French Broad Hollow Ramble

Look closely at the first photo, and you’ll see a tiny fawn nursing. The mother stashed the fawn in the meadow right below my house! I watched her from the house as she walked around the mowed perimeter of the meadow and checked for danger before she went to the fawn. What a wonderful surprise to see the tiny fawn appear out of the grass! Later she led the fawn across my road and into the woods. I think she moves the fawn when the field gets sunny, then brings it back later; I have watched her lie down next to the baby for the past two days.

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It’s been hot and muggy, but my rambles continue. I was dismayed to see a dead garter snake in the road last week and devastated to find a smashed box turtle earlier this week. I don’t understand how anyone could be going fast enough on our steep gravel road, which has been eroded by the heavy rains and has rills and gullies, to run over a turtle.

I see turkey hens with poults when I walk, but they disappear into the bushes and trees before I can get a clear photo. Meanwhile, toms and hens without poults (chicks) come by the house several times a day. I often hear them gobbling and clucking before I get up in the morning (and I am an early riser!).

The deer come, too, but not as many. It seems that the yearling bucks and the young does who were not bred have reached the point where they are expected to make it on their own. I think they are a bit confused my their mom’s behavior, but at least these two have each other for company. Some of the does are still pregnant, and I keep watch for more fawns. You know I’ll post photos when they show up!

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The rainy days continued for a while (Asheville’s rainiest May recorded),

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but now the weather has turned sunny with above average temperatures. The trees and other plants are lush, and some of the garden flowers are blooming. I see butterflies on my walks, and they are all over the butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa) my garden. It also grows wild in the Hollow, and I enjoy spotting it in unexpected places—including in a patch of poison ivy. The butterflies are in other places, too!

I continue to struggle with the Mac. Some of the photos don’t show as I write but show in preview. I hope you can see them and will watch for the next post!

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I have (mostly) continued my regular rambles but had begun to wonder if I would ever get back to the blog. The arrival of spring keeps me busy with gardening and yardwork, and volunteering and substituting at “my” school has meant that I missed a few days. And the rain! We had storms in the middle of the month and again for the past few days. Sub-tropical storm Albert is expected to keep us wet for the rest of the week.

The French Broad has run high with the rain. Here is a video from one of the days.

After decades as a PC user (and an earlier try with a MacBook) I have switched to an iMac and am finding a steep learning curve. (Hence the delay and frustration in the title of this post.) I’m writing this on the Mac and will likely switch to the PC later to add more photos.

The tom turkeys continue to strut, but they may be late to the game.

I saw a hen followed by several little poults, but she herded them away before I could get a photo. I’m sure there will be more chances!

The deer come in different groups now. Some of last year’s fawns still hang out with their moms, but the young bucks mostly come as their own group. They seem to enjoy grazing in the meadow but still look for me to bring corn and apples.

You may remember that I have been following the progress of a putty root orchid Aplectrum hyemale) that I pass every day. I think it is pretty much done, and here it what it looked like. I’ll watch for it again next year.

I’ll probably update this post from my PC later but will go ahead and post what I have now. Then I’ll pull on my rain gear and head down to feed. At least four deer are waiting! 🙂

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Although it’s been busy lately, I’m squeezing in a few minutes’ work on the blog. I missed walking a few days when I substituted at “my” school and one day when I participated in a 5K there. I do walk most days, and I’ve been taking lots of photos of spring in the Hollow. Unfortunately, I haven’t posted many this time. I often think about what I will write while I ramble and then can’t find the time to sit down, sort through, organize, and edit the photos.

The Hollow has surprised me with a couple of flame azaleas that I never noticed before. One is so far down in the woods that I am not willing to try to get close. The other is closer to the road, and I bushwhacked through some pine trees to get some photos.

I’ve been watching this putty root orchid since March and am anxious to see it bloom (soon, I hope!).

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I have moved this box turtle across the road twice now and have ordered a “Turtle Crossing” sign.

