A Splash of Red

It’s cold outside. The kayak has been in the garage for more than two months, now — almost three. Here are some photos from last year to appetize the paddling urge and bring out good memories.

shiny after washing

on the ferry from Cedar Island to Ocracoke

Highway 9 boat landing, Catawba River

sharing the yard with rabbits, Sullivan’s Island

under way, Sullivan’s Island

washed free of salt, Sullivan’s Island

Between racquetball and disc golf, I’m trying to stay in shape so the kayak won’t be embarassed when I climb back in. Maybe in March, or certainly by April, schedule and sky will work things out for some time on the river.

Good Friends Walking

The February episode of Body Challenge, Spirit Challenge took the group to Forty-Acre Rock in Lancaster County, SC. Only five of us made the journey, but it was a fine day to be in the woods.

Endangered and rare plant communities inhabit the shallow pools on the rock surface.

photo by Joel Jones

photo by Joel Jones

We sat on an abandoned bridge and had lunch, wondering about original traffic on this former US highway. Viewed from the bridge, a logjam created what appeared to be an impenetrable muck on the creek.

photo by Joel Jones

Maybe it was impenetrable, and maybe it wasn’t.

photo by Joel Jones

I guess this moment of splash proves that it wasn’t.

photo by Steve McCormick

Woodpeckers left strange evidence of their recent presence, but we never saw the ones responsible for this.

photo by Steve McCormick

We didn’t walk fast, but talked as we moved among the trees, beside the creek. We explored a cave and observed many ways winter water seemed, itself, like a living soul. The wind was cold on the rock, but maples had begun their reddening crusade to raise a new banner in the name of rebirth. American Beeches clung tightly to their brown leaves, yet unfallen. (I told you before it would be this way.) After the steep hill near the end, we started thinking about food. And after the drive into town, we did more than think about it!

…A very worthwhile day, men. Thanks for the good ways we gather.

Colors and Lines

Glasses

Does this mean I have to start acting my age?

Another Look

Six of the photos I took of Wednesday’s eclipse show an odd band of shadow across the moon. It shows up best on overexposed shots. What are we seeing? Could this be a shadow of our dirty atmosphere?

The green smudge in this photo is a camera thing, and not part of the actual scene.

Moon Shot, February 20, 2008

Is there something of balance to be found in a lunar eclipse? Here is a variety of shots from the action on Wednesday night.

Disc Golf

I love throwing stuff. Always have. Baseballs, rocks, overripe garden vegetables…. There are many episodes I could tell about throwing and the small dramas that followed. I’m sure it goes back to having a dad who helped us kids enjoy the clean fun of sports. On my fifth birthday, I got a blue Regular Frisbee (by Wham-O), and that was an important stage in it, too.

Now, thirty-nine-and-a-half years later, disc golf — a direct outgrowth of the Frisbee movement of the 1960s — is one of my passions. It is a great sport for a middle-aged guy to use to exert himself, especially when the water is too cold for kayaking. It’s so much better than ball golf, more natural physically and more egalitarian financially. Friday is my day off, each week, barring emergencies, and for two weeks, I’ve joined friends at a local course and had a great time. We laughed our way through the woods and tightened each others’ games with useful sharing of perspectives. On the par 65 course at Boyd Hill Park, I shot a 64 the first week, and then a 63 and a 54 the second week. I’m interested to go with this group to the course at Winthrop University, which occasionally hosts national and world championship tournaments. I played there once a few years ago with my brother, Victor; that is a much more challenging course, and bigger numbers can be expected.

Had I not been so busy throwing, maybe I would have taken some pictures to share. Next time, perhaps.