Creeks, Rivers, Streams – Page 8

Carnivorous Plants Found

My whole life I have enjoyed those nature films where they show those fascinating plants that consume insects. In fact, I just read an article about them, I think in Texas Parks and Wildlife No, not there; it was a television show. I learned that they eat insects because the places where they grow, like boggy areas, are low in nitrogen or other nutrients. As much as I was interested in them, I’d never seen any in person before (haven’t traveled to the right Texas state park yet).

Sure enough, I found some, in a boggy area today, twice! It’s like we planned it.

You see, today we had some extra time, because this is our short driving day. Lee suggested we find some places to look at nature. I found a state park in western Florida that said it had a boardwalk that had views of pitcher plants. They’re carnivorous! So we headed off through some beautiful coastal scenery to the well hidden Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park.

It’s in a beautiful wet pine forest with lots of wet areas leading to the serene and quiet bayou.

Wet pine forest, an ecosystem I’d never heard about until today.

Sure enough, white-topped pitcher plants ( Sarracenia leucophylla) were growing in lovely swaths along the boardwalk. They shown in the sun and looked quite mysterious. I didn’t see any flowers; the “pitchers” are leaves.

While we were there, I looked for birds, but there weren’t many. We did meet Phil, a very interesting birder with some great equipment. He gave me lots of good information, so it was worth it. The only new bird I found today was a Scaly-breasted Munia (non-native) in the hotel parking lot.

We headed out to Alabama (a half mile away) and got gas and snacks at Buc-Ees. Then Lee got the idea to stop at rest stops to find birds. The next stop, at the Mississippi line, was a great one, where I saw Killdeer, which surprised me.

While I was taking pictures, Lee went inside and asked if there was anything interesting bird-wise nearby. The lady told him there was a Sandhill Crane sanctuary nearby. Off we went to the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge.

We did not see one crane, only Chipping Sparrows and Brown-headed Nuthatches. But who cares, because this place, a wet pine savanna, is a treasure trove of rare plants, including three kinds of carnivorous plants! Whee!

The pale pitcher plants (Sarracenia alata) were most numerous, and amused me, because they looked like little mouths.

There was also a parrot pitcher plant (Sarracenia psittacina), whose hoods look like parrot beaks.

But the best to me were the pink sundews (Drosera capillaris). They are so tiny! Their little jewel-like sticky traps were mesmerizing to me.

That’s not all, though, the trails took us through many areas with plants that were new to me.

Tantalizing and nearby was Bayou Castelle, which was off limits, because it is pristine and hosts many rare plants and other life. I heard there are orchids!

What a wondrous place to see. I’m grateful to Lee for making the effort to find out about it.

The rest of our ride was through sparsely populated parts of Mississippi and Louisiana. There were many very pretty towns, farms, forests, and sights. We are now in Covington, Louisiana in a very tired Hampton Inn. But it’s clean.

A fine day. Home tomorrow.

Ambiguous Impressions

What’s the first impression you want to give people?

Ooh. I never thought of this before! I’m usually so anxious when I meet people that I just try to power through it. I do a lot of talking, because I’m nervous. I do at least ask questions and listen to the answers. And being short, wrinkly, and gray haired isn’t going to interest people who base first impressions on looks. I probably come across as a boorish old lady.

I’d LIKE to make a first impression as someone interesting, intelligent, funny, and friendly. At least that would be a good first impression on people who judge others on their personality.

I judge a lagoon on its birds, not its beauty. One final visit before leaving Hilton Head.

This makes no sense. My apologies. I have no idea what kind of impression to try for, or even if I should try. No wonder I’m a hermit. I think maybe I no longer care what people think. They can like me or not. I now don’t want or expect the people I meet to like or dislike me. Let’s get to know each other.

I do know I spent the day in the car, driving through Georgia and the Florida panhandle. Seeing hurricane damage was very distressing. I felt awful for the poor trees and humans.

We saw some interesting small towns and a lot of peanut and cotton farming. We were behind a truck pulling a load of peanuts that started pelting us. That was fun.

After a lovely sunset, we are tucked into a Pensacola hotel and resting comfortably. It’s always fun going in the back roads!

