Bee Sting

Athena got her first bee sting yesterday. It was a wasp. She was so alarmed, brought her arm to me crying and pointing with her other arm, and I had to shew the wee beast away. She got over the pain pretty quickly. So far, no sign of allergic reaction.

I saw a hummingbird yesterday. Deep, sheeny blue. I had only heard them, days previous.

The wild strawberries are fruiting.

Athena is picking clover and buttercups.

Turtle in the Road

I am so happy to be back home. The weather the weeks since we've been back has been so beautiful. The whole place just seems absolutely idyllic.

I took Athena for a "num-num walk" this evening. I fed her grapes, as we walked along the gravel road. There was gentle, late-day sunlight in the long grass tops and a background chorus of birdsong. No human sounds at all, not even any neighbor mowing grass. Just perfect. Athena stopped to kiss or smell (I'm not sure) various wildflowers and toss gravel in the puddles we passed. Our tabby cat, Ekati, followed along, weaving in and out of the brush along the road.

On the way back, we saw a large turtle, whose shell was covered with algae, in the road. Athena made to run at it, but I told her to "make room," and she listened and held up. In an act of unusual bravery, Ekati approached it, cautiously, head-on, to about two feet away, then sniffed. The turtle was bigger than she. After a short time, I told her, "OK, let's go," and she backed slowly away and then gave the turtle a wide berth.

Glen Alton 6/29/2013

Glen Alton 6/29/2013, a set on Flickr.

First Day Home

Gorgeous first day to be really home, with all my belongings in our first home of our own, for the first time. Mid March, but mostly sunny, up to mid 70s (!), with frequent breeze. Left the house doors open, and Ekati was ecstatic, running in and out of the house, scrambling up and down tree trunks.

So happy to discover little streamlet does indeed run in our gully this time of year. Only about a foot wide, maybe seven inches deep, but brisk!

Flattened grasses surrounding suggest five feet wide at times. Streamlet mostly above ground, but lacing above and below. Percolating prettily from bare rock near culvert.

And, at the top of the property, where streamlet is last visible above ground - a secret pool! Heart-shaped! About sixteen feet right now, at its widest.

Second streamlet also running strong, about two feet wide by one foot deep. This one seems to be year-round and run mostly on our neighbor's property, but crossing into our bit of bottom land where a pond basin has been bermed. Looks like, if we dammed the outflow, the pond could fill nicely, to forty or fifty feet across, maybe four feet deep.

Emptied nursery of leftover tools and materials. Cleaned thoroughly. Cleared fallen branches, from yard, to east fence line. Cleaned tub and shower of work boot prints, iron, and sawdust.

Stayed up late combing through hair for hours. First time in weeks for the left side, first time since the first of the year for the right side!

First Harvest

OK, so we don't have any fireplaces to kindle just yet. But surely someone will be able to use these, even if we don't. These are all from one tree, an Eastern white pine, I believe. Plenty of other and different cones on the property.

A few choice specimens set aside for some as yet unknown destiny.

Brown Hot Water

So, hot water's brown here, it seems. This is not a matter of running the water after the plumbing's been out of use a while. The pipes are PVC anyway, so no corrosion there. Nor is it the hot water heater, as I originally thought. How many hot baths would I have to run before the hot water ran clear! I wondered.

Then I noticed something, cooking. Or thought I did. So ran this especial experiment, just to make sure I wasn't going crazy.

I ran two glasses of cold water. Both were clear.

Then one glass, I boiled in a clean pot on our hot plate and then returned to its glass. First glass cold water, unboiled, still clear. Second glass cold water, boiled to hot, now dimly brown. A tub full of hot water looks much more opaque brown.

I have yet to consult my little-seen neighbors about this. But from what I read online, our brown hot water could be the result of higher iron content. Which is harmless, apparently. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself so far. Hey, they're always saying women need more iron, right??

That said, the white bathroom porcelain doesn't care for the high iron brown. And I suspect our clothes won't either, after our laundry is installed. Apparently it can be "ironed out" (hee) with a water softener.

Somewhat Protected Habitat of Monroe County

From the Gap Analysis Program of the USGS. The program's mission is to keep common species common.

Very Pretty Geological Maps

For which, unfortunately, I have neither a key nor an original source. However, I'm guessing they're from U.S. the Geological Survey's Geologic Map of the United States, 1974, by Philip King and Helen Beikman

Maps of the Coal Seams in West Virginia

Bedrock of Monroe County

Most of Monroe County is limestone and other rocks from the 'Mississippian' subperiod of the 'Paleozoic' era of geological history. Peter's Mountain, though, is about another hundred million years older.

