty.

first play

I gave in to a desire for a bit more reach for my Fuji X-T1, purchasing a Fuji XF 55-200mm lens. A quick mid-day walk (with camera) yesterday provided a good first impression.

I'm looking forward to the weekend for time to play, and to learn the capabilities of my new lens.

across the river

Standing in Prescott Park, the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery is visible behind a set of docks on the Portsmouth side of the river..

a splash of purple

Flowers feed my need for bright color today.

to Parker River

I planned my Parker River National Wildlife Refuge wander today after consulting the tide chart. The coast beckoned in the morning but the afternoon looked better; I wanted to walk on the beach as the tide was going out.

The air was a little cooler than it was yesterday but it still felt like an early spring day. It was a perfect day to walk by the sea and to listen to the ocean.

More photos from today can be seen in the gallery Parker River, and... 2016.

tugboat powered

When I headed to the New Hampshire coast this morning the sky was still wearing gray and the tide was high.

I stopped at the northern edge of Odiorne Point State Park for a bit, then headed on to Portsmouth.

As I got closer, I saw that the Memorial Bridge was in an up position. It was still up when I parked next to Prescott Park. As I stood close to the water, a massive freighter moved by, pushed by tugboats out to sea. I walked a bit, looked around, then walked across the (now down) Memorial Bridge. I reversed direction and was about to exit the bridge when I heard the lift warning. I turned again and walked toward the lift section of the bridge. Cars stop pretty close to the entrance of the bridge but the gate that spans the sidewalk of the bridge has a high section that allows pedestrians to walk closer.

I watched as tugboats maneuvered another large freighter. They pushed it inland, up the Piscataqua River. It moved under the lift section of the Memorial Bridge, then under the lift section of the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge a little further inland.

It was a good day for watching ships, enjoying sky changes from gray to blue, walking in warm temperatures.

tulip dreams

It will be a while yet before I see this year's tulips in gardens near home. Curious, I checked my photo galleries from last spring. I captured one tulip in late April, with most of the bloom showing up several weeks later in a mid-May timeframe.

This solo tulip is from Tower Hill Botanic Garden's flower arrangement competition last weekend. It feeds my dreams of tulips.