Camping and Exploring Cape Cod in the Summer of 2009

<-- At the Marconi site. The beach and and Atlantic Ocean 100 feet below.

One of the things I enjoy of the warmer months is camping. I don't do the primitive camping anymore, that is, in the total isolation of the woods. Nowadays it's some nice national or state park where for a low fee I can enjoy a good site in a campground with toilets and showers.
The fire pit is only for smores and gathering by the fire after dark. Very little cooking is involved, mostly some scrambled eggs on a portable burner. The cooler filled with ice and cold drinks is a must. The rest can be had at the local stores.

My tent is rated for 6+ persons, but the tent makers are very misleading when it comes to this. Always go for a tent that can "accommodate" several more people that your actual needs. In order to fit 6 persons with sleeping bags in my tent, they have to be side by side... if not one otop of another. The latter may be OK on a cold night in the woods. A tent for 5-6 people is good for two adults plus their stuff. I bring along an inflatable queen size bed and an electric pump. Why not? Having a few amenities makes the outing easier on the body. A well-rested person can do 20 miles of biking the next day or not do anything at all. A proper shower--not under a water ..can but in proper facilities with warm water--is always appreciated. And, it's nicer to go to the bathroom where there's a proper toilet. Other than that, I'm roughing it.

Recently I spent one week in Cape Cod--or as they say there, on the Cape. They are peculiar those folks. South is North! You take Rt 6 South to go the "Lower Cape" which is in the North. The GPS and my compass agree. I'm not kidding, the locals have these cardinal points reversed! I didn't bother to ask them about the East-West orientation. As for time, it's a loose concept; like in other places you spend leisure days at; it moves at a slower pace too.

Nickerson State park has hundreds of camping sites and during the last 2 months of the summer it's not easy to find one free for several days. I suppose camping became more appealing to those who can't afford motels nowadays. It's $17/day or $15 for MA residents. I'd recommend this park, however when it's the busiest it's more likely to bump into stupid and obnoxious people there. Such people don't understand that the point of going camping is to be closer to nature, and enjoy the surroundings in peace and quiet.

Get this, for one day/night I had to endure really bad "neighbors." Kids are a problem because of their parents who shouldn't be parents because they don't have the required skills. So, problem number one: unmanageable children with yelling parents. Problem number two: gas-powered generator noise and fumes! Why the need for electricity? Ah, to power the flat screen TV and whatever else these knuckleheads felt they needed to bring to the woods for their convenience! Thankfully, we were able to separate ourselves by getting another site.

Cape Cod has many interesting venues and things to do. I'd recommend using a bicycle--bring one or rent. There is a 25-mile Rail Trail [CCRT] which is mostly flat & paved and it goes through woods, marshes, bogs, ponds, and a few country roads. Some of the beaches are also reachable by bike. Nauset Light and Coast Guard beaches are free to enter by bike and are gorgeous! Both are on the Atlantic Ocean.

The "arm" of the cape is far away from the mainland (MA) so it's possible (and rare on the East Coast) to see the sun setting in the water with all its beautiful colors. I watched some amazing sunsets at Rock Harbor beach. Usually on the East Coast, the sun goes behind a mountain, trees, or tall buildings. That's why Southern Florida, too, has beautiful sunsets.

I've taken many trips to Cape Cod over the years, but every time I discover something new. This time I stayed in the Brewester-Chatham-National Seashore areas. The two ends, Provincetown and Woods Hole are also nice. Hyannis is quaint with shopping and the harbor to the two islands. Martha's Vineyard is the bigger one. The presidential family is vacationing there now. Nantucket is small and can be easily toured on a bicycle in one day. I've cycled on both islands. MV is much harder and can be exhausting in the heat of the summer. I was there on a 4th of July, within a few days when John Kennedy crashed his plane in the sea off the island.

This summer flew by quickly. I did mostly day-long things, but I also had lots of work... not the paid kind, the must-do kind. House-hunting is not easy or quick.




Above & below: sunset and low tide at Rock Harbor Beach.

Chatham, located on the south and easternmost of the cape.
Chatham Light
Below, Coast Guard beach. Cape Cod had one of the very first organized and trained teams to warn ships and rescue sailors.

