The Good, The Bad, the Ugly

Today road buddy Ila and I are back on the road, headed for home - eventually. Driving along a West Virginian highway, I was really in need of something cheering when I spotted a sign for New River Gorge National Park.  I parked and we looked around. A Chipping Sparrow sang encouragingly from a nearby tree. Hurrah! What is better for what ails you than a nice, big, shiny National Park?

New River Gorge National Park's visitor center

We hiked maybe an eighth of a mile to an overlook. There we could view the humongous Gourge bridge from as new perspective, as we had just driven over it. The Bridge is a beautiful green arch that spanning over the breath taking, deep gorge.

Ila checks out the observation platform view

And a grand view it is of this 2nd highest bridge in the U.S.

View of  New River Gorge from Visitor Center

Later, when we headed into the Visitor Center. Did I get a passbook stamp? Hello! I got four: the New River Gorge National Park, Coal Mining Heritage Area, the Gauley River National Recreation Area and the Bluestone National Scenic River. Score!

Oh, and I picked up the 2013 regional stamps, which to my joy included two sites in the park system I already visited, the Central High School in Little Rock Arkansas, and the Rockefeller Memorial Highway located in Wyoming. I felt like I'd hit a grand slam, a great feeling considering our first day on the road had such an annoying start...









Now, I will back up to the BAD referred to in this post's title. Shortly before I veered off the highway to revive my spirits at the New Gorge National Park, this occurred.

Yes, that's a West Virginian police car glowing in the rear view window. My first reaction when I spotted it was to pull over into the right lane so the good officer could chase whatever scoundrel was breaking the law. Imagine my shock & surprised to find out that I was the scoundrel! I squealed to Ila, "But I wasn't DOING anything!". I'd just pulled out of a gas station & onto the freeway, got up to speed and while driving downhill, I'd been breaking when I spotted the lights. I was breaking! Officer, did you see my break lights??

The officer told me I was speeding, but that he would see to it that my ticket didn't mess up my insurance. Both myself and Ila were so thoroughly rattled. The officer gave me a ticket, for driving 55 mph in a 50 mph zone!

 I wish I could remember what the GPS unit said. I recall it being closer to 65mph.

So, now I know how the little West Virginian dutchie keeps its coffers flush - picking off out-of-state cars for minor traffic violations. &$%$^*@#

[Management wishes to interject here, the fine paid by Ms. Miller tallied in at $176.00. Madame did not take it well. As she wrote the check, oh, the language she used! Peeled the paint from the walls.]

Taxes, Birdies and Byes

The Cardinal that came to breakfast

Today is hand over the $$ day, or Tax Day. It's also the last day of volunteering at the Blue Ridge Assembly YMCA for Ila and myself. HURRAH! On the flip side, I'll miss sitting at the cabin window, watching those southern tweeties come and go. I'm really going to miss the Carolina Chickadees, my resident Black & White Warbler & Eastern Phoebe, not to mention the boisterous & LOUD Tufted Titmouses - "PETER! PETER! PETER!" 

Oh, and will miss the magical, mystical floating Down Woodpecker. How does it defy gravity?

This afternoon during my five hour break, Ila drove us out to the North Carolina Arboretum. On the way there we got good and proper lost, but with directions of a great gal from the Arboretum on the phone & seat-of-my-pants directions, we got there eventually.

One of numerous beautiful buildings on the Arboretum grounds

Wow, this is what I had hoped for yesterday & didn't get at the Asheville Nature Center; a massive grounds teeming with North Carolina horticulture and birds. There were deep rose blossoms on a huge magnolia, thick groupings of tulips and ranunculus in shallow clay saucers and row after row of imaginative plant placement.

There were a a couple of new birds for my North Carolina birding list - a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher a White-breasted and Brown-headed Nuthatches. Alas - I think it's too early in the season for many of the birds that visit the Arboretum this early in the Spring. Or perhaps they were avoiding little ole' me?

Ila getting info suggestions for hiking at the Arboretum

Ila and I enjoyed the grounds each in our own way, Ila admiring the settings and statues, me... yes, I chased birds around with my long lens camera.

Loads of Black-throated Green Warblers singing in the Arboretum gardens

Too soon we had to head back to the Y for my final two hour shift at the Eureka Cafe.

