Abbott Marshlands

Abbott Marshlands Impressions

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Golden Sunsets

#GoldenSunsets

Abbott Marshlands Inspiration Showcase

Thanks to everyone who visited the Abbott Marshlands and contributed to our #GoldenSunsets Showcase.  

As Henry Thoreau said, “Every day a new picture is painted and framed, held up for half and hour, in such lights as the Great Artist chooses, and then withdrawn, and the curtain falls.”   

I hope you have an opportunity to visit the Marshlands soon to enjoy  its Golden Sunsets. Thanks again to all of you who for your continuing support of the Abbott Marshlands.

Tidal Twilight with Wild Rice (Paddling Trail)

Mary Allessio Leck

Watson Woods at boat launch

When I watch sunset in the marshlands, I am connected in an elementary way – colors, often intense, change from one moment to the next, offering drama for free!

I Simply Looked Up

I simply looked up
From the turtle
Warming on the deadfall. 
The breath rushed out 
Between pursed lips
As though I were trying to
Put out the flame.
Words faded to a benday gray.
Useless
Beneath the explosion. 
It was cold,
But my glassy eyes 
Turned hot. Then 
Turned back
Toward the
Turtle’s loud splash
And the rings of gold and
Magenta and Sienna
Boiling as
They rolled silently across
The surface of the lake.
A great blue suddenly
Launched itself
Toward the conflagration,
Morphing to orange to yellow
To colorless
To a black line
Fading into the conflagration.
The shadows slowly returned
From the naked limbs and power lines, 
Walking away from the
Fading blast of color.
Now quiet, muted.
Another special memory.
Joel Dowshen

Spring Lake

Always a surprise, always different, the sunsets over the Abbott Marshlands, especially at the wide vista at Spring Lake can range from gently calming to explosive. Fleeting moments of time, always treasured.

Slogging through snow at dusk

Lori Ingwerson

Spring Lake

“There’s a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they’re absolutely free. Don’t miss so many of them.” ― Jo Walton

Sunset at Low Tide

Margaret Simpson
https://www.instagram.com/margaretlovesart/

Bluff near Watson House

When I am at the marsh at sunset, I feel at peace. It’s surprising to see the mud at low tide in the evening, the rich soil and puddles of water glistening. Winter has better distant views through the trees and is good for watching birds. Fall has a spattering of colors everywhere. In spring and summer I watch the greening and flowering of everything. The skies change and the reflections off the water add to the natural beauty. I learn something new each time I go and find inspiration there.

Cloudy Sunset

Carol Manger

Spring Lake

Sunsets over water are my favorites! I appreciate and enjoy each sunset, even the cloudy ones! And a lap around Spring Lake does the body and mind good too.

Evening Solitude

Pat Coleman

Bordentown Bluffs

“Every day a new picture is painted and framed, held up for half and hour, in such lights as the Great Artist chooses, and then withdrawn, and the curtain falls.”      Henry David Thoreau

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Trees of the Abbott Marshlands

#outonalimb

Abbott Marshlands Inspiration Showcase

Thanks to everyone who visited the Abbott Marshlands and went #outonalimb to share the product of their inspiration.   

The Abbott Marshlands are home to over 50 species of trees.  The trees in the Marshlands not only serve as a source of inspiration.  They also greatly contribute to the health of our waterways by preventing erosion, reducing pollutants, enhancing stream ecology, and providing food and habitat for a variety of life forms.

Please visit the Marshlands soon to enjoy its trees.  And if you are looking for a great tool to help you to learn about the trees, here is a link to a tour of Roebling Park Trees developed and shared by Nick Alpeza.  Thank you Nick!  And thanks again to all of you who contributed to our Showcase!

Golly, G-man!

Carol Manger

Watson Woods

When I spend time among the trees, I feel connected to the land and its history.  

The COVID pandemic chases us inside,
And has left my brain completely fried.

I really hate Skype and Zoom,
and all of those silly virtual rooms.

As much as I can, I sneak out to be
Among the Abbott Marshlands and its trees.

Having a forest bath and quiet time,
Yield reflection and strengthen my mind

Preparing me for,
my inevitable return indoors.
Mike M.

Bordentown Bluffs

When I spend time among the trees, I am at peace.

Autumn Sunset Over the Marshlands

Nicole Lynn Cochran
https://m.facebook.com/groups/.../

Bordentown Bluffs

When I spend time among the trees I feel connected to the soul of our planet.

Abbott at Twilight

Terence Lyons
https://www.facebook.com/LyonsPhotos

Marsh near the trail to Spring Lake

Bluff's Ballet

Joel Dowshen

Bordentown Bluffs

The trees in the Abbott Marshlands always have a story, sometimes simple, sometimes profound, but always willing to express.

