tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39420075934787263902024-03-12T20:31:27.311-04:00It Just Comes NaturallyThoughts on current efforts to restore the ecological integrity of the world.Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.comBlogger490125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-81675156968153112282020-05-08T11:11:00.000-04:002020-05-08T11:15:19.256-04:00Cherokee State Wildlife Area, Lone Pine Unit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> View along the trail looking westward</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On
Wednesday, May 6, the day after I turned 68 years old, I completed an early
morning hike at the Cherokee State Wildlife Area, Lone Pine Unit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This area is just four miles east of our
house, but, because it is state game lands, it is closed to the public (except
for licensed hunters and anglers) from September through April; the public may
visit only during the hottest months of the year (May through August).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I arrived at 7:30 a.m. and did a 2.5-mile
(five-mile total) out-and-back hike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
trail loosely follows Lone Pine Creek, which was running high because of spring
runoff in the mountains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A convenient
place to hike, but not particularly rewarding in terms of scenery or birding.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_saHgofDWgWSDaGRfRdQMmIYwb290QYW1nZUdbPLwvpWWEeD-VnaO9bH8PfmMa39I4vavoExM4TGwDwnGNac6jnVLWlKOeu5E_Qf4RQeXU6ii1GEetw9htgm99DaiXGYcXi0VIfTZetQ/s1600/KIMG1322.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="901" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_saHgofDWgWSDaGRfRdQMmIYwb290QYW1nZUdbPLwvpWWEeD-VnaO9bH8PfmMa39I4vavoExM4TGwDwnGNac6jnVLWlKOeu5E_Qf4RQeXU6ii1GEetw9htgm99DaiXGYcXi0VIfTZetQ/s320/KIMG1322.JPG" width="180" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">View downstream (eastward) along Lone Pine Creek</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2MGQAj0ckxoqVmmPjuvS5fptnGxlMTDRQ87D8wz9KnLM2_kBmyiRLHNhxyzcV5CaMXrVyu1aPUlPDC1LploE5rR6xZSU6d9BAOJcftor5aXlyIOcoU2n9J9RKPegebE_CgAX7sYMMjfg/s1600/KIMG1326.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="919" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2MGQAj0ckxoqVmmPjuvS5fptnGxlMTDRQ87D8wz9KnLM2_kBmyiRLHNhxyzcV5CaMXrVyu1aPUlPDC1LploE5rR6xZSU6d9BAOJcftor5aXlyIOcoU2n9J9RKPegebE_CgAX7sYMMjfg/s320/KIMG1326.JPG" width="183" /></a></div>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Blooming pasque
flowers were very abundant. </span></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7X6v3g3REbk5bd_UA-DHo8cksdl_L2MffK45po-ry3J05-bsrcHU2EOqvaKZmqL7ICdHEivSxRX_ZsbyAgXy3x-RGRYKr9O3xDh4EXFmBSXkh4orIgOxHUjWRDTfHe6PPVbKxFSM5_rU/s1600/KIMG1329.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="885" data-original-width="1600" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7X6v3g3REbk5bd_UA-DHo8cksdl_L2MffK45po-ry3J05-bsrcHU2EOqvaKZmqL7ICdHEivSxRX_ZsbyAgXy3x-RGRYKr9O3xDh4EXFmBSXkh4orIgOxHUjWRDTfHe6PPVbKxFSM5_rU/s320/KIMG1329.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As
I returned to the parking lot, I noticed a group of a half-dozen large (1”)
black beetles in the middle of the trail.
They were pretty unconcerned that I was there; they were more intent on
procreation. I believe that this image
depicts both sexes, which were very different from one another. Because they were in the middle of the trail, I was concerned that they would be crushed, although I only saw one other person using the area while I was there.</span></span></div>
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<![endif]-->Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-41078729860910452742018-09-05T12:47:00.000-04:002018-09-05T12:47:01.899-04:00Two New Trails<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoVrP67iVvHgH55pZE4g5s2cKVOKr92-8GZFAZL52xdS0W30ZTjNQCwfzQlMg30BJkwVQBJqNQI4bn9yzKsRdXrbTjqznbZcore3PkaXKqKig7I79Am7sqr3xSQn1llO_OTv53fsEI-qk/s1600/GVM11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="517" data-original-width="920" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoVrP67iVvHgH55pZE4g5s2cKVOKr92-8GZFAZL52xdS0W30ZTjNQCwfzQlMg30BJkwVQBJqNQI4bn9yzKsRdXrbTjqznbZcore3PkaXKqKig7I79Am7sqr3xSQn1llO_OTv53fsEI-qk/s320/GVM11.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">View from the summit. Mummy Range in Rocky Mountain National Park is visible in the background.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Last Friday, August 31, I helped the Trails Committee for my community install some rock steps on a particularly steep portion of one of the trails that threads through the open space in our community. I had not yet walked this trail, and I was impressed with the scenery, so I returned yesterday (September 4) to walk this trail (called Maroon Bells) and another trail I had not previously explored, the Asbury Trail.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The view from the top of the Maroon Bells Trail is spectacular. The Mummy Range, off to the south and across the Poudre River canyon, is visible in Rocky Mountain National Park. Some of the Mummy's slopes still have a little snow from last winter.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Ranch and forest land adjacent to the open space in my community.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQU1DYn-HSO1cy94qvbkWEK797oiUgZVEeTdCTpSuiYQb5U8nS57KHB726V6BtfYyLjuOks6sivQlLFCMJY_GlxAtDY8zwvwn-wKgRI_AFHc4YjarnZ1F5ZTVkcn3stvfCu0hWvsNeqxI/s1600/GVM8.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="359" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQU1DYn-HSO1cy94qvbkWEK797oiUgZVEeTdCTpSuiYQb5U8nS57KHB726V6BtfYyLjuOks6sivQlLFCMJY_GlxAtDY8zwvwn-wKgRI_AFHc4YjarnZ1F5ZTVkcn3stvfCu0hWvsNeqxI/s320/GVM8.jpg" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The stone steps the Trails Committee volunteers installed last Friday on the Maroon Bells Trail</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">At the eastern end of the Maroon Bells Trail, I picked up the Asbury Trail, which I had not previously walked. This rocky, difficult trail travels along the contours of a steep hill with a full southern exposure; it was hot and challenging.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Cairns marking the Asbury Trail</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">As I rounded a bend in the Asbury Trail, I startled three magnificent mule deer bucks in full velvet. One deer ran off, but the other two allowed me to capture their picture. Since there's no hunting in our community, the deer are fairly tame and don't run long distances even when caught off guard.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Yu9krWEc_H7q0H87Biokjk3VPOofQ8ddvkU7LQch0-NaWI2xU4Q8GKQcsi_ngrEEB4Fnq5IRkPAgrtdGtRqU1X3900M_AxLAjB5exlrnKQTBjctxJl65A6lzDI2WnuSDdc_c7VPQPWU/s1600/GVM1a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="655" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Yu9krWEc_H7q0H87Biokjk3VPOofQ8ddvkU7LQch0-NaWI2xU4Q8GKQcsi_ngrEEB4Fnq5IRkPAgrtdGtRqU1X3900M_AxLAjB5exlrnKQTBjctxJl65A6lzDI2WnuSDdc_c7VPQPWU/s320/GVM1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Two of the three mule deer bucks I startled along the Asbury Trail</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I took these images with my cell phone and enhanced them with Canon's PhotoProfessional program. The originals are relatively low density images, so there's only so much improvement the program can make.</span></span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-86556170963652179172018-09-05T12:27:00.000-04:002018-09-05T12:27:23.105-04:00Shambhala Mountain Center Open House<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRWTskQU3kI_dRl7Fs5ie0gQydEylXweyJ41DV7MVgIhWnP9yo5stHtncL7gChyUdowrENeRHGV1mQzFIQxwH0l7fPwi7u1YpLi55j_RVw2dUtSCRcaXdRn5KcmWrdBIakBqsGevYwck/s1600/SHAMB1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="342" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRWTskQU3kI_dRl7Fs5ie0gQydEylXweyJ41DV7MVgIhWnP9yo5stHtncL7gChyUdowrENeRHGV1mQzFIQxwH0l7fPwi7u1YpLi55j_RVw2dUtSCRcaXdRn5KcmWrdBIakBqsGevYwck/s320/SHAMB1a.JPG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Detail of the Great Stupa, south side</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Last Sunday afternoon, September 2, Kali and I visited the Shambhala Mountain Center, located about seven miles from our house. The center has an open house on the first Sunday of each month to introduce visitors to the center and its programming in meditation, Buddhist studies, and massage. Kali and I know next to nothing about Buddhism (we watched the two-hour PBS series about the Buddha), so we were open and receptive.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">We first had lunch in a large tent, joining participants from some of the center's organized programs. After lunch, we walked to another tent for an introduction to meditation. Kali had had had instruction in meditation on several previous occasions, but this was my first time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Following the meditation instruction, the large group of open house visitors walked two-thirds of a mile to the Great Stupa, the reason most people come to the center. A guide briefed us on the basic tenets of Buddhism and the iconography of the stupa. Kali and I agreed that the entire experience was much more engaging than either of us had anticipated and that felt like we had made a good investment of our time that afternoon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">By the way, I took the images accompanying this post with my cell phone, then enhanced them with my Canon PhotoProfessional program, but there is only so much that can be accomplished with inherently low-density images. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjnbLdrPgwOtUEb1rkOcX7X9TWxSeld-VaS1kMfG6MH8t_dSXbpvsHlVjMFFHkATx2NpbM5X89z7ijJbEx1Z0iwOvlIulCx_url4HKvbT-LjMR8CmJgG4xzE6xrh9ekw2wuI5Blqq_L7g/s1600/SHAMB2a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="993" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjnbLdrPgwOtUEb1rkOcX7X9TWxSeld-VaS1kMfG6MH8t_dSXbpvsHlVjMFFHkATx2NpbM5X89z7ijJbEx1Z0iwOvlIulCx_url4HKvbT-LjMR8CmJgG4xzE6xrh9ekw2wuI5Blqq_L7g/s320/SHAMB2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Open house visitors walking to the stupa</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLKhyphenhyphenCcPpORaSrDlnkN0jEuy0OgK_puCRQHugBmk-L-JWS9lmyVy5ZyfHqb2gtTKD0ntu7jqySIVRTcby1JncPyNXvSgYyHUogRbYCvOXTicM375DTufVLjGAUgsrLcM1Yrt9yo28Km0/s1600/SHAMB4a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="359" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLKhyphenhyphenCcPpORaSrDlnkN0jEuy0OgK_puCRQHugBmk-L-JWS9lmyVy5ZyfHqb2gtTKD0ntu7jqySIVRTcby1JncPyNXvSgYyHUogRbYCvOXTicM375DTufVLjGAUgsrLcM1Yrt9yo28Km0/s320/SHAMB4a.JPG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Approahcing the stupa from the north</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV-zwLBHNScM0WoT3s-acOmSE6jP4M-yWCQrxyBaXBypYy2aRySqO4jYSRNIRXsDkj7icpvaa_VHOwxG7sFKoN0-e0eKCzRA8KFb7ma4dzcw7MoU7FuIUjYsoXk__FulWZwkfk20gXd1E/s1600/SHAMB5a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="993" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV-zwLBHNScM0WoT3s-acOmSE6jP4M-yWCQrxyBaXBypYy2aRySqO4jYSRNIRXsDkj7icpvaa_VHOwxG7sFKoN0-e0eKCzRA8KFb7ma4dzcw7MoU7FuIUjYsoXk__FulWZwkfk20gXd1E/s320/SHAMB5a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Approaching the stupa</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszazhGgp55Zkh9sAfIZmZltXZjwOwfD_RhiMK5rX7Ctcnk4HGoxMvQM_PPX-c4td3JQWZU2rKI99tDwBtZblfzTbDYV1FhZVurMsUmJMZA5q4Zywv2ndxasR5Gs00Jlxu08_K05wayI8/s1600/SHAMB3a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="621" data-original-width="350" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszazhGgp55Zkh9sAfIZmZltXZjwOwfD_RhiMK5rX7Ctcnk4HGoxMvQM_PPX-c4td3JQWZU2rKI99tDwBtZblfzTbDYV1FhZVurMsUmJMZA5q4Zywv2ndxasR5Gs00Jlxu08_K05wayI8/s320/SHAMB3a.JPG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">More detail of the south side</span></span></td></tr>
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Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-68912865012126730262018-09-04T17:02:00.001-04:002018-09-04T17:02:21.787-04:00Volunteer Wildfire Mitigation<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYTINnGd9mbOdTw8wKHwzonXtZUyyytnywNt43InjorFMgaw_QgYTZsiR6LP6xvVN3_zb8M5ncBGTNhPEumYQ_0bUNODUGGBsCPNclUdbjFJk71_xJQjnz7-GqXuIFBt9_TviXPaEnR2U/s1600/WRV1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="858" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYTINnGd9mbOdTw8wKHwzonXtZUyyytnywNt43InjorFMgaw_QgYTZsiR6LP6xvVN3_zb8M5ncBGTNhPEumYQ_0bUNODUGGBsCPNclUdbjFJk71_xJQjnz7-GqXuIFBt9_TviXPaEnR2U/s320/WRV1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On Saturday morning, September 1, I volunteered with the Wildlands Restoration Volunteers (WRV) for a third time to help with a wildfire mitigation project. This project is located on the Ben Delatour Boy Scout Ranch in the Roosevelt National Forest in north-central Colorado. The WRV crew consists of experienced sawyers who fell small diameter (12 inches or smaller) ponderosa pines, and "swampers" like me who gather up the limbs, branches, and bucked-up trunks and place them in piles (which I like to call pyres) that will be burned when there is snow on the ground. This is really strenuous work carried out on very steep slopes, so I'm exhausted when the day is over.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The image accompanying this post was taken at our staging area. This area was subjected to a prescribed burn in 2017, and some of the trees behind the vehicles were damaged in the fire and may die. The area where we were working on Saturday is visible in the background of the image on the steep, wooded hillside across the Elkhorn Creek valley. </span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-38402893859791311772018-08-31T18:25:00.000-04:002018-08-31T18:25:25.044-04:00Wisps of Smoke<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNe8lXekAqL6_XZ4kG-yvnX0KfVVBqWexPL0XGtB_2B6ZIeqDGN-TFl1An9DlYa0tZZwCdkNI1uXhNTdVju-nVIOANjwmVYXZHUjKZIJKoOD5H-BqCpYdfP52K8rjHYoO-ZNzZse9C-bw/s1600/IMG_1832a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1353" data-original-width="1600" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNe8lXekAqL6_XZ4kG-yvnX0KfVVBqWexPL0XGtB_2B6ZIeqDGN-TFl1An9DlYa0tZZwCdkNI1uXhNTdVju-nVIOANjwmVYXZHUjKZIJKoOD5H-BqCpYdfP52K8rjHYoO-ZNzZse9C-bw/s320/IMG_1832a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span data-offset-key="htcm-0-0"><span data-text="true">A few days ago, I noticed that a dry, exposed hillside above my house had taken on a new appearance. On closer inspection, I saw that the shrubs on the slope were covered with incredible whorled winged seeds. My naturalist neighbor informed me that this was mountain mahogany (<i>Cercocarpus montanus</i>; Rosaceae), which gets its common name from the shrub's hard, dense wood. She said that the appearance of the whorled seeds was a sure sign that autumn had arrived on the mountain. A horticulture book I have (<i>High and Dry: Gardening with Cold-Hardy Dryland Plants</i>) says that the plumose seed-heads resemble wisps of smoke in the leaves.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span data-offset-key="htcm-0-0"><span data-text="true">Surely, the whorls help with dispersal. However, I picked off one of the seeds and dropped it; it fell straight down. I expected to see the seed spin like a maple samara back East. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span data-offset-key="htcm-0-0"><span data-text="true"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdymj7WpsL2o9OkLLqWjlyy14YzYpDjIG-ni7SB5nzOmOKm-RSL7r0fR-xxY0Lh7RAoVU6FpR_KssoNTSKmPL2iAgwFsO8hGO-CpWYBXcw33shFRcEGVff8YimdZi2TRrAjNEaHIrHmUg/s1600/IMG_1845a.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1348" data-original-width="1600" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdymj7WpsL2o9OkLLqWjlyy14YzYpDjIG-ni7SB5nzOmOKm-RSL7r0fR-xxY0Lh7RAoVU6FpR_KssoNTSKmPL2iAgwFsO8hGO-CpWYBXcw33shFRcEGVff8YimdZi2TRrAjNEaHIrHmUg/s320/IMG_1845a.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDk_7rU9_0J3fduTanDYsj48wJzOzv3kiY1bOp8gWaHgo7mEd3TLVhrCaOWBKIIGG5Af8QTRqHbpQOtwWNRMdiHK82O0giUTf3E_yiSqv7OWHEQPAhOeXQDBKTYTV2Wq_1wiwnpTv5v9Y/s1600/IMG_1849a.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="1600" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDk_7rU9_0J3fduTanDYsj48wJzOzv3kiY1bOp8gWaHgo7mEd3TLVhrCaOWBKIIGG5Af8QTRqHbpQOtwWNRMdiHK82O0giUTf3E_yiSqv7OWHEQPAhOeXQDBKTYTV2Wq_1wiwnpTv5v9Y/s320/IMG_1849a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2BBN3GbMhhoXkNvPMo4vkuhGv8Vg-rxw0tNSdfrvZGKr3EEV9zNOK6jRBnwUoUKwVs2XzPUcpo6TBkyqpwYp5ocE9ZvBw83xW31DYjHWoY46JNYBlya1wHiNOr85k-eXRfu4BrRUPA6c/s1600/IMG_1853.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2BBN3GbMhhoXkNvPMo4vkuhGv8Vg-rxw0tNSdfrvZGKr3EEV9zNOK6jRBnwUoUKwVs2XzPUcpo6TBkyqpwYp5ocE9ZvBw83xW31DYjHWoY46JNYBlya1wHiNOr85k-eXRfu4BrRUPA6c/s320/IMG_1853.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The mountain mahogany hillside on Mt. Moriah (shrubs in foreground)</span></span></td></tr>
