Chincoteague

Last weekend I spent some time in one of my very favorite places, Chincoteague Island in Virginia. It was an extra treat to share this special place with two photographer friends who could appreciate the peace and beauty of this special place. We saw some ponies, picked shells on the beach and enjoyed some brilliant sunsets over a pond full of thousands of snow geese as well as egrets, herons, ducks and ibis. The sunrise saw the geese take flight by the thousands and gather into their formations to head south, an awe inspiring sight. Nature is a great way to refresh yourself and help put this crazy world into perspective. Here is a gallery to the photos. As you can see this handsome young Palomino stallion spent quite a while grazing in view of our cameras and his color in the brown winter colors made for some great photo ops for us.

The Outer Banks, Wild Ponies and more

I started my trip by spending the night in Chincoteague, Virgina. This place instills a sense of peace in me and I always make the point to get up early to see the sunrise over the marshes. As always I was not disappointed! I capturd this scene with my new wide angle 17-30mm lens.

The following day I drove to Corolla, North Carolina to catch up with Corolla native and fellow photographer Jared Lloyd to photograph the wild ponies there. Seeing this small band of horses trying to survive with diminishing habitat, human encroachment and declining fertility and mortality rates makes me wonder how much longer we will be able to enjoy these hardy little horses on the outer banks. In addition to the ponies we enjoyed the birdlife which included squadrons of pelicans, nesting ospreys and the usual assortment of sea fowl, egrets and even the occasional turtle.

A few days later I took the ferry, accompanied by dolphins, to Cumberland Island off the coast of Georgia and spent a day hiking around the island. I did see a few ponies grazing in the Dungeness Ruins but was more impressed by the spectacular trees on this island and the unspoiled and peaceful atmosphere. I hope to visit again soon!

Stay tuned as I continue my trip to Florida in search of some of the world's most beautiful horses to photograph along with some other subjects that catch my eye! I hope that you are seeing signs of spring in your part of the world.

Virginia to Ocrakoke and Beaufort

I was up early this morning and was treated to a beautiful sunrise in Chincoteague. No ponies to see but lots of geese, ducks and other waterfowl.

In cape Hatteras I caught the ferry to Ocracoke Island. I was disappointed to find the only ponies on Ocracoke fenced in a bare lot. The village of Ocracoke is lovely and I would think a great getaway during the winter months. I will attach a photo of the lighthouse there. I caught the last ferry of the day to Cedar Island. As I drove onto the main land I was treated to a full moon rising over the ocean and a sun set over the marshes. This is a beautiful part of the world and I highly recommend visiting this time of year to avoid the crowds.

The start of my road trip!

Today I started a road trip I have been planning all winter. I will be gone for about three weeks and will cover many miles. The plan is to travel down the easternmost route of the outerbanks of the east coast in the hopes of seeing some wild ponies, then on to Ocala to run two workshops featuring my friend and photographer extroardinaire Gabriele Boiselle, then on to New Orleans to visit my daughter Shelby.

I left home about 10 am in rain and temps of about 35 degrees. I travelled down along the Delaware Water Gap and saw some spectacular scenery, as well as bald eagles and hawks. Somewhere in Pennsylvania the rain gave way to sun and blue sky and the temperature steadily climbed into the 60's. Traffic was light and I made good time.

I stopped on the northern Maryland end of Assategue Island and saw some ponies. As you can see these ponies are tame and spend a lot of time grazing in the camp sites. One pony stuck its head in the car looking for handouts! One young pony is still quite furry in his winter coat!

I arrived in Chincoteague at sunset and was disappointed that the gate into the refuge was down, so no tour around the wild life loop for me. I will be up early so I can spend some time in the refuge before I head further south.

I have a room at the Assateague Inn for the night and have my window open to enjoy the island breezes and listen to the geese.

I will try to update the blog every day but I'm not making any promises!