NEWS!
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Colchester
Land Trust's Online Auction - April
The
Colchester
Land Trust is holding their annual fine
art and wine auction through the month of April. This year's
proceeds will go into their land acquisition fund. Please
consider donating items for the auction, and by all means
bid on the items offered. During April, items may be viewed
online or at Cragin Memorial Library. More information is
available at their web site, or from Barry Ford (860-267-6751).
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Three
of my photos will be among the items auctioned off.
They are 11x14" prints, matted, in 16x20" frames.
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Beaver's
Wake - CT Audubon Society first prize & people's choice
awards.
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Morning
Glories
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Frosted
Oak Leaves
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Virginia
Beach
I
was in Virginia Beach from March 14th through 16th for my
son's soccer tournament. Check
out my pictures from the drive, and around
the Virginia Beach area.
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Lyman
Viaduct Repairs Complete
Today
(March 2, 2008) I had a look at the Lyman Viaduct and was pleased
to discover that emergency repairs were complete.
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need
some stone dust resurfacing in the spring, and the heavy equipment
hasn't yet been hauled away, but the trail is open and the unsightly
safety barriers around eroded sections are gone. |
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Lunar
Eclipse - February 20, 2008
I've
added a page for the Lunar
Eclipse My photos aren't great, but if you
missed the live event, they'll give you a sense of what it was
like.
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| Sugar
Maple Trailside Inn
On
February 7th, 2008, I presented a slide show of Air Line Trail
photos to the Friends of the Southampton (MA) Greenway. Overnight
accomodations were provided by Craig and Kathy Della Penna at
their B&B in nearby Florence, MA. As you can see from the
photo, the Sugar
Maple Trailside Inn is just that - immediately
adjacent to a thriving rail-trail that leads into downtown Northampton,
MA.
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Rapallo
Viaduct repairs Complete
I
walked to the Rapallo Viaduct on January 18, 2008. Emergency
repairs to the embankments are complete and all the construction
equipment is gone. Some minor grading will be required in
the spring once things warm up and settle.
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Lyman
Viaduct Receiving Emergency Repairs
As
explained in Peter Marteka's Hartford
Courant article work began this first week
of January 2008 to stem erosion of the Lyman Viaduct on the
Colchester section of the trail near Bull Hill Road. Work on
the Rapallo Viaduct in East Hampton, just to the west, is nearly
complete. The Lyman Viaduct portion of the trail will be closed
on weekdays while work is underway.
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A
large sewer main is embedded in the viaducts. Erosion due to
people climbing or dirt-biking up and down the steep embankments
has threatened to expose and potentially rupture this pipe with
disasterous consequences for the watershed below. Of special
concern is Dickenson Creek, a popular local swimming spot, which
feeds the Salmon River.
The
project is expected to be completed in the spring. Discussions
are underway to develop a longterm solution to the problem.
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Colchester
Land Trust Receives Grant for Air Line Trail Gateway
The
Colchester Land Trust recently received a $95,000 grant from
the DEP to help fund purchase of the Air Line Trail Gateway
parcel of land adjacent to the trail at the junction with Bull
Hill Road. For more information, visit ColchesterLandTrust.org.
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5th
Annual Ghost Run
The
Air Line Trail hosted the 5th annual Ghost Run on Saturday,
November 3rd, 2007, despite rain and near freezing temperatures.
Complete
results at HITEKRACING.COM (Sorry, no photos
this year. I was out of town.)
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Grant
Awarded for Trail Improvements in Colchester
The
junction of Route 149 and the Air Line Trail in Colchester is
about to receive an overhaul that should enhance safety. A "Cross
Alert" system will warn approaching motorists as trail
users near the intersection. As a byproduct, the system will
also track trail utilization. Contact Jason Cohen, Colchester's
Park & Rec Director, for more information.
