Orlando Sealife Aquarium

Posted on December 29, 2015December 29, 2015 by Dusty Roads

DSC_1786 copy

Sea World it’s not. There are no killer whale shows or chances to swim with dolphins but as little aquariums go this is a fine educational experience.

Sealife

As an aquarium aficionado I am really glad we went to this but if you are looking for the big WOW factor I don’t think you will find it here. This is great for youngsters. I saw many with their noses pressed to the glass.

DSC_1787 copy

There is no Great Ocean Tank like in Boston but they do have a 360 degree Underwater tunnel. Those are always fun. You get to walk through the clear tunnel while fish and rays swim over and under and around you. Pretty cool.

DSC_1799 copy

They didn’t have a mermaid tank like they did in new Orleans but they did have a pretty spectacular jelly fish display.

DSC_1793 copy

Thus was really my favorite. The lights in all aquariums are dim so the animals are not bothered but the lights are very dim in the jelly fish section. Glowing models suspended from the ceiling light the way to the wall of the tank which is filled with floating jelly fish.

DSC_1790 copy

The ray tank was fun. It’s really hard to get a good shot of these guys. They are fast! No flash photography allowed. The light bothers the animals.

DSC_1807_edited-1

There’s a scavenger hunt for the kids. Joe, of course, had to participate. In each gallery there was something the kids needed to find. Once they spotted it there was a place to stamp your card. If you found all of the items there was a little prize at the end.

DSC_1800 copy

The emphasis here is on education and I have to say they did a great job at that. This is the perfect size aquarium to introduce the next generation to the beauty and importance of the oceans of the world.

Coral Seas

Hurricane Patricia

Posted on December 8, 2015December 8, 2015 by Dusty Roads

Well all that threatening weather finally came to a head. It took the remnants of Hurricane Patricia to push it over the edge. As hurricanes go there wasn’t much left after getting ripped up on the mountains in Mexico but it was enough. It was like a nor’easter in New England but not a Hurricane. There was a lot of rain and some pretty good wind gusts.

DSC_1527 copy

There were reports of a tornado out by the airport but we weren’t anywhere near that and there ween’t any reports of damage.

seahorse

We were on the way to take a boat tour of the bayou when we got the call. They were canceling all tours because of the wind gusts. I was disappointed but better safe than sorry. We were in the cab heading there when we got the call so we had the driver drop us off at the Aquarium instead.

aquarium

I know people who say once you’ve seen one aquarium you’ve seen them all but I disagree. I like fish, the ocean and seeing different exhibits.

NO Aquarium

Every aquarium shows off their collections differently and can even have different animals. A perfect example is the New Orleans Aquarium that has a mermaid exhibit.

IMG_20151025_114333

I’ve only seen that in one other place, Weeki Wachee Springs, a Florida State Park.

DSC_1585 copy

They also had an Omni Theater. They only had one movie playing that day and it’s a good thing. If they had choices I might have picked something different but this movie turned out to be excellent.

DSC_1586 copy

It was Hurricane on The Bayou about Hurricane Katrina and I thought I’d seen hundreds of hours of footage but this was outstanding. This amazing film tells the story of Hurricane Katrina and the impact that Louisiana’s disappearing wetlands has on hurricane protection. It also shows the survival of a region, the rebirth of nature and the spirit of humanity. Winner of 4 Giant Screen Cinema Association Achievement Awards

DSC_1600 copy

If you can get to see it, I highly recommend it.

DSC_1589 copy

After spending the morning at the Aquarium we finally headed back to the Hotel. The afternoon was spent watching a movie in our room. That’s something we don’t do every vacation!

DSC_1596 copy

Buckhorn Saloon and Museum

Posted on November 16, 2015November 16, 2015 by Dusty Roads

Located in the heart of San Antonio, 2 blocks from the Alamo and 1 block from the Riverwalk, it was easy to get the tour itinerary back on track after our riverboat ride. The rain was still holding off but at least we’d be inside if the skies did decide to open up.

DSC_1438 copy

The Buckhorn Saloon and Texas Ranger Museum is a taste of the Old West. The walls are covered with stuffed animal heads. If you are a fan of taxidermy you will love this place.

DSC_1434 copy

As you enter the museum you’ll come face to face with a long horn steer.

DSC_1435 copy

Other preserved animals follow.

DSC_1436 copy

The Texas ranger museum is interesting but I really hoped Chuck Norris would show up to give a tour. (Walker, Texas Ranger)

WalkerTitle

One of the most interesting exhibits in my opinion was the map of Texas with all the different Texas Ranger Badges.

