Posts Tagged ‘Travels’

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Our World: Calabash, North Carolina

June 25, 2012

Calabash, North Carolina, waterfront. May 7, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Calabash, North Carolina, is known as ‘The Seafood Capital of the World’.  It is primarily a fishing village with shrimp boats docking daily during the season, selling fresh-caught shrimp.

Sport fishing boat pulling into the dock at Calabash, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

Sports fishermen often dock at Calabash, and there are also charter boats available.

Fish ready for cleaning on the Calabash dock, Calabash, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

In the evening it is often possible to find one or more group of fishermen cleaning their catch on the dock.

Dockside restaurant, Calabash, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

One of the major attractions of Calabash as far as Betsy and I are concerned is the Dockside Restaurant.  The restaurant is right on the waterfront and, if you are lucky enough to get a window seat, you can watch all the activity on the dock while eating a delicious meal.  This picture of the restaurant was taken from the dock, which shows how appropriate the restaurant name truly is.

Seafood platter at the Dockside restaurant, Calabash, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

Calabash is famous for its ‘Calabash Seafood’, which is prepared with a special flavoring unique to the area.  I know we’re supposed to avoid fried foods, but once or twice couldn’t hurt us, could it?  It sure is good!

Betsy at the Dockside restaurant, Calabash, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

Betsy, a tree-hugger at heart, is also a fan of the huge live oak trees at the front of the restaurant.

 

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Our World: Chattahoochee River

June 11, 2012

Betsy at the Chattahoochee River in the north Georgia mountains. May 5, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)
This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Betsy and I wanted to visit a couple of waterfalls in northern Georgia on our way to the beach last month.  We had been to the area is February, so we had a good idea how to get to the falls we wanted to see.  Unfortunately the Forest Service road we needed to take into the mountains was closed, so we had to go to Plan B.

We found an alternate road to one of the waterfalls we wanted to see, and this route would also let us see a couple of ‘bonus’ falls along the way.  Our alternate route took us into the mountains along the Chattahoochee River, which has its headwaters near the waterfall we wanted to see.

As we drove deeper in to the mountains, we found a pullover where we could stop and go down to the river.  The picture above shows Betsy on the bank of the Chattahoochee.

George at the Chattahoochee River. May 5, 2012.

Here’s another view of the Chattahoochee that Betsy took.  I’m not sure where the old man came from, but he popped up in quite a few pictures that Betsy took on this trip.

The clear waters of the Chattahoochee River in north Georgia. May 5, 2012.

The Chattahoochee wasn’t very wide or very deep at this location, but it was running freely and the water was crystal clear.  It’s a beautiful stream.

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SkyWatch Friday: Ocean Isle Sky

May 18, 2012

The beach and sky at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 10, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

When we are at the beach Betsy and I enjoy the sand and the water — and the sky.  Sometimes the blue of the ocean comes close to matching the blue of the sky.  The white of the breakers in the ocean and the clouds in the sky only serve to emphasize the blue.

Reflections in the sand at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 10, 2012.

On this particular day the sky and the clouds were reflected in the wet sand left by the falling tide.

Clouds over the dunes at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 8, 2012.

We also enjoyed watching the clouds appear over the dunes on a lazy afternoon.

 

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I’m sorry for being behind in visiting your blogs, but Betsy and I went to visit Dad yesterday.  He was better than we’ve seen him in several weeks.  He still has trouble completing his thoughts at times, but he was walking better yesterday than he has in quite some time.  He enjoys being outside, so the nice weather is a blessing.  Dad will be 100 in August.

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An Almost-Super Moon

May 16, 2012

Moon off Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 6, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

Betsy and I were in Simpsonville, South Carolina, on the Saturday night of the super moon.  Unfortunately there were heavy clouds and storms in Simpsonville that night, so we missed the super moon.

Fortunately Sunday night, at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, was beautiful and clear.  The not-quite-so-super moon put in an appearance over the ocean almost opposite our room.  I was able to get this picture from the balcony of our room.

Moonlight on the ocean off Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 6, 2012.

We watched the moon rise in the sky and lay a silver stream of light on the surface of the water.

Moon rise at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 6, 2012.

