Bridge over TN-96

On our way home from Little Rock we detoured around Nashville so that I could see this bridge.  It is the on the Natchez Trace Parkway where it crosses over TN-96. It was the worst possible conditions for taking pictures: really hot, near midday, just a few small clouds, did I mention it was about 100 degrees ?

We got up on the parkway and drove across to the pullout. The foliage was so dense that a good picture from there was not going to happen - maybe in the winter when the leaves are down. I walked out a path and took this picture from the underneath. The scene was so contrasty (is that a word) that balancing the sky, bridge, greenery, and the reflection was nigh onto impossible. Again, this is a shoot better left for different conditions

the bottom

We drove back across and went to get back on TN-96 and stopped at a pullout at the base of the bridge. The next picture was taken from the field near the base of one of the arches, the last picture was taken from the pullout. This is a shoot that needs to happen in the fall when the trees have good color and there's lots of clouds in the sky, or in the winter when there's some snow ...

from a field near the base

from the parking lot near TN-96

Parting Cypress Shot

There was finally a cloud at sunset ... but there wasn't much red color ... again, and it was quite windy so the long exposures made the water look frosted and the trees are a bit blurry. It just never all came together ... maybe next time, eh?

a cloudy .... finally !

More Cypress

Still no great evening light , but I'm still snapping pics of the cypress trees in the lake out back. Maybe tomorrow ...

some orange and purple, but needs some red

the edge of dockness

Cypress trees are cool

We're visiting some friends in Sherwood Arkansas whose house backs up to a lake with several stands of cypress trees. I've been taking a few shots each evening trying to get one with really good color ... so far the color's not been so good ... I have a couple more evenings < crosses fingers>.

from the neighbor's dock

the clouds turned out nice

lone yellowing cypress

 

 

caught the sun ray across the island

da Train! da Train!

The Southern Railway 630 finally made an appearance in Jonesborough this past Friday. It was worth the wait.

It was supposed to be pulling a train through the area last weekend but had mechanical issues in SWVa. There were rumors that it would be leave Virginia "Thursday or Friday" ... that much of a time window wasn't going to do me any good. I started seeing FB posts and TwitPics on Thursday showing that it was rolling south, was going to overnight at the Bristol Train station, then start again at 9:30 Friday ... putting it in J'boro about 10:30. Social media F.T.W.

It was raining hard on Friday morning, so instead of going to Bristol I figured on meeting the train in Jonesborough. John and I made it to the parking lot at the Parson's Table, thinking the curve coming into Jonesborough next to the Salt House would be a good spot for some pictures ... it was apparent when we got there that several other folk (one of them was Peter Montanti) had the same thought. We staked out a good spot and waited ... for a while ... the train was 45 minutes late leaving Bristol.

My hopes that the train would roll through town slowly were soon dispelled as the old 630 came screaming through the crossing. Big. Loud. Smoky. Steamy. Horns blaring and bell clanging. Most Excellent.

SR630 as she first rolled into Jonesborough

A few seconds later the two diesel pushers are visible

As soon as the train rolled past we jumped in the truck and raced to the old train station in Limestone. Some traffic laws were 'bent' as we made our way there but we arrived about 5 minutes before the train, just enough time to scout out a good position. There were a few folk waiting at that crossing too.

Rolling coal as she charges up the hill toward the Limestone station.

Screaming by the old Telford train station

The last picture is a faux-HDR that shows more of the old Limestone train station. I'm sure it's been a long time since that old station had steam engines rolling by.

A year or so ago I saw a picture of a waterfall that the photographer said was taken in Abingdon Va. I inquired about where it was located but never got a response. I posted copy of that picture to see if my FB buddies that live in the Abingdon area knew where it was. I got a couple responses saying that it might be out past Whites Mill

Last week a FB buddy posted a picture that looked to be the same waterfall and I got some directions and decided to go this past Saturday afternoon. It was a terrible day for waterfall picture taking but my goal wasn't a good picture, I really just wanted to find it and see if it was worth a trip back in the fall.

I saw the waterfall below from the road as I drove by, but there was no easy way to get to it. And since this wasn't the waterfall I was looking for I kept driving. At the end of the road I turned around and on my way back out I found a place to park and a trail that led toward the waterfall. I took the trail and found a waterfall that was similar to the one I was looking for but wasn't it. I took a quick iPhone pic for evidence then got back on the trail and it led on to the bottom of the waterfall I saw from the road.

I rumbled, bumbled and stumbled down the bank and climbed up on a big rock below the waterfall. It was so muggy down in that gorge that I only stayed long enough to get one bracket.

 

Private Waterfall in Abingdon

On my way back to the truck I saw the 'private property' sign nailed to a tree that I had walked right by on my way in. Had I seen the sign on my way in I wouldn't have continued. I'll definitely need to get permission before I go back.

Fireworks

Here's 4 of the pics I took from our back deck of the Pepsi Fireworks show at Freedom Hall ... beverage in one hand camera remote in the other ...