Great River Bridge, Westfield

Great River Bridge - open at last!, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Even though it opened to traffic some time last week, the first chance I've had to cross the new bridge was this weekend. I've watched it go up over the past few months, and eagerly awaited its opening as I dodged the potholes on Elm Street.

I was pleased to see a nice, wide walkway on both sides of the bridge.



There are nice offset observation areas from which to enjoy the river passing below.







I'm sure the businesses on that street are happy to have it open, too.





The only thing I found odd about it is the date on the side, which is 2010. Perhaps the bridge is in a time warp of some sort?



The old bridge is closed now for refurbishing, after which traffic will flow through Westfield like water does under the bridge. In theory, anyway. ;)

Mittineague Park, West Springfield

steps, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

I met Flickr friend Rusty in West Springfield today, and we went to Mittineague Park for a photowalk. I'd never been there before, and there were lots of great photo ops from stone bridges to the Westfield River.





You have to cross the railroad tracks to get to the river, and we had to wait for a train to pass before we could do that.



The train was stopped when I took this one.



At last, we came to the river.







There was a line of floats across the river here, and beyond you could hear the falls.



This is where the railroad crosses a stream just before it meets the river.



Goldenrod signals the nearing end of summer.



Back over the tracks, where bits of trains litter the ground.



We then went up to a pond, where frogs and dragonflies play.







It was starting to get hot at that point, so we left the rest for future exploration. Thanks, Rusty, for showing me a new place!

haze

haze, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

There was a mist over the Little River in the wildlife sanctuary at Stanley Park yesterday morning. It gave the river an otherworldly quality.

Parade for Stanley Park

here they come, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Despite the 90-degree heat yesterday, plenty of people turned out for the parade to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Stanley Park in Westfield.

Beginning at Pine Hill Cemetery, the parade made its way up Western Avenue to the park.

I loved that the park carts, machines, and even the mowers took part in the parade.









There was only one float, but it was a cool one. I think it was Noah's Ark; it was covered in animals, anyway.





There were a lot of classic cars, and as far as I could tell, they were all Fords.





There were several groups of enthusiastic dancers and acrobats, whose antics amazed me in that heat.



The miniature horses always entertain, and this one stopped to pose for me.



On the opposite end of the spectrum are these Belgians. Magnificent creatures!



I'm surprised no one was riding in this lovely carriage.



The display cake was just lovely.



They also had big sheet cakes to pass out to the revelers, but it was just too darn hot to eat cake (for me, anyway). All I could bring myself to consume was cold water. I felt badly for the food vendors behind their hot grills!

It was very hot, but fun. I love Stanley Park, and it was worth it to help them celebrate 60 years.

foggy morning

peaceful, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

The fog this morning was thick, shrouding the world in gossamer white. I stuck my camera out the window a few times, and stopped at Heritage Park in East Longmeadow before work to capture the ethereal beauty.