Holding On
One of my favorite outdoor writers, humorist Patrick McManus, once wrote of his admiration for an older cousin. This “cousin” gave him the first good ideas of hiking/hunting gear, such as a pair of Converse tennis shoes that he had cut the toe box out of so he could get a better grip on slippery terrain. Did I say good idea? I should have said outstanding idea… but Joyce won’t let me cut the toe box out of my hikers. Oh, well.
This tree, perhaps one of the most iconic of trees along the Blue Ridge Parkway, appears to have had that same idea, as its exposed roots seem every bit as though this old cherry tree is hanging on by its toenails. I’m sure many will recognize it as the tree along Craggy Pinnacle Trail, where the trail departs its level start and becomes more vertical in ascent.
May of this year started out quite nicely here in Durham, North Carolina, yet quickly devolved into weather that is more like we would expect in July or early August. In other words, swelteringly hot! Many plants in my gardens were still in their tender stage of growth and became distressed. While the upper elevations of our mountains didn’t quite experience the heat we had in the lowlands, the Catawba rhododendron bloomed about two to three weeks earlier than normal, likely due to warmer conditions there… and I missed it! I had cruised up to the Roan Highlands in the middle of May... the rhododendron blooms there were still wrapped up tight.
This day in June had cooled off quite a bit, because rainfall in the area had reached toad strangler capacity – “toad strangler” – southern terminology that should be self-explanatory. After exploring many high regions of the parkway without finding Catawba blooms that hadn’t already come and gone. I also found no joy at Craggy Gardens, known for the rhodos in a large setting, other than a few found on the forest floor, as evidenced in this image. I didn’t walk out emptyhanded, however… besides, the world needs one more picture of this old tree in such moody conditions. Take that, world!
Holding On
One of my favorite outdoor writers, humorist Patrick McManus, once wrote of his admiration for an older cousin. This “cousin” gave him the first good ideas of hiking/hunting gear, such as a pair of Converse tennis shoes that he had cut the toe box out of so he could get a better grip on slippery terrain. Did I say good idea? I should have said outstanding idea… but Joyce won’t let me cut the toe box out of my hikers. Oh, well.
This tree, perhaps one of the most iconic of trees along the Blue Ridge Parkway, appears to have had that same idea, as its exposed roots seem every bit as though this old cherry tree is hanging on by its toenails. I’m sure many will recognize it as the tree along Craggy Pinnacle Trail, where the trail departs its level start and becomes more vertical in ascent.
May of this year started out quite nicely here in Durham, North Carolina, yet quickly devolved into weather that is more like we would expect in July or early August. In other words, swelteringly hot! Many plants in my gardens were still in their tender stage of growth and became distressed. While the upper elevations of our mountains didn’t quite experience the heat we had in the lowlands, the Catawba rhododendron bloomed about two to three weeks earlier than normal, likely due to warmer conditions there… and I missed it! I had cruised up to the Roan Highlands in the middle of May... the rhododendron blooms there were still wrapped up tight.
This day in June had cooled off quite a bit, because rainfall in the area had reached toad strangler capacity – “toad strangler” – southern terminology that should be self-explanatory. After exploring many high regions of the parkway without finding Catawba blooms that hadn’t already come and gone. I also found no joy at Craggy Gardens, known for the rhodos in a large setting, other than a few found on the forest floor, as evidenced in this image. I didn’t walk out emptyhanded, however… besides, the world needs one more picture of this old tree in such moody conditions. Take that, world!