Sunday, June 29, 2014

Nature Around Featherfin - Saturday, June 28, 2014

I scoured the area for photo opportunities....and, as I thought, "nature" is the theme for the day!  Took about a two hour hike this morning and this is what I discovered.  I was primarily in areas like this - open field-type areas surrounded by dense woods...too dense to navigate.  These "fields", however, are very high with grasses and more scrubby plant life, but I did make some finds....remember to click on the photos if you want to see more detail...



What is the purpose of these?

This bee is having a delightful milkweed breakfast.  I love the detail in these flowers!

Trumpet vine -- wanting to open


I destroyed nature...I ate the two ripe ones!  Please don't call the WRP!  (Wild Raspberry Police)

I always liked tulip trees....


Walking on down the lane, I came upon an entry to what was probably private property at one time, but it had a WMA sign that said "foot traffic" was okay.  So, I started into another field.....


Well into the area now, more milkweed flowers...I love these.  Have seem them a million times along the roadways, but never paid attention to them until now.  So unusual - poisonous to horses, tho'.

I have no idea what these brilliant orange flowers are but there was a large patch of them. They may be another variety of milkweed. Two very vivid blue birds seemed attracted to them, too, but they darted off before I could snap them.  Another good bee breakfast!

Soon, I spotted an old barn up on the hill.  Let's go!  It was quite a trek, but I was curious....


There was a nondescript abandoned house up here, too....probably built in the 60's...nothing to write home about, but I loved the old barn....cool find!  


I wanted to go inside, but who knew what woodland creatures might have made this their home.... thinking "snakes", at the least!  Uhhhhh.... I'll stay outside....they are probably right under my feet now and I don't even know it!  Let's not think about that....


Time to head back....I've hiked pretty far by now... and it's getting warm.  I've been wearing heavy jeans, long sleeved shirts, socks, hiking boots and a very attractive camo net hat (gnats are a nuisance) to ward off ticks....  have seen some....plus my photo vest with lots of pockets and stuff.  Anyway, as it gets warmer all this garb gets warm, too.

                          Really liked this little multi-toned carnation-type wildflower...very delicate.                                     Not many of these around.

Pin oaks are abundant here

Ants hosting on a trumpet vine...

One lone wild daisy....a survivor!

I get back to "the house"....still no sign of trouble that I'm probably on private property....while I still have all this garb on, I decide to see if I can get into the woods behind me....looks just as dense as the rest of what I've seen, but it's right in the back yard...

Just a little ways into the woods and I find this little shed...  pretty much confirms "private property" to me!  But, I'm not worried about it.  Just as I thought, tho'...these woods are toooooo thick to trek through, so I turn around and think about lunch!  Those two raspberries didn't quite hit the spot!  


Worked on photos this afternoon....did a little internet research, washed dishes and cleaned up a bit....before I knew it, it was getting close to thinking about dinner.  I hadn't used my mini charcoal grill yet.  I had thawed a bag of pulled pork shoulder yesterday from the several bags I had frozen before I started my adventure.  Roasted like 6 lbs of it, so I'll be making some creative dishes from all that!  Just have to make up some BBQ sauce and a side dish of some kind.  Sounds yummy!  My site conveniently has a cleared spot right at my door... perfect for grilling!  



And it was yummy!  With a side of corn/tomato/onion/basil salad....mmmmmmmm

Night settles in with a little color in the sky.  Another peaceful evening under the stars.  With the total darkness out here, I think one can see every single star in the universe!  Clear night for it!  Means it should be a nice day tomorrow...for something!  Hope you enjoyed a little glimpse of Virginia nature!




3 comments:

  1. Surely love wild flowers........they're wild!

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  2. Nice weekend trek you took. Your camera must be high quality. I see an album someday from Shutterfly. I suspect you could also put together albums in themes and sell them (like Clark Pontius does).

    The caterpillars are Eastern Tent species producing a cool looking moth. Do you remember how their tent faced? Should have been on the East side as they need to sun in the AM to get going. Your photo shows them spread out so it must have been midday (they usually cluster in the AM and PM for body warmth. They molt several times with the last one eating so much that they can defoliate a whole tree... would be interesting to see what your spot looks like in 3 months...

    Just not sure why they are so white... usually darker. But in any case, thanks for the ride thru memory lane.

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  3. Another great set of pictures! I'm sure your camera is awesome, but I think it's you that makes these shots so good. Those are blackberries, by the way, and nice looking ones, too! The orange wildflowers are trying to take over my flowerbed, and the butterflies love them. May have to look them up! Keep the great photos coming!

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