Exploring Nature One Step At A Time

Posts tagged “Winter Trails”

Little Violets In The Winter Forest

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I am dedicating this blog posting to my Mom and Dad.
My Mom loved Violets above all other flowers, my Dad gave her pressed Violets in a love note a few days before he passed away.  She kept his note nearby until she passed away twenty years later.

His love note began “The flowers that bloom in the spring tra la”  The early spring weather has brought forth lovely clusters of Bird Foot Violets.  Each delicate bloom is a reminder of my parents.

Spring warmth has awoken tender green plants along the edges of the trails.  Saucer Magnolias are now covered in fuzzy flower pods and Dogwood Trees have tiny pink ball shaped buds.  A few Tree branches in the park have already burst out in a spiny orange blossom covering.  The Forest has awakened early with a subtle ballet of new growth and color.

Love to ALL!
Lee

February 9, 2012 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Missing the Birds as I Hike Along Winter Trails

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Nearly two months of extreme heat followed by several severe late summer storms has taken a toll on park wildlife populations.  Prior to the heat followed by high winds and rain Chipmunks and Squirrels could be seen in or below many Trees.  On some days I hardly knew which way to turn my lens as there was so much activity. I am thankful today to spot a Squirrel I call Bob because of the missing portion of her tail.  She lives near the Hot Springs National Park Entrance and has erratic road crossing skills.

The multiple families of Brown Thrashers have vanished from the lower portions of Hot Springs National Park.  The once abundant highly visible Northern Mockingbirds are now a rare sighting.  White Throated Sparrows that once flocked along the southern slope of Hot Springs Mountain appear only in small numbers at the top in the picnic area.

Although there are many American Robins the flocks are smaller than in years past. Cardinals that once flourished on both North and Hot Springs Mountains are a rare sighting beyond Dead Chief Trail.  Pine Warblers too have become a rare sight within the park as are many other warblers that would normally be seen in the winter months.

My constant winter companions of winters past the Red Bellied Woodpecker have also vanished from their regular nesting sites.  I have only seen two and heard one in the past three months.  I miss being verbally heckled by the numerous juvenile Blue Jays that would follow me across the park.

Perhaps the moderate winter of the north has kept the birds away.  However I think the weather extremes of the past summer have significantly reduced bird populations.  Those birds that flock in the park year round are scarce.  As I review old videos I remember the symphony of birdsong that used to echo through the Forest.  The silence in the park is heartbreaking.

Love to ALL!
Lee

February 7, 2012 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

A Winter Afternoon in the Forest with Emerson and Muir

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“I am commissioned in my day of joy
To leave my woods and streams and sweet sloth
Of prayer and that were my dear delight,
To leave the rudeness of my woodland life,”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

I recently bought a Kindle Fire from Amazon and discovered a world of FREE Ralph Waldo Emerson and John Muir Books. Yes, FREE!  In the vastness of my new library I came across a 1926 poem by Emerson called The Summons (excerpt above).  I often hear Emerson and Muir in the breezes along the trails, they tell me to look with my Heart and see with my Soul.  Who could or would argue with their sage advise.

It is this feeling expressed above all that fills my heart as my foot fall moves from earthen trail to paved street.  The wandering of my Soul through Nature’s home brings joy not known by my words alone.  I will hold this memory until her beckoning call returns me once more to Mountain, Meadow, Forest and Valley Trails to roam. ~ Lee Hiller-London

In winter the obvious beauty of spring Wildflowers and summer Leaves give way to details hidden for many months.  I often find myself having to retrain my eyes to look upon the new landscape and see the richness withing my view.  I step into the winter Forest and stand for a moment eyes closed, taking a deep breath to forget her past so I can revel in her present.  As I slowly reopen my eyes the once stark and barren leafless Forest is repainted with the spectacular beauty of rough texture muted pallet.

Love To ALL!
Lee

January 16, 2012 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Cold Winds Of Winter Arrive in Hot Springs National Park

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A cold winter wind set upon Hot Springs National Park this morning, 31 F feels like 21 F with every blast of the north wind.  Entering the park a runner dressed in only shorts and a shirt shouts good morning my way.  A large rock with protruding chunks of quartz glows in the slowly rising sunlight as I climb higher into the park. Beautiful Heavenly Bamboo is putting on a spectacular display of transitioning leaves of green and red.  As I reach the top I am thankful for the hike up the Mountain as it has warmed my entire body.

