Bear Creek Preserve

Today I took a short trip to the Bear Creek Preserve located on Lower Bank Road just north of the Lower Bank Bridge over the Mullica River.

There is not much of a parking area. No motor vehicles are allowed in the preserve so I parked outside the locked gate and walked in. The sandy road starts in a wooded area and follows Bear Creek as it makes its way to the Mullica. There were turtles and ducks in the wooded area of the creek and I even saw a common yellowthroat but no one wanted to cooperate for pictures.

After a short walk through the more densely wooded portion of the road, the landscape opened up to the marsh area.

A male mallard was much more cooperative with a short photo shoot before I moved on.

Spring was trying to make an appearance. Most of the trees were only budding but the red maples were full of their bright red “helicopter” seed heads.

As I walked, I heard a lot of birds singing but they were shy and did not want their picture taken. The tree swallows were out in droves hunting for insects. It was nice to be out here without another person around. The marsh grasses rubbed against each other creating a symphony of eerie but interesting noises.

I came across this bird blind but couldn’t go inside as the doors appeared to be nailed shut. Too bad, it would have made a cool spot to sit and look for birds.

This trail is a really beautiful trail. If I had gone a bit earlier in the morning, it may have been a little more active with birdlife. Wildlife seen today: red slider turtles, a snake which slithered into the grass to quickly for an ID, catbird, Canada geese, common yellowthroat, mallard, and tree swallows.

Of Sunsets and Sunrises

I recently got some neutral density filters for my camera and was eager to test them out. First I went to Lower Bank Bridge at sunset to try them out. Lower Bank is located on the Mullica River in Burlington County, NJ. I think I still need to get a hang of the timing thing. Unfortunately my trip out there was on the spur of the moment so I quickly lost the light. I also need to be a little better at planning. What do you think of my results?

I decided to give it another go the next morning. Again…I am not a great planner. I woke early to take a drive to Lake Oswego since it is close to work. Lake Oswego is a beautiful quiet lake located in the heart of the NJ Pine Barrens. It sits within Penn State Forest in Burlington County. Again…I underestimated my timing. It took me a bit longer to get ready to leave than I anticipated and I am NOT a morning person. Luckily I got to the lake just as the sun was coming up. I would have liked to be there a bit earlier to set up.

I like this one, but I think next time, I need to try to find some details to focus on rather than trying to get the whole scene. I will definitely be practicing more with these filters. Thanks for reading!