SPECIAL PLACES

We all had some place in our past that we look fondly upon. Thinking about those spots often takes us back to the carefree world of childhood. We had our own little “S**t Crick” where we spent a lot of time engineering dams, flipping rocks and catching “craw-crabs.” We also had our own” up in the woods”. Yep that is where we said we were going and that was enough. You sure couldn’t have kids doing that, nowadays. The woods consisted of a fairly dense hardwood forest, with huge boulders.  The upper end of the same creek split the woods. That is where I found my first arrowhead. What a wonderful place it was to explore. It is gone; now. I can hear and feel the trees hitting the ground right now; as I write this. Acid mine drainage was diverted into the creek several years ago. It is now orange. Nothing is left in the woods except the boulders.

When I was growing up; I wanted to be the best turkey hunter around these parts. Early on in my quest: I found a very good area. I was able to spend a lot of time there and I learned a lot of things. I was also able to keep it fairly secret. I harvested my very first spring gobbler there and many more afterward. I became a turkey hunting guide and spent about two decades away from WV. No matter where or how far away I was living; I always knew where I would be at some point during the first two weeks of May. I always made it back there for 2 or 3 days. That ridge never failed me throughout the years. It is great to have a spot like that. It too is gone, clear-cut and leased. I haven’t even ridden down that road in a decade. I know it would make me sick to just see what has happened to the area.

This month would be an excellent time for all of you to go back and find your old special places; if they still exist. I figure that if a spot isn’t good in May, there isn’t much hope for it during the rest of the year. I need to do the same and find a spot somewhere that I really enjoy fishing. I know there are plenty of spots out there for the taking. It just takes some effort to find them. It seems to me as if all of the places I really liked on our trout streams were highly affected by the fall of 1985 flood.  I know that I need to go looking with an open mind.

Yes, this is the time to go back and visit your old haunts. You never know how long they will last or if they are still there. Better yet, encourage someone else to give up the technology and go out and get lost in the real world. Give a spark to the exploration and imagination to someone who doesn’t yet realize that special places still exist. They will fondly remember you long after you are gone. Most of all; enjoy May. It doesn’t last nearly long enough.

This article first appeared in the May 2014 print edition of Two-Lane Livin .

Wildflower Walks at Kanawha State Forest April 26, 2014

CHARLESTON, WV - The annual Osbra Eye Memorial Wildflower Walks are scheduled Saturday, April 26, 2014, at Kanawha State Forest near Charleston, W.Va. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. at the swimming pool area.
A variety of guided walks featuring topics that include wildflowers, medicinal/edible plants, trees, beginning and advanced birding, and photography are walk focuses. Attendees should bring cameras and binoculars. The participation fee is $5 for adults and $2 for walkers ages 16 and younger. Door prizes and hot dog sales are part of the annual event. The walks will be assisted by staff from the State Parks Section of the Division of Natural Resources, Handlan Chapter of the Brooks Bird Club, Mary Ingles Trail Blazers, and the West Virginia Native Plant Society. For more information about activities at Kanawha State Forest, call 304-558-3500 or visit online www.kanawhastateforest.com.
About Osbra Eye
Osbra Eye was superintendent of Kanawha State Forest from March 2, 1956, until June 13, 1981. After 25 years, he left Kanawha State Forest in 1981 and was named one of four district administrators for Division of Parks and Recreation. Eye remained in that position (1981-1986) until being named chief of operations for West Virginia State Parks  May 1, 1986.  He retired in 1988 and moved to Beckley. In his retirement, he served the Appalachian Trail Club and the Brooks Bird Club as a volunteer.  He was a veteran of the Korean War.
Eye was a Concord College graduate (now University), a former Raleigh County school teacher, and a former Taxonomy and Ornithology instructor at the WV College of Graduate Studies. A self-taught naturalist, botanist and photographer, he was well known as a wildflower expert. He was an avid bird watcher, identifying species by sight and more often, by sound. His photos of birds and wildflowers, along with related articles, appeared many times in Wonderful West Virginia magazine. He collaborated with Margaret Denison, teacher and wildflower expert, in compiling a booklet on flowering plants in Kanawha State Forest, published in 1967. Mr. Eye died July 18, 1992, and his family donated his personal specimens and slides to the University of Charleston.
In 1993, the Kanawha State Forest Foundation chose to honor him by renaming the Spring Walks the Osbra Eye Memorial Wildflower Walks. This was to commemorate his esteemed contributions as a naturalist, photographer and advocate for forest preservation as well as other environmental causes.

