A Light In August ...

 “Memory believes before knowing remembers.”

    ~ William Faulkner

    ~ 1867 ~ 1962

  ~ one of my favorite authors, Southern American author and Nobel Prize Laureate

     ~ “Light In August”

     ~ 1932

It’s a sunset to remember as the summer sun radiates a gorgeous light over the rolling hills in late August surrounding the rooftop observation area of Trexler Environmental Center.

The trees in the foreground have reserved seating to witness the splendor that God paints in the sky as the day segues into night.

Located in the Central Range of Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, the center is at one of the preserve’s highest elevations and one of the spots that offer spectacular views at the 1,100 acre preserve.

Solar panels provide a significant portion of the energy needs of the building.

When the late General Harry Clay Trexler (1854-1933) established the preserve in the early 1900s, he did it to save the American bison, elk and white-tailed deer from extinction and assure the species’ survival.

A conservationist along the lines of Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir, General Trexler understood the importance of nature and preserving wildlife in its natural habitat.

A successful businessman who amassed a fortune in the timber and cement industries and founded the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company, General Trexler began purchasing small farms in the low hills of Lehigh County in 1906. By 1913, he had transported eight bison and 20 Virginia white-tailed deer to the preserve. The elk followed soon after.

When General Trexler died in 1933, he bequeathed the property to the residents of Lehigh County. Today, the Trexler Nature Preserve is open to the public for passive recreation and nature watching.

Wheels Up! ...

  “Wheels Up!”

 ~ Wheels Up is a colloquial term for the takeoff of an aircraft, occasionally applied to other vehicles.

It’s Wheels Up as a bicycle seems perched to be a sky rider in the blue summer sky at Cycle Funattic on an early July afternoon on in the downtown of historic Phillipsburg, New Jersey.

Phillipsburg, a Delaware River Town, was established March 8, 1861 and named for William Phillips, an early settler of the area.

Established in 1998, Cycle Funattic is located in a turn of the century building on South Main Street. For more information visit https://www.cyclefunattic.com/.

Sweet Corn Country ...

“A light wind swept over the corn, and all nature laughed in the sunshine.”

                  ~ Anne Bronte

                   ~ 1820 ~ 1849

I often drive by this cool sign that beckons travelers to stop for a sweet taste of summer ~ sweet corn ~ at Newhard Farms Corn Shed, Coplay, Pennsylvania, and I finally stopped to capture it in a painterly, HDR image on a beautiful mid-July evening.

I can attest Newhard’s has the best sweet corn in the Lehigh Valley, grown at their fifth-generation grain and vegetable farm.

According to Newhard’s website, in addition to sweet corn their tasty offerings include juicy peaches, delicious cantaloupes, ripe water melon, and fresh eggplant and vine-ripe tomatoes.

For more information visit https://thecornshed.com/.

Where The Water Lilies Bloom ...

 “Water Lilies’ is an extension of my life. Without the water the lilies cannot live, as I am without art.”

            ~ Claude Monet

               ~ 1840 ~ 1926

   ~ One of the most famous Western painters of all time, founder of Impressionist painting, creator of the iconic Water Lilies series & a symbol of French painting

Kissed by the summer sun, the loveliness of the pink water lilies dances in the pond on a beautiful mid-July afternoon at Johnson’s Pond Wildlife Park, Schnecksville, North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

A blue-tailed dragonfly can be seen alighting on the bloom at left and in the foreground on the pond.

Water lilies, plants in the genus Nymphaea, are aquatic blooms that grow in ponds and water gardens and are abundant on Johnson’s Pond.

  

This wildlife park provides an environment for bird watching, nature study and trails.

 

Retro Rail ...

“I love the nostalgic myself. I hope we never lose some of the things of the past.”

                ~ Walt Disney

                  ~ 1901 ~ 1966

The Brass Rail sign beckons people to stop in for a cocktail at the Lehigh Street location of the iconic restaurant that has been a longtime staple of the culinary landscape in Allentown, Pennsylvania on a June evening in 2013.

Sadly, The Brass Rail, which opened on Lehigh Street in 1961, shut its doors in June 2022. An Allentown tradition for 91 years, the eatery’s original location on Hamilton Street in downtown Allentown opened in 1931 and closed in 2001.

Founded by Phil Sorrentino, The Brass Rail, known especially for its cheesesteaks, was run by generations of the Sorrentino family and will be missed.