And how hungry I am for Honey Mushrooms, which is why I headed straight across the river to land my canoe where a stream comes tumbling down the far mountainside. There's a path that follows that stream uphill to where I have always found this delicious wild mushroom growing abundantly. And this is the season for them.
(Actually, these might NOT be Honey Mushrooms, even though that's the name I filed this photo under. I would have to do a spore print to make sure the spores were white. It's important to be absolutely sure of a species before consuming it.)
Here's a photo of just one clump of Honey Mushrooms I found last year on September 24. They're as tasty as they are handsome, and if you find one of them, you're likely to find a hundred.
(Actually, these might NOT be Honey Mushrooms, even though that's the name I filed this photo under. I would have to do a spore print to make sure the spores were white. It's important to be absolutely sure of a species before consuming it.)
But no Honey Mushrooms this year. We seem to be having a fall fungi famine, after this hot dry summer. The only fungi I found were hard woody ones that might have been there for years.
One bright spot of color lit up the dark wooded streamside. The brilliant red of the Jack-in-the-Pulpit berries is set off nicely by those yellow leaves.
I returned to the river to enjoy a nice long paddle up and down the beautiful banks. There was not a single other boat to disturb the tranquil waters.
I, however, continually disturbed this Great Blue Heron each time I rounded a bend in the river. It kept flying ahead of me and landing downstream, only to take off again each time I approached. Finally it wised up and flew across the river.
This dragonfly, on the other hand, seemed to welcome my approach and landed on my leg. It flew off a few times as I poked my camera at it, but shortly returned to exactly the same spot.
I saw a few blooms just starting to unfurl on Witch Hazel, too far away for me to get a photo. But I did manage to get a shot of these Flowering Dogwood berries.
When I returned to my car, I found this furry critter crawling on my windshield wiper. As soon as I tried to lift it safely away, it retracted into this tight little ball.
Reluctant to touch this Hickory Tussock Moth caterpillar (Lophocampa caryae) -- both because I did not want to hurt it and also because its bristles can sometime irritate a person's skin -- I coaxed it onto a twig and safely carried it away to the nearby woods. What beautiful markings! It reminds me of a Snow Leopard.
Heading home, I passed by Mud Pond and stopped to admire these beautiful trees along the shore.
The autumn colors have just begun to emerge. It looks like we're going to have a gorgeous fall season.
1 comment:
A snow leopard caterpillar! I love that!
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