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Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-91255658245647586512018-08-21T11:57:00.000-04:002018-08-21T11:57:12.376-04:00Hike to the Continental Divide<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn3_bmQSO0gd75sMDvHAzNEClQarNikPW2I50y-M53WsXJoWzokYXUV4kY2gZEstfWpAjQQVaAw-PuER8W42MlCr7pv4kcYg9TtlQRhSHZ9R0_Uo3Bn1sRYi9pNY1fvieXSYjlzLsLH6k/s1600/IMG_1811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn3_bmQSO0gd75sMDvHAzNEClQarNikPW2I50y-M53WsXJoWzokYXUV4kY2gZEstfWpAjQQVaAw-PuER8W42MlCr7pv4kcYg9TtlQRhSHZ9R0_Uo3Bn1sRYi9pNY1fvieXSYjlzLsLH6k/s320/IMG_1811.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Yours truly at Thunder Pass--the Continental Divide--with Rocky Mountain National Park behind</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Five members of the Red Feather Lakes Library (Colorado) Hiking Club (including me) climbed 1,502 feet in Colorado's State Forest State Park on Monday, August 20 to explore the American Lakes basin at treeline. We started our five-mile each-way hike at 9,840 feet and turned around at 11,342 feet at Thunder Pass--the Continental Divide--at the northwest corner of Rocky Mountain National Park.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2oEzbHOY8jBkjvhUwOLAJP8mWZWXuSG1UTGNCn4U9cZlyqRx8Lktd0ftxhQUOKWmhwbgjULMGUYaYfUVLkzeEPZpvSVVOz2J3b8bSQX67umOWOYqBSb26qMt6fOEYojdH7SeIVjvVHw/s1600/IMG_2762-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2oEzbHOY8jBkjvhUwOLAJP8mWZWXuSG1UTGNCn4U9cZlyqRx8Lktd0ftxhQUOKWmhwbgjULMGUYaYfUVLkzeEPZpvSVVOz2J3b8bSQX67umOWOYqBSb26qMt6fOEYojdH7SeIVjvVHw/s320/IMG_2762-1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Our group on the American Lakes/Thunder Pass Trail approaching the American Lakes basin (extreme left of image)</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpa_Qje15p040_nz4ZDdDzOVWxd6LSITl8q_3jLCj4xvKp7NgBvP5fk9KuERs_i-3ZZyYspAdbFgPv1-GstdNcTJA62-nT0z3BQ7J2Ei_q86J-z5NPsnAkv-7QXxrDAVkSgcBU9wk4bo/s1600/IMG_1810.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpa_Qje15p040_nz4ZDdDzOVWxd6LSITl8q_3jLCj4xvKp7NgBvP5fk9KuERs_i-3ZZyYspAdbFgPv1-GstdNcTJA62-nT0z3BQ7J2Ei_q86J-z5NPsnAkv-7QXxrDAVkSgcBU9wk4bo/s320/IMG_1810.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Yours truly at Thunder Pass with the Nokhu Crags in the background</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The American Lakes are also known as the Michigan Lakes. They form the headwaters of the Michigan River, a modest stream that flows 69 miles out of the Rocky Mountains northward as a tributary to the North Platte River. The American/Michigan Lakes lay at the foot of a glacial cirque that holds a much larger and deeper lake called Snow Lake. Snow Lake discharges down a steep scree slope and feeds the American Lakes. Several members of our group climbed up to barren, rocky Snow Lake, but I decided to join two others to ascend to Thunder Pass and the Continental Divide and Rocky Mountain National Park.</span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfq2AuiPd1kY6O3zOK6ZWtMwJXqzdwdgHolhYg7s2wbWJauuNonOH63oMvAs3Z1rpXZIrLf3P8PjdjoLWjLBez4Gtf4qaDqxUAOyDeq8DGJCOUZHPfXc98kghhiyhdaHD3TqaXqHLDLvc/s1600/IMG_1793.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfq2AuiPd1kY6O3zOK6ZWtMwJXqzdwdgHolhYg7s2wbWJauuNonOH63oMvAs3Z1rpXZIrLf3P8PjdjoLWjLBez4Gtf4qaDqxUAOyDeq8DGJCOUZHPfXc98kghhiyhdaHD3TqaXqHLDLvc/s320/IMG_1793.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">American (Michigan) Lakes, with the Snow Lake cirque in the background</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Along our route, we spotted six moose (including five bulls) browsing in the alder and willow thickets at lower elevations.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbumng3D0-yDHnybyqTwcBmVxJICTom-3n16tzw3WqjSU4PuTiBHYARkyPrsq1EBxryBsIJIYyLmCSNE1m6xXlqRs5JCvn04b4QVj9z2ru76uAklHdGSE6deXTP6v0DynJ_5mtwPSfdP8/s1600/IMG_1783a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="1600" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbumng3D0-yDHnybyqTwcBmVxJICTom-3n16tzw3WqjSU4PuTiBHYARkyPrsq1EBxryBsIJIYyLmCSNE1m6xXlqRs5JCvn04b4QVj9z2ru76uAklHdGSE6deXTP6v0DynJ_5mtwPSfdP8/s320/IMG_1783a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Bull moose</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKG8vRTOGBoaY_zGmhYKFXGb5JQsQOhYoVq68eHIWmJ6b-rKrSM1Yrgdp9YsEcty-aKyUqTV4jltRcMvivjL7Dm9_zZlAFnlkqoB_OfDTg9wbNtKMeoBIl5g1zdgBpztdRsbKSbvwJCtY/s1600/IMG_1792a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1259" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKG8vRTOGBoaY_zGmhYKFXGb5JQsQOhYoVq68eHIWmJ6b-rKrSM1Yrgdp9YsEcty-aKyUqTV4jltRcMvivjL7Dm9_zZlAFnlkqoB_OfDTg9wbNtKMeoBIl5g1zdgBpztdRsbKSbvwJCtY/s320/IMG_1792a.JPG" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Mountain Gentian</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1xcs879SPDMKGQ9TDF0dQY9UzzmjbBOvlQ_zNghqJBVHf9n3B22w37CibRCA2qXGBo0wWdipzLP5d6pSuoZpiaBRPfXO5bWfnUd1Uz0gONikrJHeKs9yJm44BC9cCBhdrMyh4WBc9qms/s1600/IMG_1803a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="998" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1xcs879SPDMKGQ9TDF0dQY9UzzmjbBOvlQ_zNghqJBVHf9n3B22w37CibRCA2qXGBo0wWdipzLP5d6pSuoZpiaBRPfXO5bWfnUd1Uz0gONikrJHeKs9yJm44BC9cCBhdrMyh4WBc9qms/s320/IMG_1803a.JPG" width="199" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Elephant Head (the flowers, on close inspection, resemble a miniature elephant head)</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This trek was a beautiful and dramatic experience that I'd like to repeat again. The scenery was spectacular, the weather was perfect, and the company was great. This was my second-best day so far since moving to Colorado.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-47905376515918094492018-08-17T10:14:00.000-04:002018-08-17T10:14:20.559-04:00Lady Moon Redux<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShIQCEfEhnzAN2IRmyTmcwdkf3n6aHEXpF4ee4tQhZ8F90HIitVoJonw7YLxgFVfH7ISyXcPfGXzppDu_w0KIjIn_5HpVkmmthottrJOgK9qcCRNHx-feU7e6xpFjP0HloSMTiTs8hPQ/s1600/IMG_1752.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShIQCEfEhnzAN2IRmyTmcwdkf3n6aHEXpF4ee4tQhZ8F90HIitVoJonw7YLxgFVfH7ISyXcPfGXzppDu_w0KIjIn_5HpVkmmthottrJOgK9qcCRNHx-feU7e6xpFjP0HloSMTiTs8hPQ/s320/IMG_1752.JPG" width="320" /></a> </div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I hiked the Lady Moon Trail in Roosevelt National
Forest last week and liked it so much I got Kali to accompany me on a
return visit on Thursday, August 16. She agreed that this likely will
become our "go to" hike, although she did fall and scrape her shin
pretty badly when the loose grit on the trail slipped from under her and
sent her tumbling. We came across two fellows on the trail who live
just up the street from us, and we met three representatives of the
Poudre Wilderness Volunteers, an organized group of civilian rangers who
look out for the trails in the national forest; one of them took our
picture.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoiJc0BDN5HJP2ODnSb28qyeEhvQn5KlQOaqg4d8LjK3W6PLWV974r2yVlBhjlHQbqzkG3FfJLUmtWbQmLLa0g470dJzGhjLB2X_wBc3eZNmVgfzlXcNh_ImZmNdGc2buqgGdU4-_MXVs/s1600/IMG_1753.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoiJc0BDN5HJP2ODnSb28qyeEhvQn5KlQOaqg4d8LjK3W6PLWV974r2yVlBhjlHQbqzkG3FfJLUmtWbQmLLa0g470dJzGhjLB2X_wBc3eZNmVgfzlXcNh_ImZmNdGc2buqgGdU4-_MXVs/s320/IMG_1753.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Kali at Disappointment Falls on Elkhorn Creek</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzfwCUl1-fMFjyfp8AEq9QZ74tjT3JGZ9u1XbsQ3T-aGVfLG19KkcbXBFGurf_3G1hIpv7TuuaoXGoZEYmN5je-ATOudSETN1_3J_LzUYo4tvGeRygu_ArGTZU3Txnm6FOPbMa-kzvc0Q/s1600/IMG_1745.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzfwCUl1-fMFjyfp8AEq9QZ74tjT3JGZ9u1XbsQ3T-aGVfLG19KkcbXBFGurf_3G1hIpv7TuuaoXGoZEYmN5je-ATOudSETN1_3J_LzUYo4tvGeRygu_ArGTZU3Txnm6FOPbMa-kzvc0Q/s320/IMG_1745.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On Lady Moon Trail</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MoCNqCoMt1F3kny9T2FxWDf4sFmMmkMPLb-eDddRsGYGQ9V176oXOM3m8IOmbWr60m-NpqT9zmCUmSi0QSsiS7-3ZkiUWJs3C5b0h_l_8wb6MAITQuW3brr7jBONZ4Dwd7lI14MySVA/s1600/IMG_1738.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MoCNqCoMt1F3kny9T2FxWDf4sFmMmkMPLb-eDddRsGYGQ9V176oXOM3m8IOmbWr60m-NpqT9zmCUmSi0QSsiS7-3ZkiUWJs3C5b0h_l_8wb6MAITQuW3brr7jBONZ4Dwd7lI14MySVA/s320/IMG_1738.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Cattle cooling off in the aspens</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLhBoT7bcRnpQv1-3jhI5iAPgWFjqWj0aU3rhYLF_KdbhLKKDYaaLQ6SC7-6unDFCxyey9uYd9VzhtCwWXubJq2YcegSFF11Zna9DhO0SAw0CcDPF2EsRx2gXHEKgpBnAs-e5UQWXu21A/s1600/IMG_1743.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLhBoT7bcRnpQv1-3jhI5iAPgWFjqWj0aU3rhYLF_KdbhLKKDYaaLQ6SC7-6unDFCxyey9uYd9VzhtCwWXubJq2YcegSFF11Zna9DhO0SAw0CcDPF2EsRx2gXHEKgpBnAs-e5UQWXu21A/s320/IMG_1743.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It's a banner year for currents; the bushes are producing a bumper crop everywhere</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-23305740705627750762018-08-14T16:47:00.001-04:002018-08-14T16:48:30.012-04:00High in Colorado<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB8CXGmHbQwxU_2IC5extc3L1fqiIWy8esqLmu2IT97kRj2TLmblVe7j0FRObObv7bBo5vDvb2LVs9oKkkOoqPrYbrEkokEi_GPqKxWzOMKwrhdWI0WtTfifHTT61_wH6O9VSNQYbTwgU/s1600/IMG_1713.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB8CXGmHbQwxU_2IC5extc3L1fqiIWy8esqLmu2IT97kRj2TLmblVe7j0FRObObv7bBo5vDvb2LVs9oKkkOoqPrYbrEkokEi_GPqKxWzOMKwrhdWI0WtTfifHTT61_wH6O9VSNQYbTwgU/s320/IMG_1713.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Approaching the summit of Middle Bald Mountain</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I joined the Red Feather Lakes Library (Colorado) Hiking Group on a short hike to the summit of Middle Bald Mountain ("Middle Baldy") in the Roosevelt National Forest on Monday, August 13. The hike was short; we drove most of the way to the top, then climbed a few hundred feet to the summit.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The drive to approach the summit was long and challenging. The route was almost completely on dusty dirt roads, and as the roads ascended, their quality deteriorated. We ended up driving much more than hiking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nevertheless, the 360-degree view from the summit (11,002 feet) was spectacular.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nvBCArCkk5rGo-IAHB-1Fj7RYcHc_1lEP616hgPOCc_G0fknMWefK5fXNto3dd7aZqQdvwMAaEF6gZivqe0ka0FP1Ls4Qk1q9IXI-VkX56Gp0-M6Y8qWPLNkNSmOX8ZRji5nG4ScDJc/s1600/IMG_1714.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nvBCArCkk5rGo-IAHB-1Fj7RYcHc_1lEP616hgPOCc_G0fknMWefK5fXNto3dd7aZqQdvwMAaEF6gZivqe0ka0FP1Ls4Qk1q9IXI-VkX56Gp0-M6Y8qWPLNkNSmOX8ZRji5nG4ScDJc/s320/IMG_1714.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">View southwestward from the summit of Middle Bald Mountain</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The best scenery lay to the southwest, where we could see snow patches in the mountains of the Rawah Wilderness and a portion of the Cache la Poudre River canyon.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsnSEjtjHd3twklM5z02Wz2XCexBA1fM19IEPh4GkK98Da1CmDI-zZNY1szPhIQdqjjMlBFOArCXVx2sziqwvpg2vmg2UXeee-wrc6bhgoG1ebGcCQ6CTJ_9Ztguh11jeFwYcZ8LEftgY/s1600/IMG_1727.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsnSEjtjHd3twklM5z02Wz2XCexBA1fM19IEPh4GkK98Da1CmDI-zZNY1szPhIQdqjjMlBFOArCXVx2sziqwvpg2vmg2UXeee-wrc6bhgoG1ebGcCQ6CTJ_9Ztguh11jeFwYcZ8LEftgY/s320/IMG_1727.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Lunch at the summit. North Bald Mountain (not bald) is in the distance at the right.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">North Bald Mountain and South Bald Mountain (11,003 feet) were each about two miles away</span>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5jGYF2Jmo84Jzxe7aMpjCsy1whGlplDYwt3n6G3nULDGybN-YrdKrwkyFW_cz2NwfZDZvOyx-ON6uezqMmj0yyv3AD36CvGARrOSppk8IokZFNW0VtEwsiSzAYTkdA8N2K6deYI6vXjA/s1600/IMG_2723.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5jGYF2Jmo84Jzxe7aMpjCsy1whGlplDYwt3n6G3nULDGybN-YrdKrwkyFW_cz2NwfZDZvOyx-ON6uezqMmj0yyv3AD36CvGARrOSppk8IokZFNW0VtEwsiSzAYTkdA8N2K6deYI6vXjA/s320/IMG_2723.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yours truly (top left) at the summit with fellow hikers</span></span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFYH8mveBjdbXJX8QueujfCf5Qa2mMV5EQENbEIq5cbpPnGji9kokl4kA5l8RIx0xGqW-ZbljJVVJKE3HJbQKiahY5896piTy1eI_l6sGfuUAmppMAaJZXueoV8n4RLAoZ13kFHgpIoG8/s1600/IMG_2725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="756" data-original-width="1008" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFYH8mveBjdbXJX8QueujfCf5Qa2mMV5EQENbEIq5cbpPnGji9kokl4kA5l8RIx0xGqW-ZbljJVVJKE3HJbQKiahY5896piTy1eI_l6sGfuUAmppMAaJZXueoV8n4RLAoZ13kFHgpIoG8/s320/IMG_2725.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yours truly at the summit. The deep cleft just to the left of me in mid-distance is the canyon of the Cache la Poudre River that rises in Rocky Mountain National Park</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwPAwU9RRHvJ8G09Vb4lL5dfWL_mD-ytVwQ3U0pPMd6CH3zrrd4900d1qTBBSG-l6UzQylZSaLUsB8B_g_g7yTyyWTVxWf2suj7qMRmjJXmbzKxdQybCzS0L9DQJR7B0MPliaZ8mDVOSE/s1600/IMG_1722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwPAwU9RRHvJ8G09Vb4lL5dfWL_mD-ytVwQ3U0pPMd6CH3zrrd4900d1qTBBSG-l6UzQylZSaLUsB8B_g_g7yTyyWTVxWf2suj7qMRmjJXmbzKxdQybCzS0L9DQJR7B0MPliaZ8mDVOSE/s320/IMG_1722.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">View eastward from the summit of Middle Bald Mountain</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The east scarp of Middle Baldy is a dramatic, sheer drop of several hundred feet. It was windy at the top--and more than a little scary to be at the edge.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The distance in the images is hazy because of the fires burning in California and, to a lesser degree, further west in Colorado. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilnHSuTZmkE3pisz2W1M197_8M3y3-TfQb2d4hbc80y2d8zRjJYthQPnGGkllEZqoglDJpCLX17GEHMqL8IFamLI3JzZnoiYrwupouB287nOtGK41vHUz2wj77HoQVsiW-X-CtrAKXuqE/s1600/IMG_1724.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilnHSuTZmkE3pisz2W1M197_8M3y3-TfQb2d4hbc80y2d8zRjJYthQPnGGkllEZqoglDJpCLX17GEHMqL8IFamLI3JzZnoiYrwupouB287nOtGK41vHUz2wj77HoQVsiW-X-CtrAKXuqE/s320/IMG_1724.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Orange lichens; there were neon chartreuse lichens, too</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9U3y0WkP3JJtbxbJKyvXpTSXANHCi8ZdNn_J1QqyjWFdVc0eoJdfy928OM35GTQw4iR2fh7XdGiCk7UgP2c0CGejO_dMB45K6Lc44YXptle73OA56EcNcx8cNyGfD-65HYMkoo6-olE0/s1600/IMG_1711a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1417" data-original-width="1395" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9U3y0WkP3JJtbxbJKyvXpTSXANHCi8ZdNn_J1QqyjWFdVc0eoJdfy928OM35GTQw4iR2fh7XdGiCk7UgP2c0CGejO_dMB45K6Lc44YXptle73OA56EcNcx8cNyGfD-65HYMkoo6-olE0/s320/IMG_1711a.JPG" width="315" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A pasqueflower in bloom near the summit. As its name implies, this should be blooming around Easter</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After lunch at the summit, we hiked back to the trail and road that brought us near the peak. This portion of the national forest is criss-crossed with very rough tracks used by off-road vehicles. We decided to walk one of these woods roads for a short distance, but soon came across several noisy off-road vehicles in the forest. Our group got discouraged and we retreated back down the mountain--a harrowing repeat of the drive up the mountain a few hours earlier. Hikers hate ATVers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Despite the short distance we covered, the view from the top made the trip worthwhile.