Day 59 - Halloween

Jack - o - lantern

I really wish I had better photos and a better walk to share with you today.  It has been a long day, and today brought home to me the difficulties that parents with young children would have in trying to accomplish a daily photo walk themselves.  I will have to explore some ways that busy parents could still pull off a daily photo walk if they were determined to do so.

I took care of my sick 16 month old granddaughter all day today.  She has a fever, no appetite, and the infection babies often get called thrush.  She is downright miserable.  The peditrician's office was closed from Saturday through Tuesday, so today was the first day we could get her an appointment to be seen.  We also had to get a chest xray to rule out pneumonia and then make a trip to the pharmacy. The weather was chilly and raw, with occasional spitting rain.

Ready for trick-or-treaters

The one time I did attempt to take her on a photo walk with me, she cried the entire time.  She just was not her usual happy self at all today.

So, as soon as her parents got home at 6 p.m., I walked around the neighborhood for a few shots before leaving to go to the Comus Market to photograph their fantastic display of lit pumpkins.  I discovered on my evening photo walk that my Nikon P7100 does not take good low light photos unless it is on a tripod.  Of course, that is pretty much to be expected with any camera, and I am not about to haul around a tripod on my daily photo walks.  I will just try to do them in daylight.

I have shared a couple of the photos from the Comus Market shoot here, too.  They are not part of the photo walk photos, but I wanted you to enjoy them anyway.

I'll be back with my granddaughter for the next two days, so hopefully she will feel better for a photo walk with me.

Photos from the Comus Market, not part of the Photo Walk:

Comus 1

Comus 2

Comus 3

Comus 4

Happy Halloween!


Hurricane Sandy Relief:  Donate to the Red Cross, and I will mail you a 5 x 7 print from any of the photos I have posted on my blog.

Forward to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross.  Include the day of the walk and a description of the photo, along with a mailing address.  The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient.  Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

My Fundraising Effort for the Red Cross

Social media has played a huge roll in the coverage of information about Hurricane Sandy.  It is amazing how quickly photos are posted and shared, advice is given and taken, and reassurances that family and friends are safe are met with relief and many "likes."  I watched the news coverage tonight of the damage in New York, and I was humbled to realize that my little photo walks are still important enough to some people that they actually clicked on the link today, taking time away from their own lives and worries, to see what I was up to.

As of this writing, in just 57 days, I have had 2700 page views.  I want to harness the role of social media, and have my daily photo walks benefit others.    I am working on getting a "donate now" button for the Red Cross added to my blog.  Anyone who forwards to me via email a receipt for donating to the Red Cross will be mailed a 5x7 print of his/her choice from any of the photos I have posted.  Just include the day of the walk and a description of the photo, along with a mailing address.  The name on the receipt to the Red Cross must match the name of the mailing recipient.  Send the receipt and the photo request to camscamerashots@gmail.com.

For example, a forwarded receipt may contain a message that looks like this:

"Please mail the picture of the white building with the cannon and the stormy sky from Day 6 - Best Farm to Davy Jones, 1234 Neptune Lane, Anywhere, MD  22991."

In the meantime, until I get a donation button set up, you can visit the Red Cross's donation site to get started.

Henceforth, I will be giving my photos titles, so that they will be easier to identify when requesting a print.

Thank you for supporting me in this effort.  I will be even more motivated to complete my photo walks, knowing that they are helping to bring relief to those who have lost so much in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Day 58 - The Day After Sandy

Thankfully, everyone in my family and seemingly in the immediate area made out fine after a night of wind and rain.

I've been watching the news of all the damage up and down the East Coast and getting lots of FB updates from friends in Ocean City, MD.  Lots of damage there, but thankfully everyone seems fine.

I heeded the warnings on TV to stay off the roads today to allow those who NEED to get to work or to assist in the recovery efforts to have less traffic on the roads.  So I walked in a light rain around the neighborhood again.

Lots of leaves were down, and I even found a tree that had snapped, but other than that, things look good.

I have given some thought to a "photo walk in the rain" protocol, since before I started this effort, even a few drops would have sent me back inside.  So, here is what I have determined.

