Hiking nowadays I seek out unfrequented spots, such as the Red Pine Trail using the adage “a mile makes all the difference” to find peaceful corners even in popular New York State Parks. A turn onto Woodard Road finds an intersection with a Finger Lakes Trail. On one side heading away to woodlands and fields. The other side the same with the option of hitting Treman’s Rim Trail.
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Phlox
Buttercups
Much of the infrastructure of our local parks were built in the 1930’s during the Depression, witnessed by this plaque. Substantial work is ongoing, such as a bridge over Fish Kill by the Finger Lakes Trail volunteers.
The new bridge changed my plans for today, previously Fish Kill was a barrier.
View from the new bridge
To be continued…..
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills
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Perfect weather
I break away from household chores on a week day for exercise, arriving am impressed by the COVID-19 mitigation.
Six Foot Separation begins with parking
The new one-way trail rules, posted on the Rim Trail sign, means my planned route must change. Today’s COVID-19 strategy is to use the Red Pine trail, a very steep climb, a pine woods ramble, ending with descent to the Gorge Trail suitable for a mountain goat. The rules mean I cannot turn right on the Gorge Trail to form a loop. Instead commitment to the Gorge Trails means a 4 mile loop to the bottom of the park, returning on the Rim Trail. I decide to climb to the top and return.
I take an interesting detour on the way, visiting an archaeological site, fields of strongly scented wild roses, lush ferns.
Wild Rose fragrance filled the air
Wild Rose
Fern Bank at the Foot of Red Pine Trail
All these photographs and video are from an IPhone 7, sent to my laptop via ICloud.
I cross a nameless stream to the trail head, follow this stream uphill to where it cuts into the slope where the trail turns sharply and climbs into the pines.
In the first video, the largest and strongest Robin chick, the first to fledge, is not quite ready. Maybe I am anthropomorphizing, this individual appears to exhibit the same emotions I feel when approaching a new physical experience, say learning to flip turn, swimming laps in later life. Listen carefully to hear the chick playing the carriage light crown like a bell.
I have a lot to learn about making video with this new camera. Color balance is improved in the second video.
Today, the morning after, this nest is not empty. I found the third chick standing, well grown, enjoying the benefits of parental attention. The nest was empty by afternoon, the territorial Robin parents were still terrorizing Blue Jays.
Special thanks to Pam for the heads up on the chicks and for ceding her prime kitchen window spot.
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills
We watched the parents build this nest in stages from May to June, at times progress was so slow Pam and I thought the nest abandoned. It is a perfect location for them, safe from predators, sheltered by soffit, above, wall, behind. In front, carriage light crown.
Today the two of three chicks flew the nest. Here they are in the minutes before this big event.
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Several times in the “aughts” (2000 – 2009) Pam and I visited Ottawa, the capital of Canada, for work. We’d leave on a weekend to enjoy some personal time before the appointments.
It is sad, I could find no photographs of Ottawa to share with this post. We loved the European feel of the city.
Our exposure to the Canada pavilion was a walk by at sunset on the way to our Japan dinner reservation.
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This building is very much like the Chateaus of Ottawa on the river Rideau and Ottawa rivers.
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills
Our Spaceship Earth “Fast Pass” was next, after the aquarium. With Fast Pass we arrived in a time slot and sped to the head of the line, boarded vehicle like a roller coaster car and enjoyed the presentations (a slow moving ride to the beginning of time through history, the present and the future). Photography is not allowed, so our memories of enjoyment more than suffice. Walt Disney conceived of EPCOT as a well designed city of the future, with full time residences. As time passed, his dream morphed into our reality of today. EPCOT is populated by many, many, many tourists.
Yesterday, Thursday, April 23, in the news we learned COVID-19 was into community spread, with people dying, in January. Here is a quote from the opening paragraph: “In January, a mystery illness swept through a call center in a skyscraper on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Close to 30 people in one department alone had symptoms — dry, deep coughs and fevers they could not shake. When they gradually returned to work after taking sick days, they sat in their cubicles looking wan and tired.” Reconsidered during this pandemic, the Spaceship Earth is a perfect engine for spreading air borne disease.
