Wednesday, August 30, 2023

Soybeans


Over on Governor's Land, farmers have once again planted soybeans.

One of these days, maybe I will be lucky enough to find out how these soybeans will be used. 

Tuesday, August 29, 2023

Mushrooms!

 
It has not been too long since I last hiked at Greensprings . . .

 
so I was quite surprised
 
 
to discover such a trove of mushrooms that had popped up since.
 

Monday, August 28, 2023

Squirrels

 
Don't think this little piece of wisdom applies as much to dogs as perhaps it does to humans. :-)

Sunday, August 27, 2023

Question Mark?

 


You'll just have to take my word for it about the question mark. Unfortunately, this particular butterfly wasn't interested in showing off his/her (?) underside. 

"Polygonia interrogationis, commonly called the question mark butterfly, is a North American nymphalid butterfly. It lives in wooded areas, city parks, generally in areas with a combination of trees and open space. The color and textured appearance of the underside of its wings combine to provide camouflage that resembles a dead leaf. The adult butterfly has a wingspan of 4.5–7.6 cm (1.8–3.0 in). Its flight period is from May to September. 'The silver mark on the underside of the hindwing is broken into two parts, a curved line and a dot, creating a ?-shaped mark that gives the species its common name.'" -- Wikipedia

Saturday, August 26, 2023

Signs

 
I sometimes think summer will last forever, and that these days when afternoon temperatures reach into the 90s will never end. Then . . . I look up, like I did yesterday, only to discover that, in fact, as Bob Dylan put it, "the times they are a-changin" after all. That epiphany came when I noticed the walnuts dropping from this tree, a sure sign that autumn is on the way.
 

Friday, August 25, 2023

Canoe Launches

 

 
Afternoon temps finally became comfortable enough again (mid 80s) to put my canoe back in the water. These are a couple of the canoe launches in our area. College Landing (shown above) puts you into College Creek. The motor launch at Chickahominy Riverfront Park (shown below) currently leads you to Gordon Creek. The canoe and kayak launch, which normally puts you into the park's namesake Chickahominy River, is currently undergoing a major overhaul and will not be ready for use again, I was told, until the end of this year.

Both of these estuaries, I suspect, would have been well known to Captain John Smith who helped establish the first permanent English settlement in North America. He might have even traveled on them by canoe himself, from what I've read. Anyway, kind of fun to think about as you are paddling along.