Meanwhile in our valley

March 7th and 8th were the Big Run Off days of snow melt. Charlie had his first exposure to a mini flash flood of foamy snow water mixed with sand and silt.

He was curious and as soon as the water and foam hit his chest he turned and leapt onto my lap. I was soaked! I hugged him and in a few minutes he was back watching the water but keeping clear of it.

I invited the neighbors to come and check it out on Sunday and they did.

And they enjoyed their time in the creek.

I went back down the next day to check out what things looked like after the wash out. What would happen to those Sow Bugs? How about the Caddisflies?

That is a dime on a rock next to two Caddisfly stone 'houses'.

Inside,... the larvae had changed.

So I sat very still and decided to just watch the water below my feet.
There were little trails across the rocks. Some were moving!

Indeed.
So tiny yet cool!

How ingenious! The Caddisfly moves with its house!

I hope to catch them in their next phase of growth.

And then I found the Scud Bugs. Again by accident in a way.
I stepped in a spot that I suspected was a new spring and the spoiled leaf detritus floated away with Amphiopod Scuds.

I watched them for a while then lifted another rotten leaf and more floated away I watched them as they eventually found themselves washed against more rocks and vegetation. They seemed to wiggle their way under the leaves.

Now I think I read that they often resemble their surroundings which may explain why some were light colored and some dark colored.

I sat back on a boulder and just admired the stream and it creatures. Overhead I heard the robins, cardinals, and other birds.
As Charlie and I walked home through the pasture we heard a Ring Necked Pheasant call out.

My day was complete. Mother Nature never stops with her surprises. It just takes patience and a keen eye for details.
All I know is that I am having a great time and I don't have to travel very far.

I can't wait to get back down to The Creek.