The view from the pagoda is peaceful and the valley below is visible through a frosty haze.  I turn my face to the sun and enjoy its warmth upon my chilled face.   The warmth of the east side of the mountain gives way to a piercing cold as I step into the full blast of a fierce northerly. The heavy gusts of icy winds are not only keeping people at home but also the wildlife.   As I head home I am encouraged to move faster along the trails with each gust of icy wind.

Love to ALL!
Lee

January 12, 2012 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Crunchy Autumn Leaves on the Winter Trail

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My life has suddenly become busy with new adventures and even as I head out to hike my mind is buzzing.  The crunch of autumn leaves along the trail is the melody to the hum in my mind of the new language I am beginning to learn.  The Forest floor and trails are blanketed with the rust of fallen leaves from which  Tree sculptures rise up in a ballet of twisting bending limbs.  As I move up West Mountain I see a faint movement in the distance.  Poking out from between two leaf draped Rocks is a tiny nose and pair of eyes.  Soon an entire head appears, a sweet Chipmunk wiggles its nose then dives back into a hiding place below.

Like beautiful jewels the rust leaves below my feet glow in the early morning light.  Adding to the color of the landscape are the last of the summer and autumn leaves. Glorious intermittent splashes of red, green, yellow and brown decorate the trail edges. Nature has thrown a beautiful pallet of color on the Mountain.  It was a perfect cool crisp winter morning below a vibrant blue sky.

Much Love to ALL!
Lee

December 29, 2011 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave A Comment »

Ice, Steam, Juncos, Finches, Wrens and Sparrows

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Today my hike begins in front of the “mouth of the dragon”.  It is actually an outcrop where the hot water cascade flows, large ice cycles form and with the steam reminds me of a dragon smiling.  It is very cold and I am thankful for the Cayenne Heat Ointment I put on my hands and feet.  As I head up the Peak Trail I spot another feral cat, the third I have seen and photographed in my year plus of hiking in Hot Springs National Park.  I am surprised to see it, as it is the only moving creature other than my self in the lower part of the park.  We both appear surprised by the sight of one and other.

I forgot what 8 degrees in the lungs feels like, it the perfect cure for any cold or flu :) . By the time I reach the top of Hot Springs Mountain I am aware there are no other hikers, four legged mammals or birds sharing the trails with me. Ice is forming on my jacket sleeve where it brushes my mouth when I am taking photographs.  The Forest groans and creaks with each gust of wind that travels along the trail.  I find strange comfort in the thought that the Trees are voicing their displeasure with the biting cold.

When I reach the Honeysuckle Trail the surface seems to be changing and each step produces a light crunch noise.  On the Floral Trail the crunching becomes louder and it feels like I am hiking on cornflakes.  At the first bend all is revealed, I have been hiking on rock and pine needles over a thin surface of ice. The rain from several days ago settled just below the main trail surface, froze forming standing ice crystals and creating exposed ice flows over the larger rocks.  It is unnerving to step down on what appears to be a solid earth surface and have it give way without warning.  The sensation is like stepping on the edges of a fragile frozen pond.  Now a cloud of icy mist is forming and my camera lenses and glasses keeping foggy over.

At the bottom of the trail I notice there is a small stream of water running through a rock culvert along Hot Springs Mountain Road.  In the distance I can see small birds landing and drinking from water just before it dips under the road.  I move slowly so as not to scare them away from their current location.  Every breath I take fogs over my eye piece and I often shoot without being sure what birds are being captured.  To be honest it was not until I arrived home I discover what birds were at the water flow.  The group includes two Raspberry Finches, a White-Throated Sparrow and numerous male and female Juncos. This only the second time I have captured a raspberry finch in the park.

On my journey home one last surprise appears along the waist height stone wall that borders the park.  Under the lip of the top stone slabs a lovely Carolina Wren is peeking out at me.  I am amazed at how it can hang off the side of the stones, it is a wonderful place to get out of the freezing mist.

Thank you all for keeping me company on this very cold hike in Hot Springs National Park.

With Love,

Lee

February 4, 2011 | Categories: Hot Springs National Park | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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