Spring 1

Last Monday, it was such a beautiful day that I decided to hike to the highest mountain behind my house. In November, 2009 I shared a series of photos, the purpose of which was to show you the type of photos I take on a typical walk, taken on one trip to the mountain.

This time I decided to photograph Signs of Spring and made 1200 photos during my 4 hour hike. I plan to share a few with you over the next few days. This series will emphasize the theme of my Photo of the Day - EVERYTHING'S A PICTURE.

The first images were of the small brook that was flowing past the trail. There isn't much water, which is a little bothersome because we have had a mild and fairly dry winter. That means there is little runoff and the trails are fairly dry. If we continue the mild, dry weather the woods will be even dryer and forest fires will become an issue. (There was a brush fire that became a forest fire this week that destroyed several homes in Chapel's Cove, the next town to Holyrood.)

The second photo shows red moss growing along the trail. I photographed several varieties of moss during my hike and was intrigued by the reddish mosses which were located on the bogs.

The grasses this time of the year are not much more than dried straw that is rotting quickly into the soil. In a short while, the green shoots of grass will grow and transform the boggy areas to fields of green. Every year I make photos of the dead grasses because I like the lines, shapes and textures they create before they provide nutrients for the next generation.