Winter Cucumber Falls Wide Ice behind the Falls Cucumber Falls Tall

Zygolum Orchids IMG_3877 IMG_3889 My Favorite IMG_3944 IMG_3977

I know this last one is not an orchid or bonsai tree.  I really liked its tuft.  It reminded me of Beaker from the Muppets. IMG_4013

Flapping Snow Duck Snow Ducks 2 Preening Snow Duck

Snowy Goose

Winter Duck Pond 2
 

Athena Fish Bed 1 Athena Fish Bed 2 Athena Fish Bed 3 Athena Fish Bed 5 Athena Fish Bed 8

We put Athena to bed, and I started cleaning up and our cat Jack made an appearance, and decided to cooperate.  I was able to get a couple shots of him too.

Jack Fish Bed 1 Jack Fish Bed 2

We are animal lovers, so we have a few pets.   Check back in the future, as I will add them to the pets gallery as I get them to participate in being photographed.

One rainy day my Assistant and I were out taking pictures. Okay, I was taking pictures and he was humoring me. We made a round and Mingo Park, and he asked where I wanted to go next. We talked about this while driving down RT 43 in his truck in the pouring rain.  We were debating Coopers Rock State Forest in West Virginia and Ohiopyle in Pennsylvania.   Time to get there wasn't a factor, because google said 50 minutes for Ohiopyle and 51 minutes for Coopers Rock.   So we're weighing our options when we pass a sign for Brownsville, and my Assistant goes, "There is a shut down coal power plant around Brownsville some where."   

Does that man know me.  He knows I would love to explore and photograph abandon places.  However,  being picked up for trespassing, or worse breaking and entering would not go over well for me.  We decide to check the place out, but not to go anywhere that would get us in trouble.  (Seriously, though if anyone owns an abandon place and would permit me to explore and photograph you would make my life.)

So we end up at the abandon power plant on an access road that leads under a bridge.  The bridge cover was awesome, because it was still pouring.   I had my handy dandy baggies and electrical team to make my ghetto camera cover, but it such a pain to work with.   I hopped out of the truck, and began my outside the fence exploration and photography.   

I am walking off the beaten path, in the weeds under the bridge when I noticed these guys.   I had to take a picture of them.   They are the most horrible evil things you can get stuck to your hair, clothes, boots, socks, mittens, cat, or anything else that you can think of.   They immediately took me back to being 7 years old, right before third grade.   

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*Hey Vanessa third graders are 8.*   Not in my day.  As long as you were 5 at some point during Kindergarten you could go to school, and boy was my mom ready for me to go to school.

Anyway... back to right before third grade.   I had just moved to a new neighborhood, and my best friend, Shelly,  happened to live in that neighborhood.  We were out together so she could show me the ropes and all the awesome places in to hang out in our neighborhood.    We were in "woods" that was mostly grass and weeds taller than we were, at the bottom of our hill.   We were kind of stuck in a tangled mess, and trying to make our way back out.  Shelly, my BFF, was picking her way out carefully.   She knew about those sticky bastards and how evil they were.   I knew nothing.   Anyway, I've never been one to carefully pick through anything.   That is not how I am wired.  If the problem requires that I jump head first into a 23 degree river, then you know I do.  I smash through everything like the Kool-Aid man, and that is how I handled our grass/weeds predicament.  She caution me, but also saw my progress and followed suit.   

In the end poor Shelly's hair had about 100 of those evil evil bastards in them.   Her mom could not do much for her and she had to cut her long, long, beautiful hair.   I know I apologized when I was 7, and she said it was okay, but seriously, I am super sorry you had to cut your hair.

Oh yeah... power plant pictures... Here you go.

I found this destination through my husband (assistant) and his father.   My father-in-law loved to ride his motorcycle, and this was a spot he frequented.  He and my husband started going there long before we met twenty some odd years ago.   When my husband started riding a motorcycle this was one of their places they would visit.  In fact, the first time I visited Coopers Rock I went on the back of my husband's motorcycle.  We rode out with his father.  

20160801_145823_HDR My Wonderful Assistant

The roadway through the park was amazing.  I call it a magical fairyland, because when entering the park the tree tops one either side of the road just barely touch.   On a motorcycle it is almost a tunneling effect.

There are a number of pull offs along the road where you can park to hike/hunt.  In fact, on our most recent trip there was a sign posted that said, "Rabbit Season" (to which I yelled, "Duck Season!"), and we saw a number of hunters along the road.  (If you have concerns about being mistaken for delicious game the forest has a "safe zone" where hunting is not permitted.)

At the end of the road there is a overlook built from a cliff hanging out over the Cheat River.   It is absolutely breath taking.    If you are up for an adventure there is also an underlook to take a peak at the bottom of the cliff.   My personal goal is to get in enough shape to be able to hike from the overlook to the Cheat River and back (in the same day, hell the same weekend).

Coopers Rock Overlook Summer 3

If you love the serenity of the woods, or a good motorcycle ride I strongly recommend a visit.    

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Quick Route (Has Tolls):

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I quickly realized I had no idea how to work this new-fangled contraption. I thought, "I am a software developer.  This is a computer.  I can figure it out."   I went my usual route to learn new things....the Internet.  I read blogs, watch videos on YouTube, looked at ebooks, but nothing was sinking in.  Aperture, ISO, shutter speed, exposure, studying light it all went right over my head.   

I know I am a visual learner, so I decided to take a class.    I was determined to get out of automatic.  The local community college offered non-credit community education course, and I found a Photography 101 class.  I figured I can get the basics, and maybe learn something about my camera.  I was in for a huge surprise.   The class had an amazing instructor that was so passionate about making a great photo that he was infectious.  By the time I finished the class I was completely in love with the idea of making great photographs.   

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I immediately went back to the community college website, and looked to see what other photography classes he was teaching.  I knew he had a 102 class, but it would be a couple months before it started.   I did not want to want a couple of months, I wanted more NOW.   There was a macro photography class starting in 2 weeks.   It was right up my alley.  I love being outside and in the woods.   I like taking pictures of bugs and flowers.  It sounded perfect.  I had just bought some land in the middle of no where that had a field, I kind you not a field, of milkweed.  The milkweed had plenty of monarch butterfly caterpillars (my favorite) for me to study.

I went online, and bought an amazing f2.8 100mm macro lens, and signed up for his macro photography class.   I don't think I have ever had such a great time with a group of complete strangers.  (This is a big deal for me.   I never go anywhere new without a friend.   My best friend would not be my best friend if I had not drug my poor sister to her house for a Halloween party.)   I learned some tricks macro photographers used, and I got some pictures I was really excited about.  I was off to an excellent start.

mushroom