LOOK!

White-eyed Vireo

LOOK!

June usually isn't too bad; until it gets hot. The garden is planted and we now have some time to unwind. I always look forward to the garden growing and the lawn dying. don't get me wrong; I like mowing grass the first couple of times. After that, it is kind of like that kick in the gut you got when you finally finished the first grade. You mean I have to go back? Eleven more years?

I really enjoy trout fishing with a fly rod. Unfortunately, it seems as if the only time that one can enjoy a little alone time on a trout stream is after the fish trucks quit running. It really isn’t much fun fishing when someone riding down the road sees you catch a fish and decides to join you. There are plenty of fish and plenty of insect activity to keep anyone happy; until the streams dry up and get hot.

I wish everyone would take a few minutes out of each day just to see the little things around them. People really need to slow down and appreciate their surroundings; before it is too late. I have several friends who are accomplished outdoorsmen and are getting up in years. They look back at the things they have experienced and seen over the years. They realize that they will never be able to see the sights they have seen again. The best quote I have heard from them is I’m Glad I Went to the Dance.” I can tell you one thing for sure and that is I would never had the appreciation for the natural world that I have now; if I had not been a hard-core turkey hunter. Nobody would believe all of the things I had seen and experienced in the spring woods. I too am glad that I danced.

It just amazes me that people do not see things right in front of them. I was taking a photo of a beautiful adult Golden Eagle along Corridor H this past March. It was within 10 yards of the highway. I know 50 vehicles zoomed by while I was there. Not one slowed to look and I’d be willing to bet the not 5 people saw what I was looking at. Three of the 5 probably wondered why I was looking at a buzzard, yes, as a whole we are way out of touch.

I do not know how many times I have been asked over the past few years what something was. The response is always Oh; I have never seen one of those before. Yes, you have they are all over the area and very common. You just never bothered to actually look at one before. One very rewarding gift you can give yourself in this journey of lifetime learning is making the time each day to stop, look and listen. Do this for a few minutes every day and you will be amazed with the results. It doesn’t hurt one little bit.

Here is something to start with and give you a little nudge. Have you ever heard of a White-eyed Vireo or a Yellow-throated Vireo? Nope, I didn’t think so. They are very common and very vocal. I imagine one or the other lives and raises young within 100 yards of your front porch. Find one, it will not hurt at all. I promise.

(c)2016 High Virginia Outdoors Photo (c)High Virginia Images ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

This is my June 2016 article for Two-lane Livin