A Winter Wildlife Cruise

Posted on January 24, 2017January 24, 2017 by Dusty Roads

My Friend Nancy sent me a notice about a Winter Wildlife Cruise of Boston Harbor. There wasn’t a lot of information on the web site. In fact it didn’t even mention the date or dates. On a phone call I was told it was a one day only cruise, a special arrangement.

I wondered what Wildlife they were referring to but booked the cruise anyway. I figured it would get me out of the house. Stop my winter hibernation.

I dressed in my warmest winter coat, sweatshirt and a scarf. My upper body was warm but my legs clad in jeans left something to be desired.

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I had to be at the pier at 10:30 to board. The cruise was scheduled to start at 11 am. Turns out this was also the day of the Woman’s March in Boston and it was rumored that 70,000 woman had RSVP’d that they would attend. It made me wonder what the traffic and parking would be like. I debated all down RT 24 if I should try the MBTA or drive. Driving won out and I arrived at the Harbor Garage at 8:30 am giving me 2 hours to kill.

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By The time I got parked my torso was sweating bullets but my legs were still cold. I decided to wander around the Aquarium area. Other than a few joggers or dog walkers, there weren’t too many people out and about.

It was a pretty overcast morning.

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I met one woman walking her Lab. Pretty dog but her muzzle was getting gray. That dog dragged her over to me and started licking my hands . The owner was so apologetic but I just laughed and told her not to worry, animals like me. My “Pet Whisperer” persona strikes again!

I wandered over the the Rose Kennedy Greenway which isn’t green this time of year but took a long distance shot of the “Fish” window.

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I also grabbed a shot of the Old state House as through it were peeking around the bigger building in front of it.

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There were wooden benches here (the benches on the wharf were metal…cold) I did some people watching until a little after 10 AM.

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Finally it was time to head back to get lined up for boarding.

The Winter Brrrr

Posted on January 11, 2017January 11, 2017 by Dusty Roads

This past weekend we finally got a heavy snowfall. So far the winter hasn’t been too extreme. The weatherman keeps referring to 40 degrees as “seasonal”. Hmm I seem to remember it being much colder than than but I suppose they have the records. Anyway, this weekend we got a storm that ranged through southeastern MA. The mountains and NH only saw about 2 inches compared to our 1 1/2 – 2 ft.

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I am born and raised in the north. I grew up in the Adirondacks but as much as I have fond memories of snowball fights, sledding and snow shoeing I just can’t seem to get excited about it now.

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I saw my younger brother a few weeks ago and he was talking about getting out cross country skiing. Made me feel cold just listening to him. Still maybe I can force myself out to do some snow shoeing. Its only cold until you get started then you work up some internal heat as you tromp along.

Still if given the choice of of a brisk winter day or spending the afternoon snorkeling among the tropical fish, I’ll take the fish any day!

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What am I doing living here!

cold

That pretty much sums it up.

Photo #5

Posted on January 3, 2017January 3, 2017 by Dusty Roads

An otter so engrossed with its tail that it never knew I was there.

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Photo #2

Posted on December 31, 2016December 31, 2016 by Dusty Roads

I’m still sorting through the Whale pictures. I went on quite a few whale watches this summer so there are a ton of pictures. I eliminated all of the flukes and tails because I have lots of those so they lack that “special” quality I’m looking for.

This one is another surface feeding humpback. I like this because of the boat in the background and the shoreline. It gives you as reference point for size and the relationship to the shore. The water depth is relatively shallow where these whales are feeding. DSC_3183 copy

Check out all of the gulls flying around hoping for an easy dinner.

Photo Number 1

Posted on December 30, 2016December 30, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Although I called this Photo Number 1, I don’t mean it’s necessarily the best. I mean it’s the first photo to make the cut.

This is a photo of a humpback whale “Surface feeding” as he skims the surface with his mouth open, the baleen strains the water out leaving the tiny fish and krill in his jaws.

The photo is sharp, can be enlarged and caught an unusual subject. It’s not everyday you see a whale feeding like this.

Baleen – Stellwagon Banks, Massachusetts Bay, MA

Anyone who knows me understands that I have a fascination with humpback whales. I’ve been following them and whale watching for over 30 years. This season was one of the best whale watch season I can remember. I even saw my first breaching whale. Unfortunately it was too far away for the picture I got to pass the top 10 criteria test.