22 June 2024 Strawberry Moon

Our day included a pleasant visit to Lake Metroparks Jordan Creek. The falls were flowing lightly.

The strawberry moon on a perfect evening for gazing.

14 December 2023 It's All About the Water

Icicles were hanging from theledges across from my viewing point. I was out for a longish walk on a cold day of short daylight and hoping to reach the falls ahead.

A view from the top of the falls with great flow passing over.

I came back around at ground level to enjoy a walk along the river.

I finally reached a viewing point to see the falls up close with the water roaring.

5 September 2021 Elk Rail Trail

 There are not many rail trails in PA State Game Lands.  Today we were stopping to hike one in Elk County with a trail of geocaches.  My knee was killing me, but it was time to prove I can still hike.  The pain was made easier by a really attractive trail through the woods.  For most of the time I stayed on the trail while Ali chased the cache.  There was one cache hidden in a steep area that she didn't spot.  She had spotted a northern slimy salamander so I made my way up the incline to see the salamander and stayed to look for the find.

Eventually, I spotted the cache too.  The small waterfall below was an attractive spot to stop for a view.

Rain eventually chased us off the trail, but it was another day of what would hopefully be a comeback for me.

22 May 2021 Favorite Stops Visited Again

 We are creatures of habit and tend to follow the same paths to enjoy places that please us.  We always look to find and explore new places while holding dear a few special ones.  Today's journey was covering a few of the special ones starting with Swallow Falls.  We knew the beautiful weather would pack the state park side with a large crowd so we again took the lesser known path through the woods.

This trail starts well above the water and winds through the woods down to the water.

We've hiked this trail many times and not noticed the CCC remnants before.  This looks like it was used used as an incinerator for a camp.

We thought we might see painted trilliums and were happy when we did, but there were greater wildflower surprises ahead.

Once we crossed a side tributary and spotted the first lady slippers we began to see them everywhere.  They were a happy unexpected treat.

We sat for awhile and talked with another birding couple.  It was a blissful, brief moment of meeting and interacting with people in a pandemic world.

We left Swallow Falls and made our way another favorite the Cranesville Swamp.  This was a first spring visit for us so we were hoping for new sightings along the boardwalk.

We did spot a snake crossing the boardwalk.

The pitcher plants were up and showing life.

The main attraction here is the swamp area, but the woods offer a nice walk.  Today there were spring wildflowers in bloom including more painted trilliums.

Our day was over when we spotted this rainbow.  It stayed with us longer than any ranibow we have seen.

20 May 2021 Naked Creek Waterfalls

We have visited the waterfalls on trails in Shenandoah.  Today, Ali suggested we visit the falls of Naked Creek.  There is no formal trail to these falls, but the location is well documented.  We drove to the Naked Creek overlook and began our journey with a walk throuhg the field to the woods line.

While there is no trail, the path taken by others is visible especially in the spring.

We had a first glimpse of the falls from a much higher elevation.

The falls were peaceful and worth the effort to reach them.

It was a week for spotting towhees.

Mary's Rock is a favorite place for us to visit.  It was a pleasant and refreshing break from COVID to be outdoors chatting with another couple also visiting Mary's Rock.

The sunsets knew how to please this week.