Friday, December 21, 2018

NOT GONNA HAPPEN...

It's not often I pull the plug on a weather forecast, but the Advisory's 2-4" is happening only in places N and NE of us in ACA.  We simply won't get it here on the mountain.  The radar returns have slackened significantly upstream, and while we had hours of snow falling, the temps stayed at and above 32 degrees.  Madison County has had over 3" already in some locations, but we are dodging this one in ACA.

Lows are still forecast to be in the 20s, so black ice and slippery patches are quite possible, but the idea of waking and plowing off 3-4" of snow will not come to pass.  Highs will warm a good bit above freezing, so any slickness will dissipate soon enough.

I don't know about you, but that suits me just fine.


Bob

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY: SNOW

After our last dumping, the talk of 2"-4" of snow is more of "I got this."  ACA is under a Winter Weather Advisory (click for text) from noon today through noon Saturday.  The advisory is for elevations above 3500' (upper half of ACA), with lighter accumulations down into the valleys.

Working in our favor are the warm ground temperatures (a very relative term) and all the rain we've been having to knock back remaining snow piles.  However, lows Saturday are forecast to drop into the mid and upper 20s, which if sustained long enough will help create some iciness along with any wet snow.

The 2"-4" in the advisory seem to be spot on.  The odd-model-out NAM has 8" very close by, and the Euro trends to the 4" mark (click on images to enlarge...big dots are ACA):

EURO Model

GFS Model

NAM Model
Travel will be slippery, but Nature should take care of clearing off any road problems with highs above freezing...unless, of course, the doomsday NAM comes to pass and dumps again.  Just a touch of poor sarcasm, there...

And as we head into the big Christmas holiday, no weather woes are expected.  Praise the Lord and pass the potatoes!


Bob

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

BLACK ICE....AND SNOW?

I was taken aback late Tuesday morning by the black ice still in place on Apple Creek Road as I came down from Staymon Road.  We've had milder afternoon temps, but when you get within inches of the snow pack many of us still have, it's significantly colder.  In driving back up the mountain just before midnight there seemed to be even more icy patches.  All that to say don't let your guard down and speed up....4-wheel drive won't do you a lick of good on ice.

Rain moves in Thursday, with the exiting back side late Friday colder with the possibility of dropping some snow.  The NAM and EURO are pushing 2-3" in the ACA, and the GFS is 1-2".  After our last dumping of frozen stuff, it seems like small potatoes, but something we may well have to reckon with soon enough.

For now, beware the icy patches that will look darker and shine brightly.  I'll be around Friday and will post a snow update toward noon, I'm guessing.  It's a very busy time, and safety needs to be a prime concern.


Bob

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

TUESDAY 12:45pm UPDATE

It's an understatement that western North Carolina has crippling problems from this storm.  The wetness, heaviness, depth, iciness all has added up to, in many respects, an insurmountable situation for many at this time. My sister is in Tryon, NC and still has no power, going on 72 hours now.

From Keith Patton came some helpful information about what has been happening.  Mauney Cove Road itself wasn't open to travel until 11am Monday.  The previous day another plower tried to come here via Hall Top and said it wasn't worth the risk to do again.  What side roads didn't get plowed yesterday will try to be plowed today, and as I type the rig is at the bottom of Staymon Road.

However, those that did get plowed yesterday may well be encountering a sheet of impassable ice from the melting temperatures yesterday afternoon.  Staymon is in that category, the driver just reported. He was going to attempt the lower portion with chains.

While we have afternoon temps above freezing, we'll be facing the same refreeze story tomorrow morning...and so the story will repeat itself for many of us for at least another day.

For those that have been able to get out and about (not me!), feel free to add any road reports in the comments section.  I'll post any information that comes my way, as well.

Sunday, December 9, 2018

SUNDAY 2:45PM UPDATE

Power was restored just before noon today, which I do believe is the longest outage I've had here in 10 years (~11 hours).  Hats go off to all the linemen having to deal with such harsh elements to get electricity flowing again.

Early this AM portions of area interstates and other major roads were closed due to stranded traffic, but it appears the closures have been reopened.  However, travel from Old Fort east on I-40 is a major mess all the way to the Triangle

The plow has been seen on Apple Creek Road this afternoon, but they definitely have their work cut out for them up here.  Thankfully the temperatures will be ideal for the salt to do it's thing to help clear the roads.  Temperatures have nudged above freezing here and will be slow to go back down tonight (if much at all).  I'm also assuming side roads will be plowed tomorrow.

Chris Martin is staying in town for this storm but wanted me to pass along to all Apple Creek residents to feel free to use his driveway to park if you have any trouble getting up the mountain.  His house is the third on the left once you turn into ACA, the one with the giant metal Sasquatch silhouette standing by the detached garage.

The wrap-around snow from the exiting storm will pass through overnight and could lay down another 1-2", but most of that shouldn't adversely impact our roads.  We should get an okay day Monday to deal with the white stuff, but refreeze and black ice will be an issue Tuesday morning. Calm dry weather is expected to end the week.

Snow totals can be found HERE.  Impressive. 