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-34686993839745203512018-08-11T16:22:00.000-04:002018-08-11T16:22:51.688-04:00Lady Moon to Disappointment Falls<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrjBLicFFg2DuXCP6akNvp4jBUYjM6kAtwxMt7HvlQUpKeNmQ3OJ71F-Y7MF7re_sIhLNTORLjyR-PUcSzkhJeem_ZapbQVsW4L6X8QJtFWZeyhdNejIsBFnZuRbpuT6sOXwO5XbcMovw/s1600/IMG_1707.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrjBLicFFg2DuXCP6akNvp4jBUYjM6kAtwxMt7HvlQUpKeNmQ3OJ71F-Y7MF7re_sIhLNTORLjyR-PUcSzkhJeem_ZapbQVsW4L6X8QJtFWZeyhdNejIsBFnZuRbpuT6sOXwO5XbcMovw/s320/IMG_1707.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On Friday, August 10, I decided to tackle the Lady Moon Trail in Roosevelt National Forest. The trailhead is located about eight mile from our house and is one of our closest public trails. In addition, Internet searches revealed that the trail is scenic and relatively easy, with modest elevation changes. Sounded good. Kali declined to accompany me; she told me to "scout it out" and then she'd join me next time if I gave a good review.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The trail is named for Lady Catherine Moon. She was an Irish working-class immigrant in the early 20th century with a very colorful reputation in our region. She had four husbands, including Lord Cecil Moon, a British aristocrat who came to the area to seek his fortune in mining. There is also a small lake in the area named in Lady Moon's honor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The trail heads south out of the parking lot and almost immediately crosses a large, broad open meadow--Lady Moon Meadow. Lady Moon Meadow, indeed all grassy areas in our neighborhood this year, are overwhelmed with grasshoppers--millions and millions of grasshoppers. Dozens scatter with each footstep, and sometimes fly into my face, cling to my legs, and get in my clothing. Harmless, but irritating.</span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxjmFLPQWe16Jih4zXy2Y_FMyW1qWKube0WPOGkIgX992W1tAO-D5dj4qk8W2K_gWEssEzh6JzOhyphenhyphenD_oxN6U-hus6NBsPumqGYv5M0GFjgrYGWpbDQkijeD6I60JkZzBeXjBcDm0vF-R0/s1600/IMG_1706.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxjmFLPQWe16Jih4zXy2Y_FMyW1qWKube0WPOGkIgX992W1tAO-D5dj4qk8W2K_gWEssEzh6JzOhyphenhyphenD_oxN6U-hus6NBsPumqGYv5M0GFjgrYGWpbDQkijeD6I60JkZzBeXjBcDm0vF-R0/s320/IMG_1706.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Lady Moon Meadow</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76RhG3V49VOJq9kYHLMO-rfNrSITAuy0_dtpcqdj1VZlEVEmvkH_VyyWymdmPV4bzjyRRCKYC1baKRxTupZVQjEJHc_u2bWggQqXrkE9MXIMPpg7Yr1z_zVWmnIjNo7XVUFWwzVa1EPs/s1600/IMG_1702a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1119" data-original-width="1558" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76RhG3V49VOJq9kYHLMO-rfNrSITAuy0_dtpcqdj1VZlEVEmvkH_VyyWymdmPV4bzjyRRCKYC1baKRxTupZVQjEJHc_u2bWggQqXrkE9MXIMPpg7Yr1z_zVWmnIjNo7XVUFWwzVa1EPs/s320/IMG_1702a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">One of billions</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">On the opposite side of the meadow, the trail begins to ascend gently and enters open ponderosa pine forest interspersed with aspen groves. Large granite outcrops encroach on the trail from each side to lend some interest. After about a mile, the north-south Lady Moon Trail intersects with the east-west Granite Ridge Trail, then diverges a short distance east. From this point, the Lady Moon Trail begins to descend into the Elkhorn Creek valley. Near the top of the divide, the Mummy Range in Rocky Mountain National Park, still bearing a few patches of snow, is visible on the horizon.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz4CVUarfwxD_gMjFufnm2kR0ZYCTmIEyFzdN_pQzBU0L3zTWVEKf_Q0ogoLwjd-0ygmqMgqAiWvz5lBwDaq7YezNBT7A24NH0ZvGtLwI1LKvVDjXYfbH47Xpc1BL28beNqEm-X54uq00/s1600/IMG_1655.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz4CVUarfwxD_gMjFufnm2kR0ZYCTmIEyFzdN_pQzBU0L3zTWVEKf_Q0ogoLwjd-0ygmqMgqAiWvz5lBwDaq7YezNBT7A24NH0ZvGtLwI1LKvVDjXYfbH47Xpc1BL28beNqEm-X54uq00/s320/IMG_1655.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The Mummy Range </span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">bearing snow patches </span></span>in Rocky Mountain National Park in the far distant haze </span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKPQV33wb35F0p_vir5JlydBAodp_ve4xGvce8YZI1kw8ECpyROLvj4BdG9kj-5B9g_Lq0aN5tRL_XnDIgoS0qYe5mDPvGE0ykRR2yv-QfPFxMoJcHUrrLuCblQdfLXBouLSSZJOuTYs/s1600/IMG_1663.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKPQV33wb35F0p_vir5JlydBAodp_ve4xGvce8YZI1kw8ECpyROLvj4BdG9kj-5B9g_Lq0aN5tRL_XnDIgoS0qYe5mDPvGE0ykRR2yv-QfPFxMoJcHUrrLuCblQdfLXBouLSSZJOuTYs/s320/IMG_1663.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This venerable and ancient ponderosa pine was growing near the trail; it is hundreds of years old </span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">As the trail approaches Elkhorn Creek, a spur trail splits off toward the west leading to Disappointment Falls. Ruins of a homesteader's log structure mark the junction.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBqlvXVXD0RqFnGDtsr5ale2KnqCcI0E_1Xs6eVUzeZ8AS3cv-Elz7v2qtwA5cE6rHMzZBHq9C8Q646ADRFx0CUedqs0UlPIakqjF7CVl485eRpKdZuD2go02ENtnFV2ugOejzusj6MNw/s1600/IMG_1672.JPG"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBqlvXVXD0RqFnGDtsr5ale2KnqCcI0E_1Xs6eVUzeZ8AS3cv-Elz7v2qtwA5cE6rHMzZBHq9C8Q646ADRFx0CUedqs0UlPIakqjF7CVl485eRpKdZuD2go02ENtnFV2ugOejzusj6MNw/s320/IMG_1672.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Along the trail to Disappointment Falls, I saw this Mountain Bluebird carcass in the grass, out in the middle of nowhere. Mountain Bluebirds may be the most common birds along this trail. This unfortunate bird may have been the victim of a predator.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The Internet information about this hike warned that Disappointment Falls would be less than impressive during the summer, but that it could really roar during spring snowmelt. The cascade was pleasant, but the expanse of bare rocks adjacent to the falls bore witness to the fact that the falls grows in volume in the spring.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJjzoSSgUt-jTUdm0nIcIsOXDvDovJKWC3l053zS5dvnpnLCNfV_HMg1XbK8j618BuwqP5M5ZVLaLMgBtsX23XrtzQqWdOYPgIN0R84qmkE01xChscPcCqlK__C1UsUzLVg840MCiA5w/s1600/IMG_1682.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJjzoSSgUt-jTUdm0nIcIsOXDvDovJKWC3l053zS5dvnpnLCNfV_HMg1XbK8j618BuwqP5M5ZVLaLMgBtsX23XrtzQqWdOYPgIN0R84qmkE01xChscPcCqlK__C1UsUzLVg840MCiA5w/s320/IMG_1682.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Disappointment Falls on Elkhorn Creek</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">After I enjoyed the falls, I retraced my steps back to the parking lot. The entire hike was five miles round-trip. I think this hike might become Kali's and my "go to" hike because it has a lot of varied scenery, it's pretty gentle, and the trail surface is mostly smooth dirt without a lot of rocks and tripping hazards.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCMGAlGwOjH1An3A6iafGL3MZJV80X-oOw6HM556Z_qyccfBdMfN2m-CK5xXzwu-b_TkC58epLU65t3CB3kBwnSJJWSG4sP9DcKil7V9atKCuN5EUS7YGESrx_hiP0kLy3Ar5kYkz2lT8/s1600/IMG_1700.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCMGAlGwOjH1An3A6iafGL3MZJV80X-oOw6HM556Z_qyccfBdMfN2m-CK5xXzwu-b_TkC58epLU65t3CB3kBwnSJJWSG4sP9DcKil7V9atKCuN5EUS7YGESrx_hiP0kLy3Ar5kYkz2lT8/s320/IMG_1700.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Lady Moon Trail in an aspen grove</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This was my best day yet in Colorado. The skies were sapphire, the humidity was low, the scenery was spectacular, temperatures were in the low 80s, there was a nice breeze, and there was absolute silence (except for occasional birdsong and wind soughing through the ponderosas). Heavenly!</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-67321059834756548862018-08-09T11:05:00.000-04:002018-08-09T11:08:25.149-04:00REBOOT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I retired from my 30-year position as the executive director of a local Pennsylvania land trust on June 15, and four days later Kali and I headed west to start our new life in Livermore, Colorado, at 7,200 feet in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains northwest of Fort Collins.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I'm more physically active than Kali and take a lot of walks around our neighborhood, reporting back to her what I see when I'm out (partially as a way to try to encourage her to come out with me--so far, with relatively limited success). In any case, Kali said I should keep a journal of my observations in our new habitat, so I decided to revive <i>It Just Comes Naturally</i>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I'm not going to start from the beginning just yet; I'll probably catch up over the next few days. I'm going to start with the walk I took yesterday (August 8). Our rural development includes 400 acres of protected open space, and there is a trail system throughout. Unfortunately, the trails are very lightly used and, thus, not particularly well maintained, but they are passable with some effort. Yesterday, I walked on the gravel roads through out neighborhood to reach the Crellin Canyon Trailhead. I descended Crellin Canyon, then caught the Sloan Trail that heads east, skirting a steep, rocky hillside mid-slope until I reached Mount Moriah, a promontory just outside our house.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbH-dvVbnyoxp617Gy4ACJwkqjCepbIiGeo5APP91ppREUtgl9rGPOT6sMZG3-OR-ZlCljKfJ4-AHHIlk-v1CpcKgmneTD47vSXcbuyNiiTrl1Vw-7ymC3h3ltnMVHTuD5hjXlR6WPrFA/s1600/Hike+8+8+18+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="517" data-original-width="920" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbH-dvVbnyoxp617Gy4ACJwkqjCepbIiGeo5APP91ppREUtgl9rGPOT6sMZG3-OR-ZlCljKfJ4-AHHIlk-v1CpcKgmneTD47vSXcbuyNiiTrl1Vw-7ymC3h3ltnMVHTuD5hjXlR6WPrFA/s320/Hike+8+8+18+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Looking back westward to the mouth of Crellin Canyon</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinieoCbFf40ER5LKZrFERcEwBzkHO9nTVSN_XVHmO_KQGZ7D92EPIltwiz2F8ncspIlRvtuM4KTiO1cM256-yBXv9ATVYGKiPKOp-LramHW6LTY3cfVTfveQp2b27OD2IrjxcadszVM3Q/s1600/Hike+8+8+18+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="359" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinieoCbFf40ER5LKZrFERcEwBzkHO9nTVSN_XVHmO_KQGZ7D92EPIltwiz2F8ncspIlRvtuM4KTiO1cM256-yBXv9ATVYGKiPKOp-LramHW6LTY3cfVTfveQp2b27OD2IrjxcadszVM3Q/s320/Hike+8+8+18+2.jpg" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Mount Moriah's south face; the north face is wooded. There's a trail cairn on the right.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The whole hike covered a distance of about three miles, with a change in elevation of about 450 feet. Along the way, I spotted three Canyon Wrens on Mount Moriah and a few American Robins in Crellin Canyon, but I was walking mid-day, so most birds were taking a siesta.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I've been using my cell phone camera a lot (as I did for these images). They're not as good as the images produced by my Canon. If I continue this journal, I'll start to use my Canon more frequently.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Stay tuned for more.</span></span><br />
<br />Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-39258650685483756112017-11-07T09:27:00.000-05:002017-11-07T09:27:05.125-05:00JEAN'S RUN ENDURANCE HIKE<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrpNVfpMtU7SvoyQ2jsEeoaoDlRYBQb2LVVcfOr0jWVmRVaELEBR2rBLIYCFfpb4qlTdchfXF2VJZzeOt_dqvxhR6zcDQNIalR0D7YXwxGRc9uzxRzokJ-9ICjZTpOhBJzKTfsC7Uqyk/s1600/IMG_1316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrpNVfpMtU7SvoyQ2jsEeoaoDlRYBQb2LVVcfOr0jWVmRVaELEBR2rBLIYCFfpb4qlTdchfXF2VJZzeOt_dqvxhR6zcDQNIalR0D7YXwxGRc9uzxRzokJ-9ICjZTpOhBJzKTfsC7Uqyk/s320/IMG_1316.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Jean's Run - downstream-most waterfall</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Friday, October 27, 2017, was a perfect autumn day in southeastern Pennsylvania (sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s [Fahrenheit]). I haven't used many vacation days this year, so I decided to play hooky to take advantage of the great weather to hike on a weekday when there would be few people in the woods</span>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nearly 20 years ago, I had completed a challenging circuit hike in the valley of Jean's Run near the town of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. Jim Thorpe advertises itself as being in the Pocono Mountains, and it is <i>near</i> the Poconos, but technically it's in the folded terrain of the Ridge and Valley physiographic province, not on the flat but highly dissected Pocono Plateau. For the layman, these are minor points that would only interest a geology nerd. Suffice it to say the landscape is Appalachian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Somehow I had stumbled on Jean's Run while I was hiking in the next watershed to the east: the valley of James's Run, which tumbles through an incredibly scenic and popular gorge called Glen Onoko. When I hiked up Jean's Run 20 years ago, the valley made a lasting impression on me. I recalled vividly that, midway up the valley, Jean's Run suddenly emerged from a narrow cleft in the rocks and tumbled over a dramatic waterfall that was barely passable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because I plan to move away from southeastern Pennsylvania in a few months, and because I wanted to challenge myself physically, and because I wanted to see the incredible waterfall again, I made the Jean's Run circuit my goal for the day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The Jean's Run watershed is part of Pennsylvania State Game Lands 141, an area owned by the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) and set aside for hunting (and other recreation). My route would take me eastward from the parking lot on a flat woods road maintained by the PGC along the top of Broad Mountain, and then along a woodland trail down the steep southern flank of the mountain to the mouth of Jean's Run. From that point, I planned to bushwhack northward back up the trackless Jean's Run valley to the PGC's woods road and then to the parking area where I left the car.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I knew the hike would be challenging. There's no trail along Jean's Run, and the valley is very, very steep and V-shaped, with rocks and boulders that have eroded out of the upper valley clogging the stream channel. I knew I would have to crisscross the stream repeatedly as I made my way uphill/upstream, but the autumn had been fairly dry so I wasn't concerned about the numerous stream crossings. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The top of Broad Mountain is flat, rocky, dry, exposed and infertile. As a result, the chestnut oak forest cloaking the mountaintop is open and stunted. My walk eastward along the PGC's woods road through this forest was a monotonous slog that I had to complete to get to the "good stuff," so I walked as quickly as I could. I only encountered birds (a small flock of Dark-eyed Juncos) at one spot. After about a half-hour, I reached the trail that descended to the mouth of Jean's Run.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmIw67-GDqeKu7BvO16d0pLD6xxM_xB6_xxDLFO2nt5c71YGiO8RbYVSi-k1F5lAUwaI2KQXMFVmcqAubjAZ6VMUIbPKOY7ycz6uDWCmxlAuiAEk3hEugN2VqZPlYupLowS1-_WFDf35Q/s1600/IMG_1261.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmIw67-GDqeKu7BvO16d0pLD6xxM_xB6_xxDLFO2nt5c71YGiO8RbYVSi-k1F5lAUwaI2KQXMFVmcqAubjAZ6VMUIbPKOY7ycz6uDWCmxlAuiAEk3hEugN2VqZPlYupLowS1-_WFDf35Q/s320/IMG_1261.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Woodland trail descending to Jean's Run</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Jean's Run flows into Nesquehoning Creek, a much larger stream made ugly and sterile by coal mine acid drainage. At the mouth of Jean's Run, I turned upstream (north) and began my ascent through the valley. Very near the mouth, there's a substantial stone ruin that looks to me to be perfectly square. I have no inkling about the purpose to the building. However, from my previous hike, I remembered that there was a dam upstream. The dam and the building undoubtedly were related.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Stone ruin near stream's mouth</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Poured concrete dam</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Upstream of the dam, there is no evidence of human occupation. I made my way up the bottom of the steep valley through dense streamside rhododendron thickets. Early settlers called these thickets rhododendron "hells"