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East
Hampton Trail Closures
The
Air Line Trail in East Hampton will be temporarily closed, Monday
through Friday only, beginning Monday, October 22, 2007 through
Tuesday, January 1, 2008 from the Smith Street access point
to the area just past the Rapallo Viaduct. The trail will be
closed so that the culvert at the Rapallo Viaduct can be reconstructed.
The Airline Trail will be open weekends and the Ghost
Run scheduled for Saturday, November 3, 2007 will
take place as scheduled.
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Monarch
Butterfly Life Cycle
I've
added a page following the Monarch
Butterfly Life Cycle - specifically the
transitions from caterpillar to chrysalis, and chrysalis to
butterfly. The photos were taken using a series of caterpillars
collected in New Hampshire this summer.
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Cecropia
Moth Life Cycle
I've
added a page following the Cecropia
Moth Life Cycle - based on the life and offspring
of a female moth which emerged from a cocoon found along the
trail. Cecropia moths are large and beautifully colored, and
the caterpillars are remarkable for their bright colors and
large size.
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Milestone
Yesterday,
June 12th, 2007, I posted my 2,300th photo to this site. I
began posting pictures in November, 2001. Remarkably, I'm
still finding new things to photograph, like the green heron
at the left posted yesterday to Spring
2007, Part 9.
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Magic
Wings
I
hope you will enjoy my photos of Butterflies
taken recently at Magic Wings in South Deerfield, MA. Magic
wings is just three miles northeast of I-91 exit 24 on Route
5. Same exit as Yankee Candle Co., which you'll pass. Magic
Wings opens daily at 9:00. Anytime is good, but early on weekdays
is least crowded.)
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Niagara
Falls
I
made a quick visit to the Canadian side of Niagara
Falls on May 2nd, 2007. The weather was
perfect and the falls spectacular.
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Nat
Brown's Digital Art
Five
Years of Air Line Trail Photos!
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The
first photos I posted to this site were taken on November 19th,
2001 - five years ago today as I write this.
Most
of those early photos look pretty dreadful to me now.
I
haven't counted lately, but conservatively I can say that I've
posted in excess of 1,700 photos - with no end in sight.
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Section
1 Surfacing Completed in Lebanon!
November
5th, 2006: Naomi
Davidson, Chairman of the Lebanon Rails to Trails
Committee, reports that "The stonedusting on 'Section 1' (between
Route 207 and Leonards Bridge Road) of the Lebanon stretch of trail
has been completed. I went out on it yesterday and it looks great!
The
more folks we can encourage to use this section of the trail, the
better. We are continuing to work on the rest of the trail, and though
it will take some time until there is a finished surface for the entire
stretch of trail in Lebanon, most of it is passable."
So...
we've got another 1.7 miles in Lebanon to walk or ride - 2 miles including
the portion that's in Hebron. I got my first look at the new section
on November 9th.
The
view from Leonards Bridge Road
The
Lebanon trail comittee clearly spent a lot of effort working on drainage.
This section used to be awash with water.
Rita
the cat complained that her walk was too long. Nice to see a good
number of people and pets using the trail.
The
Town of Lebanon web site
has several pages devoted to their portion of the Air Line Trail.
I believe maps of the section are available at Town Hall.
(Sorry,
cancelled due to heavy rain and dangerously high winds.)
On
Saturday, October 28th, 2006, the trail
will host the
4th Annual "Ghost Run/Relay"
This 13.6 mile event starts at 9:00 A.M. from Hebron Elementary School
on Route 85, and ends at Center Elementary School in East Hampton.
Applications to participate are available at the Hebron Town Hall,
Park & Recreation Department. Also available at Colchester and
East Hampton Town Halls.
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New
Hampshire
I've
just returned from a week in New Hampshire. Here's a sampling
of what I saw: NH-August
2006
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Air
Line Trail Video Documentary
Bob
Adams
has produced a short video about the Air Line Trail, focusing on the
section from East Hampton to Colchester. It's great fun to watch and
includes railroad history as well as fall foliage trail highlights.
