Hurricane Sandy~Cresent Beach, Niantic, CT

Howdee all,

Took a drive to my Sisters home in Niantic, CT.

She is far enough from the coastline and had no issues except for loss of power.

On the coast it was a different story.

We walked to the beach that we go to when visiting my Sister

Turned the corner

And saw what was left of Crescent Beach.

The beach to the right had benches and gardens

The road to the left in this section is now full of sand and rock.

Sidewalk moved..

Shrubs uprooted..

Road moved..

Sidewalk, Road…a jumble

 

Patio and porch gone..

Rocks everywhere..

What a mess..

It looked like most of these homes could be repaired.

It will take a while to be back to normal here..

Luckily many homes were unharmed..

It’s a mess..but not as bad as many areas that were affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Video of Crescent Beach

My prayers go out to those who were impacted by this storm.

I cant even begin to imagine how difficult it must be.

Hurricane Sandy~Ledyard, CT

Howdee all,

This is as bad as it got for us..

Piece of cake

Thank goodness!

Others did not fare as well. :(

Calm before the storm~Hurricane Sandy

Howdee all,

Yesterday Jeff and I walked Bluff Point State Park

We try to walk here daily.

About a 4 mile loop

We start the loop via the inland wooded route.

Earlier in the week as we walked the trail we saw scads of sparrows and Juncos ..We didn’t have our bins with us. booo hoo.

Yesterday there were very few birds. We had our bins.. HA

We did see a few of the usual suspects, but for the most part the birds we saw previously must have headed south.

I hope they fared well thru the approaching storm.

In the photo below I see a sleeping Kittie Cat..

The dark slit on the left of the rock is its eye..and the leaf in the middle makes its nose.

What do you see>

We followed the path to the water..

It was so calm..

Who would think that a monstrous storm was approaching..

 

I must have cats on my mind.

I see a cat face in the cloud below..Do you?

As the hurricane Sandy  approaches.

I wish all my family and friends ride the storm safely!

I hope the birds find safety too!

We will walk this coastline after the storm..

To see what changes were made.

OH YUM!

Howdee all,

I have been out looking for edible mushrooms lately..

Look what I found!

Chicken of the Woods

Laetiporus sulphureus

When and where to find them (ecology) Chicken of the woods are most likely to be found from August through October or later but are sometimes found as early as June. This is a mushroom that is likely to startle you. It is very noticeable from long distance because of it's size and very bright colors.  It grows on many types of dead or mature trees with hardwoods such as oak, or beech being more likely than conifers. They grow very fast. Usually when you find it there will be a lot. "Geez, what am I going to do with all this?" Younger specimens can have a large amount of clear watery juice pour out of the fruit body and the wood immediately after cutting. It can run almost like a faucet. Really. That's "wet" collection and a good sign it will be a choice edible

 

Read more about Chicken of the Woods here..some great photos too!

 

Some of the specimens were a bit woody and had bugs..

I took some of the fresher pieces.

Tomorrow~

Chicken of the Woods Omelet

POLYPORE OMELET

3 Tablespoons butter
1 cup diced Chicken of the Woods
1/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack or cream cheese
2 or 3 shallots, diced
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
5 or 6 eggs
1/2 cup cream or half and half
Salt and pepper

• Melt the butter in a heavy frying pan over low heat.
• Beat the eggs and cream, add salt and pepper to taste; pour into the pan.
• As the eggs start to cook, sprinkle the Chicken of the Woods, cheese, shallots and parsley over the top.
• Cook for 1 to 2 minutes more until the egg mixture sets.
• Fold the omelet over and remove from the heat; cover and let sit for 1 minute.
• ~Wells, M., M. Rogers, R. Piekenbrook & D. Piekenbrook (1987). Wild Mushroom Cookery. Portland, OR: The Oregon Mycological Society.

Comments A few people have sensitivity to this one so if it is your first time just try a small amount. Chickens found growing on conifers should be treated with more caution and are best avoided. Not everyone likes the texture. Nothing else looks like it.

Reflections of Autumn

Howdee all,

A few photos from our walk yesterday at

Devils Hop Yard State Park

I will post more photos of our walk later..

Just wanted to share some of these cool reflections.

I started to capture these refection's while standing on one side of the Covered wooden bridge looking down stream.

Lovely orange and yellows.

My Sicksta called me over to the other side of the bridge to show me the reflections there..

Looking upstream

The photos below come from this side of the stream,but closer to the covered bridge.

These are the reflections my Sicksta wanted me to see…

I flipped the photo so the tree is upright in the reflection

I don’t know why some appear more washed out on the bottom

The water was moving a little and that may have been the cause..or maybe the angle. Or most likely my camera settings.

Point and shoot..and operator issues.

I tried not to get the covered bridge in the photo but you can see it upper left.

In the photo below there is some reflection of the covered bridge and shadow of the rocks..

This is my favorite..

Which one of the birch tree is your favorite?

We continued on to the waterfalls..Photos of that later..

More reflections..

What a colorful time of year!