1. Do not walk in the rain if it is unsafe to do so.  Obviously, hurricanes and thunderstorms are topping the list of unsafe conditions.  Flooding would be another issue to consider.  Stay safe above all.
2. Invest in good rain gear.  I have Columbia Omni-Tech rain pants and a rain jacket and Bogs rubber boots.  They do not sponsor me (I wish -- hint, hint); they are just what I have found works.
3. Protect your camera.  If it is small like mine, it will zip under your jacket.  If it is big, use a plastic ziplock with a hole cut for the lens or buy a plastic rain sleeve made for big cameras.
4. Your hands and your face are most likely to get the wettest, so tuck a dry washcloth in your pocket to dry off hands, glasses, cell phone screens, etc.  Dry tissues in your pocket are probably a good idea, too.
5. If you have driven somewhere to take your walk, you are going to want to strip off all the wet stuff before getting back into the car, so plan ahead.  Pack regular shoes and a spare jacket (if the temps warrant) so you can change into them before driving.  Consider packing a trash bag to stuff all your wet things into.
6. Get creative with your rain shots.  Look for shots you could not take if it was dry:  gushing drain spouts; people huddled under umbrellas; rain streaked windows.
7. Have fun!  After all, you chose to do a photo walk in the rain, so make the most of it.

Today's cold walk - 37 degrees - got me thinking ahead to my upcoming photo walks in the snow.  I'll be doing an inventory of my cold weather gear to make sure I am prepared for that.  Those who know me know that I already have plenty of scarves, but I might want to get busy knitting some hats with ear flaps!

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 57 - My walk in the rain

A little leaf art

My 20 minute walk in the rain was a piece of cake compared to what my friends are enduring in Berlin and Ocean City, Maryland.  I see the devastation that they are posting on Facebook -- the pier, the boardwalk, cars underwater, relatives needing to be rescued by Coast Guard from their homes in Crisfield.  Awful.  My prayers are going out for everyone's safety.

Because it is merely rainy and windy here, I thought I would just take a walk around the neighborhood to see how the new drainage ponds and inlets were faring.  Everything looked good, but then again, it is still a little early.  My neighborhood is new, so it does not have big trees to come down in the wind, and the most likely damage we would sustain is from someone's yard furniture or patio umbrella becoming airborne.  We could lose electricity, which seems to be everyone's main worry here.  Sump pumps are working overtime, and all of the neighbors say they are prepared with nonperishable foods and plenty of reading material and flashlights. 

The cows must be in the barn.

I stayed dry on today's walk, thanks to my Omni-tech rain pants and rain coat from Columbia.  I wore my rain boots and tucked my camera into my coat.  As I was walking, I thought about who else is most likely to be out walking in the rain, and other than dog owners, certainly the urban postal workers who deliver the mail on foot are out in it.  And, I just saw on Google Plus a photo of the soldiers who are guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  God bless them.

Stay safe, everyone. 

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 56 - Maryland School for the Deaf

The Maryland School for the Deaf was established in Frederick in 1868.  The grounds of the school are located along Clark Place, which is lined with beautiful Victorian homes.

I parked my car on South Market Street, which is near the Mt. Olivet Cemetery, the scene of another of my walks.  Today is the last day before the onslaught of rain from Sandy begins, so I took advantage of a quick trip downtown to take a walk in this beautiful neighborhood while there were still some red and yellow leaves on the trees.

 Much of the campus is comprised of traditional red brick buildings with white trim, but as I walked along Clarke Place, I discovered that there is a much newer part of campus that looks like a modern high school.  There was no one on campus today as I was walking, which surprised me.  Many of the residential students probably go home for the weekend, but there wasn't even a neighbor walking a dog.

A unique feature on the older campus of the school is the Hessian Barracks.  This structure was built prior to the Revolutionary War and has served a purpose in several of our nation's wars.

After circling the Clarke Place block back to South Market, I walked along South Market, admiring the well kept brick row houses.  Some were painted and almost every front door was unique.  Many of the windows had the original wavy glass.

I can understand why Clarke Place and the grounds of the school are often described by locals as one of the prettiest neighborhoods in Frederick.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 55 - A Disjointed Walk Today

Today's walk was quite a disappointment.  The weather was fine, although overcast, and the fall color is still on the trees, so I decided to walk at another winery, Sugarloaf.

First of all, the place was very crowded.  It was, after all, a Saturday afternoon, and the weather invited people outside to enjoy the fall countryside before we are deluged by rain (or maybe even snow??) from Sandy.  I parked the car, walked around the parking area to a higher vantage point, and took a shot of the grounds.  I entered the winery's tasting area to enquire if I could walk the grounds, and I was told that I had to stay within the tasting area.  I was quite disappointed, so I left to go to Sugarloaf Mountain.