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Time to go! I hope to get back to the blog again soon. (You can tell we’ve had some clear days!)

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The weather has continued to be fickle. The day after my last post we had a warning for snow and a freeze. Both apple trees in my “orchard” were in full bloom, and the blueberries were, too. The apple trees are each about eight feet tall and on a very steep slope, but I managed to cover them using bamboo poles to support old sheets and then fastened plastic to the protective fencing. (Those are blueberries in front.)

It snowed a little (on April 17th!), and I was glad to have made the effort, even if I did get snow down my coat when I uncovered everything the next morning. I hope it worked!

The turkeys continue to gobble and strut, and I have posted more videos (hen and toms), including one where I gobble at them first. They continue to keep me entertained!

The deer seem skinny now, and I’m glad there is more for them to eat in the woods and fields. Some of the does are obviously pregnant, and they all are still shedding their winter coats (although winter weather keeps returning).

Today I caught several of them watching me on my ramble.

The deer aren’t the only animals that watch. Yesterday I saw a stray cat (white with a black tail!) several times as I rambled until he finally disappeared into the undergrowth. Then I caught a glimpse of a neighbor’s cat as I approached the river. He disappeared into the undergrowth, too.

Four deer showed up while I was writing this—my favorites, the mother of the triplets and the extra that hangs out with them.  You can see all of them here.  (That’s Fuzzy in the front and Vee in the middle of the video.)

Vee

Fuzzy

It’s been in the low 50s all day and was windy and sprinkling when I went out for the deer. No more freezes are in the forecast, but we still have blackberry winter to come. I’ll write about that another day….

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Spring continues her fickle ways. We have had some spectacularly sunny and warm days, and others that were cold, rainy, and/or windy. Yesterday was one of the warm ones, but today it’s raining (which means I am indoors and updating this blog). We may get snow tonight, and tomorrow we may not see 50 degrees. The freeze warning means that I’ll be going up the hill behind the house to cover the two small apple trees that are blooming. Lots of trees, shrubs, and flowers are blooming now. The redbuds (Cercis canadensis) and wild cherries (Prunus serotina) are near their peak, but the dogwoods (Cornus florida) are just beginning to open.

Apple blossom

Wild cherry

Wild cherry

Wild cherry

Redbud

Redbud

Dogwood

The hunting season for wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) began a few days ago, but no one hunts in the Hollow, and “our” turkeys seem to be oblivious. The toms come to eat but spend most of their time and energy strutting (video) and gobbling. The three toms  often come when I call the deer (deer and turkey video), and the hens stay busy under the bird feeders.

One day I walked to the Post Office, which is not far from the end of our road. It’s a very scenic post office and a great place to watch the river after a big rain.

The wildflowers—lots of violets—are blooming, but I can’t identify them all. Unfortunately, some of them are invasive exotics; we have many invasive plant species in the Hollow.

Golden ragwort

Wild geranium

Wild strawberry

Violet

Violet

Star chickweed

Spiderwort

Golden ragwort

Buttercup

Henbit

Bloodroot

???

Vinca (INVASIVE)

I saw the first hummingbird at my feeder a few days ago and the first box turtle today.

I’ll be watching for turtles on future rambles and show you photos when I see one!

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It feels like spring—until it doesn’t. But isn’t that the way spring comes in everywhere? The trees are budding, flowering, and/or leafing out, depending on the species and location. (I do my best to identify wildflowers, butterflies, etc., but I welcome suggestions.) Below are bloodroot, star chickweed wild violet, and toadshade; I’ll post more later.

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

Wild violet (Viola odorata)

Star chickweed (Stellaria pubera)

Tiadshade (Trillium cuneatum)

The tom turkeys are gobbling and strutting. (In the background is a hen who was not interested.)

The deer are still looking scruffy, and I never know where I’ll see them as I ramble.