View
the video Bob and his wife Joyce hope to return
this fall to cover the Hebron portion of the trail, perhaps releasing
the combined piece for broadcast on public access television.
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Flowers
- Garden & Roadside
I've
begun posting photos of garden and roadside flowers &
butterflies: Spring
2006
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Surfacing
the Colchester Spur!
| Improvements
to the Hebron portion of the Colchester Spur line are well along.
On March 8th, 2006, Hebron's Public Works crew reached the intersection
with the main trail. |
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The
Spur trail has been widened and leveled. Stone dust still needs
to be added and compacted. Hebron's section of the Spur ties
in with what Colchester has already finished.
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Looking
back towards the main trail from the abandoned United Distillers
factory, you can see that the Spur adds some interesting new
options for trail users.
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Photography
Awards - 2006
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I'm
pleased to say that my photo of Dahlias won 1st place in the
Flowers category of the Connecticut
Audubon Society's 2006 Photography Competition.
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My
photo of a Great Blue Heron, taken in Raymond Brook Marsh,
won 3rd place in the Landscape category.
The
exhibit will be on display through February at the Audubon
Center in Glastonbury. There were a lot of entries and the
quality overall was quite high, so well worth a visit if you're
nearby.
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World
Of Beauty In A Single Mile: Amateur Photographer Documents Nature's
Myriad Manifestations Along Air Line Trail.
In
mid-January, 2006, Steve Grant interviewed me during a walk on the
trail. The result was an article which appeared in the January 23rd
edition of the Hartford Courant. The
article was accompanied by several of my photos, in color, and a nice
portrait by photographer John Long.
Stan Malcolm - John Long photo, used with permission.
Copyright 2006, The Hartford Courant.
Several
days later, I discovered that Steve's column was syndicated by the
Associated Press and published in other Connecticut, Boston, and New
York papers. It even made WFSB-TV's web site. All this attention was
very unexpected, but very gratifying. Sincere thanks to Steve and
John, and to the Hartford Courant for giving space to nature and environmental
articles.
Read
the article at the Hartford Courant site
I received a number of e-mails after the article appeared. The most
common question was, "What kind of camera do you use?" I've
answered that question on the About
the Photos page of this site.
On
October 29th, 2005, the trail hosted the 3rd
Annual "Ghost Run/Relay". This 13.6 mile event
started from Hebron Elementary School on Route 85, and ended at Center
Elementary School in East Hampton. Brett Stueffler finished first
overall at a 5:46 pace, Jimmy Grant second at 5:49, Chris Shulten
third at 5:50. Claudia Camargo was first among women and fifth overall
at a 5:56 pace.
Complete
results at USAXC.COM
Claudia
Camargo (in red) placed first among women and fifth overall. Brett
Stueffler (in white) placed first overall.
Jimmy
Grant placed second overall.
Chris
Shulten finished third overall.
Runners
young, and not so young.
Regular
trail joggers, Jim Fracchia and Mark Tierney - though without their
dog today.
More
trail regulars - Carol Hassett, Donna Howell, and Maryellen Cillizza.
Thanks
to all who made the race run smoothy.
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Store!
Purchase
photos, T-shirts, Mugs, and more
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Many folks have asked if I sell my photographs. To date, I've only
offered them through local library fund-raisers and the occasional
exhibition.
This
site has never been about making money. But it would be nice to recover
at least a fraction of my costs. So, if you like my photos and appreciate
the trail, please consider making a purchase. And if you don't find
your favorite photo for sale, please contact
me and I'll see if I can make it available.