Adapted from WVGES Map 25A (.pdf)

Air Quality in Monroe County in 2001

Maps summarizing air quality in Monroe County and across the United States in 2001. Based on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) measures of selected 1) ambient air pollutants and 2) pollutant emissions. The ambient pollutants measured were: carbon monoxide (CO), lead (Pb), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter (PM), and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Monroe County is not specifically included in the West Virginia data. The maps were created by Creative Methods, whoever they are.

Hanging Rocks Observatory

We hiked a tiny snippet of the Allegheny Trail today. Atop Peter's Mountain, a long Allegheny ridge line in southeastern West Virginia. Our destination was the "hanging rocks," a jagged tippy top of the ridge. Where there also is an old fire tower, now used as a raptor observatory. Particularly during the fall, when the parallel ridge lines of the Alleghenies form many raptors' migration flight path.

From our Hanging Rock Raptor Observatory Photo Set (30)

Monroe County Marcellus Shale Drilling Put on Hold

From 59 WVNS

Posted: Aug 02, 2012 5:54 PM EDT
Updated: Aug 09, 2012 5:55 PM EDT
By Annie Moore, Reporter

A Houston-based oil company puts plans to drill for Marcellus Shale in Monroe County on hold.

In 2011, Monroe County commissioners entered into an agreement with Gordy Oil, effectively allowing landowners to consent to exploratory drilling agreements with the company.

At the time, many residents opposed to the controversial practice known as ‘fracking,' voiced concerns to the county commission about potential effects on the underground water table, public health, and the environment.

"The biggest thing is, it's not going to harm anything. That's what you hear. It's not going to hurt your water. It's not going to hurt people. In the long run, though, somebody's going to pay for it," said Amy Cold-South, a concerned citizen. 

A year later, though, Gordy Oil's presence in Monroe County has all but vanished.

County Commissioners attribute the disappearance not to growing opposition to the practice but to the price of oil. It simply isn't worth their while, they say, to drill new holes right now without knowing how much of the rock lies beneath.

When the price of oil does bounce back, and Gordy Oil returns, Union resident John Harvey said the company won't be welcomed back by everyone.

"I think they can stay somewhere else, move on, stay away from Monroe County anyway," said Harvey.

Moncove Lake

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Driving Scenes, Updated

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Magical

Lovely sunset from the hilltop cemetery. Breezy, warm, serendipitous, and magical.

All That Age

This region of the United States is known for its natural resources. Specifically coal and timber. I'd never seen big trucks loaded high with giant trees before setting about here. They're an awesome sight to me. All those collective years of growth stripped and neatly stacked together. They're also a very common sight here. One just snorted down Main Street.

Fantastical Wonderland

Visited Luray Caverns, a fantastical wonderland beneath the surface of the earth. Photos can not truly capture it.

Creation Drama - Natural Bridge

We visited the Natural Bridge in Virginia today. The sheer size of the rock formation does indeed inspire awe.

Here's Mercedes, tiny, beneath the massive formation.

Image: Natural Bridge of Virginia, by mightypossibility. March 12, 2011, Natural Bridge, Virginia

And here's Frederic Edwin Church's 1852 rendition of the natural wonder.

Image: Natural Bridge, Virginia, by Frederic Edwin Church. 1852

We stayed for the after-dark "Creation Drama," a light show against the rock, with music and narration. Good idea, execution needs work. A Native American creation myth would be so much better than the Genesis myth.

Hunterdon County Natural Areas, 2009

Apparently, I visited at least nineteen natural areas in or near Hunterdon County, in 2009. Often with PK, also with ChE, KH, KM, and other friends. At least these are the walks I have records of, mostly in the form of photos. Many of these areas, I was exploring for the first time, which is stunning, considering how close to home most of them are. Which are your favorites?

Capoolong Trail (3X) *
Clinton Wildlife Management Area (4X) *
Cold Brook Preserve
Hoffman Park *
Hunt’s Mills Park
Ken Lockwood Gorge (2X)
Lake Solitude
Landsdown Trail (8X)
Merrill Creek Reservoir (3X)
Point Mountain (3X) *
Raritan River Road in Califon
Roaring Rock Park *
Round Valley Reservoir (2X)
Schiff Nature Preserve
Sidney Road in Union Township *
Spruce Run Reservoir
Stanton Station *
Voorhees State Park (3X)
Whittemore Wildlife Sanctuary *

* Visited for the first time in 2009
2X, 3X, 4X - Visited multiple times in 2009