Boat Ride on the Intracoastal

Down the Intracoastal Waterway.... Another beautiful day! Sun was shining and the water was like glass...A great day for pictures!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Cormorant "][/caption]

We started our voyage out of Great Bridge in Chesapeake, Virginia on Brian's beautiful boat 'Rogue Wave'

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Inside the Rogue Wave with Capt. Brian"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Rogue Wave"][/caption]

"Great Bridge Bridge - Great Bridge Bridge... This is south bound power, waitin on your eleven o'clock opening..." Brian said over his VHF. "Roger Cap'n, You headin' south?"  Said the guy in the bridge control room. "Yes sir" replied Brian "Well, Take it slow up there - NO wake! There's divers down there where  a boats gone under" said the guy. So we head up the way to see a boat half under water and people salvaging what they had left. The water was an iridescent color with oil.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Sinking Fishin' Boat "][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Sinking Fishin' Boat"][/caption]

...we made our way through the locks and three bridge openings...and saw an eagle couple that we thought might have been the ones who passed our bedroom window the other evening!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Couple "][/caption]

It was like we were in the middle of a neighborhood of Eagles... I've never seen as many as I did today. It was SO amazing! I think every time we would look up in a tree, there one was.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 3"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 4"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 4 again"][/caption]

We saw lots of  juveniles too!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Juvenile Bald Eagle Number 5"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Juvenile Bald Eagles Number 6(flying) & 7"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 8"][/caption]

Tons and tons of Eagles! There were so many! Some, I didn't get a picture of because we didn't slow down enough in time to get a picture! We couldn't believe it!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Juvenile Eagles Number 7 & 8"][/caption]

We rode down to North Carolina and back and tried to go up near the cabin in North Landing Campground, but the water was just too shallow.  So we stopped and had lunch. It was an absolutely gorgeous day! The sun was high in the sky and it was about 60 outside! we couldn't have asked for a better day in winter to go out and take a cruise. While we were eating lunch we noticed the grass was burning...probably a controlled burn. Awesome to watch!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Controlled Burn"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Flames burn the invasive growth"][/caption]

Check out the HEAT in that picture! WE went as far as Mile post 35 on the Intracoastal waterway and Saw lots of amazing sights. The water stayed like glass the entire day. We rode past a permanent sunken wreck. Watch out! Might be what will happen to the boat we passed earlier in the day...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Danger! Sunken wreck"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="353" caption="Cormorants guard their channel marker"][/caption]

Got my first in flight bird picture today!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Cormorant In Flight"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Blue Heron Mile Post 35 "][/caption]

This guy is funny! I love how he's standing on the channel marker, ready for action!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Cormorants hangin' on a log"][/caption]

On our way back we spotted several more Bald Eagles. Some I wasn't able to catch a picture of..I'm sure they were probably the same ones we saw coming down the waterway.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 9"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bald Eagle Number 10"][/caption]

We had an awesome day on the boat! I am so fortunate to live on the water, let alone have an awesome boyfriend who will take me out in his boat. I hope to see even more Bald Eagles the next time we go out!

Deep Creek Lock Park

Today was the first day of normal "Virginia Winter Weather" -- Maybe a little over normal. It was a beautiful 55-60 degree day with lots and lots of sunshine to melt all of the ICE!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Thawing Out"][/caption]

We checked out a Local Park I've never been to before today! We saw lots of birds, I was fortunate enough to get some shots of a few!

Red-bellied Woodpecker

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Red-bellied Woodpecker"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Red-bellied Woodpecker"][/caption]

Short and unsteady video of their call:

These pictures didn't come out to well..lots of shade, and I wasn't prepared. I was just excited to see a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Yellow-bellied Sapsucker"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Yellow-bellied Sapsucker"][/caption]

Short and unsteady video of him "drumming"

I also Saw a few others...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Cormorant "][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Geese Couple"][/caption]

Also a bird I've never seen or taken a picture of before!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Hermit Thrush"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Hermit Thrush"][/caption]

Winter Weekend Getaway

"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts."

Brian and I got a cabin at North Landing Beach this weekend. It was one of the NICEST campgrounds I've ever been to. We enjoyed our stay in an Equipped Cabin on the water.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="385" caption="Cabin At North Landing Beach Campground"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="Us in the very cozy cabin!"][/caption]

In the morning I woke up early. . .excited to try out my new camera. . .and waited for Brian to get up. I put bird seed out in the front yard of the cabin thinking I might attract some birds to get some pictures. Instead I noticed a great blue heron freezing his feathers off in the water out front.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="464" caption="A Very Chilly Blue Heron (breeding plumage)"][/caption]

We made plans to walk a trail or two and go check out Mackay Wildlife Refuge. First we wanted to look at the rest of the campground. They had very nice sites and a beautiful beach. hey had a pool,  a neat water park looking thing called "Big Squirt", also I saw a really nice picnic shelter with a fireplace and bathrooms. Really nice! oh and Campsites right on the beach!!  Unfortunately it was frozen. Kind cool though!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="North Landing Campground Beach"][/caption]

We decided to have a little fun and stand on the Ice since the water was frozen solid! It was so neat. I've never seen anything like it! Here's Brian...

