Adelphi in the Morning

The sun rose on the Garden City, NY campus of Adelphi University, and I was wandering around taking pics as it happened. It was a quiet and lovely campus to walk around in the diminishing shadows as the sun rose.

The flowers were covered with dew as the sun rose.

The Ruth S. Harley University Center.

A monument to fallen soldiers.

The monument was around the flag.

Some student art around the campus. Peeps!

The library.

The Nexus building.

Levermore Hall.

I found a rabbit.

A fountain shadowed by the trees.

Fairly large sundial.

I took a seat for a bit with this view.

As you can see, some of the paths were VERY sheltered by the trees.

The Science Building.

Blodgett Hall

Found the baseball diamond (William J. Bonomo Field).

Crowd seating.

Texture of the fence and seats.

Looking in the dugout.

The other side of the library.

The library has a garden and seating area.

There is also a coi pond.

Very picturesque campus.

The Performing Arts Center.

Uh…I’m not at Penn State…?

Next time: goats!

An Incredibly Sunny Day in Bethlehem, PA

After a lengthy day, we wrapped it up with a stop off in Bethlehem, PA as the sun was setting. We parked by Main St and walked down it to see a bunch of the old buildings. It was the perfect time of day to see these old buildings and to take in some of the quaint town, including the Colonial Industry Quarter on the bank of Monocacy Creek.

This is def an old style water fountain.

History around every corner (also water).

Old style brick on the Goundie House – they were closed.

Entering the Colonial site.

Looks like an old countryside.

Some of the buildings are being restored…or held up.

An old wheel and a stone wall/foundation.

Old house, new bridge.

Some of the ruins.

Looking through the ruins to another building.

Willows over the creek.

An older bridge over the creek.

Iron holding up a building.

A garden trellis.

A small, colonial style garden.

A creepy path.

Looking down the stairs.

A lampost alongside the path.

A church overlooking the site.

Old style buildings as shops.

Next time: we take a look at Adelphi University.

Looking Out From Chickie’s Rock Overview

On the east side of the Susquehanna River, in the town of Columbia, PA, is a short out and back trail with some beautiful views of the river. This is Chickie’s Rock Overview Trail.

It’s a short 0.5 mile long trail, so about a mile out and back. A detour up the hill will add to your trek as you have to double back to make it to the actual overlook. The views of the river are great, although the path could stand some maintenance and upkeep (especially garbage clean up).

Take a look.

The entrance sign and map.

Time to head down the trail.

Quite a bit of run off from rain.

People made a path down the hill, but it’s not very sturdy.

Hello root system.

Old railroad tracks are hidden throughout the trail.

There are a lot of these sides when you get to the outlook.

Approaching the outlook.

Our first view.

Gaps in the trees show the river.

Another outlook nearby.

This one involves climbing down.

Hello graffiti.

Sturdy fencing and festive graffiti.

Across the river.

Around the bend.

The clouds were lots of fun. Note how shallow the river was.

Looks like an old nature shot.

One of my favorite views.

A fearless dragonfly.

Time to climb back up this to get back on the trail.

We like the sun on the rocks.

Tree vs. fence.

The trail was lined with these cobwebs. Very creepy. Luckily they were up high, so we weren’t worried about getting tangled in them.

Some sections are completely unshaded.

The fork in the road. The top leads to a very obstructed view. The lower leads to the outlooks.

Next time: The town of Bethlehem in PA.

A Sunny Day on the Lebanon Valley College Campus

In the nice town of Annville, PA lies a good sized college, split in two by a railroad track. On one side is the campus proper. On the other are all of the sports grounds. This is Lebanon Valley College. I spent a few hours wandering around and taking a bunch of pics. Take a look.

Blair Music Center

This is the epitome of a collage campus shot – Humanities and Admin building.

The brick work is quite nice on the Admissions building.

The Annville United Methodist Church is on the border of campus.

The bells at the church across from the Methodist Church.

Welcome to LVC.

Lots of sculptures around the campus.

Found the quad … and tons of sunlight.

The other side of the quad.

Native American tribute.

I wish the quad had less walkways, breaks up the grass.

Shadows around the dorms.

Entrance to the Peace Garden.

Famous alumni statue (I called it the hot dog vender).

More of the garden. It was quite nice and peaceful.

Tiny waterfall.

A small house that moves the water.

The Peace Garden.

The other entrance to the garden.

More dorms.

The commons.

Fountain by the commons.

Time to cross the tracks to the sports fields.

Crossing the tracks.

This bridge leads to the baseball field.

Interesting design.

The baseball diamond.

Recrossing the bridge.

Looks like a golf course, but it’s not.

Football field.

Back to the admin buildings.

Next time: Chickie’s Rock Overlook.