Stan's SmugMug Photo Sales Galleries
Green
Circle Award
| The
Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection has honored
me with a Green Circle Award for my work on this web site. The
DEP established the GreenCircle
Award Program to recognize businesses, institutions,
individuals, and civic organizations who have participated in
projects that promote natural resource conservation or environmental
awareness. |
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Twenty-nine
awards were distributed at a reception held at the DEP's Sessions
Woods Wildlife Management Area in Burlington. Deputy Commisioner
David Leff announced the awards... |
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...and
Commisioner Gina McCarthy presented them. |
Photography
Award - 2005
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I'm
pleased to say that my April 2004 photo, Beaver's Wake, won
1st place in the Animals category of the Connecticut
Audubon Society's 2005 Photography Competition.
It also won the People's Choice award.
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England
and Wales - January 2005
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I
spent the end of January visiting my daughter, her husband,
and my granddaughter in northern England. We also spent two
days in the mountainous Snowdonia National Park in Wales. Click
the link above for a virtual tour.
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Butterflies
at Magic Wings
| Just
posted my pictures of Butterflies
from today's (January 18, 2005) family trip to Magic Wings. Nothing
too spectacular, despite taking over 100 pictures. Mostly my fault,
but many of the butterflies were old and tattered. Ah well, at
least the colors may help you all through this dreary winter.
Magic Wings in South Deerfield, MA, is a highly recommended destination
- especially as a cure to the winter blues: tropical temps and
humidity, flowers, and thousands of live butterflies. Magic wings
is just three miles northeast of I-91 exit 24 on Route 5. Same
exit as Yankee Candle Co., which you'll pass. Magic Wings opens
daily at 9:00. Anytime is good, but early on weekdays is least
crowded.) |
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Gloria
Gery's Romania Journals
My professional colleague and friend, Gloria Gery, has made several
working visits to Tutova, Romania's "Failure to Thrive Clinic" for
children, a program sponsored through Global Volunteers. Click the
link to view Gloria's journals and photo galleries.
On
October 30th, 2004, the trail hosted the 2nd
Annual "Ghost Run/Relay". This 13.6 mile event
started from Hebron Elementary School on Route 85, and ended at Center
Elementary School in East Hampton. Steven Moore of New Haven finished
first overall with a pace of 5:45 per mile. Complete
results at USAXC.COM Last year's event raised nearly
$600 for trail improvements.
Steve
Basson (left) and Lawrence Gore finished 8th and 7th respectively.
Bekkie
Wright of Marlborough finished 16th overall, was the second woman
across the line,
and was first in the women's 40-49 class.
John
LeShanef
(Photo by Barbara Emmons)
For
more information,
call John LeShane at
860-342-0658.
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Support
Meshomasic Forever!
John
LeShane of Portland, founder and president of the Meshomasic
Hiking Club and a board member of the Middlesex
Land Trust, was joined by George Rolland
and Chuck Bernstein on a 45-mile hike Sunday, October 17th,
2004 to raise money for the Meshomasic Forever Wild Fund.
Guided by flashlight and starting at 2:30 A.M., the three
men hiked from Putnam to East Hampton on the Air Line Rail
Trail.
Meshomasic
Forever Wild Fund money is used to help conserve additional
land in the Meshomasic Forest, established in 1903, making
it New England's oldest state forest. LeShane said 50 percent
of the Meshomasic landscape is not protected and can be developed
at any time. The concern is that as development pushes into
the Meshomasic Forest, it is in danger of becoming so fragmented
that it would no longer provide the habitat needed for wildlife
such as songbirds, ruffed grouse, bear, hawks, turkey, fox,
coyote, fishers or rattlesnakes. Rolland, an avid hiker and
member of the hiking club, joined LeShane because he is concerned
about Meshomasic Forest and enjoys the Air Line Trail. Rolland
hopes that supporters will sponsor them at $1 a mile, but
any donation is appreciated. Donations should be sent to the
Middlesex Land Trust, 27 Washington St., Middletown, CT 06457.
Checks should have a notation on them that they are for the
Meshomasic Forever Wild Fund. (Text
adapted from an article in the October 13th Hartford Courant.)