Brian Standing on the Albemarle Sound

And Yours Truly. . .

Crystal Standing on The Albemarle Sound

We Hopped in the Jeep and headed up the way towards Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge"][/caption]

Alot of the Refuge had closed due to the winter. We spotted a few birds and ducks - like This Belted Kingfisher. . .

Male Belted Kingfisher

He was all over the place! I was very pleased to get his picture. My new camera has been giving me some trouble. Soon I'll have it figured out!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="Male and Female Northern Shovelers"][/caption]

We drove down a Really Neat Road SR615 'Marsh Causeway' and Saw lots of water birds. Not only Shovelers, but Hooded Mergansers, Mallards, Teals, and Tundra Swans everywhere!  They were all Skiddish and would fly away when we pulled the Jeep over, but I managed to get at least one shot of a Few Mallards and a Male & Female Hooded Merganser.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="405" caption="Mallards and Hooded Mergansers"][/caption]

We headed to Pearl's, a neat little bar on the Currituck sound were you might meet someone you know,  meet a really cool fisherman and or hunter, grab a beer, and have some awesome conversations. Good people, Great View.  When we got back to the cabin campsite we decided to build a fire. We had such an awesome view.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Cabin Campsite View "][/caption]

The sun started to set and I told Brian we needed to drive back to the beach and watch the sun go down. We sat there on the beach freezing our fingers off, but warmed by the thought of the fire back at the cabin ;)

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Nature's Goodnight Kiss"][/caption]

And right before the sun went down I saw a Yellow-rumped Warbler In a tree near the cabin. . .

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Yellow-rumped Warbler"][/caption]

We sat out by the fire and had some of the wine we got from Moonrise Bay Vineyard where we stopped and had a wine tasting on our way back to the cabin.  We brought back a bottle of "Magnolia Muscadine Wine" It says "Assertive yet elegant; tangy fruit character with accents of apple and citrus followed by a burst of wild grape" I immediately fell in love with the wild grape taste! I eat wild grapes at work and it tastes JUST LIKE IT! YumO!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Sitting by the Campfire"][/caption]

The next morning we decided to head down to Carova, North Carolina for the day and do a little bit of four-wheeling.  We figured we would take the Ferry in Knotts Island to Currituck and then head south from there. The first day I got to the cabin I put bird seed out for the birds... I saw a few through out the first day but this morning when I looked outside, there were tons of tiny birds! I had no Idea what they were, but they were so cute! I later looked into a few pictures of sparrows and I believe it is a 'Chipping Sparrow' correct me if I'm wrong. Brian and I like how you can see the corn or seed 'chipping' away! ha!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="498" caption="Chipping Sparrow"][/caption]

We made a yummy breakfast sandwich and headed to Knotts Island to get on the Ferry! On the way out I spotted a Killdeer.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Killdeer"][/caption]

we scooted across the water on the ferry, Getting out to watch the seagulls fly sideways and catch fish that got confused in the turned up mud of the ferry. We saw TONS of ice, riding through it on the ferry felt really weird! I also saw some Ruddy Ducks

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Ruddy Duck"][/caption]

When we got to the other side, we cruised through a small neighborhood on the sound, looking for a park we had never seen before, but noticed on the GPS. When we found it, we immediately spotted an Eagle! It flew off but it was so amazing to see. When we got to Corolla, North Carolina I saw a TON of Tundra Swans on the Ice of the Currituck sound. Lots of poop too. eww. Look at the one in the right corner and the move it's doing! lol

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Tundra Swans and Canadian Geese"][/caption]

New Camera

Nikon coolpix P90 for Christmas

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="307" caption="24x opitcal zoom & 12.1 mp"][/caption]

The weekend after I got the camera Brian and I took a trip to Carova Beach to get some shots with the new camera!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Herring Gull with Starfish - 2nd Winter"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="1st winter Herring Gull with starfish snack and Adult Herring Gull"][/caption]

It was a VERY windy day!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Boat-tailed Grackles fight over Blue Crab claw"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Red-throated Loon"][/caption]

There was a hole maritime forest washed out by the nor'ida

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Carova Beach, North Carolina"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="'splish splash'  Sanderling having a quick bath"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Sanderling Reflection"] [/caption]

It was a fun day trying out my new camera! Wasn't liking the cold wind though. I love Carova Beach though. It's an amazing place.