because of the difficulty of moving through them. They got that right. </span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFePOtzhrg_EHYdr-ak_93ZoFHsTprBqyO7U3E_4PZqGr0pD-lH7yBFJSMtVHqVfsLosfV_N6KDQUN55KMQL94cOj2sc8Yb-4khnB8n7wVr_jwmmIcjhn21XbeyUUMbJJcsaSunNVL6As/s1600/IMG_1276.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFePOtzhrg_EHYdr-ak_93ZoFHsTprBqyO7U3E_4PZqGr0pD-lH7yBFJSMtVHqVfsLosfV_N6KDQUN55KMQL94cOj2sc8Yb-4khnB8n7wVr_jwmmIcjhn21XbeyUUMbJJcsaSunNVL6As/s320/IMG_1276.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Rocks and froth</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After an hour or so, I was soaked with sweat, tired, and scraped and bruised from repeated slips and falls on the uneven rocks. I decided it was time for a rest and for lunch. So, I found a relatively flat surface with a good view of the stream and pulled out a honeycrisp apple, a Clifbar, and my water bottle. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6tQ1LmG09ymwAj5q2ix8JgyEcVY_LPwIKRx-5njwJ4lNeo1zBb7XAeXpWmyqrJptjrHcvc-uIfAehsXyzpXzSbOytmpJZcIJMkLsf711kw335qwGtonMK7Djoql2hlZv5G-9Kxzys4c/s1600/IMG_1277.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6tQ1LmG09ymwAj5q2ix8JgyEcVY_LPwIKRx-5njwJ4lNeo1zBb7XAeXpWmyqrJptjrHcvc-uIfAehsXyzpXzSbOytmpJZcIJMkLsf711kw335qwGtonMK7Djoql2hlZv5G-9Kxzys4c/s320/IMG_1277.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Lunchtime view</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There were also opportunities to photograph some russet fungi and autumn leaves.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjamkUOpEfCnEI5GMm17Ns8bkN-A_SmRfAKCNzMXgJ7yy36MoY_Efap6EKBaJRAG_5oTYWKEQ8cBSgdyf7BD4AP2XBPd2i9oMwWenrX47WEMFx17pV76DuDxQrMmoUS90cW2LvHbpX_6fE/s1600/IMG_1269a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1148" data-original-width="1600" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjamkUOpEfCnEI5GMm17Ns8bkN-A_SmRfAKCNzMXgJ7yy36MoY_Efap6EKBaJRAG_5oTYWKEQ8cBSgdyf7BD4AP2XBPd2i9oMwWenrX47WEMFx17pV76DuDxQrMmoUS90cW2LvHbpX_6fE/s320/IMG_1269a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bracket fungi</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL9I1TtveYoi-eO0E0n9yu7NgvoNX_ZAG48c5YJnpxE6JnK-ECgTsrme9DZmUEdeCL5izSt7LaFvLxg-n_5KO7pdSnOs-49s6Bf45tgSkalkgavqXhNm5_vCMd5-sBwj39Wth7CKOlSg/s1600/IMG_1290.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL9I1TtveYoi-eO0E0n9yu7NgvoNX_ZAG48c5YJnpxE6JnK-ECgTsrme9DZmUEdeCL5izSt7LaFvLxg-n_5KO7pdSnOs-49s6Bf45tgSkalkgavqXhNm5_vCMd5-sBwj39Wth7CKOlSg/s320/IMG_1290.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Red maple and shining firmoss</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After lunch, I continued my ascent. I tried to stay as near the stream as possible to enjoy the sounds and scenery, but sometimes had to climb a bit up the hillside to avoid otherwise impassible stretches.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiugdGgHj9eBoq-_1QUzGRmZ93PVQHxh7fY0PrOm5XgKlZzSCzJZOJ_w1AEmFBrI-1CF4FRWlmYsv3bL_p9LYtiH0JE5Xv3FD8b2sUfWugAAJbj9a87Y5qhzxfXcQ2IQHvPPJ-PhGhF5cE/s1600/IMG_1281.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiugdGgHj9eBoq-_1QUzGRmZ93PVQHxh7fY0PrOm5XgKlZzSCzJZOJ_w1AEmFBrI-1CF4FRWlmYsv3bL_p9LYtiH0JE5Xv3FD8b2sUfWugAAJbj9a87Y5qhzxfXcQ2IQHvPPJ-PhGhF5cE/s320/IMG_1281.JPG" width="213" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Typical Pennsylvania mountain stream: boulders and rhododendrons</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After a while, I began to doubt that I had seen the cleft in the rocks with the gushing waterfall 20 years ago. I was exhausted and battered and, frankly, I just wanted to get out of the valley. At just about that point, I arrived a the spot I was seeking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My route up the valley to this point was almost directly northward. However, when I reached the spot I had remembered, the valley turned abruptly and Jean's Run began flowing from the west. The first part of my hike was bathed in bright sunlight, but the valley oriented to the west was in deep shadow - dark and mysterious - a valley that Victorian writers would call a "defile." And, at the mouth of the defile, there was <i>not</i> a narrow cleft in the rocks with a waterfall pouring forth like I had "remembered," but there was a huge vertical cliff on the southern side of the valley that had the effect of making the mouth of the defile look like a gateway into another world. Just inside the mouth of the gorge was a beautiful waterfall (first image in this post) - not as daunting or intimidating a barrier as I had remembered, but a beautiful introduction to a valley that was full of five dramatic waterfalls. The gorge was sublime.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(I would love to know the geologic origin of this valley. The gorge here, in addition to being oriented east-west instead of north-south, was also even steeper and more rocky than the valley further downstream - if that was possible.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I enjoyed the view of the mouth of the gorge and then began my ascent. It was impossible to stay close to the stream here. The valley was simply too narrow and choked with boulders to navigate close to the water, so I had to make my way a few dozen feet above the stream along the valley slopes. Progress was extraordinary slow and footing was bad. But, every few hundred feet, there were waterfalls. </span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRUbzX6uYSXlwkFpDkWgmyBdgh9gMQzSu3QlP5c4TK5PNxslfZVmJ-SZjeGvCeYyxoXs9_UMDVGT4JezHmjL6FlVbrJavUcu0e9gYSzts0_waUuoqQXjFzd6wIayUKV7aBP4VdS57vlhs/s1600/IMG_1332.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRUbzX6uYSXlwkFpDkWgmyBdgh9gMQzSu3QlP5c4TK5PNxslfZVmJ-SZjeGvCeYyxoXs9_UMDVGT4JezHmjL6FlVbrJavUcu0e9gYSzts0_waUuoqQXjFzd6wIayUKV7aBP4VdS57vlhs/s320/IMG_1332.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Second falls (counting upward from downstream)</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_7m4UV_4bfLHNr2OT2DboWADfYIxVtsOo87o-0AIsyQVjr4S6cKnWqx-TFbNJJGOhlW_DjqdGnl75LcaEx_rwyM2vx1NCzeHPyQEmuG_hNPT0KKQ3FFgHQKyx89Lt4TcVyFZSEj2Nrc/s1600/IMG_1326a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_7m4UV_4bfLHNr2OT2DboWADfYIxVtsOo87o-0AIsyQVjr4S6cKnWqx-TFbNJJGOhlW_DjqdGnl75LcaEx_rwyM2vx1NCzeHPyQEmuG_hNPT0KKQ3FFgHQKyx89Lt4TcVyFZSEj2Nrc/s320/IMG_1326a.JPG" width="192" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A splash of color in the dark and verdant ravine</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyF5neMtrTh-_q_GEmKS6HWxlkdvglGAl4AVXeddarePsqtxgA00wjIktF4wCaVkEpyS6xUA-pR32vBLBx3OJ-UTaYjRQzN_SQP09w57Duz2Xmw5ChxstnOY2jXUYAtb3mpMUX_vMSfhY/s1600/IMG_1333.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyF5neMtrTh-_q_GEmKS6HWxlkdvglGAl4AVXeddarePsqtxgA00wjIktF4wCaVkEpyS6xUA-pR32vBLBx3OJ-UTaYjRQzN_SQP09w57Duz2Xmw5ChxstnOY2jXUYAtb3mpMUX_vMSfhY/s320/IMG_1333.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Third falls</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Another draw for exploring Jean's Run is the riparian eastern/Canadian hemlock forest in the gorge. The forest is virgin old-growth: 19th century loggers never stripped the hemlocks out of this inaccessible valley. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEbr2LxErzjB8a6vwZ0vKwsRkncodziFeO5q84Efnf3agbIwtPLbOX-QwbxkhGjl7-7NhiHau5G1Pq_i5QPsUZNtGJyCNLp2EB_BKnQ76_0eMAQ9iDgGxGjmk8Td85MW3y9I60TkVi0-8/s1600/IMG_1339.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEbr2LxErzjB8a6vwZ0vKwsRkncodziFeO5q84Efnf3agbIwtPLbOX-QwbxkhGjl7-7NhiHau5G1Pq_i5QPsUZNtGJyCNLp2EB_BKnQ76_0eMAQ9iDgGxGjmk8Td85MW3y9I60TkVi0-8/s320/IMG_1339.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Fourth falls</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I savored and photographed each falls in turn; after all, this is expressly what I had come to re-live and enjoy. However, I really was exhausted.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCLoAk_wUl5Pj3Kp44pGKx1JDL97wfMb_8RhCkzaXFciL8_8zEkWEF1-6Rwno84n9qyzqPLvLiI21lPx0ValqvGfVVX7zM5gnDNa-gTUUWQjhEiHOcn9ewO749qROr3-BwZZOnftOkYCU/s1600/IMG_1348.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCLoAk_wUl5Pj3Kp44pGKx1JDL97wfMb_8RhCkzaXFciL8_8zEkWEF1-6Rwno84n9qyzqPLvLiI21lPx0ValqvGfVVX7zM5gnDNa-gTUUWQjhEiHOcn9ewO749qROr3-BwZZOnftOkYCU/s320/IMG_1348.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Fifth (uppermost and final) falls</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Upstream of the uppermost falls, Jean's Run passes under a bridge on the PGC's woods road. I finally reached the bridge and walked the last mile back to the car like a zombie. I can hardly remember being more tired in my life.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik9ziuRBA-hPE6ogS1y4cRFXBgqmKXOq_H_-BWvnxYpdfrSoC-tngGJsRrx0afoozokPXXWRDFU_l53ypS6b4yg1q_-dH5FekDSuW4zeCFw-hf9DAnKkFagnExhPw-UInxvDZuPcR8czA/s1600/IMG_1351.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik9ziuRBA-hPE6ogS1y4cRFXBgqmKXOq_H_-BWvnxYpdfrSoC-tngGJsRrx0afoozokPXXWRDFU_l53ypS6b4yg1q_-dH5FekDSuW4zeCFw-hf9DAnKkFagnExhPw-UInxvDZuPcR8czA/s320/IMG_1351.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Pennsylvania Game Commission sign at road crossing</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Postscript. The next day, I plotted my route using GoogleEarth. What I thought was a four-mile hike was actually 6.75 miles. I descended and then climbed back up 1,000 feet in elevation. A 2,000-foot change in elevation over a 6.75-mile hike in four hours wouldn't be too much of a challenge on a trail, but the 2-3 miles I bushwhacked up the valley over rocky barriers was the killer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I badly scraped my right shin, I scraped my back when I slid backward down a rock, I cut my forehead on a branch, and I wrenched my knees (already in poor condition) in so many ways I'm still trying to recover. I haven't decided if the trek was worth it, but I <i>have</i> decided that I'm officially old.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-63311753732085696562017-02-23T11:30:00.001-05:002017-02-23T11:30:41.096-05:00Pure Joy<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjb1FVwzyVbbZCt3NHlTFjCHxfFSiaUVPQO6S6dpYQbL4wHgJv_I4xH1OTidD1GxoK-8M2cMfSzOm3Z_wFiUIyflqj6B5TzpGmlBZvDdC7KypIvEYS-lyeG9un7J-QSF0GVKltG1Euwmg/s1600/Ovenbird+b57-5-186_V.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjb1FVwzyVbbZCt3NHlTFjCHxfFSiaUVPQO6S6dpYQbL4wHgJv_I4xH1OTidD1GxoK-8M2cMfSzOm3Z_wFiUIyflqj6B5TzpGmlBZvDdC7KypIvEYS-lyeG9un7J-QSF0GVKltG1Euwmg/s320/Ovenbird+b57-5-186_V.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">For a quarter-century, I have been censusing the birds that nest and breed in a 40-acre woods in my preserve. On eight mornings at the end of May and beginning of June, I have awoken at the crack of dawn, wolfed down a quick snack, power-walked 20 minutes to the tract, and then begun censusing. For the next three hours and ten minutes, I have scanned the trees with my binoculars and pricked up my ears to catch the slightest hint of birdsong.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKTYFQ9v2TiXLaxdTrF3fo-TnWmuBok_ScfAWSR1x8eW5xV1DN15lxzvQD5tIvsmyEus2Ka64_n9VM1eM9CxnTC89L1JcBYvDNb6pCDM3rdMrCLO2HC515elhbXZZwfh6Oe22MeYslD8/s1600/DSCN9316.JPG"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKTYFQ9v2TiXLaxdTrF3fo-TnWmuBok_ScfAWSR1x8eW5xV1DN15lxzvQD5tIvsmyEus2Ka64_n9VM1eM9CxnTC89L1JcBYvDNb6pCDM3rdMrCLO2HC515elhbXZZwfh6Oe22MeYslD8/s320/DSCN9316.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The forest is not the most dramatic or beautiful woods in my preserve. Most of it was farmland until about 1920, but a new owner abandoned agriculture and allowed the woods to return. The canopy is still young and not very diverse--mostly quick colonizing and rapidly growing tuliptrees and ashes (which, alas, are now under attack by the devastating emerald ash borer beetle, imported from China). Nevertheless, it is the woodland I've come to know the best in my preserve.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpYRph0s0hoQrhQiWv13vCytajYVVmGHkO01xeJPs7YyaQzma_Ic9ZoF3wW-5m_DFWYaom-edC5aKjJ5-H3S2Kn7y-_kcY0-fd1IsGV6uCCmhdZ0gJrpRHbUP1e6lowE0YOsANgBWinNo/s1600/DSCN9304.JPG"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpYRph0s0hoQrhQiWv13vCytajYVVmGHkO01xeJPs7YyaQzma_Ic9ZoF3wW-5m_DFWYaom-edC5aKjJ5-H3S2Kn7y-_kcY0-fd1IsGV6uCCmhdZ0gJrpRHbUP1e6lowE0YOsANgBWinNo/s320/DSCN9304.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">And I've come to know its birds, too, especially the Ovenbirds. Ovenbirds are aberrant warblers that look more like small thrushes. They skulk around furtively in the duff and the low understory, defending their territory with their distinctive and increasingly strident tripartite teacher-TEACHER-<b>TEACHER</b> call. The birds are much more often heard than seen, but since I spend so much time in the woods with them, I'm bound to observe one or two each spring.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The Ovenbirds and their offspring are remarkably faithful to territories. I could probably outline the birds' territories each spring without even venturing into the woods - which is what distressed me when I learned that a part of the woods I've come to know so intimately was for sale. I originally included this five-acre woods in my census area because it was owned by an individual who I thought would never sell it for development. I was proved wrong in 2016, though, when the owner announced plans to sell the land for housing. The land included the territory of an Ovenbird (or its offspring) that I had documented from my very first census in 1991.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSul3BpYtYeE8LTwIiw4zUpRsLibIrZ94i6K_C6H7lDg1sGPSxzvd3HaIvVQEmU7VvZUDY0bvKO5Aal_ni09QK5bR1_RZdizekkJ_fJaNpxnk5RCHUfefix_md8YHKjOMiYCH2ovW60Ak/s320/DSCN9311.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSul3BpYtYeE8LTwIiw4zUpRsLibIrZ94i6K_C6H7lDg1sGPSxzvd3HaIvVQEmU7VvZUDY0bvKO5Aal_ni09QK5bR1_RZdizekkJ_fJaNpxnk5RCHUfefix_md8YHKjOMiYCH2ovW60Ak/s1600/DSCN9311.JPG"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I could clearly imagine an Ovenbird returning to its breeding grounds from the tropics, anticipating re-asserting its territory, only to find that its woodland had been leveled.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Fortunately, the landowner was willing to work with my organization to try to protect the land permanently. The landowner delayed a sale until my organization could work with the state to secure open space funding.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">When the landowner finally sold the land to my organization on Tuesday afternoon, February 21, I practically leapt for joy knowing that one Ovenbird pair evermore would have a place to raise its brood.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-13116202051004930472016-12-22T16:20:00.000-05:002016-12-22T16:20:05.059-05:00Winter Solstice Walk<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHj7jq9p7-oY-tHY-oy7K5Tj3aRMB8yRR8PoqnKESopt5eMFEMfdSo3yFyDrxgqun5V0L5rQ7CB3neJm92e3HHx_dlHYlN2GdbhWaie25nSwQfStykch0GkL0HncgYzf_gWTee6KNKho/s1600/IMG_0560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHj7jq9p7-oY-tHY-oy7K5Tj3aRMB8yRR8PoqnKESopt5eMFEMfdSo3yFyDrxgqun5V0L5rQ7CB3neJm92e3HHx_dlHYlN2GdbhWaie25nSwQfStykch0GkL0HncgYzf_gWTee6KNKho/s320/IMG_0560.