Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Dogs at Sunset and Other Heavenly Sightings

From Whittaker Marina, Adam and I noticed a sun dog. These appear on either side of the sun, often at sunset. They're formed from ice crystals in the atmosphere, which makes us happy because chilly weather is indicated! In this photo, the setting sun is off the right edge of the shot, but the sun dog (and the halo ring running up from it) is in center.
A close up -- you can see the rainbow effect.

It's a bit of a ride from Whittaker to the Wildlife Ramp, but when we pedaled in, I nabbed a pic of the sunset through grasses.
Even this low on the horizon, you can still see the sun dog, in the left in this photo. Aren't the streaky clouds pretty?
Sun dogs should come in pairs, one on each side of the sun, but the matching dog is obscured by the clump of trees. As the sun sets, the dogs diminish.
Adam checked out the contents of the Little Library. Too much Danielle Steele. He also gets reading at our local marine store, the Provision Company, where they have a shelf of swap books for sailors. He picked up Jon Krakauer's book, Into Thin Air, there.
And we saw the Pleiades in a boat slip ....
And a pirate boat :)
Adam noticed the stamped words on this anchor. "What if?" What if ... what?? What if the anchor line breaks? What if we lift anchor and head out into the world? What if we drop anchor and stay here a while? Maybe an anchor symbolizes all these things, and more.
I typed "What if anchor" in Google, and got nothing. It shall remain a mystery.
Sunday afternoon saw us sitting on a friend's porch, watching a crochet game with the river running by behind. What a view! We were chilly in the shape of the live oak tree.
We walked home past the town dock and spotted this Drop-Dead-Gorgeous, stunning, amazing wooden boat! You don't see many wooden boats. This lady is 54 years old, immaculately kept, from Gloucester, Mass, and on her way south.
We chatted with the owners of this angelic bark, who allowed me to photograph her.

The woodwork!
Pellucid blue skies and golden grasses.
I could not capture the ethereal quality of this grass and its pale pink feathers.
The October sun is brilliant, more brilliant than in summer. We see this not in its brightness, but in the deep shadows it casts.


4 comments:

Pom Pom said...

I like your boat/river walks, MK! I did not know what a sun dog was until today!

Mary Ann Potter said...

I truly enjoyed this "walk" with you today! The sun dogs are spectacular; I didn't know they came in pairs.

That little library is nifty. I am working on a miniature "little free library" for a competition. actually a one-room building in regular miniature scale. I'll be posting photos o it soon.

Newer poems on my writing site and photos on my farm site. Come visit!

Sending blessings as always.

Dasha said...

We don't get sun dogs (I don't think), as it never gets very cold here. Must keep a look out next winter.
There is a Putt Putt Regatta coming up on the 19th on Brisbane Water. It is open only to wooden vessels, some of them are quite old. There is also a category for "fun" craft. This year will be the first time I will be able to go, so watch my blog for the pics!

Deborah Montgomery said...

I saw a sun dog for the first time last year (or at least it was the first time I knew what it was!). Your harbor pictures and photos of that amazing sky are always beautiful!