FLT Hiking - Basswood Rd to Bainbridge

 
Day three of our hike we did the most miles, 12.8. Of course we made it probably a mile more than this by making a wrong turn on one of the roads. Sigh. At least we figured it out pretty quickly. Here's where we began the day. I just love the hills of New York.



We ate lunch beside what was probably a private pond, but there was no one around and we just sat there for a while, then cleaned up and hiked on. Lunch always tastes better in a pretty setting.



In the afternoon, we followed Newton Brook for a long ways. There were some little waterfalls, but mostly it was just a beautiful bubbly stream in the dappled sunlight.



We made it into Bainbridge by 5 pm even with the long day and ate at a local diner. I had a tuna melt. We stayed there quite a while so Larry could look at the pictures from the past two years when he hiked with us. He hadn't seen them.

It wasn't as cold that night as it had been the previous two, so we slept well.

Today, on the project front, we also had a long,busy day. First, we painted the pantry with the Dry-Lock paint. Marie says it's the fruit cellar, not the pantry. OK.



Then, while the paint dried, we went upstairs and pulled the carpeting out of her "new" sunroom. It's new because it has new windows.



Then we went back downstairs and put the pantry, er, fruit cellar, all together again.



Were we done? Not exactly. Marie invited a friend to dinner, so we cooked too. Her friend is named Selma. I've heard a lot about her (and vice versa) but we had never met, so that was fun.



P.S. We are pooped!

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FLT Hiking - Tucker Rd to Basswood Rd

 
Day two of hiking, Marie's brother Larry joined us. He lives near Syracuse, and was able to get away for a couple of days. Most of the day was off-road, and the trail was beautiful through woods and along creeks. We did 10.6 miles.



We crossed the Chenango River, but it wasn't particularly scenic. I'm trying to show you better photos. The afternoon walking was almost all along Bear Brook which was so gorgeous we took pictures every time we turned around. Larry's new Aussie hat makes him look very handsome, too.



Here's one of my favorite shots of the falls, even though it only shows a little piece.



We finished in good time, and ate at Hoppie's in Oxford. I had a Cubani panini, which was incredibly yummy! Hoppie's is a cross between an old-time soda fountain and a sandwich shop. Excellent food and very busy. It's nice to see small towns find a successful niche.

Today, at Marie's, we sealed the corners and cracks in the pantry. Marie's been putting it off. That's the point of this extended visit. I'm helping her do some projects, and she'll spend a week with me later this summer helping me with some projects. It wasn't really bad with two people. She mixed the goop, which had to be done in small batches because it sets up in about five minutes, and I troweled it into the spaces.



We also did the laundry, which included soaking muddy socks! You'll be glad the computer does not provide odors!



Don't worry, we are managing plenty of play time too, with our favorite word game, Quiddler.

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FLT Hiking - East Pharsalia to Tucker Rd

 
We are at Marie's house, and there are SO many interesting pictures from our hike, I can hardly pick just a few. I'll try, and perhaps I can come back to some of the topics that could use more story-telling on a slow day later.

We began hiking Wednesday and the weather was mostly great the whole rest of the hike. A couple of days were chilly, but that's much better than hot.

We were hiking on the Finger Lakes Trail in eastern New York, on the portion east of where it is concurrent with the North Country Trail. We put one car at Tucker Road, and drove back to East Pharsalia where we began our hike for the day. While we were getting our gear ready, this man came across the road from his house to talk to us.



Henry gave us a nice send-off. He was going to walk to the pond and was impressed that I had a wooden walking stick. He does too- one he carved from a tree he got beside the pond. He told us his name was really Jerry, but his brother was Gary. When their mother would call, both boys would come and then she would yell at the one she didn't want. Jerry got fed up and said he was going to use his middle name of Henry, and he has for the rest of his life!

We began with a short road walk, but were soon welcomed to the woods.



This next one is a first for me. I've never seen any slugs except the plain old yellowish-brown-gray ones. This specimen was about three inches long. It doesn't seem to have the same kinds of spots as the Leopard Slug, although there is a fair amount of variation. I'll keep trying to get an ID. Meanwhile, just enjoy! I love slugs.



While we ate lunch, we had some wonderful entertainment! A white-crowned sparrow was jumping and peeling dandelion seeds from the old heads. I have a video, but I probably won't get that edited till I get home.



For our first day, we walked 10.0 miles. We're just day hiking, from one car to the other, so after walking we went to a place called the Outpost. It was just a bar with a short menu. I had a burger and Marie had a BLT. But it wasn't out of the way, and that's always a plus.

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I think I'll include a picture showing what Marie and I are doing this week as well. Today, we emptied her pantry room and wire brushed the walls, and bought water-sealing paint. Tomorrow... take a guess.

	See for more White-Crowned Sparrows
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Flicker Revealed

 
This post can be brought to you because the Flicker came to a sad end. She flew into a window and broke her neck. I found her within a few hours, and there was no decomposition yet. It's sad, but it allows me to show you the beautiful coloration of the feathers. Technically, this is the Yellow-shafted Flicker, Colaptes Auratus, because the feather shafts of wings and tail are... yellow.



There is a western variant of the species, the Red-shafted Flicker. I haven't ever seen one. Keep in mind, this is a woodpecker. Now for the beautiful surprise. I'll turn the bird over.



Pretty spectacular, eh? If you prefer to see one alive, follow the link below.

	See Northern Flicker
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Butterflies Everywhere!

 
I don't recall a spring with so many butterflies. The Red Admirals are just everywhere. I cringe at the number of them being killed by cars, but it's impossible to avoid them.

However, they are not the only butterflies around. Here are a couple of others. First is the Question Mark, Polygonia interrogationis. It's pretty interesting, but I only have a picture of its upper side. It's a member of the Family called "Commas," because they have a curved mark on their drab underside. But this one goes one step farther with a curved mark and a dot, thus a question mark. Hopefully, some day I'll be able to get a picture of that.



The other butterfly I'll show you is the Mourning Cloak, Nymphalis antiopa. It's very common, and usually one of the first butterflies to be seen in the spring. This year, the Red Admirals are so numerous, it's hard to notice anything else.



Tonight, Marie and I should be just getting to her house after hiking, but if I'm too tired to post, I'll just let this come up!

	See R is for Red Admiral Today Brown Tomorrow Green for another Mourning Cloak
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