Again, there was no place to park -- families were everywhere.  I will visit this place on a Monday morning in the future.

I decided next to find one of Frederick County's gravel roads, since there are only a few days left to take photos for the "Travel the Gravel" photo contest I am coordinating.  I found Peters Road, a very scenic road that follows a creek, but the difficulty with these narrow gravel roads is finding a place to park.  I did find a shoulder area where I could pull off, but once I set off on foot and got out of view of the car, I began to question whether walking by myself near dark on a gravel road is a good idea.  I can easily hear other cars approaching on gravel, but walking alone on isolated roads is sometimes risky.  So, I thought better of it and headed back to the car.

Even though my walking today was unsatisfactory, just driving around in the beautiful countryside, appreciating nature, is peaceful and satisfying on its own.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 54 - Burkittsville, MD

With predictions of deteriorating weather throughout the weekend due to Hurricane Sandy, I decided that I just could not wait for the weather to get any better, so if I wanted to see some more fall leaves, I'd better get out today to a scenic area, despite the gray, overcast skies.

Burkittsville is probably best known as the area where "The Blair Witch Project" was filmed, so what better time than right around Halloween to make a visit?  I would have gone on Halloween itself, but I'd rather not waste a great walking location on a rainy day.

To get to Burkittsville, you take a highly scenic ride toward Harper's Ferry from Frederick, then exit on the same road that takes you to Brunswick, equally scenic in a different way.  Burkittsville is settled along the edge of hills that today were decorated like quilts with glorious fall colors.  The sun never came out on my walk, so they could not be photographed in all their glory, but the residents of that town have quite the view.  There are farms, silos, stone fences, split rain fences, cornfields, cows, and pastoral scenery everywhere you turn.

This pastoral scene was at the end
of town where I parked my car.

The small town lines Main St. and has the requisite pre-Civil War homes, a couple of churches, an antiques shop that did not appear to be open, and a post office.  Some residents were out raking leaves or trimming bushes, taking advantage of decent weather before the onslaught of rain.  There is a walking tour online that you can download to refer to if you want to learn more about the history of the town.

I parked at one end of town and walked to the other end, turning around at the old school.  On my way back, I met a couple of young men from the Washington, DC area who were out enjoying the history and the quaintness of the town.  I could tell they were tourists by the cameras around their necks, too.  We talked a while and I gave them some other ideas of places to visit that are similar to Burkittsville.

I saw these four doors without steps.  I'm sure they
probably had steps at one time, now long gone.

I can see why Burkittsville attracts tourists and plein air painters.  Some tourists may come because of the notoriety of the film, but they surely cannot leave without being impressed by the beautiful setting for this rural village.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 53 - Best Farm, Revisited

The last time I went to Best Farm there was a storm brewing, and my photo walk, although it yielded some great shots with storm clouds, was one of the shortest I have taken in the past 53 days.  Not so today.

The cornfields that surround the farm, which is part of the Monocacy National Battlefield, had recently been harvested, so I took off across them to find new perspectives on buildings, lone trees, and tractors.  I walked from side to side and front to back, down to the railroad tracks and along the gravel lane.  I found some new angles I liked today, and although it was cloudy and gray all day, the sun started to come out at the end of my walk, promising a little bit of golden light.

As I take these photo walks, I look for different angles and new details that I can capture with my camera.  All that walking and finding new angles paid off today.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 52 - Baker Park in Frederick

In this photo you can see the Baker
Park Carillon and five of the town's
fabled "Clustered Spires."

What a beautiful day for a walk in the park!  I chose Baker Park in downtown Frederick for my walk today.

Baker Park has open field areas, a band shell, a carillon, a pool, tennis courts, a ball field, and a public swimming pool.  It runs along Carroll Creek, and along each edge of the park it is bordered by neighborhoods.

I love finding crunchy leaves to
stomp on while on my walks.

I went downtown first to work for a while at the Delaplaine Visual Arts Center and to drop off two of my photos that were accepted into a national juried competition.  I walked along Carroll Creek to the park, and once I was in the park, I was accompanied on my walk by mothers pushing strollers, dogs being walked by their owners, and couples holding hands as they strolled under beautiful trees.

This ginko tree looked like a watercolor.

I walked several blocks of the park, then rounded Culler Lake and came back to downtown via 2nd Street. Along 2nd Street I found a fabulous ginko tree just beginning to turn yellow and a realistic skeleton lying in a yard.

