Early Morning at Reynolda Gardens

One thing I used to do years ago was go to Reynolda Gardens before work, so I decided to do this Thursday morning, since the days have been so hot.  When I got there the sprinklers were on.  Oh yeah, now I remember!  They weren't on everywhere, but the ground was wet pretty much everywhere.  My feet got soaked, but I did not care, it was so nice.  And I saw some of these:

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

And the water made for some pretty cool pics:

This is my fave.  I used the florescent white balance.  I love the blue tones.  Part of my homework for a year-long online (free) photography class called 'A Year with My Camera'.  It's pretty cool, check it out sometime.  I used the MCON-P01 macro converter on this one.  Not sure if they make these any more, I found one the other day for a pretty decent price and ordered it.  The one I have is kind of old, and has some scratches, but still works good.  I'll be curious to see if there is a difference with the new one. 

Better Late Than Never?

So I am going to pick up where I left off - almost 7 years ago!  Let's just say sometimes life circumstances take over, and not always in a good way.  Anyway, I'm back and excited to get out there again.  I have taken some pictures on and off, but not like I used to.  One thing that happened in my absence was that I got a new camera, an Olympus OM-D E-M5.  A great camera I am sure, but I never really got to know it like my E-PL1.  So this past week-end I decided to go back and try the E-PL1 again, and there was that old spark!  I don't have any new butterfly pics yet, but here is one I did take with the E-M5 5 years ago.  This one was featured in 'Explore' on Flickr, so that was pretty exciting for me.

Monarch at Reynolda Gardens

OBX

I didn't really have any definite plans for my vacation, I just thought I would wing it.  On Saturday I decided I wanted to go to the beach.  I feel like I need to actually see the ocean and feel the cool water on my feet at least once a year.  So I thought I may go to Myrtle Beach, but I wanted a more  peaceful beach.  I have always wanted to see the wild horses of Corolla, so I decided to go for it!  I only stayed one night, left on Wednesday and came back on Thursday, but I packed in as much fun (and a little relaxation) as I could.

Wild Spanish Mustangs at Corolla, NC

 I had no idea they would be right in people's yards.  Notice the dog looking out the window.

 Can I get a ride? Cattle Egret

Apparently they like to come down to the beach to cool down.

The tour I went on was through the Corolla Wild Horse Fund, a non-profit organization, http://www.corollawildhorses.com/.  I highly recommend the tour.

Atlantic Ocean

 There was a deer out in front of the hotel!

This is Sysco, she lives at the hotel.

This is from the 2003 Celebration of Flight Centennial commemorating the Wright Brothers historic flight at Kitty Hawk. These painted horses were everywhere, but I was really drawn to this one. :)

Sunrise

Currituck Beach Lighthouse. I climbed to the top (holding on for dear life).

Monarch on the pathway to the Currituck Sound

 Currituck Sound - Great Egret

Currituck Sound - Little Blue Heron>

On the way home I went through Manteo, so I decided to stop at the Elizabethan Gardens.  I was pretty happy, because I got to see 2 butterflies I have never seen in the wild.

 Palamedes Swallowtail

Gulf Fritillary

Grandfather Mountain

On Saturday I went on a trip to Grandfather Mountain with a group from Our State Magazine.  There was a whole day of fun activities planned, including "behind the scenes with the animals" and a guided hike.

Cougar.  She was so sweet, you could hear her purring.

Kodiak. A cinnamon colored Black Bear. The bears are trained to put certain body parts up to the fence in case they ever need medical attention. His treat was apple slices. He was so cute!

 Black Bear

 They even have a butterfly garden!  Painted Lady.

Does.

Barred Owl

Screech Owl

Screech Owl - All 3 of the owls were hit by cars and now they cannot fly.

Forrest Gump Curve.  From the movie, which I did not know.  It's from when he runs across the country.  There is no walking allowed on the roads, so I took this from our shuttle bus, and couldn't get the actual curve or the mountains beyond in the picture. Now I want to watch the movie again!

This was taken from the Mile High Swinging Bridge.  Which does not swing anymore (the old one was wooden, and the new one is steel), but it does move!  It's a little scary.  I did not get a picture of the bridge because it started raining (again - also rained on our hike).  At least I got the rainbow!

Happy 4th of July!

Well, a day late.  Didn't make it to Tanglewood for the fireworks last night, so I went today to see some butterflies.

My first Long-Tailed Skipper!!  In the picture below you can see the upper part of the body is a beautiful green-blue color.

There were tons of Pearl Crescents today.

My fave of the day.

Hanging Rock

Went to Hanging Rock on Saturday.  It's so beautiful there.  I usually go once or twice a year, but I haven't hiked the Hanging Rock trail in quite a while.  And guess what I saw at the top?  Butterflies, of course!  I bet they had an easier time getting there than I did.

View from the trail

Whew - made it!

Not such a good idea to chase butterflies when on a cliff. Luckily this American Painted Lady landed near me.

Fridays at Reynolda Gardens AND Magic Wings!

Another Friday off from work! Woo! I am going to be so spoiled.  So yesterday before my weekly visit to Reynolda Gardens I took a trip to Durham to the Museum of Life and Science, specifically the Magic Wings Butterfly House. If you ever get the chance - go! Here is a link to their site: http://www.ncmls.org/exhibits/magic-wings-butterfly-house

 Clipper

 Shoemaker

 Tiger Longwing

 Zebra Mosaic - first time I have seen one of these

Paper Kite

And after that of course I had to go to Reynolda Gardens.

Cabbage White

A great day for butterflying!

Late Mother's Day Outing

Didn't make it to Tanglewood last week on Mother's Day because of the rain, but this Sunday was perfect!

These swallowtails don't like to keep their wings still, so I had to up my ISO and shutter speed to catch it.

Black Swallowtail

This is some type of skipper.  I always have trouble identifying skippers (well, except for Silver-Spotted).  I think this may be a Cloudywing.

Skipper

Also found this cool bug.  It was about 3 inches long.  I had no clue what it was, I had to look it up.

Eyed Elater Click Beetle

Happy Mother's Day!

Went to Fearrington Village in Pittsboro yesterday to see butterflies...

Cabbage White

...and Belties!

Belted Galloway Mommy and baby.  Also known as Belties, or Oreo cows.