Lemon Cress Pie

It was fun tonight. I worked my shift with a North Virginian girl from Shenandoah. I told Ila I thought the girl had the coolest accent I ever heard anywhere. Ila informed me, the girl's interesting dialect was... well, it was a speech impediment. Ooops. 

During my shift Miss Vickie, a supervisor dropped by and she was darn near loopy with exhaustion for her long, long work hours. She giggled like a kid, which as a aspect of her personality I found refreshing. We three chatted about southern baking - Caramel Pound Cake, Oatmeal Pie and Lemon Cress Pie which Ila and I got to sample at dinner one evening - interesting!

It was a great last shift, to end my fortnight at the Y. Tomorrow it's time to hit the road.

Palling Around with Red Wolves

Skulker in the hillside shrubbery

This week, we are getting the room & room at the YMCA, which we weren't getting as the Blue Ridge Assembly YMCA was still gearing up for the summer season. So this morning we treked down to breakfast in the giant dining hall. We dined with three sisters from Alabama who are a hoot. They are long time volunteers here. After a breakfast of French toast, eggs & grits - yes you heard me... grits! When in Rome, you know? I skipped off to my stint as Barista at the Eureka Cafe (Proudly Serving Starbucks).  After my shift it was back up to the cabin. 

There was a sudden burst of song, that was so loud it seemed to come from the kitchen. Ran outside to spy a little Carolina Wren in the shrubbery a bit uphill. I played one calling on my iPhone and the wren responded a bit. Then, when I gave up and went back inside, the little devil flew into the Rhododendron just out side the front door and sang up a storm.

♪Oh, dem golden slippers...!♪

Wish I'd recorded that little guy on a camcorder. I heard more birds this morning than I saw, because the day is a bit overcast and the birds seem more secretive, though I don't know if the weather is the cause of it. After my first day or so, it dawned on me the chickadees here are kind of dinky. Just a bit tinier than the Black-capped Chickadees of northern states I'm more familiar with. That means I'm definitely seeing a species I've only seen once before - drum roll please - Carolina Chickadees.

A wee CAROLINA Chickadee!

At noon, we went to lunch in the cafeteria. Afterwards Ila worked her first shift this afternoon, I went for a slow drive around the campus, starting at the very tippy top of the hill behind the Younts Hall.

Diving Broad-winged Hawk

I heard and saw all the usual birds I see from the cabin, including a soaring Broad-winged Hawk.












Though I had my ears set on 'Warbler' mode, I only heard Black-throated Green Warblers calling. Exploring one corner of the Y grounds I found an acre pond, on which floated one drake Blue-winged Teal, a Mallard Drake & a couple of Canada Geese. That adds one new bird - the Teal - to my North Carolina state bird list.

Blue-winged Teal Drake

After Ila worked her shift, I picked her up and we had five hours before her next shift. I pushed for us to visit the Nature Center in Ashville. I took my binocs and big lens camera so I could stroll the grounds and bird.

Ila headed for the Asheville Nature Center entrance

When we got there, it turned out I was, um... mistaken about the 'nature' of the Nature Center'. It is not a botanical gardens of native trees and walkways where Northern Cardinals sing and Magnolias bloom - it is a tiny, zoo. I haven't been to any zoo in about a decade and wouldn't have gone to the Nature Center, had I know its true identity.

cute walkway on the way to the animal exhibits

Eventually I decided to stop whining about the dearth of birdies and go to see the rare Red Wolves on display. I saw the rangy, not-as-red-as-one-might-think beasts. I thought back to when I got to traverse the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge a couple of years ago, where I hoped to spot  wild Red Wolves, but of course, no dice; that is one rare beastie.

One of several Red Wolves on display

Gray/Timber Wolf in another exhibit

There were also nice Gray Wolves, Red and Gray Foxes to admire. Particularly loved the Red Fox - always loved those little buggers - used to draw red foxes exclusively in kindergarten, and my teacher complained to my mother about it; thought I ought to be drawing boring things like humans, houses and trees. Ha!

 

There were many Appalachian reptiles & amphibians on display at the center. I thought this one, an Eastern Mud Turtle was particularly creepy looking. Can't get past the fleshy chin whiskers.

Eastern Mud Turtle

After our short visit to the Nature Center we headed back to the Y. You know we only have one more day left of volunteering here before we'll  be off north for two mystery stops before we return to California. Neither Ila nor myself can wait to be on the road again.