Hunting the First Wildflower

 I am that strange person that delights busting through brush and briars to get to certain places in the spring to find that first wildflower.

It isn't a pretty wildflower and it doesn't even smell nice. It is the Skunk Cabbage.

Interesting enough, the Skunk Cabbage can push up through frozen ground and the bulb can create heat up to 70 degrees F to melt snow from around it.

Symplocarpus foetidus

While definitely not the prettiest wildflower, I find it one of the most interesting. It can create its own heat [thermogenic]. It smells bad because it attracts pollinators that like rotting meat.

Most animals avoid eating the plants as they emerge as the leaves create a burning sensation in their mouths.

The plants themselves like wet forests and stream banks. I find these near the Big Spring in PeeWee's Valley. 

The trek there is not an easy one any more. Years ago the brother that lived on the land had cattle that kept the land well grazed. 13 years ago the cattle left the land and the land has gone wild. Charlie and I explore the valleys in the late fall through late spring. In midsummer, the land is choked with tall Parsnip, brambles, and other plants. 

By June the grasses and other plants around the stream will be nearly 4 feet tall.

But for now, we will still enjoy wandering along the creek looking for cool things.

Antler shed and Iron Concretion.

Anytime it is cold but windy and sunny, I can walk in the valley and enjoy the weather without dealing with the cold winds. I took off my insulated flannel and hung it on a tree branch while walking east along the stream. I picked it up when I headed back home.

Charlie was a mud puppy. I had to rinse him off.

I'm so glad he is so easy going. When I got him out of the tub, I just laid him on his side and he let me towel him off. 

The marsh marigolds shouldn't be far behind as I saw them just emerging in the Big Spring. I'll go back towards the end of next week to see if I can find any blossoms.

I'm pretty lucky to have this land near us. There are easier trails to be found at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve or one of our many County Parks. Duck Egg has an abundance of wildflowers in the lower trail that burst with Ephemeral flowers each spring.

I can't wait.

To find more Spring Wildflowers.

Her. By Charlie

She says: Want to go for a walk?

I think: IF I go out with you, we can smell squirrels, eat deer poop, and I can ignore you unless you offer tiny dog treats and call me repeatedly.

I'd be an idiot to turn all that down.

She heads out the door and towards the hill. I head the other way and sit down in the driveway. Obviously, she is going the wrong way. 
So I sit. And sit.

And then She calls me and I turn my head to stare up the drive. I will ignore her first few calls and then think a bit about it. 

My collar goes buzzzzzz... buzzzz. Oh crap. She really does want to go the wrong way. Tsk, tsk. 

I guess. 

So I stand up and trot to her with an upward glance. She calls me a Good Dog and reaches wayyy down to run her mittened hand over my head.

Off we go.

Maybe I'll find some really good smells and maybe I can chase a deer. I know She thinks I am a little tiny dog, but I don't see myself that way. I'm a hound. I am a Hunter with a capitol H. I seek voles and mice along with the big game. 

I have Her to protect me from the scary things in the forest.

Like Coyote smell and Bobcat smell.

We got down into the creek and I found a curiosity. A dead raccoon. It looked like it was sound asleep in the creek. I smelled it and just stood and stared at it. 

She told me to "Leave it be" and we went on.  Contrary to popular belief, I don't roll in dead things. I like to find something nasty, sticky, black, and that has an intoxicating odor to roll in. Dead animals are not interesting at all.

Smart pellets like deer poo are delicious. When I was a pup an old hound dog named Dixie taught me how to find them and eat them. She was an excellent mentor. She said they would make me smarter. Dixie said that Morris told her that.

Val however, is okay, but just doesn't have much of a nose to speak of. She is pretty nice to cuddle with and She is in charge of feeding me, but she has no good sense of smell. I guess I'll just have to forgive her for that.

She also has no fear. When I smell coyote tracks and shiver and quiver, She just looks around and shrugs. She also has a pistol thing. It makes Huge Loud Scary Booms. Since I am so frightened of guns, she usually leaves it in the holster thing.

