catskills

This time last week I was waking up

at my favorite campsite in the Catskill Mountains of New York.

The previous night's walk around Little Pond.

Another Henslowe Shawl in the works,

this one is made with naturally dyed merino from the region.

A cold night with touches of frost the next morning.

Morning coffee

I sat on a small suspension bridge and knitted for a while.

The night was full of visitors as the moon was just a day from being full.

Two types of owls called, mice jumped and tried to burrow under my tent,

a fox answered the coyotes howl/bark at the moon and a raccoon tried desperately

to crawl into my tent with me!  The bears stayed away.

xo, j

campsite

Here are the last of my camping trip photos.

My tent is 30 years old and still going strong,

an extra sheet of plastic kept the heat in and the rain out.

The quilt was one of the first I made.

The colors were randomly placed but it's great

for bundling up around the campfire.

A vintage truck and camper went zooming by

looking for a camp site.

What fun!

I took a new shawl pattern and yarn with me

but struggled to figure it out.

After four attempts that were all ripped out

I went back to my glove project.

The little cherry wood box is designed to hold double point needles safely,

 I don't know how I managed without it!

No more bother over dropped stitches in transport.

More knitting to come.

Blue Moon

On Friday night I took to the mountains

to sleep under the Blue Moon.

A makeshift bed in the back of a pickup truck

with only leaves and sky above me.

The next morning I caught up on my reading 

and worked on some knitting.

The experience was so amazing 

I had to stay a second night.

Campfire, crickets, moonlight and frogs

Feeling much better now...

Campsite 34

I finished assembling my accordion cut out book last night.

The front panel is attached to the background with a small folded hinge.

This allows you to move the scene around as shown in the first photo.

Sorry about the annoying yellow patches, I'm not much of a photographer.

Probably should shoot it in actual daylight, but you get the idea.

Thanks for looking in!

j

Creek Walk

pretty little oakworm moth

Up to the mountains last night.

I took a late evening creek walk in shallow water

with trout and crayfish darting out of my path.

Small creatures were busy everywhere.

A plump brown mouse with bright black eyes

scurried from the woodpile and stopped at my feet.

Later, bats dove after fireflies as they rose from the field.

Grilled turkey dogs, sweet corn and potato salad for dinner.

Very much a summer meal.

Back home and counting the mosquito bites on ankles, knees and shoulders.

Those on the back of my knees are the worst!

Why do they always swell up and itch more in the evening?

A tepid oatmeal bath should help.

Mosquito bites and the first low rattle of Cicadas...it must be July.

First Night Camping

The campground was nearly empty this past weekend.

Perhaps some were put off by the stormy forecast;

there was just enough time to set up the tent and 

build a fire before it began to rain.

It rained hard all night and the temperature quickly 

dropped but there was no place I would have rather been!

Cold and damp but happy to be in the woods.

The old blue tent held fast, I did some sketches and

a little sock knitting with the help of my flashlight.

After a few days of following the natural cycle of light and dark 

it's a jolt to return to the world of abundant electric lighting.

The first night back I usually just use candles.

More about the weekend tomorrow...

Friday - Camping

I've been busy preparing for a weekend camping trip.

My beautiful blue tent has been pulled out of storage 

and will be enjoying a long weekend in Upstate New York.

There are predictions of rain but that's okay, 

I'll just build a bigger fire!

I've been watching a PBS series online called Craft in America.

Have only seen the first two episodes but am really enjoying it.

Off to the woods!

Weekend Camping

At the last minute I went camping on Saturday night.

It's been far too long since I've been up to the mountains.

The weather was perfect and I must admit to spending most of Sunday

lounging around, listening to birds and breezes.

Caught (and released) four trout, cooked pizza on the grill, ate copious

amounts of strawberries and oranges, and did a little sock knitting.

A perfect weekend.

Sunday

Last night I went camping.

It was a mild night and the fire burned late.

The previous year I had planted some grape hyacinths and was 

happy to see they were coming up.

Downy Woodpecker and Mourning Dove outside my window.

I stopped by the grocery store to pick up some cleaning supplies

and couldn't resist the campfire colored spray roses...

New Year's Eve/Day

                                                           up to the mountains last night

                                                    started the new year beside a roaring fire

                                         and under an elusive half moon...the clouds were heavy

                                                                        home now

                                                 working on a new pair of 3/4 length gloves

                                              the sun bright through my Olive and Ficus trees

                                                                     happy new year

Sunday

like clouds

tiny forest on a stump

                                                    A very cold camping trip last night

                            Canadian Geese migrating along the mountain chain at midnight

                                              18F by morning...the pond froze overnight

             Back home the late day sun threw shadows like Japanese prints around my bedroom