The sight was so incredibly beautiful that we both felt it made up for missing the super moon the night before.

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Our World: Ocean Isle Beach

May 14, 2012

Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 7, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)
This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Betsy and I returned home on Saturday from a week at the beach.  We went to one of our favorite places, Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina.

One advantage of going in early May is that we often have the beach almost to ourselves, so we can lose ourselves in the beauty  of this wonderful spot.

The pier at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 8, 2012.

The weather was just about perfect.  We had some rain early one evening, but other than that we had blue skies and sunshine.  But even so, the ocean was never the same on any two days.  It seems to constantly change, but be constantly beautiful at the same time.

Dunes along the shore of Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. May 10, 2012.

Even glimpses of the water and beach through the dune grass was fascinating.

Satellite image of Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. Image taken from Google Maps.

We stayed at the Islander Inn, which is right on the beach as can be seen from this satellite image from Google Maps.  All in all it was a wonderful vacation.

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Waterfall on Little Fall Branch

May 2, 2012

Waterfall on Little Fall Branch, Harmon Den, North Carolina. April 3, 2012.

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Betsy and I like to break up trips, whenever possible, by working in a hike, preferably to a waterfall.  We went to Asheville, North Carolina, in early April and decided to visit Waterfall on Little Branch along the way.

We had planned to visit that waterfall on our way home from Asheville back in January, but a rockslide in the mountains blocked our access to that area.  The interstate has since been reopened, so we decided to try again.  We took the interstate to an exit just over the North Carolina line, where we accessed a Forest Service road into the Harmon Den Wilderness Area.  The gravel road followed a creek for about three miles before turning off.

We found the trailhead and hiked for about half a mile until we came to the beautiful waterfall above.  We stayed for some time to enjoy the waterfall, but then we had to hike back to the car to continue our journey.

But what a great way to break up a trip.

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SkyWatch Friday: Storm Front Coming

April 27, 2012

Sky and clouds seen from a rest area in western North Carolina. April 3, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

On our way to Asheville, North Carolina, in early April, Betsy and I stopped at a rest area along I-40 in the  mountains of western North Carolina.  The day up to that point had been sunny and bright, but the weather forecast was calling for rain.  While at the rest area I noticed the clouds over the ridge line.  The sky was still blue, and there were still white clouds in the sky, but the gray clouds were moving in.  We did, in fact, get rain later in the day.

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Our World: Marigot, St. Martin

April 16, 2012

Looking out to sea from Fort Louis, Marigot, St. Martin. September 11, 2001.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)
This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

I’ve gone to my archives to get these photos taken in the ruins of Fort Louis in Marigot, St. Martin.  Betsy and I hiked to this hilltop ruin while on our Caribbean cruise in 2001.  Our ship had docked on the Dutch side of the island, and we joined a bus trip to the French side.

Marigot Bay, St. Martin. September 11, 2001.

The best thing about the old fort was the view it offered of the Caribbean and Marigot Bay.  The sky was a pretty blue and the water was a marvelous blue-emerald color.  All in all, the view was spectacular.  But that beauty was in many ways almost surreal.  These pictures were taken on 9/11.

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Watery Wednesday: Waterfall on Laurel Creek

March 28, 2012

Upper Waterfall on Laurel Creek, Beckwith, West Virginia. March 7, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

We traveled to West Virginia to celebrate my birthday earlier this month.  It was a very wonderful trip, and we were rewarded with several new waterfalls for our ‘collection’.

While driving toward Gauley Bridge on SR 16, we came upon two waterfalls on Laurel Creek.  The road follows the creek here, and it was very easy to find both waterfalls.  Of course we just had to stop and get some pictures.  This is a photo of the Upper (larger) Waterfall on Laurel Creek.

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Watery Wednesday: Collins Creek Falls

March 14, 2012

Collins Creek Falls, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina. January 31, 2012.

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This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

There are many small waterfalls in the Smoky Mountains.  Many are in the back country and can only be reached by hiking.  But others can be seen from the road, if you know where to look.

Collins Creek Falls is right alongside the Newfound Gap Road between Cherokee, North Carolina, and Gatlinburg, Tennessee.  It’s small, but pretty, especially in the Winter and Spring.

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 14 Comments »

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