I slipped into quiet coves where the sun didn't reach, except for a few stray rays that lit up the brilliant colors of Cardinal Flowers and Helenium.
I drifted around the little islands, where some of the maples had already started to turn the color of fire.
I had the river mostly all to myself, except for a few other boaters quietly moving across the water.
Red Osier Dogwood lined the shore of one of the trio of islands that lie a short distance from the boat launch site.
I pulled my canoe up onto an island's shore, to explore the wet shallows where many riverside plants can thrive despite daily inundation.
This patch of Marsh St. Johnswort was even more colorful gone to seed than it had been in summer bloom.
Swamp Candles (also known as Yellow Loosestrife) had traded its yellow flowers for bright-red bulbils growing in every axil. The bulbils will eventually fall into the mud, there to start new plants.
Oh, look what else I found today! More Mermaid Weed! And this was upstream from the patch of Mermaid Weed I had found last week. As this photo reveals, this plant is so small it's not easy to spot, especially when it's hiding among other green plants like Northern Bugleweed and Dwarf St. Johnswort. But now that I know what to look for, I wonder how often I will discover it growing along this river in the future.
Although there were many tiny plants of Mermaid Weed, only a few had matured enough to bear flowers, which by now had turned into the little fruits clinging to the stems.
6 comments:
The wilds of the Adirondacks!
Your long shots of water/woods/rocks make me think of being on our boat at Lake George, which makes me think of the Iroquois. It wasn't so long ago that it was all theirs. I think they were kinder to it all than most people are today.
Interesting plants as always, but the first and 4th photos just struck me as outstanding canoeing shots - great composition and perfect lighting.
Beautiful series of photos!
June, thanks for stopping by. I like to pretend, when I'm paddling this beautiful, wild-looking stretch of the river on a quiet day, that the land looks much as it did before European came. Except of course, there are hydroelectric dams at both ends of this catchment on the river!
Thanks, Furry Gnome. You know, it's hard to take bad photos of this beautiful stretch of the river.
Thank you, Linda. I'm glad you stopped by, because by clicking on your name, I arrived at your very interesting blog and heard that delightful Starling talking and kissing. Come back again!
Stunning scenic shots! I just read both your most recent blogs, and will comment here. I very much appreciate your botanical and fungal enthusiasms and thank you for calling these often rare/ endangered plants to our attention.. If only more would stop and look before they slash & burn..
Thank you, Cindy, for your kind comments. The main reason I started my blog was to increase awareness of (and gratitude for) the natural treasures that surround us everywhere, even here in our own backyard, so to speak. I'm so happy to know that you have appreciated that.
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