It is November!

In the past, I've complained about November and the time between the gorgeous fall colorful leaves and the ick yuck of barren trees. However this year I intend to find a way to enjoy it visually. Miss Aurora said I needed to go out and find the beauty of November for there was a lot to see.

Okay. I'm in on this. The month of November will be a search for beauty in this time of the year. I'm committed. What will I look for? Fungi? Tiny things? Landscapes? Skylines? Moss? 

Nature's Artwork that we don't see when the leaves are full?

I'm going out on a mission to find beauty in November.

There is something to be said to be able to go out and enjoy the sunrise and the brilliant colors of the morning. Especially since the sun comes up at such a reasonable time these days!

There is still time to get out and take a nice walk before the weather turns...

or just get outside and enjoy some nature.

I'm determined to find things I like about this brownish-russet season.

It will be a change in my thinking but I'll give it a try.

In the mean time

The Brown Season is here. I am not going to complain at all this year. I decided to find some sort of inspiration for when I am un-

inspired.

Part of the issue is that I get stuck in a rut. It is getting cold and sort of dull looking outside. I await the first snow with great anticipation.

Meanwhile I adjust to looking at brown stuff. And that is partly the reason I decided to pursue a few different photographic projects. I know. It seems that is all I do.

Believe me, the mules don't feed themselves or pick out their own hooves. The goat doesn't clean his pen, the pony won't haul buckets of water. And Charlie does not clean up the dog hair and dirt he brings into the house. Hubby would eat instant oatmeal 3 times a day if left to himself and I have yet to figure out how to get the errands to Run To Me, instead of Me Running Errands.

Photography and learning more about nature and Still Life are my mental distractions from being a CareGiver. Usually I can spend about about an hour doing something for myself. I wake up very early to have time before the day arrives to have some quiet writing time. Or time for a cup of coffee and browsing a book on Moss or Lichens. Or another more recent book regarding photography.

I purchased Photography and the Art of Seeing by Freeman Patterson. 

I like some of the photography exercises he suggests that are mental viewing exercises. He reminds us that as children, we think in pictures. I can relate to that. I always preview something that is important to me by trying to imagine how it will go. The steps needed to get there. I think most folks do this anyway. 

One exercise I am looking forward to is walking out to the woods and tossing Charlie's leash in a random spot. The leash is 8 foot long. I will use the leash to make a circle in which I will explore.

Patterson has an exercise with those who take his classes. They toss a hula hoop out and have to photograph what is outside or inside that hula hoop. However, they cannot not move from that circle until the session is done and they have found 30 things to shoot. They don't have to be perfect things, but it is a way to discover that what is around you can be a lesson in learning to 'see'.

The point is to learn to observe. The point is also, that one does not have to travel 100's of miles to search for one good photo.

Some of what he writes about is stuff I just sort of scrunch my face up and say to myself NO WAY! That is stupid! However, being open to new or different ideas is always good.

Five years ago I was challenged in an on line class to do all Black and White photography. When they asked us to do Still Life, I was horrified. But I found I enjoyed it. 

At one point I found that taking photos of two little toys I had paired together reflected my angst and stress at taking care of such an ill and frail person. [This while my husband was struggling with several major health events and depression at the same time]

I was expressing myself through photos. I was expressing care, love, thoughtfulness and not really realizing I was doing so.

Example here:

I wonder if I go out and try the 'hula hoop' exercise or the exercise where he sent his students into a bathroom for an hour!  With the winds, rain, and cold weather I think I will opt for the bathroom.

