Album Humbug Mountain State Park from Janet Brien

Underside of a Fern at Humbug State Park (+17 insets!)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:51:30 +0000

(+17 insets!)

Our 2020 "Escaping Covid" RV Trip
I'm going to go through our trip, stop by stop and hopefully I'll be able to get through all the pictures before we leave for our next trip! (Hint...so many pictures!!!) I'm including links to other posts which show images from this stop as well.

First Stop: Humbug State Park
We were so lucky to book a week here because the dates included Fourth of July, our Independence Day. Trying to find reservations a week before and following this day is usually next to impossible but to our total amazement we got incredibly lucky! Furthermore, this park is small and we really didn’t think we'd ever get to stay here! We counted our lucky stars every day! :D

Humbug Mtn State Park--What Sets it Apart
This park's unique features are its small size and its own, almost private, ocean beach, complete with a creek that runs into the water. The walk along the ocean is fabulous! Another unforgettable aspect that wasn't so nice was the wind in some areas. This intimate park sits in a narrow canyon which funnels coastal wind under the highway 101 bridge and up through the campground in a ferocious gale that affects some areas. Yet, in protected spots, the negligeable breeze makes you question whether or not you were exaggerating intensity of the wind rushing into the canyon.

What a lovely campground it is! With an upper and lower loop, surrounded by lush forest with trails that meander up and out of the canyon and along the original Highway 101, this makes for a wonderful, wide walkway overlooking the ocean in some places. Of interest to bike riders, another notable point is that there is no cycling allowed in or around this park.

Today's Main Picture
My main image features the underside of a fern with its octopus-sucker-like rows of spores. These plants, which number over 12,000 species, are among the world's oldest and have been around for over 300 MILLION years! Isn't that incredible? I love their unusual appearance and never tire of photographing them! Humbug State Park sits in a lush forest which included plenty of ferns for my enjoyment.
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Insets
You'll find three other fern images to appreciate; I also included pictures captured on one of my trail hikes: a spike of beautiful purple foxglove blossoms that towered above me and a tiny wild purple and lavender geranium that peeked out shyly from the ground; a view of a dappled trail that lead up to old Highway 101 and another showing the highway-path so you can see how pretty it was! A wide panorama format was perfect for fuzzy red leaves stretching out from the main plant (Geranium?), and finally, a tall, narrow picture showing resin droplets that I found dribbling down the side of a fir tree.

I'm also including inset-links to the other Humbug State Park posts I shared some time ago if you'd like to see the beach and other wonderful sights of this gorgeous place!

Thank you for your visits!
It's been so nice having ipernity back up and running again! I've really enjoyed visiting you guys, and getting your comments, favorites and views has totally made my day! Please stay safe, warm and dry!!

Curled-fern-tip

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:51:20 +0000

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fern-fronds-bending-up

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:51:11 +0000

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Dappled-Ferns

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:49:54 +0000

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Foxglove

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:50:43 +0000

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Humbug-Amphitheater-Trail

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:50:03 +0000

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Old-Highway-101

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:49:35 +0000

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Herb-Robert-(Geranium-robertianum)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:48:18 +0000

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red-leaved-plant

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:49:16 +0000

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Resin-Droplets

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 16:49:05 +0000

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HFF with Humbug Mtn State Park's Bridge Adorned with Cliff Swallow Nests! (+5 insets!)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:00:57 +0000

Janet Brien has posted:

(+5 insets!) (view large to see the pretty details!)

We are busy getting ready for our trip so I will have to make this short and sweet! I'd planned on sharing some pictures which showed many of the things Steve's done to upgrade the trailer and truck but I am too busy running around so I'll post them at another point. Instead, let's get right to the show!

Cliff Swallows Under the Bridge!
One of the wonderful features of Humbug Mountain State Park is its proximity to the ocean--the park actually has their own beautiful beach! The way to get there is by walking down a short 5-minute trail which takes you under Oregon Coast Highway 101's bridge and out to the ocean and sprawling shoreline beyond.

The first time I walked to the beach, there were three things I noticed. The first thing was the incredible wind tunnel! Humbug sits in a canyon and the wind is simply amazing at its narrowest point--and yet, out at the beach the wind dies down significantly depending where you are. The second thing I noticed was the bridge you must walk under to get to the beach. I couldn't help admiring the handsomely designed architecture and paused at many points to appreciate its lines from various angles. The third thing I noticed filled me with great delight! Underneath the bridge there were dozens of mud-based nests built by Cliff Swallows! At the time I had my Canon and 100mm macro lens, and though I couldn't resist taking pictures, I knew those fabulous nests would be best-captured with my marvelous Sony camera.

