Having just returned from a fabulous trip to the Adirondack mountains, I am a bit buried in sorting photos, a week worth of e-mail and a pile of dirty cloths. However, I'll share a few of the heart stopping images I was able to record with my camera. There were so many experiences it will be hard to choose, but one of the most picturesque scenes was taken at Great Camp Sagamore, the vacation home of the Vanderbilts. Yes, THE Vanderbilt family of NY.
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| Wild Lupine grace the banks of a rock strewn stream in the Adirondacks. |
Wild Lupine was at its peak during the visit. Breathtaking waves of color bracketed the roadside on Route 28N from the Moose River to Raquette Lake.
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| Common Loon nesting at the Horseshoe area of Tupper Lake. |
Common Loons are commonly seen and heard on these clear mountain-water lakes. Their haunting tremolo was heard drifting across the moon-lit water. The inescapable allure of the lakes, for those of us with no interest in fishing or boats, is the call of the loon.
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| White Admiral, the north-eastern color morph of the Red-Spotted Purple butterfly. |
The Red-spotted purple is one of my favorite butterflies. Its northern counterpart- the White Admiral is a close relative of the butterfly that I grew up watching in Ohio. It is said our dark form is a mimic of the poisonous (if you eat it) Pipevine butterfly, and where the Pipevine does not exist, the Admirals can't use the Batesian strategy. Photographing this butterfly for the first time in my life was a mega-highlight of the trip.
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| Dragonfly of the bogs... |
Bonus points to anyone who can help me ID this fascinating dragonfly. Since I am still sorting hundreds of photos of flowers, birds, rocks, trees and endless scenery- I can use all the help I can get. It was in a bog habitat and between 1.5 to 2 inches long. It was a stunner, and a probably one of the mosaic darners. Since I don't know the northern species- I am open to suggestions.
More photos to come, and great stories of nature travel and conservation. The birding included Bicknell's Thrush, Boreal Chickadees, Gray Jay and Black-backed Woodpecker as well as nesting warblers. And the botany was a fine as the U.P. of Michigan, with highlights of orchids, pitcher plants and sundews. We'll have much to discuss.
This (lakes, loons, White Admirals) is all stuff we have in abundance here in northern Wisconsin. I was almost surprised to read this post and realize you were in New York and not the Upper Midwest!
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