Snowy, stark and beautiful

pictures of the old Walhonding Railroad thruway
winter clouds

weeping wall's frozen tears

the River

from the bridge

like it was taken from a Bierstadt painting:

It's a start...here's the first of hopefully many eagle pictures

As I reached the top of the driveway plowing snow...I caught sight of her,
grabbed my camera, and snapped a few shots....these are the clearest photos.

She made 2 tight circles directly over top of me and then flew back downstream. The river is thawing so today was the first time I saw her for about a week. What a nice sight.

The latest count in this area is about 27.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner...She is not like us...

...she eats junipers.YUCK!

Valley views, winter wild plants, and nighttime in Winter Wally Road

this view shows part of the Smoke Signal Pit looking down over the hill...beyond those hemlocks and down int he Valley beside the River is Smith's Campgrounds and Cabins (http://www.3smiths.com/).
from the top of the ridge you can get a good view of the Lake Fork Tributary (yes, all that white beyond the trees is a frozen river...)

Rumex crispus in the woods? There are some openings in the canopy of the trees...This Curly Dock stalk with seeds is left over from summer. It is an invasive but usually doesn't like the shade. You appreciate what a root can hold on to if you've ever tried to weed this out of a garden. read more at http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/weeds/plants/curly_dock.htm

canada wild rye in the snow. this one is usually mistaken for a scrawny foxtail

and there she is...the christmas fern holding her green even at -20degrees F!

and this is what Wally Road looks like at night covered in snow!

Winter Pictures, Enjoy them while they last! Spring IS on its way!

the picnic table with incredible background---overlooking the Mohican River Valley
this is our neighbor's campground--Mohican Wilderness...this log cabin will be used for Summer Arts Programs for Ohio kids!

this doe was waiting to get to the juniper at the office door (see her in the distance?)

here's a little closer

and after she spotted me...running up the Smoke Signal Pit trail

China is doing what?

If you get 1 spare minute, check out this link to see what China is doing to conserve plants

http://www.plants2010.org/

Click the link and look at the "Latest News" section...


This is a neat organization.

Friends and Trash

Wonderful group of friends visiting from Columbus, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. As a part of helping to bring good energy to the place, they also helped remove trash from neglected areas.
a cleaner hillside... Triumphant over trash: Christine and Billy can tell you that Ohio is chillier than life in the Bahamas, pretty much always.once the 26-year accumulation of trash was removed from the hillside, the simpler things are easier to enjoy. A christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides)...

and a wood fern (Dryopteris sp.)

an Eastern White Pine cone (Pinus strobus)...

Piers, Turkies, & Treaties

The Walhonding Valley Railroad was opened in 1893. It opened a 45 mile connecting route from Loudonville to Coshocton. Many of the old sandstone piers from the bridges can still be seen along the route. Check out http://www.wallyroad.com for more information.

Also, The Greenville Treaty Line crosses Wally Road at the Knox and Holmes County line, about 1.5 miles from Mohican River Inn. Here is more info on that deal. (It didn't work out all that well for the natives, in case you were wondering how the story ended.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Greenville

January 12, 2009...

And this is the source of the gobbles I heard upon slowing down to snap some pictures of the old piers...

What just happened with Clear Fork Gorge?

Basically, the underground natural gas storage area (Columbia Gas) under the State Forest is being abandoned.

Here is the link for more details....

http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/article/20090102/UPDATES01/90102036

Friends of the Mohican, good news!

The Weeping Wall in Winter

The Weeping Wall on Wally Road created an amazing addition to my drive to the post office. These icicles are anywhere from 4 inches to 12 feet long.