Horse, Turtle, Spider, Beaver

We came upon these friendly horses, and luckily Chet Baker was weary enough at that point to have little desire to round them up for us. Lovely animals. From the decrepitude of their non-electric fencing, we realized that they are free to roam the entire road, and that the piles of horse bockie we'd been seeing were probably from them and not from some local equestrians using the road as an obstacle course.

How nice, free-roaming horses. The best pasture was right here, and they weren't going anywhere.
I find most of my box turtles by hearing them, oddly enough. A steady soft crunching resolves into a turtle, determined to find a few more earthworms before frost.

Its eyes were bright red, traditionally a sign of a male, but its overall impression was of a lady turtle. I debated long and hard over whether to disturb it by picking it up. But the Science Chimp's curiosity won out over respect for its dignity.I noticed that it had had some damage to the rear scutes on its shell, some years ago. They looked either like forest fire--a light burn on the rear part of the shell, which might have been exposed when the flames went over--or perhaps the chewings of a mouse while it was hibernating. Whatever it was had long healed over, leaving only some irregularity and discoloration.

I warned it, spoke gently to it, apologized, and lifted it into the air. Aha! the plastron, only barely scooped out. A female, as I'd suspected.


I can't really explain why this red-eyed turtle looked like a female, even before I saw its plastron. It just did. Darker, smaller, more delicate head; small size, even at this very advanced age (discernable by the completely smooth shell). I was so glad she'd live out her years along this impassable road. All turtles should be so lucky. I left her right where she was, and wished her a good hibernation.

The common mullein was ready for hibernation
with its warm woolens on

and so was the wolf spider, with next year's babies in a ball of eggs behind her


The old familiar beaver pond hove into view

and we found where the beavers had been using a black cherry tree for medicinal purposes. Shila says cherry bark is good for coughs. That sap has got to have powerful properties!

Jewellike hornets tussled on New York asters

a miniature moss landscape rose

and a tiny red maple kept its party dress on well past midnight

Chet Baker was ready to go home at last

but I had to stop to photograph a computer keyboard in the stream, made into a relic by silt and the distortion of wavelets...Fred Flintstone's Mac...

One of my favorite images from the trip. As is this one, crooked horizon and all:


I can't wait until the next hike.