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali on the rail-trail through my preserve approaching a rock cut</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After a really cold week, temperatures moderated yesterday. So, I took an hour's comp time in mid-afternoon to walk in my preserve with Kali (who retired in October and is, thus, available for a walk on a moment's notice).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I wanted to get outside to enjoy the blue skies, the stark woodlands, and the low-angled sunlight.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK5pueWF6XI3V72gbU6IlZ4sNYr1O0rKIaicjvttDFHPOlWGwnW1WXv83JzkP1Fe_J_u07G0q9eHxPrijMkIdpaPFrkVqN_t2hx1DHsgzxhqLX4kV0UF_b2o0nUTqousEE-IsbEYhEiiY/s1600/IMG_0557.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK5pueWF6XI3V72gbU6IlZ4sNYr1O0rKIaicjvttDFHPOlWGwnW1WXv83JzkP1Fe_J_u07G0q9eHxPrijMkIdpaPFrkVqN_t2hx1DHsgzxhqLX4kV0UF_b2o0nUTqousEE-IsbEYhEiiY/s320/IMG_0557.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">American beech-dominated woodland slope</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">At the base of the the slope pictured above, a small spring-fed brook wanders through mucky bottomlands (below).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvsYmuSDtlVcNj1koyQzg0jpE3f1PZdLyvWBMbtlDFBx2zD9ohf3SRt48jXvHlVCG4_UxIOGeNuWIAaGZChk12hMZMkm7VuFOe3Cz2a2qCdMZl3XWE66pJt0GnjAPlPlkjG31-ZdzX5s/s1600/IMG_0552a.JPG"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvsYmuSDtlVcNj1koyQzg0jpE3f1PZdLyvWBMbtlDFBx2zD9ohf3SRt48jXvHlVCG4_UxIOGeNuWIAaGZChk12hMZMkm7VuFOe3Cz2a2qCdMZl3XWE66pJt0GnjAPlPlkjG31-ZdzX5s/s320/IMG_0552a.JPG" width="203" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Years ago, someone planted two cypress trees on the edge of the brook. Though they're outside their natural range (closest natural occurrence is in southern Delaware, about 50 miles south), the trees have survived and grown well. They even sport their characteristic knees.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jjKT_XMQSA0DROK95DrqXpLzXdCfb50v3SlGHU8kNYWdjVp0DLN2seZGYiCTo0F-R5kwYX2qarqmzNCGDYjvV1MENIqC71SVCz2kIhetq2ZaEjTlGcrGzfDW7-S5WPM6QiQjN8dOjOc/s1600/IMG_0553.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jjKT_XMQSA0DROK95DrqXpLzXdCfb50v3SlGHU8kNYWdjVp0DLN2seZGYiCTo0F-R5kwYX2qarqmzNCGDYjvV1MENIqC71SVCz2kIhetq2ZaEjTlGcrGzfDW7-S5WPM6QiQjN8dOjOc/s320/IMG_0553.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Cypress knees</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAPBmtkSQ_A5DGZSXjZ_WRZcKtjK43rTK4wDMehhk84A_ElJ8nhfJi1uVL6aaAAWFQhSHHgpzvyuTITSkPJEsdBjOG4KQKcu6mCbHeKIde6K8IcSgytPeUND4QAwyBqyvMtxDfWoVUI3E/s1600/IMG_0563a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAPBmtkSQ_A5DGZSXjZ_WRZcKtjK43rTK4wDMehhk84A_ElJ8nhfJi1uVL6aaAAWFQhSHHgpzvyuTITSkPJEsdBjOG4KQKcu6mCbHeKIde6K8IcSgytPeUND4QAwyBqyvMtxDfWoVUI3E/s320/IMG_0563a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The rock cut from the first image; I like this abstract play of angles, sunlight and shadows</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-8ksSTZHfaHIpvsC4blAjOxM3SVo3Rt9dOX7QHhqhoXo8yx87qDMxaegjQftfATfVnbGFbIDdSS-oaaxZrE_pxAdx1WJSb12_UdJBML7ujRhMspZJY3wwrz6oZRAKBp0R8U9FWrooa7g/s1600/IMG_0566a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-8ksSTZHfaHIpvsC4blAjOxM3SVo3Rt9dOX7QHhqhoXo8yx87qDMxaegjQftfATfVnbGFbIDdSS-oaaxZrE_pxAdx1WJSb12_UdJBML7ujRhMspZJY3wwrz6oZRAKBp0R8U9FWrooa7g/s320/IMG_0566a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Large boulder in the shady woods</span></span></td></tr>
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Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-37709236857187598372016-11-28T12:39:00.003-05:002016-11-28T12:39:52.923-05:00Flight 93 National Menorial<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpkt3Xigz-ydtuTM76xThdtE3_xAoAjzgJ5SExQvgE1f0h5l02wKRZgrtrUaH2l1RhtJF3d1nWlmSM59_yZiBW2mHV4X0tRuq0qng-rMFJc8OgwbUVzcglsrPZvyOGrJY9Atpe27eBzFw/s1600/IMG_0383a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpkt3Xigz-ydtuTM76xThdtE3_xAoAjzgJ5SExQvgE1f0h5l02wKRZgrtrUaH2l1RhtJF3d1nWlmSM59_yZiBW2mHV4X0tRuq0qng-rMFJc8OgwbUVzcglsrPZvyOGrJY9Atpe27eBzFw/s320/IMG_0383a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Entrance to the Flight 93 National Memorial. Grey stone walkway is the flight path.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">On our way back from Pittsburgh to our home in southeastern Pennsylvania earlier this month, Kali and I detoured to visit the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, between Somerset and Bedford.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The memorial, which consists of a museum/visitor center situated directly on the path of the doomed flight, is embraced by a long, semicircular walk that leads to the site of the crash. The walk eventually will be shaded by 40 groves of trees to commemorate each of the passengers and crew members killed on September 11, 2001. To date, some of the groves have been planted, but the memorial is still a work in progress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Nonetheless, visiting the site is extraordinarily moving and emotional. There were lots of tears among everyone there--including Kali's and mine. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">View back toward the museum along the flight path</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Crash site overlook at the end of the flight path walkway</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The actual crash site is marked by a large sandstone boulder, which is barely visible in the image below, just short of the line of hemlocks. The plane hit the ground at over 500 miles per hour, so the passengers' remains are in place and protected in the grassy field beyond the white gate.</span></span><br />
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Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-87006224002789746542016-11-25T09:21:00.002-05:002016-11-25T09:21:55.728-05:00Visit with JP (Pittsburgh is SO Hilly)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali and JP sharing home-made apple pie</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali and I visited Pittsburgh two weeks ago so that I could deliver a talk about invasive plants to a garden club (see previous post). Kali and I both earned doctoral degrees from the University of Pittsburgh (Kali: English; Scott: Biological Sciences) while we lived in Pittsburgh from 1976 until 1981, so we "know" the city and still have friends there. On the way back home, we stopped to visit a friend from graduate school days Jan-Paul (JP) was teaching English as an adjunct at Pitt when we lived in Pittsburgh and we became close friends. JP has eclectic interests in classical music, literature, European languages, natural history (he's a much better naturalist than I), and especially gardening. He even served as the gardener for Mike Nichols and Diane Sawyer at their estate north of New York City for a few years. Alas, JP was eccentric, peripatetic and couldn't settle down, so he never earned a really "good" living. He loved Pittsburgh, and when it came time to retire he looked for a place he could afford there, finally buying a fixer-upper in the city's working-class Greenfield neighborhood for $120,000.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn1mo2aTGKmR408NFnMrETLr93UBF6uZ750TY7R2s6mYe8A6tMULpEkYzLK3N-J1xZRjJcf__3yES3IzrObT7LOzErnA6dSqNDykNd86JuCOxhPJ341zI_tC8xvicR9c_q97lIQyoxWiw/s1600/IMG_0375.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn1mo2aTGKmR408NFnMrETLr93UBF6uZ750TY7R2s6mYe8A6tMULpEkYzLK3N-J1xZRjJcf__3yES3IzrObT7LOzErnA6dSqNDykNd86JuCOxhPJ341zI_tC8xvicR9c_q97lIQyoxWiw/s320/IMG_0375.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">View of the back of the house</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Of course, he immediately set about transforming the derelict yard into his own eclectic garden.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">View toward the street of the garden between the house and garage</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">He spends much more time in the garden than in the house.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs1q2ECq_QiVrvYlXh4cqLgA1koQnGPZAazNu-10A_Aup-geX9k_MD2ohRo-n2pRAx1aL0moQNSwEpY4zux5uPAF6KfaX55WIezcKvh7XXwo2Fd5zvHVlN2qpRL11sGqijyEDO6Nx_kEs/s1600/IMG_0382a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs1q2ECq_QiVrvYlXh4cqLgA1koQnGPZAazNu-10A_Aup-geX9k_MD2ohRo-n2pRAx1aL0moQNSwEpY4zux5uPAF6KfaX55WIezcKvh7XXwo2Fd5zvHVlN2qpRL11sGqijyEDO6Nx_kEs/s320/IMG_0382a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">View from the back of the house through the late-October garden</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The reason JP bought this house was for the expansive view from the back. The house is perched 100 feet from the edge of a very steep slope tumbling down to the Monongahela River, affording wonderful views to the south.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TtCwZ9fX3L2iK8fV_sdsUDzFYmqm7pK4egbCforC6TKhghhUHect2vYAHoM7GDfTDbMJptgHYCe9KuocrxpI4gkXpZeVPVrpYEKHSgGRbqrmEs3MmhVDlMUabMxyYTojhyphenhyphenGiWYOnxBk/s1600/IMG_0378a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TtCwZ9fX3L2iK8fV_sdsUDzFYmqm7pK4egbCforC6TKhghhUHect2vYAHoM7GDfTDbMJptgHYCe9KuocrxpI4gkXpZeVPVrpYEKHSgGRbqrmEs3MmhVDlMUabMxyYTojhyphenhyphenGiWYOnxBk/s320/IMG_0378a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Backyard garden looking southwest</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The area immediately below JP's house was the site of the Homestead coke works when Pittsburgh was "Steel City." His neighbor, who has lived next door her entire life, said that her mother couldn't hang laundry outside to dry or it would get dirtier than it was before it was washed when the coke works were operating. Today, the coke works are gone and the area is being redeveloped for apartments and retail.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">In the image below, a tributary valley is visible across the river at the left of the image. The next valley upstream (just to the left but outside the range of the image) is the drainage of Hay's Run. There have been a pair of Bald Eagles nesting in the Hay's Run valley for the last few years, and JP says he sees them cruising on the thermals occasionally. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsFYIHkQMMN_TsIgP7TaCwWhLMY6QZL_jjEnUy5RLMy9jFCOY-u7NFLWaVh1GgUagvPpa4PL_K7T9Hi8-EFm9hHChw7W89irVevBdzD9XbYnQ7GLcN3Whb8RC-yaPWLRIYkcwRjM3DC6M/s1600/IMG_0376a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsFYIHkQMMN_TsIgP7TaCwWhLMY6QZL_jjEnUy5RLMy9jFCOY-u7NFLWaVh1GgUagvPpa4PL_K7T9Hi8-EFm9hHChw7W89irVevBdzD9XbYnQ7GLcN3Whb8RC-yaPWLRIYkcwRjM3DC6M/s320/IMG_0376a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">View southward across the Monongahela River</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali and I had forgotten how hilly Pittsburgh is. If Pittsburgh were wealthier and had better housing stock, it would be celebrated as the San Francisco of the East.</span><br />
<br />Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-82898689430077881562016-11-22T14:13:00.003-05:002016-11-22T14:13:32.736-05:00Pittsburgh Botanic Garden<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A decade ago, a colleague invited me to collaborate on a project at the site of what was destined to become the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden. The site was within Settlers Cabin Park, one of Allegheny County's parks in the southwestern Pittsburgh suburbs near the airport. The land had largely been strip mined for coal and then abandoned until it was purchased by the county for a future park. Since mining ended, the scarred hillsides had naturally reforested, although the streams draining the area were still poisoned by acid mine drainage. Our collaborative project was to evaluate the site for invasive, non-native plants, and to develop a management plan. After we completed our report, I didn't hear anything else about the garden.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Two weeks ago, I delivered a talk about invasive plants to a joint meeting of the Village Garden Club/Garden Club of Allegheny County. In speaking with the garden clubs' members, I asked about the status of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden - who better to know about progress on "my" project? Few of the people with whom I spoke knew much, and I don't think any of the garden club members had ever visited the garden. So, after my talk, I dragged Kali and our friend/host/former employee Rhonda out to the garden to look it over. What follows are images I made there.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81sZ-a40zCv5NpRuDVdlAMSKZ-VZDAnrmemGWqgrcaUVkV_GKVX73cXtoZrA2CAJ-9vyjPZ_A2p4h6Bzsdm4GJgK1zWP3BKRD3Rlin3oGFmSih6kjuH_4ga6tQ5Ek1D3tR2wpsOqM5fs/s1600/IMG_0285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81sZ-a40zCv5NpRuDVdlAMSKZ-VZDAnrmemGWqgrcaUVkV_GKVX73cXtoZrA2CAJ-9vyjPZ_A2p4h6Bzsdm4GJgK1zWP3BKRD3Rlin3oGFmSih6kjuH_4ga6tQ5Ek1D3tR2wpsOqM5fs/s320/IMG_0285.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The attractive Visitor Center, used mostly for revenue-generating functions (e.g., weddings, etc.)</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The garden is just getting off the ground. The concept is in place and trails have been blazed, but the garden is in its earliest stages of development. Most of the land is still covered in young woodlands and meadows, with trails cut through to provide access. And, invasive plants are ubiquitous! </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Friend Rhonda under a pergola</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Birdhouse in the goldenrod meadow</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali and Rhonda in the goldenrod meadow</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I liked this image because it looked very impressionistic</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Backlit goldenrod</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxZw-SdnDRmuE4tzwWj3oF2U99Pt_eCUCPjsUC3BaPLdkNFaNHrpGWijc_6Q2OjgrY7D0yEmyf-61oij1ZWmNALPBseid7rKQt2YaBzGGrZYsTEzh9uRQa48FVhjVe56ZlPGSjKez0SHo/s1600/IMG_0315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxZw-SdnDRmuE4tzwWj3oF2U99Pt_eCUCPjsUC3BaPLdkNFaNHrpGWijc_6Q2OjgrY7D0yEmyf-61oij1ZWmNALPBseid7rKQt2YaBzGGrZYsTEzh9uRQa48FVhjVe56ZlPGSjKez0SHo/s320/IMG_0315.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Backlit tuliptree leaf</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZIqU9ou0KCOEE1xD1GmHvEaqXGKYthoBdd6fS78GABv_X98BZ_iaPketSi1LlPvOlRYR5VwGWdZRIuTDG2X0JgAv8mAw9ier38fUvJD5RSbGIJf_UW6D9c6c5OOFKl_fbsQzJzfUDKc/s1600/IMG_0316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZIqU9ou0KCOEE1xD1GmHvEaqXGKYthoBdd6fS78GABv_X98BZ_iaPketSi1LlPvOlRYR5VwGWdZRIuTDG2X0JgAv8mAw9ier38fUvJD5RSbGIJf_UW6D9c6c5OOFKl_fbsQzJzfUDKc/s320/IMG_0316.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A "folly" in the forest</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggvZlEhd8gqR_CSO3mRTsHRvc-jMd_aUuXhC9OmJbMxwgZLVFv_F2lh4z1TCfJEm7FXGJUiif4o2Tx1YlSdrnluymrbT3zjn2CcOeTTDummuTeqWO5YcH7bEJVi82iisU9ycbCvP3zzGY/s1600/IMG_0319.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggvZlEhd8gqR_CSO3mRTsHRvc-jMd_aUuXhC9OmJbMxwgZLVFv_F2lh4z1TCfJEm7FXGJUiif4o2Tx1YlSdrnluymrbT3zjn2CcOeTTDummuTeqWO5YcH7bEJVi82iisU9ycbCvP3zzGY/s320/IMG_0319.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Woodland trail</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The garden administrators have decided to install environmental artwork throughout the trail network as an added attraction. Most of the work is not of the highest caliber, and some is downright unappealing and shoddy (in my opinion). However, the evocative wooden installation below was stunning. (Ignore the bizarre thatched "tiki houses" in the background.)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQC-F2WRWHw9MMZhhaGJ7ancB_gnInJtHELgbg61IobrSfkSajpB6IvDFOSpqvfxK4DqcZKaRMcfJLgYgnxdGiQbIpd1YXC2WlaOhOjPz-LngXvVnsNKUNlHyWPbcX5Zka3HLUrRZiTY8/s1600/IMG_0327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQC-F2WRWHw9MMZhhaGJ7ancB_gnInJtHELgbg61IobrSfkSajpB6IvDFOSpqvfxK4DqcZKaRMcfJLgYgnxdGiQbIpd1YXC2WlaOhOjPz-LngXvVnsNKUNlHyWPbcX5Zka3HLUrRZiTY8/s320/IMG_0327.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We visited the garden during late afternoon, which illuminated the tops of the trees perfectly to capture autumn's glory.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The most highly developed section of the facility is the Oriental Garden. Its central focus is a huge lily pond surrounded by a paved walkway.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali (left) and Rhonda on a boardwalk near the lily pond</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Rhonda (left) and Kali on steppingstones crossing the upper end of the lily pond</span></span></td></tr>
