This Week

It has been one of those weeks where I have not been out to do very much photography, at least not since the weekend. Two outings this last weekend, one to the bird sanctuary and another to an abandon race track in a regional park. Both outings were interesting, beacuse I got some nice shots in both cases. First I was able to capture more shots of a Rufous Hummingbird, which apparently doesn't like me, because it was sticking it's tongue out. Then again, I think it was just hungry, as it returned to the feeder numerous times, which has led me to believe that it is either caring for some babies or will be soon.

My Second outing also yielded some interesting photos of the raceway. Nature always seems to find ways to break through the things that we humans make, and it doesn't take long for the stones and walls we build to break down. In this case some flowers are growing though a spot in this wall that goes around the track.

As for the track itself, considering that it has not been used for racing since the early 1980's it is in decent shape. There are some cracks in the surface, but for the most part it would still be usable.

Considering the shape of the track you would think the grandstands would be in good shape, but they were removed due to vandalism, not to mention the possibility that people could get hurt once the wooden benches started to rot. Considering the speedway is now part of a regional park, having such a situation would not be ideal, especially when you realize how many families with young children visit. As a result, you would be hard pressed to even realize the where the seats were, as there are 20 year old trees in some areas, along with a thick covering of grass. There is one sign of the stands though, the stairway that went up through the center.

If you walk around in the grass you can still feel the uneven ground from where the stands used to be, although the slope is increasing and in a few years it is unlikely that you'll be able to notice at all.