Boating in Bluffton

At the moment I’m reeling in righteous indignation at someone I used to know who insinuated that members of my family are abominations in the eyes of her deity. If you think that, try to keep it to yourself so you don’t reveal your hypocrisy. But, I reminded her that Jesus loved everyone and moved on. Karma can take care of her (and me; I have lessons to learn, too!).

My day was good, however. I didn’t have to work, so Lee and I were able to head to our favorite neighboring town of Bluffton. It’s a town on bluffs, you see, on the shores of a river that’s not actually a river (I think it’s an inlet).

Numerous cool older houses are in the old part of town.

We ate lunch in the new part of town, in one of those perfect little business areas with apartments on top of the businesses. It was full of pastel colors and trendy board and batten. The place we ate had an immense beer menu and fun burgers. I had the peach/blackberry cider shown below, which was just perfect, sweet and tart. My burger had fried pineapple on it, which was delicious!

Next, Lee drove straight to my favorite art galleries, which was really nice of him. I met the lady who made a necklace Lee got me last year, and I got two crystal and silver earrings from her.

Not a great picture of the main shopping street.

We had to then hurry to catch our boat to go look at the river. We were joined by four women who all met in the early 80s when they were riding the commuter train up north. They have a large group who are still friends. How cool.

It was a beautiful day, and we saw a good number of dolphins out feeding and just hanging out.

I enjoyed all the birds, of course, and the huge piles of oyster shells and sand bars. The spartina grass was golden and very pretty. Lee got most of the good bird pictures.

There were, of course, many fancy houses to observe, but I like the mostly empty islands best.

We’re now all ready to head back home. We will take our time, so maybe we will stop somewhere along the way! I’ll try to be as accepting as possible as long as no one insults my family.

Announcing My Dislike of Food Prep

What part of your routine do you always try to skip if you can?

Announcement: I don’t like to cook anymore. That’s my least favorite routine item. I enjoyed it when I was making meals for my kids and ex, who ate most foods and really seemed to appreciate my effort. Since the kids grew up I’ve lost my motivation to cook family meals, though folks often say they’re glad for the food.

Nope. Not making this. Photo from Pexels.

Some of my issue is that none of us need or want the same foods, due to health issues, allergies, and preferences. Since I’m not very creative, I can’t come up with meals. Nor do I have much time with animals to care for. Heck, I don’t even want to make meals for myself. I just want to eat stuff like fruit, yogurt, rice, and cheese.

My ideal meal. Just slap it on a board. Photo from Pexels.

I’m not sure how this all happened. It’s not my family’s fault. I’m just not motivated. Other things interest me more than food. (Unless I’m feeling extremely anxious like right now.)

What does interest me is nature, animals, reading, and knitting. Speaking of nature, I’m going to get better images from now on, with the macro lens Lee got me. It’s cool. I took pictures of small things.

I didn’t get to go try it out until late afternoon. I had a lot of work to do and I wasn’t feeling mentally well. I had nightmares all night about being afraid of people around me. Where did that come from? Lee has had CNN on again. Their coverage gets me scared sometimes. Sure, I’m easily frightened, but it’s worse when there’s justification.

Anyhow, the lens is great fun now that I’ve figured it out. I love how it focuses. Hilton Head is a good place to see small flora and fauna.

When spring comes around, I’ll be all over the flowers and insects back at the ranch. I hope, at least, to be able to! The beauty will still be there. It’s timeless.

Sending love, and understanding to each of you who has a secret part of their daily routine they’re not fond of. I can’t be alone in being bored by cooking!

Cameras and Cacophony

Is anyone reading this? Judging from my stats, few of us are interested in pretty pictures. Well, that’s what you get, my friends, because I’m not wallowing in worry about 2025. I’m going to have as much fun as I can in case I can’t later.

Gonna grab the joy of nature as much as I can. Photo by Lee.

Today was a beautiful day. Of course, because I had to work. But I squeezed in my valuable restorative nature time. I had to, because I have a new camera to play with. Lee got it for my anniversary gift ( and a macro lens for Christmas, lol, the surprise is ruined). I’ve never been good with “real” cameras, but I’m gonna try. I can upload the photos to my phone and share them with Lee, so I’m encouraged.

