Local News: Local Family Relocates

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I have begun riding my bicycle again. I travel the same 7 mile (+/-) track each day, sucking up nature’s wonders. Pollen is among Nature’s most prolific wonders.  I guess sneezing and red, swollen eyes are indicators of good health?

Avid readers will recall it was last year that a Beaver family moved into our nature trail. Within hours, they converted a low-lying acre of plant life into a large, fetid swamp. Let me tell you, there is nothing more natural than a beaver swamp. Well, maybe a convention of skunks would be comparable, but little else.

Recently, I awakened to some odd quacking noises outside my window. Too sleepy to locate my gun, I peered out the window to identify these untimely quackers. Sure enough, a Mallard drake and his floozy hen were paddling about in my creek having a grand time diving for insects and small fish.

“Oh, it’s only ducks,” I told myself falling back into bed. I tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use. The party in the creek was too much.

Eventually, I saddled up for my morning bicycle ride. I zoomed along the trail enjoying the fresh air when I realized there should not be any fresh air in this part of the trail. The beaver swamp was dry.

“Uh, oh,” I thought. A bad feeling came over me and I pedaled for all I was worth toward the place where the creek behind my home empties into the larger stream by the trail. It was just as I feared. No water was flowing from my creek into the larger artery. This could mean only one thing: Beaver trouble.

I should mention here that we measure the “normal” depth of my creek in inches. It is more of a babbling brook, a foot deep in places. Now, I began to put the cheese and quackers together and they did not add up.

When I got home, I staggered down to the creek side. Sure enough, we now have several duck-entertaining feet of water where before there was barely enough to hatch mosquitoes. If it turns out ducks eat mosquitoes, this could work out. Otherwise, I may have to resurrect some ancient skills and remove the dam before the air becomes unbreathable. [BOOM!]

Nature Trail Revealed!

For several weeks, I have threatened to photograph the little nature trail that bisects my neighborhood. Since I first thought of it, the trail has seldom been above water. Half the circuit was dry this morning and I set out, camera around neck, to capture as much of the natural beauty as possible.

A pair of extravagant berry bushes mark the trailhead. I do not know their names. Fred and Ethyl, maybe? They are a welcoming sight year round. If you have an idea what they are, let me know.

Immediately beyond, the trail curves hard left to parallel the local creek. Recently, it has been a navigable waterway, but has subsided to being full of water. The water has been fifteen to twenty feet higher in recent weeks and observant readers might find traces of debris in the trees and shrubs in these photos. At the curve, the trail is about forty feet above the creek.

The trail continues along the flood plain, rising and falling as much as fifty feet. The upgrades test the intrepid cyclist’s heart and will. The downgrades provide breath-restoring relief and high-speed excitement. Local wildlife includes a snowy heron who has grown accustomed to my presence. The little bugger did not show this morning. Maybe he’s camera shy.

Autumn colors are only beginning to emerge.  The continuous rains of the last month have rejuvenated the plant life, leaving them reluctant to go to sleep for the winter.  Sumack is one of the most flamboyant autumn plants.  Even these are muted, but still impressive to my eye.  See below.  I'll check in on it again next week, weather permitting.


The air was cool, dry and on the move (15 mph) when I hit the trail.  It was bracing!   Hauling a camera is the perfect excuse to pedal at a leisurely pace, avoiding the unsightly gasping and sweating that usually accompanies these outings.  I may take the camera from now on!

About two miles along, I discovered a stand of trees I've never noticed before. Yes, that's hard to believe, but they seem to have appeared from nowhere.  Odder, they are growing right next to the site of the raging torrent and they are more than twenty feet tall.  Maybe they're some sort of alien mutant trees trying to blend in until they take over the planet. (I wish them all the luck in the world. They can have my part.)

At the halfway mark, I discovered the spillway is under water.  Still.  Since it is also the bridge to the rest of the trail, I was stopped.  Nature teaches patience, darn her anyway. Perhaps tomorrow...

I expect the colors will get better and the light will continue to gain that pale golden hue that accompanies autumn.  If the rains forebear, there are many beautiful images waiting for someone to notice them.  I would be pleased if it were me.

I will share what I find in future posts.  I hope you enjoy these views even half as much as I.  I can still smell the wild scented air and feel tthe cool breezes on my cheek even now.  What could be better than a morning in autumn?  I am one lucky guy.