A walk in the woods

Claris and I enjoyed a walk down our road last weekend and found all sorts of exciting things!
Having Claris with me usually means I get to see many things I would have overlooked had I not had her nose, ears and eyes on the job. She found this lovely male American Box Turtle in the weeds along our path and brought him to my attention. You know a Box Turtle is male if it has red eyes, more flattened topside and a more rounded underside, in case you wanted to know...


We passed through a gate in the road (from the maps the gate blocked an old public road so I only feel a little like a trespasser), and enjoyed a car-free walk!
Just passed the gate was a large meadow full of wildflowers and this old utility pole that now only housed a feathered occupant and not its intended wiring. All that was left of its former life was a glass insulator.

It seems not to be unusual to find abandoned houses, schools, barns and major appliances along the byways of the Blue Ridge, and this dirt road in the dead center of no-where was no exception. In fact, it had "all of the above" and then some...












These ghosts of lives past make the hike all the more interesting. Who left these things behind? How did they get to this point, and what will come next? They are vestiges of civilization, rotting back to wilderness, making for some deep contemplation while wandering with your best dog...

The wildflowers, birds and trees were especially nice along this road, and as they grow and change I will have new things to view unfold every time we take this walk.