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Field Notes:
The Fog rolling in across the Mountains in the Park is a wonderful sight.  I hurry to get ready for my hike thing the fog could lift at any time.  Out the door by 8:15 a.m.  the fog still has not lifted as I reach home at 11:45 a.m.  Nature always surprises me!

Visibility is low and I am amazed by the number of birds I am able to see.  On the Tufa Terrace as I enter the park a sweet Black-Capped Chickadee and a Dark-Eyed Junco sing sweet songs to me.  So tiny I feel blessed I was able to see them in the low visibility.  Later on the Hot Springs Mountain Trail I can hear tapping on a near-by Tree.  I try to find the source while changing my now dead camera battery.  High in a Tree to my left I spot a small bird hopping up the side on the Tree, a male Downy Woodpecker is busy searching for a meal.  Later on the Lower Dogwood a favorite cry rings out in the Forest.  I slow down to scan the branches and I am rewarded with a beautiful site.  A Male Red-Bellied Woodpecker is showing off a nut in it’s beak.

Throughout the park beautiful fog is floating along every trail.  It makes the Autumn color stand out again the gray misty background.  It is a magical mystical world as the Forest is transformed.  The fog creates a strange silence along the normally song filled trail.  Lichen, Autumn Leaves and Fungi appear to glow in the dim gray light. It is a peaceful meditative hike as I travel up and across Hot Springs Mountain over to North Mountain, then down the Floral Trail and home.

Thank You you for joining me in the beautiful foggy Forest.
Love to You ALL,
Lee

PS: Congratulations to all those who ran the half and full marathon along Central Avenue this morning.  It was a wonderful sight seeing you all emerging through the fog as I headed into the park.