Sunrise at Sea Gull beach, near Hyannis.
Below, full moon over Provincetown.

Marconi beach. It's the site where Marconi set up his huge towers to establish wireless communications with Europe. There's been lots of erosion, so the structures are long gone. But, it's such a beautiful place. The picture doesn't do justice. The vantage point by the fence is maybe 100 feet above the beach. This is part of the National Seashore. At night, fires are allowed on the beach... just imagine the view from the top.... and the general experience.... mmmm


Someone is getting ready for some smores by the campfire...

Creating Memories... and, Recording Them.

Is photography a means to reinforce memories or there's something more to it?

Creating memories is what I think makes for a full life. Of course there are lots of other important elements but I believe doing something memorable every day is good. Obviously I can't say that I can do it every day, but I try. It doesn't have to be big. Actually, I don't believe passing time looking forward to big events. Yes, they can be transformative with big impressions left over, but it is the smaller things that make a bigger difference in life.

Let me explain. Going on a nice month-long vacation to a beautiful place is certainly a welcome event. Yet, what do you do the rest of the year? Taking smaller but much more frequent breaks to do something interesting--being with a friend, engage in a hobby or any other joyful activity--are more important. It is said that it's not the absence of stress but the lack of many positive events that make a person unhappy.

Taking pictures is a hobby I enjoy. A picture is like a mini story. Framing, emphasizing (or excluding), and even tweaking the appearance of the "natural" picture is what photography means to me. I took up photography when I was a teenager. I was given a good all-manual camera, no batteries except in the attachable flash. I learned how to estimate the required speed, aperture, ISO, and whatever else. And, it wasn't easy because it was slow. In the days of a 24 or 36 frame film, it took me several days if not weeks to go through it--unless it was a special event that I could go through a 24 frame at once.

Now, I don't remember using the one-hour processing, if that was available back in the days. Even if it was, there was no money for that. So, I had to wait several days to see the results of my shooting. I may have kept some notes about some pictures I had taken but it wasn't very practical to walk around with a notepad writing down what settings I had for what picture.

Anyway, while in college--for a good stretch of it--I had no money for such a hobby. I had a budge of $20 per week for food. That included all food at school & trips to the supermarket. Spending $5-7 on film, processing and prints was not an option. I gave it up. It was also during that time that my car was broken into and my manual camera was stolen.

After I graduated I took some pictures here and there with a small cheap camera. It wasn't until 2004 when I got my first digital camera that my love for photography returned. I still use that bulky Olympus, not-intuitive and (by now) old technology camera. Most of the pictures I have today are from this one. Any DSLR new(er) camera is big now and they all have great features--and much better designs that those available a few years ago.

However, a great camera is one that is being used. If it stays in the closet it's not all that good. My point is that sometimes the size/weight of a camera may prevent its owner from using it or carrying it around. That's why I got myself a Nikon Coolpix recently. It seems that I always have this one handy, in my car or attached to my belt. I've taken some great pictures with it. The most important thing is that I was able to take a picture because I had a camera with me! It sounds stupid but it isn't. I have pictures, a record of things I experienced, that otherwise I know I would not have had. On many occasions it wasn't practical to carry my big camera, so the little one came in ..handy! And, let me tell you, the small ones today pack oodles of features and capabilities.

As I'm writing this, the night is well worn. One way to relax before bed is to do a crossword puzzle or work on the pictures I've taken. I had used Photoshop once; too big; the Elements, a smaller version, may be more appropriate for many photographers. However, for most amature photographers, Picasa is a great photo program to have. It's part of Google and it's free. Try it. I have a Gmail account, but I don't know if you need one to be able to upload your pictures on the internet. Yes, you'll need to do that if you take many pictures. I've been doing this for a long time now. You can use Flickr or a number of other free programs/sites. For example, here's a link to one of my online albums: Hudson Valley You could also link only to single picture: Pier on Hudson.