Trail to Spring Lake

Margaret Simpson
https://www.facebook.com/simpsonmr/

Trail between Watson Woods and Spring Lake

When I spend time in the woods, I marvel at the trees, often changing their cloak of colors.  I think I found this trail at just the right time to see the brilliant oranges and reds of maple and sweet gum in autumn.  They decorated it like an archway above my head on a beautiful cool, sunny day.  A gift to see and paint!o

Winter Willows

Pat Coleman

Spring Lake

I love the starkness of bare trees in the winter sunlight.

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The Delaware is My River

Abbott Marshlands Inspiration Showcase

Welcome to the display of our first Abbott Marshlands’ Inspiration Showcase, #thedelawareismyriver.

Thank you to everyone who visited the River in September and a very special thanks to those who submitted their inspired artwork.

The Delaware River Basin is the ancestral home of the Lenape people.  Long before the arrival of European settlers, the Lenape were traveling its waterways and forested trails and enjoying the bounty of fish in its rivers, and plant and animal life in its forests.

The bounty of the Delaware continues to be enormously important for all of the plants and animals that live in the Delaware River Valley.  Our Showcase highlights the inspiration it provides to all who visit its shores.

The Delaware River at Trenton

Margaret Simpson
https://margaretsimpson-art.com

When I spend time at the Delaware I feel renewed. I enjoy walking along the river, breathing the fresh air, feeling the wind, and listening to the sounds of the birds in their daily routine. I enjoy taking photos and finding inspiration for future paintings. I have been coming to the Delaware all my life. I enjoy the wild areas as much as the parks.

Back Into the Delaware

We slid off the glass table
That was the creek,
And this time dared
To turn right,
Under the bridge,
Away from the smooth stone shore.
Wakes and waves
Pushed at the hulls
As we single filed
Into the river
In the midst of her long
Tidal exhale.
I stopped the game of
Dipping my paddles directly into
The center of the concentric rings
The other boat was making
And drifted,
And listened,
And heard
Behind the cacophony
Of motorboats and jet skis,
New sounds of life,
Many missing for some time.
Rustling, chirping, calling.
And saw fish, turtles sunning,
A great blue heron, and yes,
A soaring eagle.
All embracing the Delaware.
My old friend is back
In all her glory.

Joel Dowshen
Bordentown Beach at the mouth of the Crosswicks Creek

I’ve lived near the Delaware for most of my (long) life. I’ve watched it become traumatized by chemical and air pollutants. And, I’ve joyfully watched it’s slow comeback to now, a safe source of water, a place for recreation, and a place enjoyed by now thriving plant and animal life for us all to enjoy. Let’s help keep it that way.

A Gray Day

Carol Manger
Calhoun Street Bridge

When I spend time by the river, I appreciate nature, which also lends a calming influence.

Soul of Trees

I know the soul of trees–
triumphs, conceits, tribulations.
Every season I walk with Charlie
along the scenic Delaware
from Lambertville to Stockton
or Frenchtown starting at the Bridge Café,
beside the solid, honest trunks that stand the storms-
tapered, spindly branches up against the sky,
fragile, searching fingers worked by every wind.

I know the soul of trees as family,
as if they were my favorite folk of all time, over years–
their generosity, their foibles,
shy pastel offerings in spring,
summer’s confidence and bold sprawl,
then luminous autumn preening
in giddy orange, vacant yellow.
And later the inevitable sway and sigh
of boughs that gnarl and splinter awkwardly,
all vanity aside.

Today, lost in thought and humming
I welcome the maternal hand
of leaves that shade our path.
Charlie scavenges, nose buried in all the private places,
at ease behind a hackberry’s broad bottom,
dark growth of furry roots, laced in grasses,
damp and fusty from when the river jumped the bank.
I know the forgiving soul of trees–the soul of parents, of trusted confidantes.
And we know yours, I hear them tell in wind and rustle–
as would do any kind, attentive friend
who has heard your yearnings, your frailty.

D. M. Kaye
Lambertville to Stockton canal towpath loop

When I spend time at the river I feel serene and soothed by nature’s earthy palette. I often find myself thinking aloud and working through problems as I walk.

Delaware River - Pancake ice (01/24/13)

MA Leck
Small Park, just north of Trenton Boat Launch, Lamberton Road.

The Delaware River is inspiring regardless of season. In winter, I am drawn to the many forms of ice including pancake ice. What is missing from this photograph is the sound of ice fragments moving against one another and the play of the fragments as they realign to form a dynamic mosaic.

Morning Calm

Pat Coleman
From the Washington Crossing Bridge

When I spend time at the river, I feel calm and I feel connected to this beautiful planet.

Our next Inspirations Showcase will be open for entries soon.  Keep an eye on our website for details.  (HINT:  think TREES in the Abbott Marshlands)

Enjoy your visit? Please spread the word :)