Loch Raven

                  A perfect, cool, partly overcast, spring day for hiking the shore of Loch Raven.

Sunrise

I think the sun is finally rising on spring. Someone must have finally driven a stake through this winter's heart. I'm ready for a cup of coffee while sitting out in the sun.

Trust and Treachery

The anthology, Trust and Treachery, a collection of 26 short stories and 2 poems is now available at Amazon and Dark Quest Books. My poem, When Shakespeare Was in Vogue, is one of the two poems in the collection. The stories cover a broad range of eras, genres and worlds.

Sandy Point and the Bay Bridge

Susquehanna State Park - Rock Run Mill to Conowingo Dam

Rock Run Mill

Looking south toward the Susquehanna bridges at Havre de Grace.

The Conowingo Dam

The hike was about 3 miles in each direction, from the Rock Run Mill to the Conowingo dam and back. The path started along an abandoned rail bed with tracks still rusting and ties rotting in place. Then along a riverside trail and back up onto a graveled rail bed without the old rails and ties. The rail bed was originally an early 19th century canal tow path that was converted to a railroad in the early 20th century and used to carry equipment and materials to the construction site of the Conowingo dam. It was a beautiful day for hiking. More photos can be seen here.

Eerie Aerie

I have seen a good deal of carnage during my hikes along the Patapsco river, but usually along the railroad tracks. Today I was hiking on the other side of the river and encountered this surreal sight: a dead hawk resting in the crook of a sapling as if he had made a dying crash landing there. There were no signs of trauma or foul play that I could see.

Lake Roland, Winter Walk

Took a walk at Lake Roland yesterday with my brother Mark. The weather kept the crowd down. Along the western shore there is still a section of the abandoned Western Maryland RR Green Spring Branch. On inspection it appears that the rail shown below was rolled at Maryland Steel, Sparrows Point, MD, a hundred years ago in 1914. Maryland Steel was at the time a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel. It was absorbed into Bethlehem Steel in 1916. More photos from our walk can bee seen at this link.