Look at this tiny spider! And that’s not even with the macro lens.

I took a short walk this morning on the prayer trail to try the camera out, but I got all excited about the birds I was hearing that I was distracted. The owl even showed up on Merlin, and there was some kind of major Pileated Woodpecker discussion that lasted quite a while. But I did try out the camera.

After work there was still some light, thanks to starting at 7 am, so we zipped over to a favorite spot, Pinckney Island Nature Preserve. I didn’t make Lee wait hours for me like I did last time we were here. He had more fun this time, since he got to mess with the camera a lot while I basked in the glory of looking at wading birds with my new binoculars. Oh, the glory of ibises and egrets!

The Ibis pond is one of my favorite spots in this area, and it didn’t disappoint. It was loud, though. The gallinules were making a real racket, with a variety of calls, squeaks, and hoots. I barely heard any of the other water birds. But they were all fun to watch, since there were many family groups.

I did hear and see many songbirds as I walked around the pond. There was even a new one, a group of Palm Warblers. Thanks to the binoculars I was able to easily ID them. They are distinctly marked and have pretty olive bellies. Others were bluebirds, nuthatches, vireos, kinglets, and catbirds. Oh, and there were pretty plants.

I got so involved with birds that I nearly missed this guy. Reptile goal accomplished.

I always enjoy the herons and egrets, so they filled my heart.

Mostly Snowy Egrets. My Little Blue Heron photos didn’t work out.

But where were the ibises of Ibis Pond? They were roaming all over the salt marshes finding tasty snacks. The new camera’s photos of them at a distance weren’t as good as the camera photos. I would need a telephoto lens, which we used to have…but it’s hiding.

All in all, I was holding a lot of equipment, so I’m going to have to make arrangements for everything in the future. But it was fun.

And I had a great dinner at a new restaurant in town that is in a beautiful spot. Lee isn’t fond of food or portions in nice restaurants, but my halibut was perfect, and my fancy drink was tasty and not too sweet.

Lee showing his feelings about restaurants with cloth napkins. Also, my beverage. It was like a berry old fashioned.

I’m glad to have someone to listen to loud birds and try out new technology with. It’s helping me stay centered.

Though this photo slants, which makes me less centered.

Bonus. Here are some marsh and coastal forest photos to enjoy.

Deep into Lagoons

Yesterday was very windy along the beach. I had a pretty hilarious hair day.

Good thing my hair is the color of the sand now, since lots ended up in it.

Something in watching the wind sweep the beach clean made me think. It doesn’t take much to at least deflect the winds of change. Look at how tiny obstacles caused bumps yesterday.

With all that wind and sand (neither of which are my favorites) I decided to move inland. It is a lot quieter on the residential/rental streets, as long as no one is running a gas-powered leaf blower (another non-favorite thing).

I was enjoying the big and little houses, the squirrels, and some birds, when I realized the road I was on bordered a long lagoon. A big hint was the sign proclaiming it to be Lagoon Road.

The lagoon was hidden by lots of trees, which explains why there were so many birds around.

The area also had some huge oak trees, some of the largest I’ve seen here. And amid all the fancy houses was a small A-frame house with beehives. This experience helped me get my daily grounding plus some.

I couldn’t get a good angle on this huge tree

One negative of this long walk was that I managed to blister my tors on my left foot. But hey, I made up for leaving my watch at home earlier! I was the beneficiary of a good deed when the bartender gave me a bandage from their first aid kit. I returned the favor by listening to two very drunken rich women telling me their life stories and how much better they predict the US will be soon. I said I hope so. That’s true.

Pansies are for thoughts. I didn’t share mine. What would that help?

Today’s morning walk, which was cut short by rain, featured two lagoons! I turned down a side road, because I heard a Red-shouldered Hawk and a Blue Jay.

It turned out to be a quiet street with quiet condos. One had a contented Great Egret enjoying the nearby fountain.

Right past the heron was an empty lot, where it looked like a building once was. It had a small lagoon and was surrounded by pines and hardwoods. There were dozens and dozens of songbirds and woodpeckers flitting around the trees and myrtle shrubs, along with various crows with very important agendas, I assumed. I stayed a long time, just watching all the action. Those Yellow-rumped Warblers were busy, busy, busy.

