I remember talking to an old time birder....Anyone older than I am...who said that one thing leads to another. You start out liking birds and pretty soon you start noticing trees and then you start noticing wildflowers and then....You get the idea! So when I took my family back to Bald Mountain Recreation Area I knew I probably wouldn't see too many birds, so I spent more time looking at the flora. It was later in the day and the gunfire was a little bit disconcerting! These signs made me feel so much better...
They may have made me feel better, but the constant bang, bang, bang had my youngest family member a bit concerned. My husband came to the rescue, again. We got to a tree that had fallen across the path, and that some thought would be impossible to get around. My husband took the one who happens to be tic sh,y for good reasons, and headed back the other way! We were walking on a looping trail, so he and my youngest planned on meeting up with us later.
It didn't take long to get around the obstacle, and just beyond it this is what we found. Shhhh this is top secret, but you can go pick them because we didn't!
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| Yes these are Morel Mushrooms!! |
On down the path we went, seeing hawks and my first ever Wood Duck! I was able to spot the Wood Ducks with my binoculars, but not with my camera, so you'll have to take my word for it! There were areas of where I was glad I had on my waterproof hikers!
The May Apples were in full bloom. The Trillium seem untouched by deer and, aside from constant gunshots, the place was magical. Maybe it was just being with my family that made the afternoon so pleasant. It was a glorious beautiful Sunday! I hated to spend four hours in the car to go back home. I'd rather stayed birding!!
Jenny
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I think this might be a Coopers Hawk, but I'm not sure. Hawks can be so tricky!
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| I'm thinking it won't be long until Cuckoos show up to get these guys! |
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| Trillium used to grow in greater abundance around here! Deer really like it. |
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| Some critter tracks |
Love the critter tracks! Nice to know that mud is good for some things. By the way, it also works in reverse if you start looking at the flowers, eventually you notice the trees, the animals, and the birds! I'm somewhere in the midst of all of that, and have a hard time concentrating on anything except what happens to catch my eye at any given time!
ReplyDeleteFirst wood duck ever? How is that possible. They are beautiful little guys. Now you will probably see them all the time.
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