
{"id":1771,"date":"2008-01-31T07:36:40","date_gmt":"2008-01-31T15:36:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/2008\/01\/31\/recently-shooting-along-the-streaming-creek\/"},"modified":"2008-01-31T08:44:24","modified_gmt":"2008-01-31T16:44:24","slug":"recently-shooting-along-the-streaming-creek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/2008\/01\/31\/recently-shooting-along-the-streaming-creek\/","title":{"rendered":"Recently: Shooting along the stream(ing creek)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/recentlyresized.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/recentlyresized.jpg\" akt=\"Following the trail along Bolin Creek means braving the occasional stepping stone. Photo courtesy Dave Otto.\" align=\"left\" height=\"121\" width=\"161\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>By Valarie Schwartz <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Having grown up with a creek behind my house, it thrilled me to learn when I moved to Chapel Hill in 1994 that Bolin Creek flowed only a few yards beyond my new home. During the five years I lived there, few days passed without spending time with my dog, exploring and enjoying the many varieties of nature offered along property \u00e2\u20ac\u201d mostly in Carrboro \u00e2\u20ac\u201d that abuts, and some that encompasses, the future Carolina North.<\/p>\n<p>A woodpecker pecking high above in a tree; an owl swooping down repeatedly warning of her nearby nesting brood; ripples, pools and glides repeating down the stream; fallen trees forcing new paths following a storm; descriptions of some of the many sights gifted to frequenters of Bolin Creek.<\/p>\n<p><!--more-->For 23 years, Dave Otto has lived above the creek in a Carrboro neighborhood. Since retiring from the Environmental Protection Agency, in a job that brought him to Chapel Hill in 1972, he has taken his love of the creek to new levels \u00e2\u20ac\u201d ones meant to ensure that the remaining stretches of native forest left in southern Orange County will remain for future generations to enjoy.<\/p>\n<p>Otto, for many people, is the person who pops into mind when they hear or read the words, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Friends of Bolin Creek.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d He has expanded his knowledge of the creek and surrounding forest and become an educator, helping the political forces that can make a difference for the beloved corridor understand its far-reaching potential.<\/p>\n<p>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s how the mayor of Carrboro met him.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always been a real inspirational spokesperson for the organization and the significance of Bolin Creek,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Mark Chilton said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s somebody who leads hikes and invites government officials to come and see what the organization is trying to preserve.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Otto opened Chilton\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s eyes so wide that the mayor envisions a public trail that will connect the soon-to-be Morris Grove Elementary School at Old 86 on Eubanks Road through trails along Bolin Creek to University Mall.<\/p>\n<p>Otto\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vision extends to connecting the trail with the North Carolina system of trails that will span from the mountains to the coast.<\/p>\n<p>Combining his love of nature with his photographic pursuits, Otto has grown his talent into his first photo exhibition, opening Friday at Carrboro Town Hall. A reception will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 8, during the 2ndFriday Art Walk.<\/p>\n<p>Photography started for Otto, 66, at age 8, when, growing up in a blue-collar family outside of Boston, his mother gave him a Brownie \u00e2\u20ac\u0153box\u00e2\u20ac\u009d camera that someone had given her.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I started taking pictures of pets,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Otto said.<\/p>\n<p>Now, beyond beautiful images of the flowing creek and the wildflowers and creatures that inhabit the area, he has captured abstract versions \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the kinds of images one can find while staring into a pool of water or watching water dance over rocks. The show will contain 50 gicl\u00c3\u00a9e prints that translate his love of the creek both literally and abstractly.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sometimes I go beyond the literal definition of nature,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Otto said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Looking down at the reflections is sometimes like looking into the universe.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p><em>Contact Valarie Schwartz at 923-3746 or valariekays@mac.com.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Valarie Schwartz Having grown up with a creek behind my house, it thrilled me to learn when I moved to Chapel Hill in 1994 that Bolin Creek flowed only a few yards beyond my new home. During the five years I lived there, few days passed without spending time with my dog, exploring and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1771\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}