Big Dam Bridge

I headed out to visit the Big Dam Bridge one night last week after work. One sure sign that the season has finally changed is the fact that it gets dark earlier now. It won't be too long when the sun will be setting right in the middle of my commute home from work.

But this is a view of dusk settling in over the Big Dam Bridge. This was taken from the north side, on a cool and pleasant evening along the Arkansas River...

Pizza Hut Park

Last weekend I headed back down to Texas to catch the last home-game of my beloved FC Dallas. They were playing against the Colorado Rapids, which ranks as one of my least-favorite Major League Soccer teams (along with Houston, DC and Chicago).

I didn't get many pictures of the game - I ended up watching it too closely instead of trying to take pictures. They probably wouldn't have turned out anyways because we weren't sitting close enough to the field, we were perched in the "beer garden" instead.

The game ended in a 2-2 draw. It could have been better, like say if Dallas won. But the tie extended FC Dallas' unbeaten streak to 19 games, which set the Major League Soccer record for longest unbeaten streak in a single season. The last time Dallas lost was in May to LA.

This is a shot taken right after the game ended, from our spot in the beer garden:

Darkwing Duck

Before going to a friend's house to watch the big football game last Saturday (FC Dallas vs. Kansas City), I drove around looking for something to take pictures of. I ended up passing through the Lakewood neighborhood of North Little Rock, and hoped to see some ducks out on one of the lakes.

There were a few out, so I pulled into a little parking area where a group of ducks were congregated around a truck. There was a guy in the truck, who was reading a book and trying to ignore the chorus of duck quacks just below his window. The ducks were hungry, apparently, and were bothering him for something to eat. When he didn't respond quickly enough to their repeated quacks, one of them took to pecking the side of the truck with its beak, like a battering ram.

That got his attention and he grabbed a few handfuls of chips and tossed them to the ducks. He looked up at me and jovially said, "they don't like the nacho flavored chips!" Indeed, apparently they do love Kroger brand kettle chips. I got out to take a few pictures of the duck feeding frenzy. One of the ducks, the one who pecked the side of that guy's truck, took off towards me. But I didn't have any chips, and the duck got annoyed and gave an angry quack...


I got a few pictures in before the duck decided to charge towards me, and I retreated. I didn't want any dents in the side of the Vibe from an angry and hungry duck.

Robe Bayou

Summer is winding down and fading to a hot and muggy close. It is still way too hot outside, but last Saturday I decided to brave the high temperatures and take a quick trip out into the woods.

I decided to pay another visit to the Dagmar Wildlife Management Area, a swampy area about fifty miles east of Little Rock. There are several neat spots, with lots of cypress and tupelo trees sticking out of the swampy waters. This area, near the Cache and White Rivers, is also where the presumably extinct Ivory-Billed Woodpecker was supposedly spotted a few years ago. Although the search for the elusive bird has pretty much ended, there are still many signs out there that show the bird and how to identify it. When I last visited this area, in 2007, I thought that I had possibly gotten a picture of the Ivory-Billed woodpecker, but was never sure. See if you can spot it in this picture....


The shot above was taken at Apple Lake (which I guess if it has "Apple" in it, it should be called the iLake). This is a neat little lake, the water is filled with cypress and tupelo trees. It's just a short walk around the edge of the lake, with views of the trees and maybe some local wildlife.

I knew there was no chance that I would actually see an Ivory-Billed woodpecker out there. I was more interested in making sure that I didn't have a run-in with any snakes. This lake would also be a great home for some alligators, and part of me wanted to get to see one in the wild. Of course, as long as the gator was pretty far away (but close enough for good pictures). And if the gator had first sent me a signed and notarized letter in which it promised not to eat me.

I was walking along the lake when I heard a large splash in the water, and saw a line of bubbles drift up in the water. Apparently I had just disturbed and annoyed some animal. I stared carefully at the water, and could just about make out some sort of animal moving about in the murky fathoms of Apple Lake. Was that an alligator tail? It was probably more like the light playing on the water, combined with an over-active imagination. But after that, I didn't dare get close to the water.

But that would be about the extent of my wildlife sightings out there. The most exotic creature I ended up seeing at Apple Lake was a dragonfly. And the light was really harsh and all the pictures sucked. So I headed back to the air conditioned comforts of the car.

My next stop was the Robe Bayou Canoe Trail and Scenic Drive, located just down the road from Apple Lake. This is a short, but really neat drive that runs alongside Robe Bayou and then ends at a very nice lake. There are tons of scenic trees along the dusty gravel road.


The scenic drive ends at Hickson Lake, which is lined on both banks with tall trees. The lake is also perfectly situated so that the light from the late evening sun casts an amazing golden glow on the distant trees on the opposite bank.


I explored more of the shoreline along the lake, which included a neat spot where there were tons of cypress knees, sticking up out of the ground like skyscrapers. I was amazed that I didn't see any snakes lurking in the dead leaves around those towering cypress knees.

I ended up heading back to one certain spot, which provides some easy access to several great views of the lake. The sun had sunk lower, and the rays were catching hold of a few trees nearby. I really loved how they looked against the distant trees reflected in the calm waters of the lake.






The light was fading as it was getting closer to dusk, but there was still a lot to see there...


And one last shot, taken of the distant shoreline at dusk:

I can't wait to head back out there in a few weeks, when those trees have turned into their vibrant fall colors. Maybe I'll be lucky to catch the trees at their peak, with perhaps a touch of fog on the water. Or who knows, maybe there will be an Ivory-Billed woodpecker hanging out on one of the trees? I know I wouldn't be so lucky, but I'm looking forward to the return trip...

Small Works on Paper 2011

I'm very pleased to report that one of my photos was selected to tour the state next year, as part of the Small Works on Paper exhibition. SWOP is part of the Arkansas Arts Council, and will visit eleven cities across the state.

The picture chosen was taken in April, along Route 66 in Newkirk, New Mexico. It shows a rusty old car, left to bake in the sun by the ruins of an old gas station.


The 2011 Small Works on Paper is schedule to visit:
January - Conway, AETN Atrium
February - Alma, Alma Performing Arts Center
March - Fayetteville, Univ. of Arkansas Mullins Library
April - Harrison, North Arkansas College
May - Blytheville, The Gallery at the Ritz
June - Batesville, Batesville Area Arts Council
July - Lake Village, Guachoya Cultural Arts Center
August/September - Searcy, Harding University
September/October - Hope, Univ. of Arkansas Community College at Hope
November, Texarkana, Texarkana Regional Arts & Humanity Council

This is the fourth time that I've had a picture included as a part of Small Works on Paper, and the third year in a row. This is the shot currently touring the state as part of the 2010 tour:

Taken at Collins Creek.

And the one chosen in 2009:

Also taken at Collins Creek...

And the shot chosen for 2006:

Taken along the trail to Cedar Falls, at Petit Jean Mountain...