An Evening on the Del Val Campus

One evening found me on the campus of Delaware Valley University, in Doylestown, PA. This was the first college campus I have seen with an actual, functioning farm attached to it, which was fascinating, for what little of it I could see. The sun was setting and created an interesting mood to the campus as I watched it change from light to dark. Take a look.

The sun sets behind the campus (Ulman Hall).

The Life Science building.

Not a church, it’s the Allman Building (has to do with small animal care).

The Admissions office hides behind a yard.

Lake Archer through the trees.

A fountain on Lake Archer.

Trees reflected on Lake Archer as the sun sinks lower.

Coming up on the train tunnel.

Going under the tracks to the Equestrian Center (careful, their fences are electrified!)

Coming back from the equestrian area to the campus proper.

The Krauskopf Library as the sun fully sets.

Lamps are lit to light the quad.

Segal Hall and its lamps.

Some of the dorms.

Clouds over the dorms.

The Life Science building is lit up.

Another angle on the Life Science Building.

Next time: Lebanon Valley College.

The Tumbling Waters Trail at the Pocono Environment Education Center

Out off the beaten path in Dingman’s Ferry, PA is a very fun hiking area – the Pocono Environment Education Center (PEEC). The set up is a camp ground surrounded by various trails, lakes, and activities. Each trail has a program, which includes areas of interest – including what flora and fauna are in the area.

We opted to do the Tumbling Waters trail as it included several lakes and a waterfall (always my favorite). What made the hike more difficult than usual was that the falls are off the main loop. You take a set of stairs and switchbacks down to the base of the falls (and it’s a ways down). Once done, you climb all the way back up. And you still have a mile of trails to go back to the parking lot (including hills). Needless to say, we were pretty tired by the end of the hike and in need of refills for our water bottles. It’s a beautiful hike and I highly recommend it, just come prepared with more water than you think you will need.

The main building with a ton of flowers out front.

The lake by the parking lot.

Entering the woods.

Crossing a stream.

Most of the trail is nice and clear, easy to navigate.

We found a chimney.

Looking through the trees out at the Delaware Water Gap area.

A more open view.

Thinner trails, winding around the trees.

Hello frog!

Made it to the waterfall.

Very scenic in the sunlight.

You can swim below the falls, it’s shallow, but refreshing.

Moving to various vantage points is interesting due to lots of trees and roots around the pool.

Pickerel Pond

Two trails meet.

Graveyard for garbage.

The trail ends with some bridges over a marshland.

A vantage point to see the birds of Front Pond.

Next up: A walk through Del Val College.

A Day in Easton, PA

We have spent several days in Easton, PA over the past few months. On the first trip, I brought my camera and explored the town quite thoroughly. A lot of walking the hills and streets to see old buildings and churches spread out around the town, walking along the Delaware River and Lehigh River, exploring old book stores, getting homemade ice cream, and seeing massive groups enter the Crayola Experience – most of which is considered the Historic District. It was a full day and very interesting to see the town, despite a MASSIVE storm which caused me to hide in the car with a book. We also found many places with EXCELLENT food (seafood, burgers, etc). It’s a lovely town and I highly recommend it for a quiet getaway.

The bridge we drove across from NJ into Easton over the Delaware River.

Another bridge over the Delaware River by the Lehigh River junction.

A dam at work.

Remains of a fort overlooking the river.

A bridge over the Lehigh River.

Statue of Larry Holmes in Scott Park.

Christmas Trees are very popular here.

Some fantastic old architecture for homes.

I love the porch designs.

Welcome to the red door.

Artwork on display.

A gate to the Northampton County Government building.

This is definitely how a pub should look.

Looking down the main street (this is all downhill).

An alley of pubs.

Those are some large crayons.

Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in the middle of a traffic circle.

Some funky bike racks.

More of the monument.

The stone in front of the monument.

A pawn shop standing out in the circle.

A more artsy bike rack.

Greenery has attacked the used book store.

An interesting facade.

Looking up the sidewalk.

Detail of the post office.

Fantastic murals on the jazz club.

An old movie theatre ticket booth.

Rock Church of Easton.

The public library.

Houses on top of houses.

Found the firehouse.

We ate here on our second trip to Easton, wonderful bar food.

One of two performing arts centers.

An alleyway and fire escape.

The center for the arts – a converted movie theatre.

A lovely outdoor seating area.

Another outdoor seating area – very colorful … plus ice cream.

Doorway to a kitch store.

The kitch store sells booze too.

A hidden door.

Another great porch.

These are scattered around town. Such a wonderful idea.

A colorful Italian restaurant.

The clouds roll in over the Delaware.

Time to seek shelter as the hail starts falling.

Next time: a tiring hike at PEEC.

A Few Days in Charlottesville

During our trip to Charlottesville, VA, we took in a few of the sites (as seen earlier in this blog). This entry covers our hotel (which was beautiful), one image from the town mall, and a string of images from the Michie Tavern and Meadow Run Mill & General Store complex. It was a very cloudy day, but I think it aided in some of the atmosphere of these locales.

