‘Sun setting in the Delaware Water Gap taken from Sunset Pointe located along the Hope Great Meadows Road.’  The preceding description is short and to the point, BUT, many other stories are also interwoven within our Photo of the Week!!  Let us visit the various chapters to this story. 

Our second story is Happy Father’s Day, to all our Dad’s out there!!  However, my photos are going to be showcasing Dad’s in the wild!!  Father’s Day in the Wild, at this point, let us just say, IT IS DIFFERENT, I will explain a little later!!

QUESTION:  What do all the sunset photos have in common, other than being taken from the same location??  ANSWER: They were all taken on June 20^th across several years!

June 20^th is the day the sun shines directly over the Tropic of Cancer, reaching its furthest point North.  This is known as the Summer Solstice OR the first day of Summer for the Northern Hemisphere!  After reaching it’s furthest point north, then, each day the sun retreats south.  September 22^nd, the sun crosses directly over the equator, which is called the vernal equinox, in this case will be the first day of Autumn.  The sun continues south till reaching the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern Hemisphere on December 21^st, which is the first day of Winter, in the Northern Hemisphere, also known as the Winter Solstice.   Description of photos, the mountain to your right is Mount Tammany in NJ, the mountain to the left is Mount Minsi, across the Delaware River in PA, both within the famous Delaware Water Gap.  NOTE:  You can get some nice sunsets in the Water Gap about two weeks before and two weeks after June 20^th, HINT – a great fun Family visit!!  This last Saturday, I tried to get a current photo of a sunset from Sunset Pointe during the Summer Solstice, however the weather did not cooperate, keep my fingers crossed for next year!!  NOTE:  You can witness the sun setting in the Water Gap about a week before and after the Solstice!!

Sunset Pointe is one of my favorite overlooks, giving the visitor beautiful views of the Warren County countryside from Hope to the Delaware Water Gap twelve miles away.  I probably have over 60 photo albums of visits, most are trying to catch a beautiful sunset along the distant mountains, others are just recording interesting views and/or weather conditions!!  Always something to see, all within a great landscape!!  Our Photo of the Week depicts the setting sun in the Water Gap, keep in mind, every day, the sun begins its journey South and you can witness that from this overlook!  In the Winter you have to look far to the left, away from the Water Gap, to see the sun set behind the mountains.  NOTE:  Why not create a Family Sunset Photo Album photo documenting the sun’s journey across the distant horizon!?  This Overlook is located atop the same ridge that Jenny Jump Forest is located on.  The distant mountains are part of the vast Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and Worthington State Forest, both offering many great recreational, educational opportunities for your Family all amid the wondrous natural setting!!  While visiting Sunset Pointe look down to your right and you will see two church steeples and the look for the blinker light in the center of historic Hope Village. 

Please visit my Flickr site for additional photos

Wishing you all a Safe and Happy Summer and just maybe, catch yourself a beautiful Sunrise or Sunset at an overlook nearest you!!!

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY

Happy Father’s Day, I am using some wildlife photos to help celebrate the day, however, as I had mentioned in my earlier introduction, the wild world role of fathers, greatly varies!! For example, our male black bear shown in the photo sauntering through the sod fields of Allamuchy has nothing to do with the raising of his cubs!  His only goal as far as being a father, is to chase off and fight off, if necessary, other males in his territory so he can mate with the various sows!!  He actually is a threat to a sow with cubs, he will kill the cubs to bring her back into heat so he can mate with her!  This is true with many other species. 

The next photo titled “The Bucks,” shows a group of male deer.  During the rutting/mating season in the fall, they will not be so friendly, they will be fighting in winner takes all battles, for the right to claim and mate with any available does!  All these mating battles have the potential and possibility of serious injuries or even death! 

The photo of the swan family was taken this last Saturday at Allamuchy Pond.  Male swans take fatherhood very seriously!!  Mating for life, he plays an important role during the nesting season, sharing responsibilities with momma and after the signets (baby swans) are born he continues to be very much part of the family along with being VERY protective of his family!!  Do not approach swans, especially with young, they give a quick warning followed by an immediate attack!!  I am generalizing here, but, male birds seem to be very active parents much like the swans. 

There is one more interesting strategy among birds for bring in the next generation, why not let the other parents worry about your chicks!!  Some birds, cowbirds, cuckoos and others, lay an egg or two in another birds nest.  The strategy here is their young usually are hatched first and are the largest, so they survive.  I guess they don’t celebrate Mother’s or Father’s Day. 

Nature is always interesting and fun to explore!!  Think about, both stories are actually connected, the sun’s very movement across our skies and horizons creates the seasons, those seasons, play a very important role in triggering mating patterns followed by the raising of those young.

Enjoy Your Open Space

Charlie Fineran

Charlie Fineran is Allamuchy’s Director of Open Space, Allamuchy Township Environmental Commission Chairman and Allamuchy Historical Society President.