If you take pictures at an event or for any occasion that you want to share them with many other people the only sensible thing is to upload them to the web. I do it through Picasa, then I sent the link to a number of people instead of emailing them a bunch of pictures. That way they can choose for themselves what to do, including downloading any picture they like. You can have those online galleries private so only those who have the key to them can see your pictures.

I think photography is a great activity. I'd recommend it. It's rather inexpensive. Same thing with writing. Thinking about expressing a thought, an idea, an image, etc, are all great for the mind. Happy trails fellow traveller!


PS> All the pictures here don't have a common theme other than I took them in New York state this month (July 2009). They are among many, not superb or artsy but I like them and that's all there's to them. By clicking on them you can make them bigger. I found out that IE does keep this available, but Firefox removes this option when I move the pictures around within the post. That's why on some previous posts clicking on the picts doesn't do anything.


UPDATE: As per request, and in order from top to bottom:
1. Amusement park; 2. Hudson river by Rhinebeck; 3. Coney Island; 4. Hyde Park; 5. Coney; 6. Lower West Side; 7. LWS; 8. Harriman; 9. Woodstock; 10-12. Central Park; 13-15 Esopus/Kingston; 16. Peekskill; 17. Kingston lighthouse; 18. South St. Seaport; 19. Coffeehouse; 20. Coney.

The Power of Culture and Indoctrination

It's been a national story soon after it happened on Sunday on a highway in Westchester, NY. Actually I was going to NYC on Sunday when I heard that the Taconic parkway--the one I take to go to NYC--was closed due to a horrific accident. It happened right by the place I work. I know the area well and I can't imagine how a driver could get on the northbound lanes and travel at high speed southbound (against the heavy traffic) for 1.7 miles before colliding head-on with another car resulting in 8 people dying, including several children. There are many questions to be answered and the investigation continues.

Immediately the references to God became apparent. Of course, they followed the same pattern: God gets only the credit for good stuff, not the bad. That he should be praised for allowing one child (of the 4) to survive the crash. The other ones, all under 10 years old, weren't deemed worthy of survival. God may have "special plans" for the survivor, etc. Prayers and special church services are now part of this unfolding story. It's amazing to me that people haven't figured out that even if there's a God he doesn't interfere; he doesn't alter the laws of nature that he allegedly created. Therefore, praying to any god or to the sun yields the same results. [George Carlin explains this one here.]

And here's a longer version. Do you find it offensive?


We all know that bad stuff happens all over the world, though usually we tend not to focus on the suffering for too long. It's not a bad thing, because otherwise we couldn't have a normal life. Obviously people have different ways to deal with adversity and grief. One common thread is religion. They pray. The want to believe that God is active in their lives (intervening) and he takes care of the departed souls. Making imaginary friends or any entity is an old phenomenon. Culture and indoctrination from childhood make this illusion all but real for most people. Very few of us have escaped this predicament. Hopefully, more and more humans will shed this prejudice, superstition, and this need for the supernatural.

The following video could be very challenging to those who don't want to see the obvious. It shows human behavior and thought processes that go against the logical, reasonable approach to everyday life--it ain't easy, but wanting to believe in something simply because it gives a false hope is not appropriate for grown-ups.



Well, are you up to it? Can you handle the truth? It's a bold question and a bold step to leave behind ancient explanations fit for people who didn't know any better. But, we do! And, we know that the universe doesn't revolve around humanity. We've progressed a lot, learned so much about the physical world and there's so much more to find out. Yet, have you pondered, how do we know things? What is the process, the tool we use to systematically discover, invent, and reason? It's the scientific process. This is the best method/tool we have to understanding ourselves and the universe itself.

Give it a try. But, be careful: once you take certain steps, you can't go back, that is, if you decide that you want to know--no matter what the truth is--you can't revert to being ignorant. It's like losing your virginity...

Oldies but Goodies

I've been away and rather busy the rest of the days--OK, this includes catching up on sleep--so I haven't posted in a while, but I have lots of stuff on backlog! Where to start? Let's see, how about something for the boys?

