A Maine morning

We were up before dawn today. That's kind of unusual for me..being the night owl, but we had two grand children to get off to school 10 miles away. After that pleasant task( Sydney and Tyler were so cute) the day belonged to us, so we headed to the town of Old Orchard Beach on a small errand.

The early morning light gave the passing scenery a soft diffused quality as we traveled south through Portland, South Portland then crossed the flats of Scarborough Marsh and on to our final destination. The air was still and the marsh waters looked almost like glass reflecting the pale blue streaked sky. The village is devoid of vacationers now, and more like a ghost town compared to the bumper to bumper traffic that clogs the main streets all summer. Old Orchard's five mile long beach is a big draw then but the shops and motels are shut up for the winter and the pier is vacant. We noticed some locals beginning to stir and start their morning rituals of jogging, dog walking and heading off to work. Their warm breath formed white clouds in the cold crisp air as they scraped ice off windshields and exercised. Life goes on day and night no matter where you live but for next several months the pace here could be called a hibernation of sorts. We enjoyed our quiet drive through the sleepy little town.

I've included a shot of the marsh, another of the Presumpscot River taken from the highway, and the final shot is a local farm road not far from our home. The sights are diverse, very inspiring to a painter like me, and for those who don't paint too. It's all a typical morning in Maine.