First up: Michie Tavern and Meadow Run Mill & General Store:

The whole complex under the shelter of the trees.

They have an armory.

The porch of the armory.

It’s very scenic and I like the wooden siding and stone chimneys.

Michie Tavern had a long line, so we skipped it.

A view of the cemetery across the street.

A nice stone wall below the armory.

A lot of stone walls cover the complex.

The wood shed.

Making it more wistful.

The woodshed with a creek in front of it.

The bathroom is slightly hidden.

A scenic old well.

Here is the only shot of the mall I enjoyed:

There is a carousel in the middle of the mall.

Keswick Hall:

The front entrance.

Some lovely gardens and seating areas.

They have a vineyard.

Wine barrels to show off the vineyard entrance.

The drive approach.

Walking over to the spa.

I love overgrown trellises.

The pool (it was quite warm for swimming).

The hotel and the pool.

Overlooking the golf course.

The other pool (connected to the spa).

The fountain by the front entrance.

Next time: Easton, PA.

Halloween Extravaganza at St John the Divine

I was supposed to do more Charlottesville pics for this entry, but decided to put up the pics from Halloween, because, well, Halloween.

On October 27, Mettawee River Theatre Company put on a pageant at St. John the Divine paired with an old horror movie. This year it was The Phantom of the Opera. While the film was slightly long, the pageant afterwards was fantastic (this was my second year seeing it, first time with the camera, so I knew what I was aiming for). The lighting of the cathedral added to the mysteriousness and spookiness of the procession. They do two shows during one night. We went to the later one, which is supposed to be spookier…

The performers have incorporated dealing with everyday technology, including smartphones. They pose, take selfies, act confused by them, etc. It’s truly wonderful to see and well worth the price of admission ($25 per person).

The view of the cathedral nave as you enter.

The movie screen hanging high above for all to see.

Ghoulish watchers on the pillars.

Using church lighting to make the everyday iconography a tad diabolical/creepy.

People walk down the nave to find their seats.

The lighting of the arch adds to the atmosphere.

More ghoulish watchers.

Looking down on the crowd.

On the arch by the screen.

Any one want some fish? Sorry. Too late.

A demon enters to begin the procession.

One of my favorite designs. The staff adds so much to the character.

Close up of the mask.

The revels have begun.

A knight approaches.

The lighting adds so much to the imagery.

The bishop is not pleased.

Wonderful craftsmanship on this one.

The smoke plays with every one of his gestures.

A massive mask.

Up close.

A flyer dances by.

The dead cellist passes by on his way to his podium to play.

Another favorite of mine.

A witch approaches.

Facing off.

Such a large snout for sniffing out the naughty ones…

Railing to the fiends.

Spinning in the light and shadow.

All of the colors in these two.

They cower as they pass by.

Ignoring the bishop in order to act some mischief on the onlookers.

Look at those talons.

Looks like something out of Labyrinth.

The giant skeleton approaches.

Puppets on sticks are always amazing to watch.

The procession heads down the nave.

Such wonderful use of smoke and light.

After the procession, a close up of their entrance portal.

The ghoul hanging from the rafters (extremely dark up there).

The cellist plays long after the others have departed.

I loved getting these shots with the candles in them.

The full cellist.

Close up of the mask.

Very macabre. I love it.

Applauding the music.

Next time: Charlottesville … for real this time.

Monticello in May

It’s been awhile since the last entry due to schedules and trips. So here we are, way back in May 2017, exploring Charlottesville, VA before a wedding. One major stop for us was Monticello. We actually went twice, which can be seen in the cloud cover in the images I took. The trips included the walk from the entrance to the house, the house tour, wandering the grounds, and the surrounding area. Photos were not allowed inside the main house, so you’ll have to go to see for yourself. We tried a few of the tours, the house one is nice. Others are not very exciting and were even boring, so I would wander off from time to time to explore and find images.

Some interesting grave stones in the Jefferson Family cemetery.

Jefferson’s grave.

The gate to the cemetery.

Remains of a house.

The main house/Monticello.

A garden by the steps.

The rear porch.

Garden and porch.

Seeing the main facade through the trees.

The house and clouds.

The west lawn and the house.

The west lawn.

Under the house in the cellars.

The view to the south.

The walkway from a cellar entrance to the front door.

The covered porch in front of the kitchen.

Recreating some of the old architecture.

An old well.

The fish pond.

Day two where the sky was less overcast.

Sewer grating.

A vegetable garden that is still in use.

Hemming’s Cabin.

One of the many paths used for guests to arrive at Monticello.

The Stone Stable.

One of the slave graves.

A viewing station at the edge of the hilltop.

The view to the south.

Gardens and mountains.

The main road and the walk back down the hill.

Next time: Some shots of Charlottesville, VA.