Cleveland/Bradley County Greenway

 Lin and I went for a walk this morning before it started raining. Cleveland, TN, is quite a large city, and they have a greenway that runs pretty much the entire length with some branches.

The trail follows Mouse Creek for a long way. It's the wrong season for really pretty pictures, but this one isn't too bad.

Every kind of trail has advantages. As much as I loved yesterday's hilly, natural walk, today we could walk fast and cover some ground. We did a total of four miles.

There were also some interesting trees and shrubs planted. I'll save some for another day, but here's another of the Mahonia bushes. This is the one which is sometimes called Oregon-grape or holly-leaved barberry. It's Berberis aquifolium, which basically means it's a barberry with holly-like leaves. duh. Maybe I'll catch on and remember this one the next time I see it. It's not the same species as was at the Dallas Arboretum, but I did see this one in Alabama once before.

I tried to get a picture of a mockingbird, but he didn't want to pose. However, this squirrel just sat up and said, "Take my picture."

The best wildlife sighting of the day was out Lin's back door. They've seen sandhill cranes fly over, but never had them land before. They stayed long enough to really watch them a while.

Joe made yummy potato leek soup for dinner, and then we got out a puzzle. I'll show you more about that tomorrow.

Cleveland/Bradley County Greenway, Cleveland, TN. Mohawk Drive to Keith St. and back. 4 miles

See Lin and Joe

Stop Nine - Lin and Joe

 Stop nine, state twelve! (I-24 sneaks across a corner of Georgia on its way to Tennessee.) These are blogger friends, Lin and Joe. We have met in person previously, but not since they moved here.

You'll see more of them over the next couple of days. Meanwhile, I stopped for a hike today at Green Mountain Nature Preserve in the North Alabama Land Trust near Huntsville, AL. This was an awesome place. Topography and rocks!

The trail started on the top of the ridge, and there were little hints of broken rock. This is geologically part of the Cumberland Plateau.

The trail quickly dropped about 200 feet, and then I was hiking at the base of rock walls. The cliffs are layered limestone with a sandstone cap. The map listed this as a waterfall, so I'm thinking at some times of year there is a lot more water.

When I climbed back up the other end of the loop, there were interesting rock pillars.

I don't quite understand the geology. A sign said that there is a double ridge, eroded in the middle. I guess I can see that on the topo map, but I would "get" it better if I could hear someone really explain it. The eroded middle is pretty much a flat area, and the trailhead was on that part. The hill drops off steeply on both sides.

This is a view of Huntsville from that same ridge, but north of where I hiked. It's 600 feet lower.

It rained off and on all day, but I got lucky and hiked between showers. However, the clay soil was slippery, as were the wet rocks. I hiked for an hour and a half and only did two miles, but that's OK, it was awesome! I would come back to this area to hike more of these trails in a heartbeat.

I did a loop that included parts of the Alum Hollow Trail (which leads to a large cave that I'd like to see), the Alum Hollow Connector, Three Sisters Loop, Ranger Trail and back to the Alum Hollow Trail.

Best of all? For the first time ever, I saw an armadillo alive (as opposed to flat in the road). Such a strange animal!

Much rain in the forecast, but we will see what kind of adventure we can find tomorrow.

Green Mountain Nature Preserve, Huntsville, AL, 2 miles

See Big Wheel Keep on Turnin'

Big Wheel Keep on Turnin'

 Miss Pink keeps herself fit and trim with a spin on the wheel! She got a clean cage and yummy mixed seeds today.

Randy, Annette and I went out for breakfast. Then Annette went to work, and Randy works from home. I enjoyed a book I picked up at a free library while they were working.

In the afternoon we chatted with a dog-trainer friend to get some tips for what might help CoCo with her anxiety. This is a great pup, and I like her enough that I want her to develop into a calm adult dog that isn't a constant problem to keep. She's really smart and reminds me a bit of my long-gone Chips (not in looks, but temperament).

This evening, we went out to eat with one other couple who have become good friends of mine here in Florence. This is Dr. D. and Becky. He still practices at a medical office three days a week, and he also heads up several mission trips a year through the church. Becky works with the church. He's written a few books and is one of those people who are knowledgeable on many topics. Always fun to talk to.

It finally got above freezing, and we got most of the ice off the driveway and did some other household chores. The water in Randy and Annette's kitchen faucet still hasn't thawed. They don't seem to be worried about bursting pipes. They say it's frozen before. Me, I'd be concerned and trying to get some heat tape on it, but it's not my decision.

Tomorrow, I'm back on the road.

See Got Out to One Place

Got Out to One Place

 We made it out to see one friend, although even with Randy's truck it was hard to get up a slight hill to one corner. But the main road was pretty clear. We did not make it to the other friend's house. Their road has actually been closed. But we hope to get together tomorrow.

Here we all are. Annette and Randy my hosts, Marleen, me and CoCo!

That picture was at Randy's house because we all came back here so they could see trail pictures. But while we were at Marleen's, CoCo had some nice exercise in the big fenced back yard.

The joke was that Annette wanted to take food to Marleen because Marleen always cooks for them. But Marleen was up to her usual tricks and cooked a whole meal for all of us. Believe me, we are not short of food on this trip!

One fun thing for me was that I got to play the piano a little bit. I'm horribly out of practice, but I had a lot of fun, and no one yelled at me to stop.

One possibly interesting thing about these friends is that I met them all through Loretta, from when she lived here. However, I visited here often enough that several people have become my friends too. Randy and Annette even came to Michigan once.

See Alabama is Closed See a 2018 picture of us

Alabama is Closed

 They had seven inches of snow here a few days ago that has basically turned to ice because they don't have equipment to clear the roads. No church tomorrow, most businesses and restaurants are still closed. Randy wanted to take me to see several places this weekend, but none of them are open.

This morning I played sous chef for Annette.

What do you think we made?

Did you guess quiche? It was a yummy brunch. One of the best quiches I've had. We think using heavy cream and extra-sharp cheese were two of the reasons.

We watched a movie and some TV shows.

They have an aged mouse named Miss Pink. She is really old for a mouse, but seems happy and healthy.

The hit of the day for me is CoCo. She is a lab mix, so she's smaller than a normal Chocolate Lab. At 9 months she's still a puppy and has a lot to learn, but she is a really sweet dog. She's developing some real anxiety when they leave her in a cage when they leave the house, however. I hope they can resolve that.

This was last night, but I forgot I had taken this with my phone. This is sunset over the Tennessee River.

We are going to try to visit the people I had hoped to see at church tomorrow.

See Stop Eight