**DNR**

REVIVAL

The sun now has more power. Wavelengths begin to reach the snow pack deep in the heads of northerly facing hollows. Tiny rivulets begin to form, slowly at first; but gaining momentum with each passing hour. The sun is a powerful ally. The mountainside begins to show a few brown patches. Hints of green tantalize the imagination as tiny green ramp leaves poke through the leaves. Trilliums and violets soon follow. Black-throated Green Warblers and Solitary Vireos return and tease us with their song. Rivulets will get stopped by the cold nights, the trilliums and alliums will be compressed by yet more snow. The singing will continue. Spring is finally here.

Spring means many things to many people; some just go by what they hear on TV. When I see the first serviceberries bloom; I know there is a little bit of hope in respect to the end of winter. Not much, but a little glimmer; anyway. There will be more of that nasty white stuff, it will not last. Might not even stick; but all the same it will make its presence known. I’m a hummingbird person, myself. I know that when the first Ruby-throated Hummingbirds return; it is time for morels, asparagus and ramps. This is also about the time that water temperatures hit 50 degrees. Trout begin feeding on a myriad of underwater life forms.  That means spring to me. My earliest return date for hummingbirds is April 17 and the 26^th is my latest. April 22 has the most first sightings this century; here in Randolph County.

Spring is the season that we all look forward to; sadly it is often cut too short. We all need to take advantage of every pleasant day. Soon, it will get hot. There is just so much we want to do and need to do in a short period of time. First on the list here are peas, lettuce and onions. Cabbage and broccoli soon follow. There may be some time in between for a couple of fishing trips; before the end of the month monsoons that always seem to come. My potatoes go in the ground when the catbirds show up. Then it is turkey and trout time. I can hardly wait to get out there.

Believe me when I say that the older you get; the longer the winter becomes. If I remember right, the first day of deer season, it was about 5 degrees on the mountain I chose. I believe that I have been cold since then. April brings hope it is a time to rejuvenate. Can you now feel the warm sun on the back of your neck? I can hardly wait to feel that Clouser thump and a trout shaking its head. Dirty knees, bags of ramps and some fish heads for the tomatoes. Are all things I think of when I hear that spring word. Hurry up April and be kind when you get here. We've had enough.

This is my April 2014 column for the print edition of Two-Lane Livin. (c) 2014 All Rights Reserved

Randolph County 200 !!

Today (4/2/14) I was able to reach a personal milestone; therefore it was a good day. There was a post on WV Bird yesterday about a Fish Crow at the Elkins/Randolph County Airport. I have been stuck at bird species number 199: since the beginning of the year. I had hoped to add one of the Scoters or a Long-tailed Duck as bird 200. I figured one would eventually show up here. If one did and I'm sure there was one somewhere; I didn't find it. I was kind of counting on finding a Pectoral Sandpiper and still may before the spring is over. That is the great thing about birding, you never know what will show up and you can do it 365 days per year.

I stopped along Ward Road this morning to listen for the Fish Crow, there wasn't even a standard model crow there. I figured I would ride around to the Wilson's Fort marker and try my luck there. Just as I approached the spot, three American Crows flew across the road and when I looked down where they came from; there was the Fish Crow sitting on a roof. I got a real good look through binoculars. I got my camera out, but it flew to the next building and disappeared from view, but it did make its distinctive call when it flew. Oh well, no photo. But I did take time to photo the Wilson's Fort marker. I had never in my entire life stopped to read this. I really never imagined a Fish Crow would be my #200 Randolph County Bird; but I never would have guessed I would see a Sanderling here either. Who knows what will be next? At least we all learned something today!

(c) 2014 High Virginia Outdoors All Rights Reserved

Our Confusing Scaup

Scaup can be confusing, no matter what your birding skill level is. Living in the mountains of West Virginia, we tend to have our sightings few and far between. Therefore, it is tougher to get embedded into your brain here; more so than in other locations. During normal years, most of the scaup we see are Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) they are our most common and expected species. I usually expect to see a couple of Greater Scaup (Aythya marila) every other year or so.

We all have figured out by now that the winter of 2013-2014 was not normal. The Great Lakes were nearly completely frozen over and this had a major effect on waterfowl travel. We were blessed with more Greater Scaup than Lesser Scaup and I was privileged enough to be able to get several photos of both species in the same frame. Sometimes things just work out, not often but sometimes.

This next photo show a Lesser Scaup in the middle. Notice the shape of the head, shape of the bill and the barring on its flanks. I felt very lucky to get these shots. Distance, lighting and weather always seem to hinder our views, but etching things in our mind always make us more confident. This was the first time; as far back as I can remember that I have ever seen both species together in the mountains of WV. I actually took some half-hearted photos of these earlier in the day; thinking they were all Lesser Scaup. I happened to look at the photos later in the day and realized that I actually had some bad Greater Scaup shots. I rushed back to the location and they were actually still there.