What on earth can I do there?

~~~~ 

Girry and his adventures are still being worked on. Updates soon.

Teaching Bill to Orienteer...

The above photo is from the steep rise on the West Ridge Trail. We started at Pott's Corners and came up the steep hill. In the winter, this is a snowmobile trail and multi use trail. In the summer, it is used by hikers, equine, and bicyclists.

On a whim I texted Bill late on Sunday and told him I was going to take advantage of the unusual weather to hike on Monday. He texted back "I'm IN!"

The light was amazing and the Autumnal Haze was pretty thick. It created a surreal scene as we walked up through the shadows of the trees.

I gave Bill a running commentary about where I thought we would end up on the West Ridge Trail. I told him we'd probably come right up to those incredible rocks we found in the spring of 2020. He was skeptical.

I wasn't. I'd seen the West Ridge Trail from the top of the rocks and knew it was there. Plus I study the maps from the reserve.

We found the rock formation.

I asked Bill if he wanted a closer look and he asked if we could get up on top. 

And yes, we did.

View from the top looking east.

Bill told me we were looking in another direction by his reckoning. I got out the map of the KVR and dropped my really nice compass on it. I oriented it for him and he was mildly surprised. 

In my backpack, I carry an updated map of the reserve, a compass, and a topographical map.

This way I can be fairly confident when cutting across the land to find my way and not get lost in all of the hills and valleys.

Believe me, directions can get confusing. All it took is one time of going down the wrong trail to convince me that I had to be much more aware.
I include a firestarter cube along with waterproof matches and a lighter. Also included it an emergency blanket in my backpack.

We did get up on top of the rock ridge and that put us on Hanson Rock Trail. There, Bill wanted to head south and I told him we had parked at Pott's Corners to the north. 

I told him if we followed the rock ridge we'd cut off distance back to the vehicles and end up back on the trail we wanted. This time, I had him figure out the direction and carry the compass for a bit.

With no trail to follow, the land looks very intimating. 

Bill said he'd just follow me. But I had him stop and read the compass a few more times.

 

Within a few minutes of walking, we stood on a rock out crop and peered down on the Hanson Rock Trail. Bill recognized the spot. 
Here is Bill, happy that we were not lost in the Wild.

The detour was well worth it.

This is a rock outcrop that cannot be seen from the trail. It is worth meandering about to see these formations.

We descended off the small bluff and Bill handed me the compass. I asked him if he'd like one for Christmas. He said he'd get his wife one. He wants her to enjoy hiking too. She retires from her nursing career in December and he is hoping to get her to enjoy discovering the outdoors. She already is an amazing wild flower gardener.

We walked along enjoying Charlie's fearless leading along with the amazing warm weather.

We stopped to admire some Shining Firmoss Plants. Okay, I didn't know what they were when we found them, but after hours of searching, I did find a name. I believe it is a vascular plant and not truly a moss?

I need to do some more research.

And the rest of the trip was downhill. As .. well, we were walking off a steep ridge.

The shadows were getting long but left incredible patterns across the trail.

And that...

was

my Monday

adventure.

The Brown season turns to....Lichen

The brown season is coming in strong. The last few cold nights of 24 degrees F have caused leaves to do sudden dumps.

The maple forest was incredible with spots of yellow where the maples dropped everything overnight. The oaks before the last cold days still had the brilliant red. I checked the leaves and the brilliant reds were Red Oaks. The dullish leaves were White Oaks.

Oaks in the distance before

two nights of 20 degree weather.

The green in the lower portion of the above photo is of those nasty Buckthorn Trees. They stay green well into late November.

A White Oak with a nekked Birch in front of it.

Yesterday in the late afternoon, I decided to take Charlie and just look for Lichen. Perhaps with a different subject to find, I'd feel better about the brown season.

What I did not know is that some Lichen actually prefer fall and winter. There is more moisture and it isn't as hot. Some Lichen go dormant in the cold weather. Either way, they are easier to find in the fall and spring without all of the other plants hiding them.

Lichen are super easy to find. This is a shot of a tree trunk on a trail and two different Lichens on the tree.

Some sort of Foliose Lichen with some 

sort of brown/blackish lichen or moss?

More Lichen.

I have no idea!
Found on a mossy rock.

Logs, logs...logs.
This seems to be a great place to find Lichen. See the arrow? That points to the place where I used my macro lens to shoot this lichen embedded in moss. 

I used a small pouch filled with soy husks as a tripod and set the camera to its very narrow 'focus' stack feature.

I'm not going to try and ID it, but just thought it was rather pretty and amazing that we can see something So Tiny!

Here it is in a larger photo. I just dig the colors.

It just looks like a crazy foreign world doesn't it?

I found some dried up orange fungi mixed in with some pretty greenish/bluish turquoise colored Lichen. The orange fungi is often called False Turkey Tail.

And I leave this blog with my favorite shot of a beautiful Yellow Lichen, which is rumored to be a Sunburst [common name] Lichen.

First my finger next to the multi colored Lichens...

Then The Happy Lichen.... isn't it cute? Look at the brilliant colors!

Like

Lichen

The Brown Season is Here!

Even though the brown season is here, there are some things that are still colorful.

Sunrises and sunsets seem to be somewhat spectacular this time of year.

The October sunsets are visible without moving from my porch so this time of year all I have to do is step outside for a moment to enjoy the spectacular show that mother nature puts on for us.

Most of the fall leaves have come down except in areas that are protected from the wind or the oak trees.

Yesterday, the skies were spectacular for accenting the colors left before winter. The greens were brilliant. The colors alive!

A front moved in as we walked to the 'bus stop' to get the kids.

On our way back from the bus stop it began to drizzle. So we cut through the fields.

Of course I'd brought a plastic bag to wrap the camera up in.

Our adventure was fun, we were damp when we all got home and the rain stopped. OF course!

Today the temperatures aren't going to get above 40 something and the winds are going to howl.
Looks like a good day to do indoor things.