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John
Walsh of Hebron's Boy Scout Troop 28 poses with one of five
map boards he erected along the trail. These signs represent
his Eagle Scout service project and are located at major road
crossings. Thank you John!.f
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On
September 13th, 2004, I posted my one
thousandth photo to this Air Line Trail web site.
(I began the site in November, 2001.)
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On
Sunday, May 16th, 2004, there was a combined 5 or 10 kilometer
walk or 25 kilometer bicycle ride on the trail, sponsored by the
Hardware City Hoofers and the Connecticut Valley Volkssport Club.
Reporting on the event, the June issue of the "Walk 'n Mass"
newsletter says, "Our nominee for “Pleasant Surprise Walk of the
Year” goes to the Connecticut Valley Volkssport Club’s event in
Amston, CT on May 16. The walk on the Air Line South State Park
Trail was a naturalist’s dream with a listing of 23 plants that
could be seen on the trail during May provided with the walk directions.
Also spotted along the trail were such birds as a scarlet tanager
and a turkey buzzard."
For
more information on CT Volkssport, contact:
Andy
Fal 860-828-5750, or Carol
West 860-721-1185
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| In
late April, 2004, I was in England where my family visited with
my daughter, her husband, and their child Hazel (my first grandchild).
They live in Bollington, in northern England, and have access
to a wonderful variety of walking trails - most with a pub nearby
to break up the trip. We also managed two days in London seeing
the tourist sights. Care to see my England
trip pictures? |
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Also
"off-trail", I've begun posting photos of garden and
roadside flowers & butterflies: Spring
2004 - Summer
2004
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My
interview for a segment of Public Radio's "Field Notes"
was broadcast on Monday, April 19th 2004, by WFCR, Amherst, MA (88.5
FM). Laurie Sanders hosts a series of Morning Edition segments exploring
significant natural areas, special plants and animals, and "natural
happenings" in the Connecticut River watershed.
Archives of "Field Notes" programs, including the Air Line
Trail piece, are accessible at WFCR's web site (www.wfcr.org/OLD_WWW/fieldnotes.html)
where you'll also find links to enrichment materials. Laurie's previous
shows are a joy - please check them out.
Want to try something different outdoors? Consider "Letterboxing".
There are a number of letterboxes on the Air Line Trail. See if you
can find them. (Naturally, if you do find them, please treat them
with respect.) For basic info on Letterboxing, see: Letterboxing
North America For letterboxes in Connecticut, including
some on the trail, see: CT
Regional Letterbox Guide An easy letterbox to start
with is: In
Memory of Brandi
Please
visit my Gallery
at Photo.net. There you'll find pictures taken "off-trail"
as well as some favorites from my Air Line Trail collection.
| I
hope you will enjoy my photos of Butterflies
taken at Magic Wings in South Deerfield, MA. (A highly recommended
destination - especially as a cure to the winter blues: tropical
temps and humidity, flowers, and thousands of live butterflies.
Magic wings is just three miles northeast of I-91 exit 24 on Route
5. Same exit as Yankee Candle Co., which you'll pass. Magic Wings
opens daily at 9:00. Anytime is good, but early on weekdays is
least crowded.) |
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Chris
Shafer is a friend who does marvelous, light-hearted paintings
of "suburban fauna." Please visit his Gallery
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| I'm
sure we get trail visitors from afar, but I'm pretty sure we don't
get many from as far away as Joe and Sue Salembier, visiting from
Scottsdale, Arizona. I met them on the trail July 1st, 2003. Thanks
to Hebron's Bob Parker of Cycle Escape for renting them bikes
and even dropping them off at the Route 85 trail head. Joe &
Sue learned about the Air Line Trail through the Rails-to-Trails
Conservancy's web site; which, in turn, led
them to this web site. |
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Out
of 88 entrants, "Along the Air Line..." was chosen winner
in the best use of photographs category of the American
Trails 2003 Website Contest.
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