If I had lots of money, I'd definitely have a few cars, maybe 3, 4 or 5. Of them, 3 would be really classic, oldies but functional. I spoke to the guy who restores old cars; he showed me pictures of how he found them. They looked total junks, and unrecognizable. He puts lots of new parts, new engine, etc. He spent $9,000 on one--for parts only, because the labor is all his. He had just given that car to his daughter for a graduation present!

There are many clubs of owners of oldies in the US, and there are frequent shows everywhere. All the cars have to get to the show [this case was in a big parking lot in Peekskill, NY] on their own power. So, yes, they are all in good shape. They open the engine hood so you can see they have new engines or a rebuilt one with lots of modern parts. It makes sense.

Take a closer look at the Ford with the wooden cabin. It was built in the early 20th century (like 1921 or so)--not much later than the very first cars appeared in the US. I think the license plates of historic cars also show their year of production.

In one of the photos, there's the interior of a 1971 VW Beetle. When I was in college I drove one. It was built in 1971 and it was a fading yellow color! Ha! I had wheels, that was the most important thing. But that car was horrible on gas mileage, very wide turn radius, not very safe, no heat (AC? haha), and your face was a couple inches from the windshield! But it took me places, and it helped me with my social life.

In the end, the engine was consuming (or losing) as much oil as gas, so I had to junk it because the labor to fix the problem seemed exhorbitant to me back then. Then, I think, I got a Ford Pinto station wagon! IT was not an improvement... Didn't last that long though.

A Street Fair, A Museum, and A Movie Under the Stars

I used to work in the city and hanged out in cool places but then life happens and I moved out. First, a stint in New Jersey and then back to New York, in Westchester. Not exactly far from the city but not exactly within a distance that a spontaneous outing is ordinary. It takes planning now and a lot more leisure time to venture into the city. It seems that some of my friends who live in NYC find my company desirable and they drag me into doing something there.... I appreciate that. Maybe I shouldn't say it publicly but I do find things in the city to do on my own as well.... There just so many opportunities for such...

These couple picts are from the First Avenue Fair. The street was closed for several blocks and as you can see thousands of people attended. Free music and stuff too. All year long, there are street fairs/festivals in this very diverse city. And, remember, the city has 5 boroughs, not only Manhattan! Ever since I got a mag subscription to Time Out New York I've found lots of interesting events, but you can check TONY's site yourself for free: http://newyork.timeout.com/ .

Then it was the Metropolitan Museum. I go there several times a year. That's how you can really see it. It's so vast that one or two visits aren't enough. There's always something new on display. Yeah, I know the suggested admission price is $20--which is a bargain for a tourist--but if you're a New Yorker and want to visit often, I'll tell you in private how to get in for free or almost free....

The Francis Bacon exhibit (red banner on the left) is a delight to the morbid-prone individuals. I think the artist was a very disturbed person and his paintings reflected that. Not a fan, if you didn't get my drift.

However, the Model As Muse fashion exhibit is a great one; I recommend it. It has many topical and period treatments; I'm sure you find something of interest in the many rooms. Great displays too. Couldn't take any good pictures because they don't allow any photography. Think of that, fashion without pictures... Geesh.

Of course, I appreciate modern art but not all of it. Salvatore Dali's works (like the one ontop of the page) are interesting. Picasso was a genius, as well as many others. The pictures here (besides the girl) are of works I enjoyed during this visit.

I've been wanting to go to the Museum of Modern Art since it's been some 3-4 years when I last visited but haven't had the chance to do so. Definitely this summer.

Now, I don't want this to spread but the roof terrace of the Met is a must-go-and-see place. It's small and the museum doesn't really make it easy to go there. Ask for directions. There's only 1 elevator and 1 staircase that go there, so it's got to be your mission, unlike the rest of the museum where you can wander freely all over.

The roof terrace has some great views of Central Park and midtown. It also has new artwork. This time there was some metal structure, like bare tree branches that threatened to impale the unwary....

Who's this guy with that tiny camera? These windows reflect the whole terrace and they can frame a nice picture with the artword and the sky...

Strolling through Central Park can offer relaxation, excitement, exercise, entertainment, and great views. It's very diversified and I'm willing to bet that many New Yorkers (city residents) haven't fully explored this great public park. I know, I've seen the old pictures of disrepair; I've experienced the decay in the late 1970s and 19080s. It wasn't pretty.

