Hiking Forgotten Paths

  Sometimes, my hikes with the old dog get to be a bit repetitive since he is not able to do a lot of strenuous climbing over downed logs or worming his way through underbrush.  I have to stick to the clear trails which makes for seeing the same things over and over again.  However since he is feeling poorly from the bronchitis, I left him inside today.  Son and I headed out to the back woods to get firewood.  I have not been on this part of the property in months so it was an adventure...almost.  There were so many new things to see!

  One of the things that impressed me was the variety of turkey tail mushrooms that were on most of the felled trees.  The colors were so varied!  One log had a cluster of the mushrooms that scaled the cut end of the log.  It was actually beautiful!  I was hesitant to let Son cut the fallen trees merely because it would mean a loss of habitat for these mushrooms.  I had to do some heavy weighing here...warmth. mushrooms...warmth, mushrooms.  Warmth won so he cut and I hauled.

  Being able to expand my hiking trail was like finding a long lost friend.  Although, I recall every step of the path from previous hikes, the area was filled with new and exciting things.  The change of seasons does remarkable things to woods.  Being away for just a few months, made the changes jump out at me.  I was like a kid in a candy shop!  It was all I could do to stop exploring and start hauling firewood.  Hopefully, I can slip out again tomorrow and explore a bit more before the bad weather sets in on the weekend.