It rained a while, but I hid under a pine tree.

I followed the lagoon past where it ended, and lo, there was a connected lagoon. This was a dark, moody area with crowded vegetation around it. I saw a turtle and some fish, but mostly I watched squirrels and birds. I saw yet another Gray Catbird, and even a Hermit Thrush. I bet no one at the Holiday Inn Express next door even notices this little treasure. I did! It keeps me grounded (and it helped that I leaned on a welcoming oak, too.)

I’m sure enjoying searching out these little pockets of nature. Admittedly, I look forward to Lee arriving so we can drive some. I even ordered him some food to eat when he arrives. One day at a time is working out fine.

Gaining Ground through Grounding

I’ve made a couple of resolutions today. You could even call them goals. One’s pretty easy, but vital, and the other is harder if you’re a hermit.

I’m going to spend even more time outdoors to keep myself grounded.
I want to do something kind for someone every day – something that might not occur to me to do if I wasn’t being conscious about it.

How did I do?

Today it wasn’t so rainy, so I was able to get out and about multiple times today as I sought out the quiet, natural parts of this very green but rather loud island where I’m staying (Hilton Head). I was seeking the ability to really ground myself and bring back my sense of peace and lovingkindness.

The first time I went for a walk, I looked for new natural spots. Mostly I found leaf blowers, garbage trucks, and construction equipment, but I did eventually come to a little hidden path where the birds were gathering and there were many interesting plants.

I took lots of photos of seeds, berries, and weird fungi, but I didn’t feel very grounded. Plus I was not thrilled to realize halfway through this rather long walk that I’d left the Apple Watch on the charger. Oh no! My exercise didn’t count! (I realized it did count, health-wise, but not watch-wise.)

It’s weird only working four days a week. It’s even weirder on an island with no transportation. So, after a little rest and putting my watch back on, I headed for the beach. It was an interesting day there, because fog had lingered way past mid-day. I was able to see a cormorant fishing, as well as the usual pelicans, gulls, and Sanderlings. Here is also where I accomplished goal number two and was rewarded greatly.

I saw a woman struggling to put up a shade cover all by herself. At first I thought, oh she can handle it. Then I bravely (for me) went up and asked if she could use some help. She could! So, I wrestled with her wiggly setup and we got it working. As we talked, it turned out she is an editor at a horse magazine and has a horse much like Apache, only larger. So we each enjoyed talking about PPID, working equitation, and horse nutrition. So far, doing kind things is working out great, at least on the first day.

After another rest, okay, actually a long nap, I realized that I still hadn’t gotten to the really grounded state I need to find every day to keep my spirits up and not fall into my doomsday thinking. By now it was near sunset, which is ridiculously early thanks to Standard Time. I headed back out, this time with a plan I was sure would work: I went back to the Presbyterian prayer trail.

This is a magical couple of acres that is chock-full of native trees and shrubs that have been allowed to live out their lives, like Wohlleben recommends. It’s because Hilton Head Island was isolated for most of the time intense logging was done, and occupied just by the Gullah folks who mostly did small farming plots and a lot of fishing. There are still old-growth forests here.

I looked at the map and realized there were more trails than I’d been on last time. I got deep within the woods and was able to set on a Leopold bench and meditate. The trees masked traffic and children playing to where I could just breathe as the Hermit Thrush called and called. I got the feeling I needed.

I knew I was on the right path literally and metaphorically when something moved next to the creek at the back of the trail. It was a very large bird. When it settled, I realized it was an owl, a Great Horned Owl. Merlin doesn’t even have them listed as a possible bird here. But, there it was. No photos of the owl. I was just looking through my eyes, not a phone.

When I realized the sun had set, I headed off to find the beach again, which was not easy, since the nearest beach access was actually closed. I managed to get into the Marriott resort, though, where I found a very loud Mockingbird that led to another random conversation, this time with a like-minded birder from England.

