Flocking To The Snowy Pond...

 “Listen to the silence inside the illusion of the world.”

   ~ Jack Kerouac

    ~ 1922 ~ 1969

 

With a fresh snowfall clinging to the trees, Canadian Geese flock to the pond as sunset looms on a mid-January day at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania, painting a serene showcase of winter’s quiet beauty.

Try A Little Tenderness ...

 “… But it’s all so easy …

Just try a little tenderness …”

      ~ “Try a Little Tenderness”

            ~ 1932

       ~ song by the Ray Noble Orchestra

        ~ Renditions include those by Bing Crosby,  Frank Sinatra & Otis Redding 

  I spotted a honey of a summer sight ~ two beautiful white-tailed deer fawns, twice the joy of seeing just one! ~ sharing a tender moment as they enjoy their first summer on an early July evening along the Ironton Rail Trail, which loops more than nine miles through Whitehall Township, the Borough of Coplay and North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

 The Ironton Railroad was a shortline railroad in Lehigh County. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone to blast furnaces along the Lehigh River, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland Cement when local iron mining declined in the early 20^th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.

In 1996, Whitehall Township purchased 9.2 miles of the right-of-way from Conrail, transforming it into the Ironton Rail Trail.

The Cuddle Up ...

 

“Happiness is the richest thing we will ever own.”

          ~ Donald Duck

 

Adorable mallard ducklings happily cuddle up ~ with their mama nearby ~ by the Coplay Creek on a beautiful early July evening along the Ironton Rail Trail, which loops more than nine miles through Whitehall Township, the Borough of Coplay and North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

 

The Ironton Railroad was a shortline railroad in Lehigh County. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone to blast furnaces along the Lehigh River, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland Cement when local iron mining declined in the early 20^th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.

 

In 1996, Whitehall Township purchased 9.2 miles of the right-of-way from Conrail, transforming it into the Ironton Rail Trail.

To See A Mockingbird ...

“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy …”

      ~ “To Kill a Mockingbird”

        ~ Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Harper Lee

              ~ 1960

A Northern Mockingbird ~ the first I’ve ever photographed ~ keeps an eye on spring perched in the grass enjoying a late March afternoon at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

According to All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Northern Mockingbirds continue to add new sounds to their repertoires throughout their lives. A male may learn around 200 songs throughout its life.

 

I Got You Babe ...

“… I got flowers in the spring, I got you to wear my ring

And when I’m sad, you’re a clown

And if I get scared, you’re always around

So let them say your hair’s too long

Cause I don’t care with you I can’t go wrong

Then put your little hand in mine

There ain’t no hill or mountain we can’t climb

 

Babe

I got you babe, I got you babe

 

I got you to hold my hand

I got you to understand

I got you to walk with me

I got you to talk with me

I got you to kiss goodnight

I got you to hold me tight

I got you, I won’t let go

I got you to love me so

 

I got you babe”

 

~ “I Got You Babe”

     ~ Sonny & Cher

          ~ 1965

 

In the waning days of winter, these common merganser drake & hen ducks are perfectly paired and perched together, dreaming of spring’s arrival in the waters of the Jordan Creek along the Jordan Creek Greenway on a March afternoon at Covered Bridge Park, Orefield, Pennsylvania.

The common merganser or goosander is a large seaduck of rivers and lakes in forested areas of Europe, Asia & North America. The common merganser eats fish and nests in holes in trees.