And then there are surprises. A few days ago I was walking near my mailbox when I was startled by a loud “CHIRP!” It sounded like that annoying chirp on the smoke detector when it needs a new battery. It wasn’t any bird I recognized, and I was puzzled as to what it could be. Later that afternoon I heard a lot of the same chirps when I fed. You can listen here. I finally realized that I was hearing spring peepers (Pseudacris crucifer)! Here’s another listen, at dusk.

The weather’s been in the 70s for the last few days, and it’s hard to stay inside. But another cold spell is coming, and I hope to post again before too long.

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The calendar says it’s spring, but it seems that the weather doesn’t agree. It’s barely—and only briefly—been above 50 since my last post (about 10 degrees below the average high), and we’ve had rain, sleet, and snow. Nonetheless, the songbirds are singing, doves are courting and mating, and the tom turkeys are gobbling. I just saw these three trying to impress the little hen. (Later this spring the toms will be in full display.)

The turkeys and deer still come to eat, and I sometimes get a video. This was taken on one of the cold and snowy days, and there was quite a crowd!

Springtime for the deer means they are looking shabby as they lose their winter coats. Some of the does are beginning to “show;” fawns will be born beginning May, although their moms will keep them hidden. I usually see the first fawns in early-to-mid June. This doe seems much bigger than the others; I don’t know if that means she’ll give birth early, or if she’s carrying more than one fawn.

Spring flowers are beginning to appear in the Hollow, and I’m working on a post about them. Here’s hoping that spring weather will arrive soon!

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It’s been a while since I posted—and a while since I rambled. (Even the two photos above were taken from just outside my car, and not on a walk.) You should know from previous posts that the weather doesn’t usually keep me from walking, and it hasn’t been the weather that has kept me inside. I was taking care not to get sick before a visit with family in Roswell, New Mexico. I didn’t get much rambling done there, either, and left from the local airport early yesterday morning.

The Roswell International Air Center is located on the former Walker Air Force Base. While these days it is used to store and disassemble old airplanes, it played a big part in the 1947 “Roswell UFO Incident“. This short Smithsonian video gives a good description of what goes on these days.

It’s been snowing off and on all day, and I never made it out for a ramble. (I did feed the deer and Tom the turkey, but I didn’t get any photos. And, in case you’re wondering, one of the neighbors made sure all the animals were fed while I was gone—although I don’t know if he sang to them.) 🙂

Here is a photo of the deer I took last week after feeding. You can see that some are resting to chew their cuds, and others are grazing or hoping I will throw more apples. I shot this video of Tom the turkey the same day.

I plan to get out for a ramble tomorrow, and then I’ll let you know what’s new in French Broad Hollow.

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I got my ramble in after the last post (after feeding the deer, who were still a bit wet from the rain). After rambling to the top of the ridge, I spotted a few of the deer in the woods on the way down to the river, watching to see if I was going to feed again. One of them was still lying there when I walked back up. (It’s hard to see them in these photos, but give it a try! I had the advantage of hearing them on the way down.)

It snowed the next two mornings, but it wasn’t much and melted soon after the sun rose above the trees. Wednesday it was so windy that the snow was blowing sideways, and I decided not to walk. Wednesdays I get home from my volunteer job later than the usual feeding time, and the deer are usually waiting, sometime impatiently.

Most of the roads in the Hollow are gravel, and the rain and snow have taken their toll. One of the culverts had to be replaced after it began to collapse.

There has been some preliminary work around the new house-to-be. They dug some holes for a “perc” test. They chained the backhoe to a tree—not to keep it from being stolen but, rather, to keep it from rolling away down the hill. There’s a post marking the house site (or something), but I have no idea what the painted marking on the road mean.

The rain makes the trains so loud that sometimes it sounds like they are coming into the Hollow. Listen here.  I prefer hearing the birds singing; here are a couple of examples: birds singing near the driveway, birds singing near Dark Hollow gate.  And the Dark Hollow gate is where I take these ending photos.