Annapolis Part 3: A few Boats

Annapolis is known for it's boating.  There are large in-water boat shows there that draw large crowds.  As I mentioned in the previous posts  Ego Alley has quite a display, our last visit was no exception.


You saw this in the "Ducks" post, but I liked the contrast of the Zodiak against the 20+ ft boats in the background.

 Wooden boats always capture my attention, especially when well cared for.

The boat below, Bear and her sister Bull were on display.  They are replicas of 1860's "Sandbaggers" which had huge sail areas for their hull lengths.  They are pure thoroughbred racing machines.  You can learn more about them here.

The rigging and tackle fascinated me -  I'm an engineering dork after all.











You may get an idea of just how long the boom and bowsprit are!

I just liked the 'lines' in this shot.

 The photo below frames one of the larger boats that evening that takes passengers out.  It looks like a great time.  You can also notice the red and white towers on the right.  I'm told they were used for Naval communications.  The Wiki article doesn't have references, but may be a place to learn more about them.  You can also catch a glimpse of the Bay Bridge.

 There was apparently a distress call from a boat in the harbor, but fortunately there wasn't any great peril, and this officer is returning to dock.

A Catboat exiting Ego Alley.


And last, the yacht below was HUGE!  Docked well into the Alley close to the city.  I'm not really sure just how long it was..60ft.. more?  It had two Wave Runners and a Rib on the upper aft deck!!!

I liked the fact that a rower was along side in the shot.


I may have a few more 'random' shots I'll post later.

Blessings,
Brian

Annapolis - Part 2

In the last post I talked about the ducks.  This time I'll continue with part 2 of the tour around town.  My preface is that you should really go check it out for yourself.  The photos are just a taste of a couple streets.  We have been up and down Main St. often and it has lots of shops - tourist traps, ice cream, chocolate, restaurants, clothing,  etc.  This time, starting near the City Dock, we went up Pinkney St towards the State Capitol before cutting over to Main and back down to the Dock.

 This is part of  Ego Alley, the brick building in the background is the Marriott Waterfront.  It's restaurant, Pusser's Caribbean Grille is right on the water.








I'm a sucker for taking pics of the local canines, no matter where I am.

 Found this attractive lady.

Everyone needs a selfie

This guy just seemed interesting, hanging out on the City Dock, waiting for a concert

This woman could hardly walk in those heels, it was a riot.

A nice Lemond bike

 Okay, so this is a pic of Pinkney Street, which is wide enough for one car.

Many of the homes were decorated with window boxes

I liked this one inparticular

 I believe this is a device to help pull off you boot?

A few of the homes are brick

I noticed how many wires are hanging on this street.  It's a time capsule of sorts.  Think of it this way: There would have been no wires - back before electricity.  There are typically no hanging wires in new developments.  This is square in the middle of the technology - wires hanging from poles.

 The one above is now from Main Street.  Look at the detail.  You won't find that any more.  I hope someone will restore it to it's former glory.

 One shop on main had this sign.  I got Deb and a 'passerby' to stand and point it out. "Please do not block our window,  Thanks"  Maybe the store has the right idea.  It got us to point it out and people to stop to look in .. if for only a minute.  You might notice the reflected "OPEN" sign.

 This kind of captures the friendly vibe and color of Main St.

Yes you can find a bike with a basket on the front handle bar in Annapolis.

Guess that's it for now..

Next time.. some boats.

Peace,
Brian

Annapolis Ducks

While on vacation we needed to make a stop in Annapolis.  Deb and I have been there several times and always wander around Main Street to take in the sights and shops.  There is a finger of water that comes in to the city front aptly called City Dock.  It's a long alley if you will and has docking along the sides.  It's often called "Ego Alley" in reference to those showing off their floating rides.  At the edge closest to the city is a spot for dinghies to tie up.  This where the large boats moored in the harbor disembark their little rides to see the city.

It's also a spot where ducks congregate to be fed.  The evening that we walked around was no exception.  There was quite the commotion as Mallards jockeyed for position to get a piece of bread thrown to them by a mother and her kids.

The ducks have to worry about more than their siblings and cousins though.  The Gulls get in on the action too and as we saw, will give a good chase to the ducks below.

We tired of the show and walked around the city, which I'll share soon, but to close this segment let's tell the 'rest of the story.'  When we passed by on the way back to the hotel, the ducks were quiet and content.  A number of them took over a dinghy left tied up at the quay.  So notice the picture of the guys in a small Zodiac and how they sit on the inflated hull.  Then notice how the ducks have taken to those same spots while they preen.  The result is that duck droppings now cover the whole rail where the returning sailors will need to sit!   Not going to be fun for them.

 Till next time,

Peace,
Brian

Photo-Bombed by another duck! 

It's our SHIP now! Ok, so who knows how to start this thing up?

Missed shots, Captured shots

Deb was working late so I took a drive around the Naval Air Station (NAS Pax) to see what I might find.  The first spot has a small pond where Canada Geese were feeding.  I took a lot of shots and have one here cropped to see a few of the flock.  Two of them were plucking rapidly at the edge where water meets the land, one appears to be looking at me and you can see two standing guard on land.  Just after I put my camera back in the truck, I hear this ruckus and thought they were taking off, only to find the whole group was in near take-off but landing to allow the two from land to settle in to the water.  Then nearly all of them, one at a time, rose and flapped their wings briefly and set back to floating.  Really wished I caught the good stuff! Maybe next time.

Since Deb was still working I drove around to Goose Creek (?) to take in the scenery.  Before I was even set up I saw a Bald Eagle chasing away an Osprey!  Missed all the action, but did see where the eagle landed to roost in a tree.  He was a 'dot' on a green back ground.  I put on my 70 to 200mm zoom and took a couple shots.  Nothing great, but I wanted to show how the scene unfolded.

Close up (cropped version of the next photo)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the scene from where I stood

 

 

200 mm setting on the zoom

200mm zoom

Then I drove around to the Gold Coast - the term locals call the Bay side of the NAS.  I saw an Osprey perched on a nest atop a piling mounted nest box.  It was obviously eating a fish, so I took a number of shots, again nothing great.  It was really windy and my tripod would shake just a little with the gusts....   I'll need to come up with a bag strung up on it to add weight and stability.  I also wonder if I could come up with a portable "wind break."

Cropped

While I was looking at the Osprey, I saw several flock of dark colored sea birds skimming the surface of the water and took a number of shots to catch them.  The image is cropped roughly at 2:1, and this one I'm fairly happy with.  When I zoom-in even closer I'm fairly confident that these are some Cormorants.

And that's how my drive home went - very nicely, very nicely indeed.

Peace,
Brian

200mm cropped