Azalea Season is Better Than Ever!

For years, decades really, I have driven by this church in Summerville on the way to my church. 

In March and April, it has some of the best azaleas around. Keep reading for photos of azaleas at my house and at Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston. 

After my Mass ended nearby, I decided to park near this church and walk around the grounds. The service was still going on inside so I was careful to keep my distance and be quick and quiet with my photography. 

 

This is St. Paul’s Anglican Church. Built in 1857 to replace the church built nearby in 1830, it is one of Summerville’s oldest and most historic houses of worship. 

It has ties with the Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site in that the church formed there in 1717, St. George's Parish Church, evolved into St. Paul's. At the park off Dorchester Road can be seen what remains of the church and its bell tower. 

St. Paul's Anglican is Summerville’s oldest extant church with the second oldest congregation. Summerville Presbyterian has the oldest congregation. 

I think it is safe to say that St. Paul’s has the most beautiful and abundant azalea bushes of perhaps any church in the Charleston area. 

Storm Gives Way to Stunning Skyline

 

“In like a lion, out like a lamb” goes the old saying about the month of March. 

Well, a few nights ago on March 31 we had one last roar from the lion. Heavy rain drenched the area for an hour or so. But then it subsided and a glance out a window had me heading outside with my iPhone 12. 

The storm clouds gave way to a pastel palette of loveliness. Looking west I quickly snapped a few photographs. It was still raining so I didn’t want to stay outside too long. 

That’s the golf course fairway and green in the foreground, then towering pine trees and at the top such beautiful clouds.

The pond near our backyard also made for a striking image. 

What gives these images extra pop is the Snapseed app. Free from Google, I’ve been using it for years. 

I shared these photos on the neighborhood Facebook site with the concise context “After the storm…” 

I’ve had more likes and positive comments than just about anything I’ve ever posted on the site! 

Backyard Birding an Ongoing Joy

 

A recent brief photo shoot in my backyard reminded me of how fortunate I am to live where I live, to have the bird feeder arrangement I have, and to have this hobby I have. 

Relaxing on the deck one morning during my recent Spring Break from teaching college, I photographed several types of birds in a short length of time, all while sitting comfortably in an Adirondack chair. 

In this photo you see the approximately 15 feet it is from the chair to the array of tube, suet and bark butter offerings hanging from the elaborate feeder station. Birds currently have 11 choices at the buffet, plus two bird baths (seen flanking the feeders). 

Alesia (who took these pictures) and I will reach a milestone 30 years in our home this June. In the backyard is where my interest in photographing birds and learning about them slowly grew and flourished. 

On the day I photographed the birds in this post, March 8 at around 11;30 a.m., I was pleased with the quality of the images, particularly how well the eyes of the different species are prominent. See if you agree. 

I try to photograph birds not just at the feeders and baths but also in the nearby trees, bushes and on the ground where lots of seeds end up after falling from the feeders. We also have a small pond at the edge of our property that attracts many larger birds such as Herons and Egrets, as well as turtles and alligators. 

                                    Brown-headed Cowbirds

Sad Occasion in a Beautiful Setting

 

My previous post tells why my family gathered in Colorado- my father’s Saturday, March 1 funeral. 

This entry is about the beauty of the Estes Park area. Alesia and I arrived on Thursday and stayed until Sunday afternoon. So the sad reason for the visit was buffered by the time we had to walk around and enjoy the scenery and geography so different from South Carolina’s Lowcountry. 

I didn’t have to go far to get these stunning images. We stayed at the Estes Park Resort, which is situated on Lake Estes. 

I just needed to step outside at around 6:30 a.m. to see the glorious dawn of a new day. 

Estes Park is located near the entrance to the popular Rocky Mountain National Park. In August 2022, my brother-in-law Paul took us up there. Wow is it a national treasure! See my post here. 

Fortunately, this winter trip offered moderate weather conditions with highs in the 50s. 

This is a view of the Estes Park Resort from across Lake Estes, an 185-acre water reservoir. Elevation here is 7,522 feet.

Our room was on the first floor, left corner of the hotel building. It was the perfect room for quick access through the back door to the lake and the parking lot too. 

The resort also offers cabins. You see some left of the hotel. 

Here are some more looks at the resort- and of us too...

The Passing of My Dad in Colorado

 

On Feb. 20 at 3:10 a.m. my dear father, Michael Sullivan Harwood, departed this life, taking the express lane to Heaven. He had a long robust life of 90 years. Dad was devoted to my mother, his wife for more than 70 years. He was devoted to his children and he was devoted to God. He worked hard during his military career then his civilian one and he found time for leadership roles in many church and civic organizations. 

We were blessed to have him our father. 

Alesia and I flew to Colorado for the March 1 funeral. In Estes Park we gathered with more than 20 relatives representing several generations of our big, widespread family. 

Ahead of the funeral, my brother Pete asked us for photos of Dad. With them he produced a beautiful montage about Dad’s life, accompanied by music his son Andy created. It was shown during a reception after Mass.

The funeral Mass program featured this lovely image of my parents taken at the beloved home they built on the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. They lived there for something like 30 years after Dad retired. 

We enjoyed many wonderful Bay visits over the years. Many involved fishing. In 2008, we had a big family reunion. I’m so glad I captured the charter boat excursion that I shared at the funeral reception. 

White Delight- Rare Snowfall Blankets Our Area

 

You can hear me by clicking here

Local TV meteorologists were predicting it for several days and around 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 21 it began. What began? SNOW! 

This is a very rare occurrence in the Charleston area. 

The last major snowfall we had was seven years ago, Jan. 3-4, 2018. Check out my post from then!

So Tuesday night it began sleeting.  Around 8:30 the temperature dipped to below freezing, and the white stuff started to fall. 

It did not take long to accumulate, covering the No. 15 fairway and green at Coosaw Creek Country Club where we live. 

For Joseph’s fiancée Tamy, just a few days removed from her native Brazil, this was her first encounter with snow. 

She had also never before seen a raccoon. This one came to our porch to eat some cat food we had out for a couple feral cats we have adopted (more or less). 

At daybreak the next morning a winter wonderland is revealed. 

Chill Start to the New Year

 

I was eager to get in an early 2025 nature outing so on Jan. 9 I cleared my schedule and headed south down to the ACE Basin.

It was clear cold day with temperatures in the 39-41 degrees range. I felt it in my hands while walking around looking for birds to photograph. 

I knew the Bear Island Wildlife Management Area might be closed, and it was for periodic hunting. 

But I also knew that I could still check out Mary’s House Pond, which is accessible after parking in the entrance area. 

Having been to Bear Island many times (see this post when we took bicycles out there!), the large pond attracts many birds, especially migratory ones in the winter. 

I would not be disappointed! Tundra Swans were the stars of the show. 

Tundras are North America’s most common swan but you don’t see them too often in the S.C. Lowcountry. They breed in Canada and Alaska and migrate to the Pacific and Atlantic coasts during the winter. 

Here at Bear Island is the only place I have seen this big beauty.