I was walking along, admiring the color in the leaves, when I noticed this in the middle of the path. A goldfinch feather, reminding me that the trees aren't the only colorful things in these woods!
Images
Urban Nature
The camouflage on this Gray Tree Frog is really impressive on an oak tree - here, not so much. He was clinging to the window on an exit door at the office building where I work. Nature is literally right outside the door!
Gnarled and Twisted
Trees that grow high on mountainsides live a rough life. Constantly battered by wind, rain, snow and ice, they are stunted in height, bent, and broken. This log bears silent testimony to endurance, and the adage that sometimes you have to bend if you don't want to break. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott …Read more Gnarled and Twisted
Gnarled and Twisted
Trees that grow high on mountainsides live a rough life. Constantly battered by wind, rain, snow and ice, they are stunted in height, bent, and broken. This log bears silent testimony to endurance, and the adage that sometimes you have to bend if you don't want to break. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott This post…Read more Gnarled and Twisted
Autumn on the Blue Ridge
Another shot of autumn color as viewed from Skyline Drive within Shenandoah National Park. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott
Late Bloomer
Some flowers are just getting around to blooming, avoiding competition with other plants and getting lots of attention from pollinators, but setting themselves up for a mad rush to produce seed before the cold of winter stops them in their tracks. This thistle is a hardy one, growing above 4,000 feet on Hawksbill, in Shenandoah…Read more Late Bloomer
Change
Fall is my favorite season. Crisp clear air, and of course the color in the leaves. My only complaint is that its over too soon. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott
Primal
Our most important tool - fire enabled us to shape the land, to improve our food, to power a growing society. For all that, it's also a source of comfort, light and warmth, and it's hypnotic. Many bonds have been strengthened between people sitting around a campfire staring into the embers, much as our ancestors…Read more Primal
Primal
Our most important tool - fire enabled us to shape the land, to improve our food, to power a growing society. For all that, it's also a source of comfort, light and warmth, and it's hypnotic. Many bonds have been strengthened between people sitting around a campfire staring into the embers, much as our ancestors…Read more Primal
Milkweed
Yesterday I found myself in a cloud of down - not feathers, but the seeds and fluff from a milkweed pod, burst open to let the wind carry its offspring far and wide. Monarch butterflies love milkweed, and these beetles apparently do too! Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott
Double Cluster (NGC 869, NGC 884)
26 exposures, 5 seconds each. Stacked.
Double Cluster (NGC 869, NGC 884)
Last week, I issued a challenge to myself and others to try and capture a photo of the Double Cluster, in the constellation Perseus, and near Cassiopeia in one of the dimmer stretches of the Milky Way. And then, it rained for a week. Now that the rain has ended, and the skies have cleared,…Read more Double Cluster (NGC 869, NGC 884)
Appalachian Trail Autumn
The gnarled tree, rockslides, fall color and flat light give a soft character to this grand-daddy of all long trails, the Appalachian Trail. From here on the slope of Hawksbill, it's only 820 miles to Springer Mountain, in Georgia. But you'd better hurry - winter's coming. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott
Charting a Course
We may have the same vantage point, but we all see different things - physically and metaphorically. These guys are facing a dynamic future that none of us can entirely envision. All I can do is help them see, to give them different vantage points. Soon, they'll make decisions and choose their own paths. Photo…Read more Charting a Course
Friday the 13th
A black cat, a raven in the mist, or this creeping orb weaver - regardless of what makes you nervous, I hope Friday the 13th didn't cause any undue harm. Photo Credit - Lynn Abbott
Flying Squirrel Outdoors 