Today's Pictures
The main picture today shows the bridge from the beach with Brush Creek flowing by to the sea. Next is a picture of the bridge from the trail down to the beach--you can see that the bridge is not flat and is going down a hill! The following insets show the wonderful nests that lined the underside of the bridge. As I took pictures, I watched the birds as they swooped in and out to their nests. Some were feeding chicks, others were working on their nests. The last image shows these birds working industriously on the construction of their nests which I thought was really interesting.

These birds (Barn Swallows too) are considered to be a nuisance in many places because of the mess they create and many people do not appreciate having mud nests built under their home's eaves. Of course, it that were me, I'd be happy to invite an entire colony to build homes! Perhaps that might be a bit much though, as large groups can number 2,000 or more! If you would like to know more about these wonderful, clever birds, Wiki has a very nice page on them here:
American Cliff Swallow. (By the way, if you'd like to see another wonderful picture of Cliff Swallow nests built into cliffs, Ron Hanko took this marvelous image when he and his wife were exploring Big Bend National Park back in February: Cliff Swallow Nests by Ron Hanko)

Finally, I hope you all have a fantastic and safe weekend! **virtual* HUGS!*

Explored on 8/7/20; highest placement #2.

Bridge-and-trail-to-Humbug-Beach

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:00:45 +0000

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Cliff-Swallow-Nests-under-bridge

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:00:23 +0000

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Cliff-Swallow-Nests

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:00:10 +0000

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Cliff-Swallow-Nests-Compo

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 14:59:57 +0000

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Cliff-Swallow-Nest-Building

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 14:59:46 +0000

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Redclaws (Escallonia rubra)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 15:54:31 +0000

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Redclaws (Escallonia rubra)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 15:54:21 +0000

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Redclaws (Escallonia rubra)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 15:54:11 +0000

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Western Azaleas on My Morning Walk at Humbug Mountain State Park (+8 insets!)

nobody@ipernity.com (Janet Brien) — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 17:40:00 +0000

Janet Brien has posted:

(+8 insets!)

Preparations are Afoot For Covid Trip Part 2!
Steve and I are gearing up for our next trip and everything is falling into place!

We Got Our House Sitter Again!
We were worried about getting someone to watch our house while we were away because we didn't think the fellow who usually stays here could do it. This trip doesn't have a firm "end date" so we expected that to be a really big problem. However, it turns out that since Covid's turned the world upside-down, our friend's company has changed to allow the majority of its employees to work from home. So, instead of working in town, he can stay in our house and work full time! All of us are so happy!

Projects Are Nearly Complete!
When we got home, Steve had a list of important projects that he needed to get done…and one by one he's been finishing them and ticking them off the list!

Pictures of My Morning Walk Around Humbug Mountain State Park
I'd mentioned in an earlier post that I love to immerse myself in a state park's campground by strolling around its loops every morning. The show is a highlight of each day! However, I don't take my camera because I'm out for exercise and it gets in the way of my movement. So instead, I go on my walk again later with camera in hand and slowly cruise along, snapping away at everything that caught my eye earlier. So many pretty things to see!!

My main picture shows the very last flowers of the season for the Western Azalea. How lucky I felt to get pictures before they'd petered away! When I discovered this one remaining bush that had flowers, I crossed my fingers for at least one blossom that was still in good condition--imagine my joy when I found a number of them to take pictures of! I loved the pair of flowers hanging down like pendants to create a wonderful natural floral bouquet.

Insets Include…
…a trio of perfect Western Azalea blossoms
…three pictures which show the electric-pink blossoms of the Redclaws shrub (Escallonia rubra) and also called Red Escallonia,...I initially thought these were Red Currant flowers but Ron Hanko pointed out that they couldn't be because of the blooming time and looking closer, the blossoms are all wrong. After hours of searching between us, we began to wonder if the plant wasn't native. I came up with a plant I thought might be close but Ron was the one who figured out the answer to this vexing puzzle! YAYYYYYY!!! ALL HAIL HORTICULTURIST HANKO!! :D By the way, this plant is native to Chile and Argentina and has been naturalized in many other countries. It is now considered to be invasive.
…a Himalayan Blackberry blossom and leaf
…a pair of pictures showing Cow Parsley flowers and buds..they are so delicately beautiful up close, aren't they?
…an artistic study of leading lines and texture that stars a dried blackberry cane with a blade of grass falling into bokeh and another cane in the background which softly leads the eye back to the dried cane!

Thank You and Stay Safe!
All of your visits and comments are so deeply appreciated! I hope everyone is doing well in these virus-filled days and keep your guard up! Have a lovely rest of your week and enjoy your photography if you can! <3

Explored on 8/6/20; highest placement #22.