Spring Time in the Country

This is the view today from the top of "jump rock". You can see what jump rock looks like from down below by looking at the photo over on the right here at Whites Creek Journal.

Trilliums are emerging. This is most likely a yellow trillium. Let you know later in the month when it blooms.

There are joys one experiences when living in the country. This friend has passed on to that great kitchen floor in the sky, where all good little scorpions go when they get squished by the Great Lambskin Moccasin from the guy sitting in the chair next to the kitchen table.

Showing Off The Yard

Took a fine walk with a photog friend that covered over three miles of Whites Creek trails today. He hung with me as we jumped Ford Branch and hiked along the Creek to a spot above the confluence to Piney Creek. This place is way too big to see in a day or even a decade, but if my friends are willing to follow I'm willing to show them around. There's nothing like a long hike and good conversation.

Update: Mushy's photos from the day are posted at his site HERE.

Gobbler in the Morning

This old boy roosted just below the house last night. He was practicing his strut about 50 off the ground on a limb way too small for a twenty pound bird. Sorry for the fuzzy shot. I need to get optical grade windows or cut in a rifle port to take pictures through. There is way too much cool stuff that happens in our yard.

Today's Walk...Behind the Waterfall

This beautiful spot is on a tributary to Ford Branch. With the recent rains it was flowing nicely.

Spring Song

Taken through the window glass just now, the song is still sweet.

The call can be heard here.

Happy Valentine's Day..Love is Strange Edition...Really, Really, Strange

If you ever wondered where they got the idea for the Alien movie monster...

If you never thought of your friendly neighborhood mollusk as a man of action, think again. Freshwater mussels like this cheeky little Epioblasma triquetra (a/k/a "Snuffbox") propagate their kind by grabbing a passing fish, clamping it down forcefully and then proceeding to shove some larvae down its throat.

Watch

Today's View

Looking out over the Tennessee Valley.

Compare today's picture to this from last summer...

This last one is the wrap around image for the blog. I'll lead anyone who wants to follow up there. Just let me know.

The Boys are Dressing Up for Spring

We're starting to see courting behavior in the trees. I watched a nuthatch take suet to its mate in the dogwood tree and the spring color is beginning to show on the warblers and finches. Get outside and see for yourself what nice weather we have for hiking today. This yellow rumped warbler is terrorizing much larger birds at the feeder, showing off for the girls. His rump flashes are too fast for a picture to turn out so far.

Update: Here we go. Impressed girls?

Whites Creek Journal Global Headquarters

Do you know where you are? Whites Creek Global Headquarters is located at latitude and longitude :

35° 48' N / 84° 45' W

Find your location. 


The terrorists already know where you are...they're watching you.

Seen on a Walk

Saw this view on a walk on our friends' place in Ozone.

Here is the actual picture. 

Skinny Dip Sunday

It is amazing how fast an old man can get in and out of the water. Last night, in a wine fueled moment around a campfire, we said we were going to get our January swim in the creek today. It was cold. It stung. Now that we're dry and warm, it was glorious!

Yes, that is ice on the far side of the pool.

Through the Window in the Snow

I took these through a double pane window. Until it warms up a bit, that's probably what will happen so I apologize for the depth of field and clarity in advance. If that's a problem to you...so be it. Cornell has some nice pictures.

Actually, I've been taking pix of the brand spanking new granddaughter and birds, not so much right now.

Purple finch et al...

Pine siskins...

Photos by an Old Friend

Rare that I recommend photos but this is a must see. Click your way through John's work and be amazed...

Amazing work, John!

Snow Walk

Walk on Black Mountain

This may be the most amazing spot in East Tennessee, and possibly the most under visited for all its wow factor. Unfortunately my batteries blanked 20 minutes into a three hour tour. Renamed for Justin Wilson and now crossed by the Cumberland Trail, This wondrous geological fairyland is only a few miles off I 40 at the Crab Orchard exit. Oddly enough, the best trail is not marked. If you stay in the rocks and just wander around you'll find most of the best stuff in an easy amble that can be done in a half hour. I have no idea why anyone would cut a visit here short, though.



The Official Word

Bouncing Foxes

My friend Carolyn sent this from Minnesota.

Then You Shake It To The Left

Just follow the easy steps

Listen to the music playing in your head...

And do the Kinglet Boogie!

Sunrise

When we laid out the foundation of our house we used a compass to get the correct orientation for passive solar gain. Oddly, the compass simply wouldn't work on the west end of the house. We figured it was because of the nearby heavy metal machinery and used the direction for south that the compass showed on the east wall. It was wrong by 13 degrees. It turns out that this ridge has large iron deposits and was surface mined heavily at one point in time. When we laid out the driveway we cut into one of the iron seams. One happy consequence of this is that the winter solstice sunrise comes directly and exactly through this window.

I should mention that this window was a work by the talented artist, Glenna Alderson, working in stained glass for this piece. It is a treasured gift.

Today's Walk

After 20 years here I see new things every day. This is a "clamber" up the steep side of Walden Ridge staying on our property. I followed deer trails and decided that whitetail deer must be closely related to mountain goats. The trails went up some fairly impressive pitches and are well used this time of year. The round leaf catchfly in bloom was a surprise, although the leaves on this one are not even close to round. The humidity is rather high even with the low temperature so the smoky mountains don't show up in the shot looking over Jackie's farm.

Scariest Canoeing Video Ever