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text<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The lily pond serves a dual purpose: it is the aesthetic centerpiece of the Oriental Garden, and it is also an ingenious system to treat acid mine drainage in the stream that feeds the pond. The garden received a significant environmental grant to create this treatment system.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">At the end of our walk, we arrived at the eponymous "settlers' cabin," which has been lovingly and carefully restored.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Dcq5aJQybiu9ZJAufJNVUNbuMeDn8i2vjk5eIWrOOUY0LMK5uUyH81OuSO5puGJwERc1nQ9yveww1yDxr8u7RzK7i7z0y121-87nWPCqsgI49qLUlhgX3A0Snf_0ZSxwvtHddgqPbNs/s1600/IMG_0366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Dcq5aJQybiu9ZJAufJNVUNbuMeDn8i2vjk5eIWrOOUY0LMK5uUyH81OuSO5puGJwERc1nQ9yveww1yDxr8u7RzK7i7z0y121-87nWPCqsgI49qLUlhgX3A0Snf_0ZSxwvtHddgqPbNs/s320/IMG_0366.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We enjoyed a very pleasant late afternoon autumn stroll through the woods and fields, but the garden fells "raw" and has a long way to go before it becomes a real horticultural asset for the Pittsburgh area. Maybe, by the next time that I'm invited to speak ten years hence, I can share more progress.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-40977779271177323052016-10-19T17:03:00.000-04:002016-10-19T17:04:22.890-04:00Wissahickon Part 2: Forbidden Drive<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEMYm4J8Rtc7sTUryDnceKtOG9LDdICAJ-wIQKcYF7PbvMHoGoZtirBXBlB7ssQgvJbg0Gd9O0FQNplkx13XAme9LX5IAad_sa8fPFjYKmgt7P5sXTenM_kSVsNSmIZEJjhmKvXMkWx7g/s1600/IMG_0075.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEMYm4J8Rtc7sTUryDnceKtOG9LDdICAJ-wIQKcYF7PbvMHoGoZtirBXBlB7ssQgvJbg0Gd9O0FQNplkx13XAme9LX5IAad_sa8fPFjYKmgt7P5sXTenM_kSVsNSmIZEJjhmKvXMkWx7g/s320/IMG_0075.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bell's Mill Road Bridge, viewed upstream</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After Kali and I finished exploring Houston Meadows (previous post), which is located on a high, flat bluff above Wissahickon Creek, we descended the steep valley slope to the stream. An old carriage road parallels the western bank of the creek for seven miles. Because vehicles are prohibited from using the old road, it is called Forbidden Drive. Forbidden Drive is one of the most heavily used recreational amenities in the city, with walkers, runners, equestrians, and bicyclists all mixed together in a generally congenial stew. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK77y6UeAcina6RiIl4i1M0kVdW6lFtXqVrF7TjQIwwRJwMCuzuwE709Z4Idu3_eGZMSkH7Ry4obJ3YRuxlSu2W7zEzy3kXGAi00yKRadMoMI-jLf61UzX6sjnyBUPGcBgbSThzfhqcrs/s1600/IMG_0070A.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK77y6UeAcina6RiIl4i1M0kVdW6lFtXqVrF7TjQIwwRJwMCuzuwE709Z4Idu3_eGZMSkH7Ry4obJ3YRuxlSu2W7zEzy3kXGAi00yKRadMoMI-jLf61UzX6sjnyBUPGcBgbSThzfhqcrs/s320/IMG_0070A.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Wissahickon Creek downstream of Bell's Mill Bridge</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The land that is now Wissahickon Valley Park was a colonial industrial valley with mills and roads throughout. The city bought the land in the late 19th century because Wissahickon Creek empties into the Schuylkill River just upstream of the city's drinking water intake, so the city wanted to try to preserve water quality in the Wissahickon and the receiving stream. Nearly all vestiges of the industrial heritage are gone, but many of the stone ruins and the bridges that bore roads over the creek remain.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjevOqi6VMmQRJ_e6qIuFp9VV93Y3PEZEHftKzJSj5FgIIQ_NdqHJFwBW1v3CeZwSKET7oSaG1sfZLEXMtPAS8tkhRnPkw6u8Qpqdqwmn3veh-G3LsoyO5-OorqyJsK2E9HE70ZUadhbrw/s1600/IMG_0074.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjevOqi6VMmQRJ_e6qIuFp9VV93Y3PEZEHftKzJSj5FgIIQ_NdqHJFwBW1v3CeZwSKET7oSaG1sfZLEXMtPAS8tkhRnPkw6u8Qpqdqwmn3veh-G3LsoyO5-OorqyJsK2E9HE70ZUadhbrw/s320/IMG_0074.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Blue wood aster (<i>Aster cordifolius</i>) and Wreath goldenrod <i>(Solidago caesia</i>) on the wooded streambank</span></span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbP1vGZFP9OrHYIZc0vK-Wsd8rdefcspcTq_2qsFLMm32c7EY5EtDtHw-fZDKV_MW9-vEF7ON8mN-VTrvGFk2Wc5sBJwUT0eE1r6rhrnvG9fR7fzE3tdiki_GAnqMBi0OIkDBOuIVaIA/s1600/IMG_0079.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbP1vGZFP9OrHYIZc0vK-Wsd8rdefcspcTq_2qsFLMm32c7EY5EtDtHw-fZDKV_MW9-vEF7ON8mN-VTrvGFk2Wc5sBJwUT0eE1r6rhrnvG9fR7fzE3tdiki_GAnqMBi0OIkDBOuIVaIA/s320/IMG_0079.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Forested slope with denuded understory</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">White-tailed deer have been very abundant in the park. As a result, nearly all of the forest understory is gone, and few sapling tress are growing to replace the old trees when they die. For the last decade, the city has hired sharpshooters from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to cull the herd. The sharpshooters hunt at night over bait, and the venison is donated to local food banks. Nevertheless, animal rights group protests are a constant thorn in the city's side over this issue. The culling has significantly reduced the number of deer, and the forest has begun to recover in places.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxnfO0KBuIZ1DV710OQ4evpV2Ub7kGJFWaFU4JmzmfVueGsVvVXXlhWuV_aCvi-X2oe6z1NlPpJifusJov4_CTv9VpB6GLf1jGjfljxORt8LplHiBI0rdbm3JCt5RIi3ne4etQYL_3m3c/s1600/IMG_0080.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxnfO0KBuIZ1DV710OQ4evpV2Ub7kGJFWaFU4JmzmfVueGsVvVXXlhWuV_aCvi-X2oe6z1NlPpJifusJov4_CTv9VpB6GLf1jGjfljxORt8LplHiBI0rdbm3JCt5RIi3ne4etQYL_3m3c/s320/IMG_0080.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Parasitic beech-drops (<i>Epifagus virginiana</i>) in a patch of sunlight</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">One of the reasons that the Wissahickon is so popular is because it is
very scenic. The creek has cut a deep gorge though very hard rock, so
the valley slopes are steep with lots of scenic boulders and bedrock
exposed. Because of the steepness, only one old road crosses the valley
directly (Bell's Mill Road, the picture at the head of this post), and
few roads penetrate down to Forbidden Drive. Rex Avenue (image below) is one of those roads that descends from the eastern side of the valley and terminates at Forbidden Drive.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGWre-pPNEga-lYTvOXkL7StkQKo31D0MMdmWh4uuOctjFbaPocLJPFnv9jGeheYftw8uucarz9OAen45670Go7gxzFxEBqO1VwcLKSTUTHpp-bAIP7Zru-vsU58v441czioCg8hWyxUo/s1600/IMG_0111.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGWre-pPNEga-lYTvOXkL7StkQKo31D0MMdmWh4uuOctjFbaPocLJPFnv9jGeheYftw8uucarz9OAen45670Go7gxzFxEBqO1VwcLKSTUTHpp-bAIP7Zru-vsU58v441czioCg8hWyxUo/s320/IMG_0111.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Rex Avenue Bridge</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNH8fIvKlziEUamwiMhkf6YaIOW9ECjAzvZSERXDZheXpV3Ke0aHRzvzVsSdakAjSiwturv6dCNsyxKsX6JDzL7DsS576d_SQei7l5HqNNcxg6YEwpA5LqFzgpx8XhqbCnoIsPMax3ixI/s1600/IMG_0114.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNH8fIvKlziEUamwiMhkf6YaIOW9ECjAzvZSERXDZheXpV3Ke0aHRzvzVsSdakAjSiwturv6dCNsyxKsX6JDzL7DsS576d_SQei7l5HqNNcxg6YEwpA5LqFzgpx8XhqbCnoIsPMax3ixI/s320/IMG_0114.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Old <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">park g</span>uardhouse along Forbidden Drive</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbeCh6649tpmCwwXmahqnif3wXJY4HZUfMKPv7knbwvPPs8fkim_6U6T9hbR3WMTPuAHgP3RP_mSJvluoCMBsh-QcO1kHOpPNY-m0DvATOFr-no9HgRkWki2Wp55idYL8Ew9vVy71-g6Y/s1600/IMG_0115.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbeCh6649tpmCwwXmahqnif3wXJY4HZUfMKPv7knbwvPPs8fkim_6U6T9hbR3WMTPuAHgP3RP_mSJvluoCMBsh-QcO1kHOpPNY-m0DvATOFr-no9HgRkWki2Wp55idYL8Ew9vVy71-g6Y/s320/IMG_0115.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Covered bridge, the only one in Philadelphia</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJra0pxi4oMlLHCKt_FsST5WWZSGRGDdGR0UCD7tmvOLMHok_4MkjvA6jB4mnh7ce9gFt83ldeJQ0RMH-o1jTbnzUsBonbZkQrejPfE6kr5HbX4QLuDbDK330zjZAa5Ytf6gGZF0fh-M8/s1600/IMG_0118.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJra0pxi4oMlLHCKt_FsST5WWZSGRGDdGR0UCD7tmvOLMHok_4MkjvA6jB4mnh7ce9gFt83ldeJQ0RMH-o1jTbnzUsBonbZkQrejPfE6kr5HbX4QLuDbDK330zjZAa5Ytf6gGZF0fh-M8/s320/IMG_0118.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Invasive Japanese angelica-tree (<i>Aralia elata</i>), left, and Japanese knotweed (<i>Fallopia japonica</i>)</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSlH15qTzwTQEPSjO40v6_cI1H5P9yt_DZhahyOH2P4Zk-i3kk3BtGvsp8XVhmyUEIrFKUlWsc2Xs8U7DZFDbdlLzpXn15zoXoS6qQfuVWrZhDGujeHzDKIoIiVzvXOkZyCYS-KeBOmvY/s1600/IMG_0120.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSlH15qTzwTQEPSjO40v6_cI1H5P9yt_DZhahyOH2P4Zk-i3kk3BtGvsp8XVhmyUEIrFKUlWsc2Xs8U7DZFDbdlLzpXn15zoXoS6qQfuVWrZhDGujeHzDKIoIiVzvXOkZyCYS-KeBOmvY/s320/IMG_0120.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Wissahickon Creek rapid</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTqp87j8wQuJTi54u3q0YCd3qSN4RWT2jgXw0fYCihXNBzJW4NhUZ7dV8h_HXKIV5VvKqQQHWXMa4KyPN-GQQHM8EDs_Lo55cEcN-UnNjnUWzDr2CQ6kNgUN3SGYCin0xc2fLE-IAKwiI/s1600/IMG_0123.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTqp87j8wQuJTi54u3q0YCd3qSN4RWT2jgXw0fYCihXNBzJW4NhUZ7dV8h_HXKIV5VvKqQQHWXMa4KyPN-GQQHM8EDs_Lo55cEcN-UnNjnUWzDr2CQ6kNgUN3SGYCin0xc2fLE-IAKwiI/s320/IMG_0123.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Forbidden Drive</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Forbidden Drive is not one of Kali's favorite walks because it is dark and claustrophobic; she much prefers the sun and openness of Houston Meadows. However, I like the views of the creek and the general sense of community among the users.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-39924262234089790352016-10-18T12:20:00.000-04:002016-10-18T12:20:22.707-04:00Wissahickon Part 1: Houston Meadows<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTpBv2IDP-bIh6eSkGhCVMJH6Fhp5x9exRfaGZg7EX68HRzGyIwND-wuv83tSgIi1Tsp0eoBaHxyqLNS4N6lx4PAfP7cG9FVBMiZ3IHP6yYuXsJ_ekU5k82f84QddgEqPSmBCZYzie_VM/s1600/IMG_0098A.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTpBv2IDP-bIh6eSkGhCVMJH6Fhp5x9exRfaGZg7EX68HRzGyIwND-wuv83tSgIi1Tsp0eoBaHxyqLNS4N6lx4PAfP7cG9FVBMiZ3IHP6yYuXsJ_ekU5k82f84QddgEqPSmBCZYzie_VM/s320/IMG_0098A.JPG" width="242" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bumblebee on goldenrod</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Last Saturday (October 15) was an absolutely perfect early autumn day, with temperatures in the upper 60s, crystal clear blue skies, and very low humidity. I packed Kali into the car and we drove over to the north-westernmost neighborhood in Philadelphia called Roxborough for a hike in the 1,800-acre Wissahickon Valley Park, Philadelphia's largest and best-known park. Our goal that day, in addition to just getting some exercise, was to inspect Houston Meadows, a restoration project undertaken by the city's Department of Parks and Recreation as part of an ongoing series of natural lands restorations throughout the city's larger parks.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxn2dl9Ei7e2h_jOaOfTvSzi9Po5OP0Ih1gO3V1YuafFPh6lYyBK98QRXlTPOfVFLe3HSLHs6IOUo-QLZEjqEGEhAXKj_y0oiDjVRaKCLLocXYD0BguDlku9VayTBgd0cCPWaSHyd4cM/s1600/IMG_0092.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxn2dl9Ei7e2h_jOaOfTvSzi9Po5OP0Ih1gO3V1YuafFPh6lYyBK98QRXlTPOfVFLe3HSLHs6IOUo-QLZEjqEGEhAXKj_y0oiDjVRaKCLLocXYD0BguDlku9VayTBgd0cCPWaSHyd4cM/s320/IMG_0092.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Trail through goldenrod and little bluestem</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdida8ywgamhMJwYQtefN2jw9Aw0yPOkz2jABdNtyCpf-tq4_dimXhbCVYx1G18OJ5ac67D79wnJphySbJRrDEgS5ZG93Sck_gE24OyPErRKUgCctQ5jD-9GRvHGllOeb_6EhvKPko5Gs/s1600/IMG_0090.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdida8ywgamhMJwYQtefN2jw9Aw0yPOkz2jABdNtyCpf-tq4_dimXhbCVYx1G18OJ5ac67D79wnJphySbJRrDEgS5ZG93Sck_gE24OyPErRKUgCctQ5jD-9GRvHGllOeb_6EhvKPko5Gs/s320/IMG_0090.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A few aspens; there are others growing nearby at the edge of the meadow</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGc4nCqZmCCTXkGy9u0eocufW0ELq0fpkTWm2YvviULU7G6LUn2qn3yfs9doxCnzLyy2vLeGwzGQK8RPl2Y4uju9vVCJsCJznsvdwLdGdu-wiWntjbHd9JKnLcR3yb1E7GFD5ZuSfjv5o/s1600/IMG_0087.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGc4nCqZmCCTXkGy9u0eocufW0ELq0fpkTWm2YvviULU7G6LUn2qn3yfs9doxCnzLyy2vLeGwzGQK8RPl2Y4uju9vVCJsCJznsvdwLdGdu-wiWntjbHd9JKnLcR3yb1E7GFD5ZuSfjv5o/s320/IMG_0087.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Native little bluestem (<i>Schizachyrium scoparium</i>)</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To my mind, the Houston Meadows project was not a straightforward "winner." During the early part of the 20th century, the meadows had been an active farm before urbanization expanded outward to the very edges of the city limits. When the farm was incorporated into the park, the land became fallow and quickly reverted to herbaceous old-field habitat - a "wildflower meadow" in common parlance. This habitat was extraordinarily attractive to birds and butterflies that needed such habitat, and Houston Meadows became a birders paradise maintained by fires set periodically by neighborhood hoodlums.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBXepaTHsl1soklXSaplJG8tXICiH5aoV4UcisdYTvljhxBFPqs2aM32suZKQegqKyIHOfLb2Wb3S_0Ed4Z4Ff82axrbrQ69LsfogQrMB6IOJISrkPwUXPaPcA-9-ez9WvE0fZXi5voRI/s1600/IMG_0091.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBXepaTHsl1soklXSaplJG8tXICiH5aoV4UcisdYTvljhxBFPqs2aM32suZKQegqKyIHOfLb2Wb3S_0Ed4Z4Ff82axrbrQ69LsfogQrMB6IOJISrkPwUXPaPcA-9-ez9WvE0fZXi5voRI/s320/IMG_0091.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Bluebird box on meadow slope</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All
was well until houses were built up to the very edge of the park, and