Along Market Street I stopped into Creative Stitchins to pick up a sweatshirt I had ordered with "Cam's Camera Shots" embroidered on the front for me to wear on the upcoming cold days, and I stopped into The Muse, where the owner Whitney told me she needed 36 more of my "Clustered Spires" coaster tiles.

Altogether, I walked an hour and 15 minutes.  The time just flew by with my camera.  I love my photo walks!

Leaves floating in Carroll Creek.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 51 - Along Old Rt. 144

Rt. 144 is part of the old National Pike, and I have written before about the mile markers that could be found along the way between Baltimore and Cumberland.  I travel it several times a week on my way into Frederick, and just beyond Spring Ridge, east of the Monocacy River, the "new" road and bridge parallel the old road and bridge that are now abandoned and choked with weeds.

 

I decided to park at the Park and Ride, which was created from part of the old, original road, and walk down it to the river, to see what I could see.  I was really hoping to find a mile marker.

To my surprise, the old bridge was still there.  It was fenced off with a chainlink barrier, but some helpful vandals had cut it and rolled away a section of the fence so that they could get in to spray paint the concrete arches on the bridge.  I decided to obey the big No Trespassing sign, opting to use my zoom to capture the vandals' art.  Actually, the bridge looked like it could fall into the river at any time.

I walked back up the road and then walked the grounds of the Rt. 70 Driving Range nearby.  Only one golfer was there on this nice day, taking practice hits.  The grounds are obviously part of an old farm, because old barns are still on the property.  An old farmhouse was recently torn down.

There were two huge fiberglass (I guess) elephants in sad repair that were signalling the entrance to the mini-golf area that no one was using today, either.

Alas, I did not find a mile marker.  I hope that if one was there, it was moved to a safer location when the new road was built.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 50 - Jumbo's Farm

It seems appropriate that on Day 50 I learned an important lesson.  Actually, I'm surprised I didn't learn it before now:  always check whether or not the camera battery needs charging before leaving for my walk.  I've gotten so used to going almost two weeks without charging it, and today I got caught.  I did manage to get some decent pix before I lost power, but there were some special detail shots I was planning to get at the end of the walk, so those were lost opportunities.

Today I went to Jumbo's Farm.  It is a working farm with cornfields, horses, and pumpkins.  The weekends are extremely busy there this time of the year, but on a Monday afternoon, there were only a few couples with small children, enjoying a nice long walk to the pumpkin patch.  I walked all around the farm and decided not to try out the corn maze, which was quite sizable.

Jumbo's farm offers a lot of activities for kids, such as hayrides, a corn maze, play areas, a petting zoo, and more.  It's nice that they have first aid stations positioned around the farm, too.

There are so many places I could go in this gorgeous fall weather that it is hard to choose.  However, I needed to get caught up from my busy weekend, so today's farm walk was just right.

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so

Day 49 - Cumberland, MD

The wheels on my Toyota Rav 4 have finally stopped turning.  They deserve a rest.  I took my SUV from the center of Maryland to the farthest east point in Ocean City a few days ago, I returned home from the Eastern Shore last night, and then today I drove to Cumberland, Maryland, almost to its western edge.  It's tired, and so am I!

I was in Cumberland today because my camera club took a field trip to the Lonaconing Silk Mill near there.  It is the last surviving silk mill in the country that has not been renovated for other uses or torn down.  We spent several hours in there photographing (check my FB site, G+, and my website later on -- not tonight! -- for shots from the silk mill).

Bridge Detail

We drove back near Cumberland for lunch when we were done at the mill, but Peter Foiles and June Jarkey opted to continue on to the historic district of Cumberland to go with me on my photo walk.

George Washington slept here.

Cumberland is another of those mountainous train towns.  It has a sizable downtown area, capitalizing on tourism.  And this weekend, the leaves in Cumberland were just past their peak.  The day was beautiful, with  gray and white clouds sometimes covering the sun.

Peter, me, and June

We walked to the train depot first, then across the Potomac River to see the log cabin that served as George Washington's headquarters during the French and Indian War.  In a previous blog post, I mentioned the National Road -- Cumberland was where construction began on the road in 1811.

You can take a ride on the steam powered train from Cumberland to Frostburg and back.  We happened to be at the station when the train pulled in.

We had ice cream at the Queen City Creamery, where we sat at an old fashioned 1940's soda fountain.  On the way home we stopped at Sideling Hill to take some more fall pix, and now I am ready for a rest!

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use my Nikon P7100 (it is a very convenient size and weight)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so