How close did Pam and I come to the virus circulating among the crowds from across the United States and our world? This question was far from our minds as we, people watching, walked from Spaceship Earth to the Norway pavilion. I have cousins who are Finnish descendants and when my ancestors settled in what is today western New Jersey, 1677, it was resettled Finns who welcomed them, remnants of a failed attempt by Sweden to colonize the New World.
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Replica of a Finnish Home
Many attractions, such as the log home and the following were on display in the bright air. These an all the photographs and videos are from my IPhone 7 — I traveled light to maximize enjoyment of the day.
Rune Stone (replilca)
I was very interested in rooms of Viking information. I had a home with large ash trees, the long bole leading to spread of leaves. These trees are in decline now, attacked by the emerald ash borer, not in my memories of them on warm days, shading the roof.
Overview
The IPhone 7 did a capable job of capturing all that was available in the display cases, for later perusal. Enjoy!!
Perusing the Epcot brochure as we walked beneath “Spaceship Earth” (see photograph, below) we planning the afternoon. Between that moment and Tokyo Dining at 7 pm we had a afternoon “Fast Pass” for Spaceship Earth.
It was natural to wander into”The Seas with Nemo and Friends,”the first attraction after Spaceship Earth, first turn on the right. Pam and I were enthralled for an hour, walking about, viewing a 5.1 million gallon “Sea Base” aquarium.
A metaphor of aquarium occupants stops at the glass edge, the sea creatures on one side of the glass, the humans on the other very much closer to each other, breathing the same air.
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Spaceship Earth, the icon of Epcot
Orienteering Map within Aquarium
Here is a crowd favorite, the “funny nose” Unicorns.
In the 2000’s the company I worked for was installing software at Walt Disney World and over several trips became familiar with the Team Disney building, especially the wonderful sundial. My coworkers and I took dinner once at the “Rose and Crown” restaurant, Epcot United Kingdom pavilion. At first glance Epcot pavilions have a high cheesiness potential. A saving grace, what most impressed me, was the staffing. Young people from the United Kingdom served us, creating a deep authenticity to the experience.
I always wanted to visit “on my own dime”, January 2020 seemed like a good time. We are not “Disney or Die” (as in “Give Me Liberty AND Give Me Death”), the news available to the public was of an ill defined illness in China. Over that week I researched the park and purchased tickets for Friday, January 10. That morning I greeted the dawn and we headed out later morning for Orlando.
Once Walt Disney World is once again open, as I am sure it will be, two important preparations I recommend are (1) install the “My Disney Experience” app and, on arrival (2) take a photograph of the parking location before boarding the tram. The Disney Experience smart phone app allowed us to book restaurant reservations. Admission fee includes several reservations for attractions, to skip the line. Disney calls it a “Fast Pass.”.
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Preparations
In keeping with our dangerous position, wandering among COVID-19 spotted crowds, “the invisible enemy,” here are several dangerous inhabitants of the first attraction we enjoyed, “The Seas with Nemo and Friends.”
Today, enjoy two videos of shorebirds taking flight at once. Starlings can flock and swarm in clouds of birds, called murmuration. My videos of a shorebird colony taking fright, at something unknown as the beach was empty, are from my IPhone 7.
This is a still image, high resolution, similar to the view of the second video. A repeat from yesterday.
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With a tripod it is simpler to achieve a level horizon….
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III
December 3, 2014 President Obama warned of the coming pandemic and passed along plans and a team to the incoming Trump administration. By December 2019, the pandemic unleashed in China, Trump gutted this capability and, while Pam and I were planning out January 10th Walt Disney World trip, hid the truth from United States Citizens.
We were keeping an eye on China, by January 10th the Chinese communist government was lying, “there is no human-to-human” transmission they told the WHO (World Health Organization). Knowing the truth, our plans for that day would be different.
Michael Stephen Wills Photography 