then the field fires had to be suppressed. This fire suppression allowed natural succession to kick in and trees and woody vegetation, formerly killed by the fires, began to creep into the meadows, changing the land first to a thicket and then to a young woodland. The birds and lepidopterans could no longer find appropriate habitat and abandoned Houston "Meadows."</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL8Azs40tXt4nHFRbW9A4ONLdToP6sQO2Myup6NZpni6mcbXb5p862Ia24rNZkKAP_09omVQh8oHGf2-HFdwPxrxUYRwWN_t9ZgNG6kIiuz4hmq0nEmZamkyAdd-risdHoqNMCWtaVPk/s1600/IMG_0093.JPG"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL8Azs40tXt4nHFRbW9A4ONLdToP6sQO2Myup6NZpni6mcbXb5p862Ia24rNZkKAP_09omVQh8oHGf2-HFdwPxrxUYRwWN_t9ZgNG6kIiuz4hmq0nEmZamkyAdd-risdHoqNMCWtaVPk/s320/IMG_0093.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQIZJM7c3vtAsMvIeUoqSYpxIzcCi4yTrf6tbeh6-0XKItUVo9hhj4O5pWHr5UL8bkXg47vUtMKTX-N69dvtkwAEQSWzOd5aJLWfv9zLoi8zXgyL7TC2NYcrWH5UAsMSfXebswq2ADRk/s1600/IMG_0096.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQIZJM7c3vtAsMvIeUoqSYpxIzcCi4yTrf6tbeh6-0XKItUVo9hhj4O5pWHr5UL8bkXg47vUtMKTX-N69dvtkwAEQSWzOd5aJLWfv9zLoi8zXgyL7TC2NYcrWH5UAsMSfXebswq2ADRk/s320/IMG_0096.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Goldenrod (<i>Solidago</i> spp.), boneset (<i>Eupatroium perfoliatum</i>) and native grasses</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">With support from a philanthropic foundation, the city decided to try to restore the meadow habitat and attract the birds back. So, they brought in heavy equipment to clear the trees in the young woodlands, and they seeded the land with early concessional meadow species and native grasses. </span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKM01Ai_46w5A3ySqyV1GwKRCZxYKn3GBwVz54DegrsC3ZsplIFGZHSo-elwMDMIA94R9c5xN3YUqAr62DwEjTy7A3UKp7eKgayBS9cVUdegtyZ8d17yeZXDlMy8W-vigrY_aqVasOsUw/s1600/IMG_0102.JPG"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKM01Ai_46w5A3ySqyV1GwKRCZxYKn3GBwVz54DegrsC3ZsplIFGZHSo-elwMDMIA94R9c5xN3YUqAr62DwEjTy7A3UKp7eKgayBS9cVUdegtyZ8d17yeZXDlMy8W-vigrY_aqVasOsUw/s320/IMG_0102.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The result has been mixed in my opinion. First, I have to admit that I don't know if the "target" birds have returned to the meadows. If they have, they've "voted with their wings" and given the restoration their approval. But, if the birds haven't returned, the project cannot automatically be dubbed a failure because (1) they birds may not have "found" the meadows yet, (2) the habitat may not have developed enough to interest the birds, or (3) the restored field really might not be suitable habitat.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwswWEg9qVZBwlz-A_unzqjJ2LwMv2EfwdmSlYcFqs6z-IxSTXQc_evL1XA7ZYevHje4SehLCkRpD6PzcJBMAWV20BQKhr-I54m4wQleqJH7HvaqpiPRhBUBMyVp3_-XbgDl1OniAQNo/s1600/IMG_0103.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwswWEg9qVZBwlz-A_unzqjJ2LwMv2EfwdmSlYcFqs6z-IxSTXQc_evL1XA7ZYevHje4SehLCkRpD6PzcJBMAWV20BQKhr-I54m4wQleqJH7HvaqpiPRhBUBMyVp3_-XbgDl1OniAQNo/s320/IMG_0103.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">This section of the meadows almost looks "western," with a big rock and conifers</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Where the herbaceous vegetation has gotten established, the meadows are lush, productive and beautiful. But Parks and Recreation seems (to me, anyway) to have left too many trees in the midst of the fields. Hawks and other raptors perch in these trees and prey on the meadow-nesting birds.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI1E9f8dOzS8PKDd5xoxwWtj31QLmGTAeH1i8Vnj8y-LZCKmIvpfSqLzaGjpsko4K-6M28upnMMFCwwytWFG4d3uGx2h5ZboY30H_QrmkZmVBhdzqkPBsMkFihIW1t4lLJ5kUgKthXwoU/s1600/IMG_0105.JPG"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI1E9f8dOzS8PKDd5xoxwWtj31QLmGTAeH1i8Vnj8y-LZCKmIvpfSqLzaGjpsko4K-6M28upnMMFCwwytWFG4d3uGx2h5ZboY30H_QrmkZmVBhdzqkPBsMkFihIW1t4lLJ5kUgKthXwoU/s320/IMG_0105.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">In addition, the meadows are small and fragmented. Some meadow-nesting birds seem to need 160 acres of grassland habitat to breed successfully, and these fields are nowhere near that large. Other species, especially species that like brushy habitat, may be the first ones to recolonize the site. To my eye, the habitat looks perfect for birds that like scrubby, brushy habitat.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLQzFeVZ0PA_kJeVwLqpWk99Y-Xd8G-F8p0BzpF_ohrMuQBA31HyHQCdKZ2l80yzmeZ42bKyH5HMTtKR-GgdtsZ6_pdmSZQKaO0UiSba4moCezCf6qbjQsjAvWPSnVpseIB3vr1DHwM4/s1600/IMG_0107.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLQzFeVZ0PA_kJeVwLqpWk99Y-Xd8G-F8p0BzpF_ohrMuQBA31HyHQCdKZ2l80yzmeZ42bKyH5HMTtKR-GgdtsZ6_pdmSZQKaO0UiSba4moCezCf6qbjQsjAvWPSnVpseIB3vr1DHwM4/s320/IMG_0107.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Deer exclosure fencing</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Parks and Recreation also included a deer exclosure as part of the project, but it is in a wooded corner of the meadows. I don't know the motivation for excluding deer from a meadow project, but perhaps they were trying to expand a section of woodland and not develop meadow here.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-84600611147020781202016-10-14T10:08:00.001-04:002016-10-14T10:08:49.019-04:00Just Shed<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cpUV09JUVapyvLUlMwJvX4ky6uIjYFXKnmecGyKT2MrkHzBAm0ZPDinhQDv9RAC87HQsB3o_0nAEYW9NzJZlVMjwWjF_OnpD_SW_iJMXvAI9uLcEORBomvg6ovJzLIpOLJK7pwdJIgQ/s1600/IMG_0058a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cpUV09JUVapyvLUlMwJvX4ky6uIjYFXKnmecGyKT2MrkHzBAm0ZPDinhQDv9RAC87HQsB3o_0nAEYW9NzJZlVMjwWjF_OnpD_SW_iJMXvAI9uLcEORBomvg6ovJzLIpOLJK7pwdJIgQ/s320/IMG_0058a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali and I took a walk in my preserve on Wednesday evening after she got home from work. As we walked along the trail that parallels the creek running through the preserve, I noticed a long snake skin on the ground.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The owner must have shed the skin very recently because it was still soft and supple.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I decided to bring it back to our Visitor Center to put it on display. However, it drew a lot of attention from other folks walking the trail that evening I was glad to be an ambassador for the natural world and for our organization. Maybe I should walk around with it draped around my neck all the time--sorta' like the puppies guys are advised to use to attract the attention of women.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRyDbU48iECweeu3vQxcJEpz9X40LSw-PH-sNmrSOeDGT7aNXHQVh1coPfpK5euTutG6IpgovOcPePp1g1ZJhwlo72mBxK76zMWMpqUTvzxKkecII6-ZBhBwoF2jaX-lg69AkxIhZA4pY/s1600/IMG_0053.JPG"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRyDbU48iECweeu3vQxcJEpz9X40LSw-PH-sNmrSOeDGT7aNXHQVh1coPfpK5euTutG6IpgovOcPePp1g1ZJhwlo72mBxK76zMWMpqUTvzxKkecII6-ZBhBwoF2jaX-lg69AkxIhZA4pY/s320/IMG_0053.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> By the way, the owner more than likely was a Northern Water Snake (<i>Neroida sipedon sipedon</i>), which are very common in the preserve. When I stretched it out to its full length, the skin measured 3' 11". </span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-44901912973594418082016-09-23T14:04:00.002-04:002016-09-23T14:04:51.741-04:00Botanical Illustration III - Scratchboard<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu-vvi98dZOt1FoobUzH_RrXw6fpqfmNlz7KIvUA3YWe9a1K7MFi1OfoFFXnNouXl43QFLTdGtdrClP_dKdkz882z1hlsurOiv0EQBzUBJnlDrLIVnjAn2dYvSxyp-6Vcvf1Wt4J_SbDI/s1600/IMG_0051a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu-vvi98dZOt1FoobUzH_RrXw6fpqfmNlz7KIvUA3YWe9a1K7MFi1OfoFFXnNouXl43QFLTdGtdrClP_dKdkz882z1hlsurOiv0EQBzUBJnlDrLIVnjAn2dYvSxyp-6Vcvf1Wt4J_SbDI/s320/IMG_0051a.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I completed the third and final class of introductory botanical illustration last evening. The eight students attempted scratchboard, something I had never tried before. There's no erasing; no correcting errors. My results appears at the head of the post. The instructor and I agreed that I had probably done my best work in the red section of the largest leaf.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I now know that I am sufficiently capable of drawing to tackle other projects, but I'll probably have to wait until I retire to take this up again. I don't think I'll attempt scratchboard, though; it was frustrating and unforgiving. </span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-57638620268268097072016-09-22T12:12:00.003-04:002016-09-23T10:27:36.423-04:00Paunacussing<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7DBpV9WcpyA7H87IQXovqiseu_FZ9M6NfgUp7ekL4GMyD2xZ-AoHI60lh2crTW80G4yqkadWGn1cAx5iMyrFudMbK5Vrl863VR7tzdL7xf4vMrFt_YZj032vfqsk9EHhqotTUT4VlQQ/s1600/IMG_9986.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7DBpV9WcpyA7H87IQXovqiseu_FZ9M6NfgUp7ekL4GMyD2xZ-AoHI60lh2crTW80G4yqkadWGn1cAx5iMyrFudMbK5Vrl863VR7tzdL7xf4vMrFt_YZj032vfqsk9EHhqotTUT4VlQQ/s320/IMG_9986.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Kali dispersing common milkweed (<i>Asclepias syriaca</i>) seeds</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">On Sunday afternoon, September 18, Kali and I joined about 20 other guests at a natural area called the Paunacussing Preserve owned by the Natural Lands Trust (NLT), the largest regional land trust in eastern Pennsylvania. This guided walk was for long-term NLT supporters and was led by Preserve Manager <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Preston Wilson</span> supported by another NLT staff member and a volunteer. Sunday afternoon was very warm, humid, and cloudy with thunderstorms in the forecast, but the very much-needed rain held off until Monday morning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The 100-acre Paunacussing (named for the creek that rises on the land) contains active agriculture, farmland converted to native meadows, meadows undergoing active afforestation, woodlots, and a large pond. Topographically, it is fairly level and walking was easy. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We set off on paths cut through native goldenrod meadows in full bloom.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Old fence post festooned with Virginia creeper </span></span>(<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Parthenocissus <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">quinquefolia</span></span></i></span>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSM3z3KM0q4x8YvHRe_CFXM-NMVAe8tnfDOL9F-NFJPcPUuT5qvdvN5qgHFB7BGZZnkFhhFFwnXK4BE61_0gXpqWHghV-j9F4Rz54sROBNVYKrujn0D4bm409xtFm3KmN6PE6Nvna8AE/s1600/IMG_9993a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSM3z3KM0q4x8YvHRe_CFXM-NMVAe8tnfDOL9F-NFJPcPUuT5qvdvN5qgHFB7BGZZnkFhhFFwnXK4BE61_0gXpqWHghV-j9F4Rz54sROBNVYKrujn0D4bm409xtFm3KmN6PE6Nvna8AE/s320/IMG_9993a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cooperative azure damselfly perched in the meadow</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPsg5L8xs0Nikfxd8k-7XcSJPnNqua7DzkkqiyqM8YMEX4se6GocfCmEo7r0fPk8zPHagt1ZBfgRpilBx4IbHP2grI_1rPM2yq6yycLpcdRjFz-xPglNEgfQ4_vECSDp4JCYgtWatniU/s1600/IMG_0025a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPsg5L8xs0Nikfxd8k-7XcSJPnNqua7DzkkqiyqM8YMEX4se6GocfCmEo7r0fPk8zPHagt1ZBfgRpilBx4IbHP2grI_1rPM2yq6yycLpcdRjFz-xPglNEgfQ4_vECSDp4JCYgtWatniU/s320/IMG_0025a.JPG" width="154" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Thistle gone to seed exposing its silvery underbelly</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All afternoon long, the sky w<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">as</span> full of vultures. The light wasn't good, the birds weren't close enough for me to get a good "naked eye" view, and I hadn't brought my binoculars, so I couldn't tell if they were Turkey Vultures (<i>Cathartes aura</i>) (the more likely) or Black Vultures (<i>Coragyps atratus</i>). </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLQe9vRA7DCEiwmG8RYsvFAzakw9XucoT8k7baX3ZcnwWr8qGgDImwkrJ8Gp4KfE3XKaLWyDK2uo-gP2joNnA0Bd1ZB2F2iCAKhx2eaX91El9BXKw1HuDKKKde-ZRfWzOnyX0VCWore1k/s1600/IMG_9999a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLQe9vRA7DCEiwmG8RYsvFAzakw9XucoT8k7baX3ZcnwWr8qGgDImwkrJ8Gp4KfE3XKaLWyDK2uo-gP2joNnA0Bd1ZB2F2iCAKhx2eaX91El9BXKw1HuDKKKde-ZRfWzOnyX0VCWore1k/s320/IMG_9999a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Vultures</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">From the meadows, we moved to the pond on the property. When the preserve was privately owned and used as both a weekend retreat and as a farm, the owners maintained a fairly sizable pond fed by four springs. When NLT acquired the property, the land managers decided to reduce the size of the pond and to begin to accelerate its inevitable transition to freshwater marsh. (Ponds constructed at the headwaters of small streams are ecologically damaging since they create large expanses of water exposed to the sun. The water discharged from such ponds is much warmer than water in streams should be, altering the entire ecosystem downstream.)</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEobD7uqbVcj_ZjUKCrttkFtP952FbcSRZKc2BFlnHVJXNfiUE5JBOfFABnXOlLhpeBFo-vaZNIsNmuuCQ0tZirh8O9xexE3EpGoSjmDdQAgLAnKXD16RhQo8HhBCIKFwy0e-TcfvbwFw/s1600/IMG_0001.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEobD7uqbVcj_ZjUKCrttkFtP952FbcSRZKc2BFlnHVJXNfiUE5JBOfFABnXOlLhpeBFo-vaZNIsNmuuCQ0tZirh8O9xexE3EpGoSjmDdQAgLAnKXD16RhQo8HhBCIKFwy0e-TcfvbwFw/s320/IMG_0001.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The pond</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The land managers excavated through the berm that was damming the creek and lowered the water level considerably. This exposed large areas of mud that were quickly colonized by emergent aquatic vegetation. The remaining pond is only about four feet deep.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Beavers have colonized the pond. <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Preston</span> explained that he didn't want beavers in the pond because they were cutting down trees and because they were blocking up the outlet channel and the agri-drain system that NLT installed to allow land managers to manipulate the water level. He said that he had been in contact with the Pennsylvania Game Commission about removing the beavers. Kali and I do not believe he made a compelling case for removing the beavers. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRK5plXKDjt7e2k-BC-2cphlnAe0LPUg7sP7OiSMveoyYNYgxtxwN8tqzFB9oK3STDNRlntbspKjjkoiVo62XAo5-iuEjMdt9k4kkvyW4jvMn30L0m0R0nowrWhG4DSHVbsvdsAAAg3pc/s1600/IMG_0027.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRK5plXKDjt7e2k-BC-2cphlnAe0LPUg7sP7OiSMveoyYNYgxtxwN8tqzFB9oK3STDNRlntbspKjjkoiVo62XAo5-iuEjMdt9k4kkvyW4jvMn30L0m0R0nowrWhG4DSHVbsvdsAAAg3pc/s320/IMG_0027.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A beaver's handiwork at the edge of the pond</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbRE8stFKVUQII6Cilee-UmFRtILX99K8GNXRjf09WEUtfywI9peidCsHuXxg7T-5t54QQ27riKfm-tIt_DcdhFp6LxYkQMIb3KKZnK0wpdIJK6LyjgYUo1eUG0gunGGqIkt9HOknO6IM/s1600/IMG_0033a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbRE8stFKVUQII6Cilee-UmFRtILX99K8GNXRjf09WEUtfywI9peidCsHuXxg7T-5t54QQ27riKfm-tIt_DcdhFp6LxYkQMIb3KKZnK0wpdIJK6LyjgYUo1eUG0gunGGqIkt9HOknO6IM/s320/IMG_0033a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cattails (<i>Typha</i> spp.)</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Xdrq7sTzrwqkw_K41S9RmUwcCp9XBjw2-VcDVFZWMABZ2K7GA0JJ4jm4cr3r8-WCdZP6y4i3pFIqoakQnox8o9KAIn5J1dxngVGVHq1w6ZpfP-GdqUhv7_7rlLbJLcgyLAYkrz-SSgQ/s1600/IMG_0035.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Xdrq7sTzrwqkw_K41S9RmUwcCp9XBjw2-VcDVFZWMABZ2K7GA0JJ4jm4cr3r8-WCdZP6y4i3pFIqoakQnox8o9KAIn5J1dxngVGVHq1w6ZpfP-GdqUhv7_7rlLbJLcgyLAYkrz-SSgQ/s320/IMG_0035.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cattails and <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">g</span>reen-headed (or <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">c</span>ut-leaf) Coneflowers (<i>Rudbeckia laciniata</i>)</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipbuf7KXXZBL_xG6oNgYdv0lo-EjsAiWSMo6x84c95GPTLEVO6yr6055h9M74K9q5XRHkCrxGvEi6YLyqYihjssItWCcQqDwf2tygWgZdXwv_mgqx5E7T0AkWd4aE6kQ20O_DOyCSzAIo/s1600/IMG_0029.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipbuf7KXXZBL_xG6oNgYdv0lo-EjsAiWSMo6x84c95GPTLEVO6yr6055h9M74K9q5XRHkCrxGvEi6YLyqYihjssItWCcQqDwf2tygWgZdXwv_mgqx5E7T0AkWd4aE6kQ20O_DOyCSzAIo/s320/IMG_0029.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A moss-softened path</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">From the pond, we ventured into a small woodlot where NLT had erected several fenced exclosures to demonstrate the impact of white-tailed deer. The enclosures were too new to show much difference in vegetation between areas accessible to and protected from deer browsing.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRIQkbiYY9IlFvBw5p-8EjZCjSCz7qLr3s7K5T3Z0Qcs3-xgpFJpqoaipmXxFnPgTxQxS1wmKlHtLUTr_Ll6zUBnToLIHBzkaeZ_wQatPzvQxmDkkCFF-6_qFJbn6o0AFPeYvcl-5qs4s/s1600/IMG_0004.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRIQkbiYY9IlFvBw5p-8EjZCjSCz7qLr3s7K5T3Z0Qcs3-xgpFJpqoaipmXxFnPgTxQxS1wmKlHtLUTr_Ll6zUBnToLIHBzkaeZ_wQatPzvQxmDkkCFF-6_qFJbn6o0AFPeYvcl-5qs4s/s320/IMG_0004.