I like leading. The only time I don't is when I hear gunshots or perhaps smell something quite dangerous near by. 

I headed down the creek. She stopped to admire a small pool of trout. 

Then there was something inside a log that captured her attention. 

"Look at this Charlie! Ice!" 

I was busy smelling for wild things. 

Finally She sat on a log and just didn't do anything. I think She was just listening. Maybe She was trying to smell.

Maybe She was thinking. I do that a lot. I think.

Mostly I think about Food.

Finally She stood up and called me.

I was on the other side of the little creek so I sat down and pretended my ears were plugged up. I was in a good place and She could just sit down again and Think.

She buzzed my collar and I came on the run.

I'm pretty good that way. If She buzzes me or rings the collar I do come quickly.

Otherwise?

I ignore her.

She and I walked along another deer trail and headed back towards the house. We went slow. Well, She went slow like She was looking for something.

Maybe if She had a better nose She would know what She was looking for.

But She seems to drift here and there through the forest just soaking things up. And often She sticks that camera in her face.

She is...

a bit Odd.

I have to admit, She isn't all that bad for being a two-legged creature. But She is what I've got so I guess I will make do.

At least She makes me a nice place on the couch with blankets to rest. For that? I like Her.

The First Snow & Charlie

 

There is always some childlike excitement over the very first snowfall of the season. I can't wait to get out in it and explore.

Rich generally gets pretty grumpy about it.

Last year it was October 16th. The snow came down in beautiful big chunks!

There was still a lot of color left on the trees and in the woods. Here a sumac shows off its brilliant reds.

I gathered my gear and got ready to head out.

Charlie crept closer to the little camera bag and gave me huge soulful eyes.

I reached for his electric collar [he wears a collar I can buzz to call him off from chasing squirrels, chipmunks, and deer. He stands only 7" high and is too easy to lose in the woods. I did that because I did lose him once and it took me a long time to find the little bugger who was tracking goodness knows what!] The Daschund in him makes him a voracious hunter. The Pekingese side of him makes him a lazy couch King.

We headed out and Charlie's reaction was one of pure joy.

He was into instant mouse tracking mode. Or anything he could smell mode.

If you didn't know how tiny he was, you'd think he was a huge dog. He is watching and listening for something to chase.

At the creek he tried chasing a small trout that was flitting about in the water. I don't think he could figure out what was making the splashes. Eventually he went under the log to dig a bit.

I sometimes wonder what goes on inside a dog's head. His/her thoughts must be only in the moment. 

Maybe that is a good thing right now.

Charlie doesn't keep an eye on me like predecessor dogs have. Dixie the big hound dog would run off 20 or so yards and then bound back to be at my side and slobbering into my hand.

Morris would find a perch and watch over me. He'd glance back if he were leading on a trail to make sure I was coming.

Charlie.

He is his own dog.

My job is to keep an eye on the little wanderer. Though he has gotten so much better with recall. The buzzer helps distract him. 

And if I holler out the magic word: Cookie???

He comes on the run.

I let him run around and have his smell-fest in the creek for a while and then started back towards home. It was late and the light was fading. 

Charlie trotted through the open pasture nosing lumps of grass and weeds. I imagine he was looking for mice. Once he finds them, he will simply just sit and stare.

I had to take a photo of how much different the meadow looked from the day before.

By the time we arrived home, it was time to get on with the chores.

I had some elderly mules calling my name.

Fred and Mica, they eat separately from the others and get Senior Feed.

Fred is somewhere around 34 ish, he is the little bay. Mica is in her late 20's and has always been a hard keeper.

The red headed sisters.

Funny how they group themselves.

And the bays. One is a horse, the other is Siera.

For whatever reason, these two hang out together also.

Charlie ran to the door. I let him in where he greeted Rich and promptly laid down in front of the heater.

I shut the door behind me as I heard Rich asking Charlie, "So how was the snow? Did you have fun?"

I smiled.

I don't ever recall Rich conversing with one of our pets over the years. He likes dogs, but he never was a fan of a house dog.

Yes, Charlie was worth it. The funny little dog that wormed his way into Rich's heart.