But the park has been cleaned up, it's safe, and gorgeous. Above the Belvedere Castle, next to an open air theater. This tiny castle is accessible to the public. From there you can see the Great Lawn, Turtle Pond, and the Delacorte theater, as well as much of the park.

When you see lots of people with blankets and chairs and an inflatable big ..screen at dusk, don't leave, check it out. The many francophones milling around made it more intriguing. The reason was this movie, Home, by Yan Arthus-Bertrand. [hit the link and for the next few days you can watch it on YouTube]. The free screenings in NYC parks on Fridays are sponsored by the French Embassy, http://www.frenchculture.org/ Watch the movie [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqxENMKaeCU], enjoy the city, and have fun this summer. I'll be posting some more pictures as the summer goes on....

See ya...

PS. This post has clickable pictures... so, if you want to see them open up bigger just click on them. If you steal them and repost them, just give me credit.

A Good Trip Over Memorial Weekend

Got the chance to leave the city and venture to Vermont. Part of the fun, though, is getting there and returning via the beautiful Berkshires. Oh, yeah, I did my first camping of the year, by a river! The problem was that ..someone forgot to bring the tent poles! Well, I had to string together a concoction of a shelter... not bad as a couple of the pictures below indicate.



The "finished" product. Yeah, a bit tight, but without the flexible poles the tent can't be fully deployed. It was cozy though!

The College Experience

The following several pictures are from Williams College in MA. Once, I wanted to work there. It has a beautiful campus; actually the most of the Williams town is the college. Nice, neat, but probably long winters and not much else in the near vicinity. Ah, well, I teach elsewhere now. By the way, I got the students reviews for this past semester and they look really good. I guess most of the students I leaned on heavily didn't bother to evaluate me.

How would you like to dorm in the building below?

One of the scenes common this time around is students moving out of their dorms (pix below). I suppose it's OK for those who are returning, but it must be a very emotional time for those who have just graduated... I totally understand the feeling. There's a big difference between those colleges that attract local students and those whose student body is of out-of-staters. For the latter, there's a moment of separation and the knowledge that you won't see this place for a very long time, that those past 4 years are over, and that you won't see many of your fellow students again...

I don't know how many students do go back to visit the place they spent 4-5 years at, but most people do maintain the emotional connections to a place they got a valuable life experience, often the first one as adults away from home for such a long time.

I'd definitely recommend this, first for the academic value--the building of intellectual capital--and for the experience itself. Dorming or living by the place of study is also recommended....it's so much different that staying at home. I don't think many young students really appreciate the college-attending as much as they should; maybe in the last year they begin to realize it...

Moose project...

In Bennington, VT, they're doing a moose art project. Now many communities picked up on this theme of decorating animals and placing them around the town.. They're pretty!

Vermont's Attractions

Manchester, VT, is nicely located for many outdoor activities. OK, including shopping for those who might be interested; there's an outlet center there. But, for the rest of us, the Green Mountain forests are nearby. Plenty of recreational opportunities. In Dorset, there's this cooling hole called Dorset Quarry. It used to be a place where marble was cut from the mountain but it's been abandoned and now it's filled with water where people go for a swim or just hang out.

The first marble quarry in the US was opened in South Dorset in 1785. The lower part is visible from the road and it gets very crowded, but the footpath a while up the hill leads to the less crowded, clothing optional, water hole.

Above, someone is jumping into the waters. Below, you can see the marble cuttings. The whole place has many large marble slabs laying around...I wonder why...

Ah, the summer is still young... Many more trips to plan... Stay tuned...

PS>for some reason clicking on the pictures doesn't open them to show them bigger. Sorry, but I don't have the energy to re-upload them or tweak the html code right now.

:(

Spring has Sprung and the Action has been Local

As I wrote on my political blog, it's been a hard long couple of months but now I have some free time to catch up with friends and other projects. I was so busy that I didn't take pictures of our lovely campus in, appropriately named, Pleasantville.



Here are some of the pictures I managed to take over a span of several weeks this Spring.