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Preserve manager <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Preston Wilson</span> (light shirt) explaining the deer exclosure</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When we emerged from the woods, I found that I had acquired a new arthropod companion on my lower leg. I gently coaxed the caterpillar onto a<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> Southern </span>arrow-wood (<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Viburnum dentatu</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>m</i>) </span></span>leaf.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxFy8XvoieZn3Dgx7JYZADgWQQREYd6_HRFOJdQV0extRo4lW-h_ZnQsjDRSDiphe_7y7ZYXbm4_ZhBhYkMKm3w17RHbLQM7ke-1Ku-ZVTgHZ4z5qYd5u4VdA8v5Rt5GCdUoHg1_jboo/s1600/IMG_0010a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxFy8XvoieZn3Dgx7JYZADgWQQREYd6_HRFOJdQV0extRo4lW-h_ZnQsjDRSDiphe_7y7ZYXbm4_ZhBhYkMKm3w17RHbLQM7ke-1Ku-ZVTgHZ4z5qYd5u4VdA8v5Rt5GCdUoHg1_jboo/s320/IMG_0010a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Note the dense auburn hairs plus the much longer, less-dense lighter hairs</span></span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The last part of the tour wound through meadows under active afforestation. NLT plants tree seedlings in plastic tree shelters. Over the last few years, they have planted nearly 3,100 trees in the preserve in an effort to join woodlots into large blocks of forest. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEsO6gtaioPGVGP8n3qhgk2AE1drMaJ-xFKVu6J8I0vbwnK1d96sp-p2QDU3ngNEQ0VJnA09hyphenhyphenadVZzhnlqotF0tEQIVj9Lrhd0_kyFGWciiN4TEonymkQnhVq1iih25pZSTJTAQGtom8/s1600/IMG_0021.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEsO6gtaioPGVGP8n3qhgk2AE1drMaJ-xFKVu6J8I0vbwnK1d96sp-p2QDU3ngNEQ0VJnA09hyphenhyphenadVZzhnlqotF0tEQIVj9Lrhd0_kyFGWciiN4TEonymkQnhVq1iih25pZSTJTAQGtom8/s320/IMG_0021.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Afforestation area with an Eastern<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> B</span>luebird nesting box</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Finally, as we neared the end of the walk, we came across a view of this tree (below) sporting a dozen resting vultures.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOazKhoA1H_tWROB7qLVqt4wRMGJcfS5G21dXfdjub3v4nJ1fPJAZkIvLBUxvyBY6brUEVu74934PlSWeE8D6-cbDLbWZ5enqOySnMlVLb8wqc4Iyj_M-KbnsEx-tyEqaPibUXuGVCBLU/s1600/IMG_0022.JPG"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOazKhoA1H_tWROB7qLVqt4wRMGJcfS5G21dXfdjub3v4nJ1fPJAZkIvLBUxvyBY6brUEVu74934PlSWeE8D6-cbDLbWZ5enqOySnMlVLb8wqc4Iyj_M-KbnsEx-tyEqaPibUXuGVCBLU/s320/IMG_0022.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-87413734488377379892016-09-22T12:12:00.002-04:002016-09-23T10:28:05.162-04:00Botanical Illustration II<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0fnQ7K65XTrGPTZdi0NoN5p2zqzdMAOQ3gHEL8_tMvvp0kDlg1Dk73x0DQuBdeWXxrQ8i_75OB4hcqCtS2GXHzy80IR3aESpN073V6cc3EPUf-6xvTrt7mO9nnsvtEsibslq_Qm3_0w/s1600/IMG_0044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0fnQ7K65XTrGPTZdi0NoN5p2zqzdMAOQ3gHEL8_tMvvp0kDlg1Dk73x0DQuBdeWXxrQ8i_75OB4hcqCtS2GXHzy80IR3aESpN073V6cc3EPUf-6xvTrt7mO9nnsvtEsibslq_Qm3_0w/s320/IMG_0044.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I promised I would keep you posted on my progress in my introductory Botanical Illustration class. During the second class, we tinted the drawing we made during the first class using colored pencils. One of my fellow students decided not to color her original drawing, explaining that she didn't think the color would enhance the drawing much. I was inclined to think the same way, but decided to color my drawing anyway (1) to explore the coloring process and (2) because my drawing wasn't a "masterpiece" anyway; so what if I screwed it up? I'm neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with the result (above). Kali said that the coloring was pretty subtle, but the colored pencil "leads" were hard - I really had to push to get the color to show. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh3m50Z9GRlU5xiNhnEstyArMSsX_Y5RYz-nR3Aq2gjiEbyc2cwNXe53eCjhL3N97jaukParAdDmHU0AUsMX1ZGOIq9ToEDDy5LwvS2sK6WQBFy5ty1DZAw2eRe7ALqhzEBHD3d9IDXKk/s1600/IMG_0036a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh3m50Z9GRlU5xiNhnEstyArMSsX_Y5RYz-nR3Aq2gjiEbyc2cwNXe53eCjhL3N97jaukParAdDmHU0AUsMX1ZGOIq9ToEDDy5LwvS2sK6WQBFy5ty1DZAw2eRe7ALqhzEBHD3d9IDXKk/s320/IMG_0036a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After we colored our previous week's drawing, we explored drawing on paper tinted with watercolors. We moistened watercolor paper, dabbed on some color, and encouraged the paint to run and bleed. The instructor ironed our paper to dry it, then told us to select a spot on which to draw another leaf. The result appears above. I'm still not comfortable with the stippling technique; I'm going to have to work on it to achieve the results I'd like.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Tonight: scratchboard. Stay tuned.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-90284877776233264662016-09-09T10:29:00.001-04:002016-09-09T10:29:20.201-04:00Botancial Illustration<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0ZJPO9AjQZXgibTxVoFeFbK-7u3xm6QrMzgiLzKyWf47z9dLgoJ9wGCyacyZb32YhR33KwLcUi8hFblMTW1uPlxUh4iKVXL7Z-hx592shsE9IXLl7ekZH3l9Wwpj2YSJhYlh3OClBOk/s1600/Bot+Ill.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0ZJPO9AjQZXgibTxVoFeFbK-7u3xm6QrMzgiLzKyWf47z9dLgoJ9wGCyacyZb32YhR33KwLcUi8hFblMTW1uPlxUh4iKVXL7Z-hx592shsE9IXLl7ekZH3l9Wwpj2YSJhYlh3OClBOk/s320/Bot+Ill.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">My father had a real talent for drawing; I was always envious of his abilities. I considered my own talents to be limited. In fact, I once drew an old grist mill as an illustration to accompany an article I had written for my organization's newsletter, and someone (who did not know that I had drawn the the mill illustration) commented, "I wonder whose kid drew that picture?" If that wouldn't put the kibosh on any artistic aspirations I don't know what would.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">However, since I've inherited half my father's genes, I've often wondered if I could improve my drawing skills with some coaching and practice. Plus, with retirement looming, Kali questions me constantly about how I'm going to fill my time after I stop working.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">So, when a retired high school art teacher offered to teach a three-evening introductory botanical illustration class for my organization, my program planner and I readily agreed to put it on the schedule, and I signed up. Last evening was our first class.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The instructor asked the students to find a relatively simple leaf as a subject. Then, we retreated from the oppressive heat and humidity to an air conditioned conference room and set about with plain, old Staples-brand No. 2 pencils to draw the leaf. The instructor told the students it was perfectly acceptable to trace the leaf, but I decided to try to draw it freehand. Once we had the basic form and venation on paper, we took fine-pointed markers and inked the outline. Then, the instructor asked us to highlight features of the leaf in stippling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">My representation of a sourwood leaf (<i>Oxydendrum arboreum</i>) and my subject head this post. Kali said that she liked my drawing, but didn't think it was a very accurate representation of the subject. I'm not completely satisfied either (I'm a bit disappointed with the stippling, in particular), but I don't think I've tried to draw anything since my grist mill fiasco.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Next week, we add color with watercolors, and the third week we'll attempt a scratchboard project. I'll post my results of each.</span>Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-78716781063303058312016-08-30T14:06:00.000-04:002016-08-30T14:06:12.629-04:00A Murmuration<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMrjnwveGB8DyuK5diDNu27FgwbP96j9iHZoEJ6g4IHV7eIi7Psf44CMG4xOdzmOw9R0OWmjccMaDa5bor1SLU5DHWbb1E6WPp72lifgWWZtE55NYp8M3xMJovTbvVqKXGmPA_x6P2C_A/s1600/robins+at+dusk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMrjnwveGB8DyuK5diDNu27FgwbP96j9iHZoEJ6g4IHV7eIi7Psf44CMG4xOdzmOw9R0OWmjccMaDa5bor1SLU5DHWbb1E6WPp72lifgWWZtE55NYp8M3xMJovTbvVqKXGmPA_x6P2C_A/s320/robins+at+dusk.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Though perhaps I personally notice it more during the warmer months of the year because I'm out later in the day than I am during the winter, an avid birdwatching friend assures me that </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">(even in the winter) </span>every evening just before sundown, American robins (<i>Turdus migratorius</i>) stream toward a wooded area adjacent to but separate from my preserve. For 30 minutes as the sun is setting, robins streak across the sky - some singly, some in pairs, and others in large, loose flocks of up to 20 birds. They are all flying toward the southwest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The birds seem to materialize out of nowhere in the sky because they are flying relatively high, though I know they are just gathering together from scattered locations where they have been foraging all day. They are silent - black specks all streaming determinedly in one direction. It's easy to count hundreds of birds in only a few minutes of watching. If they were all lumped together, it would be a spectacle, but since they're spread thinly in time and space, they constitute more of an imagined spectacle. Nevertheless, I'm impressed every time I take a late evening walk.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBIHhqOQeDzfAaAzwAXFU8UIMe-FN-6ru2jPbtG3MaTzvVjQR1-DqKlynUzsk5bpCHBWfSiiZqLLs71Vj24DQeVJYeLa05NJfFn27m7mC351yx9BDvqjnqYUuuyoTO_mkNgVQdU7R2ZUU/s1600/robin_masses_murmuration.jpg"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBIHhqOQeDzfAaAzwAXFU8UIMe-FN-6ru2jPbtG3MaTzvVjQR1-DqKlynUzsk5bpCHBWfSiiZqLLs71Vj24DQeVJYeLa05NJfFn27m7mC351yx9BDvqjnqYUuuyoTO_mkNgVQdU7R2ZUU/s320/robin_masses_murmuration.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Last week, I was treated to a <i>real</i> spectacle - only the second one I have ever observed in my life. Looking over toward the roosting forest, the robins were swirling in the air in an amazing cloud of coordinated flying called a murmuration. It only lasted a few seconds - alas, too short for Kali, who has weak eyesight, to get a fix on it - but I saw it happen and was transfixed for that moment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">(The images accompanying this post are borrowed from the Internet.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">My municipal historical society's newsletter recently republished a recipe for pigeon stew that first appeared in the local newspaper's October 18, 1873 edition. The recipe concludes with the sentence, "Robins are delicious cooked in the same way." Is it any wonder Passenger Pigeons are extinct? </span> Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3942007593478726390.post-2500860460953182212016-08-23T15:28:00.000-04:002016-08-23T15:28:15.026-04:00Late Summer<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzoBqXSFcf_ystRce4TQffgS8h1rZfoArdyPzVuTjJfLFx6l82BMzXKw4JzA2AlWSicN55o_9N2gMe7j-HCao4xPBVVz4TbZ6fify2UlmnsRODufJIgozCDje1foXT9q4fWi_njKQaLE/s1600/IMG_9931.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzoBqXSFcf_ystRce4TQffgS8h1rZfoArdyPzVuTjJfLFx6l82BMzXKw4JzA2AlWSicN55o_9N2gMe7j-HCao4xPBVVz4TbZ6fify2UlmnsRODufJIgozCDje1foXT9q4fWi_njKQaLE/s320/IMG_9931.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Sunset thunderhead</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I know that I've been very negligent in posting, but truth to tell, Kali and I really haven't been doing much of anything that's worth writing about. The last few weeks have been miserably hot and humid, so we haven't even ventured out onto the trails of my preserve let alone go anywhere else.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSkxLIU6EcJuTum2sRiV9JvAO4t8Z_e2zOMmsF0xD2bAm9FyoCfyqxwrOTDehfdc-JEBQmGZ9GV2Rs-vIWue6kxsLWu0btMKbtsXTtKqmJ8JHtY8NrHcs3qAikTVGrDRdep9b4mxgi-Lc/s1600/IMG_9936.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSkxLIU6EcJuTum2sRiV9JvAO4t8Z_e2zOMmsF0xD2bAm9FyoCfyqxwrOTDehfdc-JEBQmGZ9GV2Rs-vIWue6kxsLWu0btMKbtsXTtKqmJ8JHtY8NrHcs3qAikTVGrDRdep9b4mxgi-Lc/s320/IMG_9936.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Long shadows</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">However, the seemingly unending heat wave finally broke on Sunday evening with a round of rain that ushered in the passage of a real, live cold front. On Monday, the humidity was pleasant and temperatures rose only into the low 80s (instead of the mid- to upper 90s we had been suffering through).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtX3CMnYpkrUysfoSXfp5lV8ZVCS6e-ZPgO0qPVGbmQt5PW92M_ZQ2cF1tEKMHr4Syb3lhu3MmYAiUJkz5F0m1_AY0YeprTjAUmsnhM7zNK8hM0DYyIDDiqoLmB4ce_m_XUkVGzFFIIm0/s1600/IMG_9940a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtX3CMnYpkrUysfoSXfp5lV8ZVCS6e-ZPgO0qPVGbmQt5PW92M_ZQ2cF1tEKMHr4Syb3lhu3MmYAiUJkz5F0m1_AY0YeprTjAUmsnhM7zNK8hM0DYyIDDiqoLmB4ce_m_XUkVGzFFIIm0/s320/IMG_9940a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The birds missed a few ripe black cherries</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">A friend posted on Facebook that he had participated in a nighthawk watch in a state park not far from my preserve and had seen 25 Common Nighthawks - one of my favorite birds and a sure harbinger of autumn when they begin to pass through on their way southward. So, after dinner last night, to enjoy the salubrious weather and to look for migrating nighthawks, I got Kali to lace up her walking shoes and take a short hike through our late summer meadows.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">At one point, the setting sun was shining directly through some of the meadow grasses and thistles, so I thought I'd make some "artistic" shots. The following two images were the result; I boosted-up the contrast on both images a lot, so they're not strictly what the camera "saw." I'm not sure if I like the result, but I thought I'd share them. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSm2tWsW0D1OnDRoq3kb0QKF55aCYV9t8vAz4A5opwk8v-j3OxiLDJI4E717VlZVviWZkof9LTk0z9ZshOZkBl_fxL9ShClC9SEV6MGgE6F4MMwQ2dNUR0PvAeMlKSTmi_ksHxGuKun54/s1600/IMG_9944.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSm2tWsW0D1OnDRoq3kb0QKF55aCYV9t8vAz4A5opwk8v-j3OxiLDJI4E717VlZVviWZkof9LTk0z9ZshOZkBl_fxL9ShClC9SEV6MGgE6F4MMwQ2dNUR0PvAeMlKSTmi_ksHxGuKun54/s320/IMG_9944.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Thistle, backlit</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFnWUzUsRSqrzkZqsozH1wXyGtKYnEd5ciSvLEMdSXxQLtze2UAtmcarmnCxSYMU04KiGIK8DoJuPBvQ4Ff_U0Shx3VtucbOkBMnMgJsyu3dlG4YUhV_yxq0UvDh1Y97zAUqpl07agVgU/s1600/IMG_9954.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFnWUzUsRSqrzkZqsozH1wXyGtKYnEd5ciSvLEMdSXxQLtze2UAtmcarmnCxSYMU04KiGIK8DoJuPBvQ4Ff_U0Shx3VtucbOkBMnMgJsyu3dlG4YUhV_yxq0UvDh1Y97zAUqpl07agVgU/s320/IMG_9954.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Indian-grass flower head, backlit</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We didn't see any nighthawks (I usually see them during the last week of August and the first week of September, so if we had seen them, they would have been early). But we did enjoy our first walk in the preserve in quite a few days. I'll go out again this evening in search of nighthawks because the weather is still delightful.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXUJ7P5OmDp4iW-mIzNh-5ufx_fWGZYi9G6AtrN53hdn3T-8sPZdRfJ8txbTNaQ8DScKeCluBiz32VVy1ZDTrSO0toznZ1ccSNpl8Lwq-4gCwqGEjdBABKfXuIWrGoua1_rCQ0lr28QHA/s1600/IMG_9943a.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXUJ7P5OmDp4iW-mIzNh-5ufx_fWGZYi9G6AtrN53hdn3T-8sPZdRfJ8txbTNaQ8DScKeCluBiz32VVy1ZDTrSO0toznZ1ccSNpl8Lwq-4gCwqGEjdBABKfXuIWrGoua1_rCQ0lr28QHA/s320/IMG_9943a.JPG" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Kali, heading home</span></span></td></tr>
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Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04443352705506509732noreply@blogger.com4