DSC_1437 copy

But by then I was surprised to discover that I was getting pretty tired so after exploring the museum a bit I wandered back to the saloon to relax until the tour was ready to move on to the next stop.

Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge

Posted on October 17, 2015October 17, 2015 by Dusty Roads

Good morning everyone. I’ve been up since 6 am in hopes of spotting some of those deer I’ve been hearing about down at Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge located in Middletown , RI.

The first time I tried I overslept so missed the dawn, the best time for those shy little critters. Today I was up but it took me longer to get out of the house than I expected so I saw the sun pop over the horizon as I left Fall River. Darn!

Well I figured I might as well check out the trails. On my last visit I didn’t stay long, just made sure I could find it.

I was surprised to see quite a lot of cars in the parking lot considering it was only about 30 minutes past sunrise, still pretty early. As I pulled out the camera I saw a bird watcher with his big spotting scope but most of the rest were fishermen. I didn’t spot any other photographers so I guess I really did miss my chance. I decided to check out one of the trails anyway.

The Flint Point trail is a 1.4 mile loop with a couple of observation platforms. Everybody seemed to be going that way so I did too. I didn’t intend to walk the whole trail since this was one of my first jaunts since my back started improving but it was a beautiful morning so as long as it wasn’t hurting I just kept going.

There are a couple of benches along the way so it was a cool but pleasant trek. I didn’t expect to see any deer. That window of opportunity had closed, or so I thought but as I approached a corner I heard something larger than a bird off to my left in the brush.

I didn’t see what it was but it made me slow down my pace and I turned the corner cautiously. And there in the path to my right was the tail end of a deer.

Turns out it was a doe and a a smaller deer. No spots so I don’t think it can still be called a fawn but clearly smaller than the adult. The little one watched me all the time while Mama only paid attention when I moved.

Thanks to the sun’s angle and the brush playing havoc with the auto focus, the pictures aren’t going to make it into my portfolio but at least I was rewarded for my trip.

I don’t know how long those deer and I would have stood eyeballing each other if a jogger hadn’t rounded the bend at that point. The deer just drifted quietly into the bushes.

I figured I was about half way around the loop so I finished the walk. No other deer but that was two more than I expected to see. I guess I’ll have to try again only leaving at 5:30 am next time!

The Wild Life

Posted on October 10, 2015October 10, 2015 by Dusty Roads

I was thinking about wildlife. Now if I were still in my 20’s and 30’s it would be reasonable for you to think I was talking about WILD LIFE! You know, crazy, partying and carrying on. But as I left those wild days behind long ago I was actually thinking about animals in the wild.

Of all the things I’ve tried photographing, pets, people, landscape, travel, flowers, and anything else I run across, wild life, animals in the wild are may favorites. Its also probably the most frustrating and truth be told, the style in which I have the most failures.

My best work seems to be birds. Why? Because there are always birds of some kind around. I can stake out a bird feeder and have all the “models” I could ever wish for.

But wildlife doesn’t always cooperate. First you have to find them. Then you have to wait for them to do something. A perfect example is the great blue heron that summers at the Herring Run. I have spent hours with this bird and over the past 5 years I’ve seen him catch 1 fish. Normally he stands as still as a statue for hours. I finally got this picture this year. But he’ll be back next year and I’ll be waiting.

It occurred to me that I haven’t been out to photograph any deer in the last couple of years. I take that back, I photographed deer

and elk

on my vacation in Tennessee but not around here since I got my first camera. According to a photographer friend of mine, now is the perfect time to try to get more deer shots for my portfolio.

The weather is changing there’s crispness to the air and the bucks are looking for love. He got some really fun shots in RI this week but you have to get there early.

Now I’m not an early riser. Must be a throwback to all that “Wild Life” when I was young so even though I had the best of intentions this morning I missed sunrise. Yup, overslept.

I took a run down to the Wildlife Sanctuary anyway so I can be sure to find it in the pre-dawn light. I’m going to try again tomorrow.

Since there wasn’t any action going on there I headed to my old faithful sanctuary in Marshfield, MA, Daniel Webster. I’ve never been there without seeing deer but this afternoon I came up empty. The reason is that it was crowded with families walking the trails. Kids were whooping and yelling. I stayed until after 5 pm and I could still hear them. My previous schedule allowed me to explore mid week so it was always quiet. Often my car was the only one in the parking lot. So note to self, try after work mid-week.