The beach didn’t disappoint me this time, as I got to see the beautiful reflections of the clouds in the tidal pools. I have such fond memories of coming here with Anita and enjoying these views together. The moon was out and reflected in the water, which was magical. What felt like a miracle occurred. I got that feeling of deep contentment that I get when Nature surprises me. I was happy for the first time in quite some time, probably since the last horse show.

You should be glad I edited these down to just four.

We all have things we need to keep going. I’m glad that my needs aren’t to put others down, to think only of my own personal gains, or to dominate. Being grounded and finding ways to be kind to others is what I’ll rely on as times get challenging.

Hugs All Around

It’s a hard day in the USA, so I’m sending hugs it to all. Let’s send peaceful energy out to our country even if we disagree with what happens. We’re still all family.

Love is what we need, and what I experienced today. I found a little clump of trees chock full of beautiful birds this morning. The woodpeckers were everywhere.

Maybe my best bird photo ever. Red-bellied Woodpecker.

I’m not going to go on and on about birds. It’s killing my blog stats, but they do bring me comfort. There were lots of them today, in between doing things to distract myself. Thank goodness for my relatives and their willingness to drive me all over the place! At our late lunch at Hudson’s I had a divine crab cake and the best potato salad ever. I saw lovely herons and of course, gulls.

Then we went to the nature preserve I love to visit. They’ve done a lot there since last year, but the rugged beauty was also there. I got lots of ideas for the Wild Wings Bird Sanctuary to share with our committee. And it was beautiful near sunset.

We went to “second dinner” because we didn’t want to go back to our rooms. This was at the Fish Camp restaurant next to the beautiful dock overlooking the Broad Creek. We got Old Fashioneds, appetizers and bread pudding. I, of course, went to the beautiful dock and looked for birds, the best of which was a very vocal Clapper Rail. I do love a good marsh at low tide!

Mostly, though the three of us women enjoyed each other’s company, telling stories about our parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. We are resilient, we determined. It was a beautiful night, and that just added to the fun.

I’m gonna read magazines and check the news later. I feel safe and grounded for now, because I feel the love of my family and friends.

The Best Way to Spend November 4, 2024

I wish Lee was here, but I had a great time distracting myself from the fact that tomorrow is a scary day. I answered a lot of questions at work, and managed to have a much better birding day than yesterday.

After I enjoyed songbirds, I checked out the park I’d visited yesterday. It was quieter today, and I got to enjoy turtles, an Anhinga resting on a small tree, and a Great Egret on the hunt.

I turned and walked back up the beach to see shorebirds. First I enjoyed the beautiful boardwalk leading to the beach.

I also saw a pretty dark and brooding sea. It reminded me of how American people feel right now.

I did enjoy the birds as they scrambled around for their food. My favorite was this gull trying to get ahold of an acorn. The gull did not want to share with the Sanderling.

They were all entertaining, even the crow, who had some kind of tidbit in its mouth, too.

Later in the day, my relatives whisked me off to lunch in the part of the island I couldn’t get into yesterday. It’s very pretty. And guess what? I found more birds from the restaurant we ate at.

We’re actually not related, but we look like it.

As we were driving off to visit more relatives (including a baby relative) we spotted white blobs in a parking lot. The stepsister wheeled the Acura around like the pro driver she used to be (kind of) and we got to enjoy the beauty of a flock of Wood Storks with a Great Egret buddy.

It was so much fun to get so close to them. They sure looked fluffy and festive.

So yes, today was a good day spent with family and avian friends.

Hugs to all who are stressing. Remember, worrying won’t change anything.

Dear friends, New Friends

What a nice day it was. I got lots of exercise, enjoyed scenery, watched football, hung out with my “sisters,” and met fellow birders. Not bad at all. Living in the moment!

I enjoyed dinner with my lovely relatives. I just love eating the little oysters at Hudson’s. And the view. Ahh. I’ll hang out with the relatives more this week. They brought me stuff from my dad to go through.

After I got back from our early dinner (time changed) I watched football on TV at the good ole resort bar. I met a very nice couple originally from the part of England where my family came from and discovered we were all birders. I sure enjoyed that conversation!

We all talked to the Gullah bartender. She was an interesting woman, and I appreciated the opportunity to learn more from someone who’d lived their life here. This island is fascinating. I’m happy to be here.