SPRING

SPRING

April brings us hope. The winter of 2009-2010 fades from memory.  Melting snow triggers the emergence of morels and ramps.  The run-off from the massive snowpack is well on its journey to the Mississippi Delta. Streams return to normal flow. Songbirds return, turkeys gobble and fish become active. It happens every year. Most of you live in the area where spring begins in April. Where I live and play, spring doesn’t begin until May. There isn’t much difference in the mountains; between March and April, except for a few more teaser days. Yeah, I know that the official date of the Spring Equinox is March 20. That is OK, if you live in the Deep South. My belief is that it isn’t spring, until I see my first hummingbird of the year.

The only thing that I have to complain about; regarding spring, is that it doesn’t last long enough. Back in the days when gas was cheap and life was good, I became spoiled. I knew that I would be in a palmetto swamp; in Macon County, Alabama on March 20. My job was guiding turkey hunters at one of the premier hunting lodges of the South. Turkey season ran until April 30. Alabama’s spring didn’t quite last that long. Sweltering summer heat usually began around the third week of April. I could always tough it out, knowing that I would be arriving in the Allegheny Highlands just in time for spring. I would hunt in the mountains of West Virginia and Virginia and follow spring north, usually ending up in New York or Vermont as the dogwood blossoms faded away.

What is the first thing you think of, when you hear the word spring? I think green. Not just any green; the green of emerging leaves. I then have an image of white; no not the white shimmer of snow that we have all grown tired of, the white bloom of serviceberry and the dogwood florets, with edges of brown. Honey bees on crocus bloom. The chorus of singing toads, gobbling turkeys and the dreaded irritation of a string-trimmer are all sure signs of spring. I think of the smell of freshly mowed grass and the aroma of bacon and ramps, wafting from a streamside campsite. I think of activity. People, who haven’t been visible; during the previous five months, magically appear in their lawns and gardens. Birds busily gather materials for nest building. The woods come alive with song. Aquatic insects awaken from near dormancy, their activity increases with each rising degree of water temperature. Fish begin feeding after the long winter; gaining strength for the upcoming spawns. These are a few of my thoughts of spring. I hope they make you think of flowers, baby birds and warm spring rain.

Spring is without a doubt, my favorite season. I would be happy if summer’s heat never arrived and the dull gray days of winter only lasted for a few weeks. Now, I believe I will take my Vitamin D pill and start doing my taxes.

Happy Spring

This article first appeared in Two-Lane Livin April 2010.

THE CHIPMUNK SYNDROME

Everyone knows that our Eastern Chipmunk disappears when the cold winter winds blow. Did you ever wonder how a chipmunk’s life could be compared to those of the human race? The chipmunk hibernates during the winter months but it is not a period of continuous inactivity. Things are happening down there; below the frost line.

Our little furry friend builds a burrow system that contains food storage chambers, a bathroom chamber and a sleeping chamber. The entrance to the burrow is plugged with leaves for insulation and camouflage from passing weasels. Life goes on down there in that tiny little apartment throughout the winter. The chipmunk’s body temperature lowers to that of the air temperature in the burrow. Usually this temperature is around 40 degrees and the little mammal begins to take long naps. Unlike the bear which stores body fat for the winter; the chipmunk awakens from time to time to consume calories from its pantry.

The chipmunk has a unique ability to raise its body temperature. Every few days it raises its body temperature to around 94 degrees; gets up, visits the bathroom chamber, snacks and goes back to sleep. If it happens to feel a warm breeze coming through the burrow; it may pop its head out of the burrow entrance and soak up a few rays from the sun. This cycle is repeated over and over throughout the winter months.

By now you are wondering how this applies to humans. I myself have no love of the winter season. I’ve had enough of it by the time the New Year rolls in. There are always those who proclaim their love of winter. They always get me wondering; do they love the frigid temperatures, the icy roads, winds blowing the stinging icy snow pellets sideways, zero visibility, frozen fingers or seeing the antennae on their vehicle grow to the size of a shovel handle; maybe they love the thrill of sliding down the road uncontrollably, just hoping to stop.

No, they love winter; two days after the storm has passed. They love to clear blue skies that follow and the fluffy white snow. They love traveling on the clear dry roads on which over the previous two days workers have risked life and limb to clear for them. They love going to the grocery store and talking about that last storm they endured; while they watched through their picture window.

Yes, they love winter just as the chipmunk loves winter. It isn’t too bad if you’re not out there in it. The little chipmunk doesn’t have to worry about hawks, foxes or house cats or anything else; while locked in the safety of its burrow. Myself; I’m waiting on spring green and am not in any way afflicted with the chipmunk syndrome. Thinking of Spring!