Shadow Shot Sunday, April 4, 2010

Shadow Shot Sunday is the Meme of Tracy who puts together Hey Harriet from Queensland, Australia. Check out the photographic submissions. There are so many talented people out there showing us some fabulous shots. If you want to participate, read how to do it HERE.
Right now, I want to talk a bit before I post my Shadow Shot for today.

It’s early Sunday morning here in Spadoville. In a few weeks, the shadows will be plentiful outside my window as Mr. Sun creeps North in anticipation of the Summer Solstice. I like the long hours of daylight in our North American Summer. Besides warmer more comfortable weather for outdoor activities, the sense that the day is longer than 24 hours passes through my mind.

Up here in the Northland, Winter sees darkness creeping over the land as early as 4:00 p.m. It’s totally dark easily by five. You have morning, you have afternoon. After dinner, the day is done. But in Summer and the longer periods of daylight, it seems to me that we get a whole extra day after dinner. I’m sure it’s just perspective. As I get older, the colder weather is harder for me to deal with, therefore I spend less time outside in it. Hence the end of daylight brings about the end of the day so to speak.

When I’m traveling, I like to watch the scenery. Both the naturally occurring geographical and the man-made stuff for sale on the side of the road, just inside the ditches in front of the houses. In Summer, I can keep truckin’ down the road well into the evening. After all, for me, it is the journey. I don’t enjoy a motel room for more hours than I need to shower and sleep.

The trips have been short. Day trips, or one nighters, lately. But I look back at the past year and can rattle off a dozen of what most folks would call a “long trip” that I’ve made. In fact, it’s time for another Solon Springs Water Run next week. All the carboys are empty!

Really long excursions take a little planning. Last Summer, I did two major motorcycle journeys, almost 8000 miles in all, and the big family vacation that pretty much took the whole month of July. This season, I’m starting early with a journey back to New Mexico later this month. I’ll take the Triumph and ride from here. Should be warm enough to ride out right from Wisconsin. Any earlier and I might hesitate as the threat of ice and snow might still be evident. I'll still have to be careful on bridge decks and overpasses, especially if I'm out early in the morning.

Another cycle trip for June then. I really want to ride those Canadian Rockies and see Yellowknife, Prince Rupert and Vancouver Island. So far, I’ll be traveling solo. Should be quite an adventure. I’ll do some camping and some nights in motels. When I re-enter the USA at Vancouver, the plan is to meet a friend from California and ride the mountains back towards home with him.

I’ve made many visits to Northern California. I had a place on the coast at one time. The shadow shot I have here is one I took while playing around the black sand beaches near Ferndale, CA. Where the mouth of the Eel River empties into the Pacific. There is a lot of driftwood there from small pieces to huge giant redwood carcasses. The wind and waves changes the complexion of these beached pieces daily. I thought this one looked rich.


Driftwood basking in the sun on the Lost Coast of California

Peace