Bob

930am UPDATE

Power still out here at the end of Staymon...plow was supposed to have been here hours ago but trees and power lines are down across Mauney Cove and plow has yet to get here. This storm will require a lot of patience.  :-)

Roughly 12" of snow and sleet...heavy and crusty stuff to deal with. Majority of precipitation is done with, with another light round Monday.

Keeping updates short until power returns.

Bob

OUTAGE, SNOW, PLOWING

12:44 am major power outage.

9.2" snow with heavy sleet @1am.

Assuming plow can even get here, ACA will be plowed sometime Sunday morning and possibly a second time. Will communicate as I can. Roads EXTREMELY dangerous and impassable in some areas.

Bob

Saturday, December 8, 2018

SATURDAY A.M.: HERE WE GO....

I wasn't here to update last night, so here are all the 'changes' to Snowmageddon this morning.  :-)

When Haywood County was finally put into a Winter Storm Warning, it was a 'first' for me in all my years in the biz:  "Total snow accumulations of 2 - 18 inches are expected."  Well, if that doesn't cover your butt I don't know what will.  The NWS knows that snow-killing warm nose will be lurking around, but not sure exactly where.  There will be that rapid gradient to heavy snow if not here then close by.  6"-10" for us may be more like 8"-12", but with this early onset we could go higher.

Here are the latest models for ACA...the Canadian and Euro have culled back, but the NAM went crazy two runs ago with 18"-20"...it came back down on the last run:

GFS   8"-12"
CANADIAN  8"-12"
NAM  12"-15"
EURO  12"-16"

The Warning also upped the time frame to 12 noon today to 12 noon Monday. As I type the onset has been earlier as I already have a good dusting with the surface temp holding at 33 degrees.  The NWS likes the odd-man-out-NAM for its timing and handling of the warm nose that may encroach on Haywood County Sunday, turning the snow back in to rain and sleet, maybe some freezing rain, which will take what accumulations there are and start reducing them.

I'll make one last run into town and call it a day...a weekend, rather.  :-)


Bob

 P

Friday, December 7, 2018

SNOW UPDATE

Apple Creek Acres is under a Winter Storm Watch (which will become a Warning later today), starting at 1p Saturday through 12 noon Monday. There have been some rather big changes developing with the GFS, still the favored model for this event: more freezing rain and sleet, and less snow.

The models have been impressive, and as of 7p Thursday they were still heavy on the snow:


GFS:  8-12"
NAM: 12-15"
CANADIAN: 12-16"
EURO: 20-24"

My original thought was 6-10" for us and I'll stick to that. The reason for the reduction in totals for us is a warm nose that is expected to be working its way in from the southwest. The trend for our area is to have more sleet and freezing rain mixing in with the snow, keeping totals at 8" for the high end. The actual Watch calls for up to 0.2" of ice in some areas, which along with accumulating sleet and wet snow spell power outages.  

I still expect pockets of heavier snow, though. There will be a sharp drop-off (or build-up, depending on how you look at it) in accumulations relative to those critical temperatures and where they actually end up when. Buncombe County is now in a Warning in a 10-16" range, so heavy amounts will be close by if not actually here in ACA.

Too, it has been fun, in a way, watching the hot and heavy EURO model which is still pushing all snow and no mixing, but that won't be happening.  Talk about life coming to a halt here if it did...

The heavier amounts look to be east of us, well through the midsection of North Carolina: travel woes will be widespread, to say the least. Here are the various models that will enlarge if you click on them:


GFS 12p MONDAY

CANADIAN 12p MONDAY
EUROPEAN 12p MONDAY
NAM 72 hours
I will update as needed, of course, and I will be on the mountain by early afternoon Saturday.




Bob

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

WEEKEND SNOW: GET READY...

December storms can be problematic for reasons mentioned in prior posts.  With temperatures close to freezing, it will make for a higher water content storm so where it snows it does so hot and heavy.  On the fringe of the heavy snow will be a pretty rapid tailing off of snow totals as more rain and sleet mix in where the temps are too marginal on the warm side.

I usually compare the GFS with the NAM models...but the NAM sees only 3 days out and it has yet to fully grasp totals by Monday.  Many of my professional weather cohorts favor the EURO model for winter storms in the Southeast, and so I'll present that graphic below.  Beware: it's graphic, alright.

AMOUNTS:  In a nutshell, the GFS puts ACA close to 10" by Monday afternoon and the EURO puts ACA in the 16-20" category, basically doubling totals.  Until it all gets closer time-wise, I'm siding with the GFS and having us in the 8-10" range, maybe pushing to 12", all on the ground by Monday noon-ish.  The heaviest totals, which will push the 16"-24" range will be east of ACA...a bugger of a storm, to say the least.

TIMING:  Most precipitation for Haywood County should hold off until Saturday afternoon.  It won't surprise me to see rain and sleet dominate any snow as things crank up.  Then, the temps start dropping and we should switch over to all snow as Saturday night wears on....and stay that way through Sunday...and into Monday.  With that type of extended time-frame, understand plowing is useless until all is said and done.

Back about 10 years ago (9?) we got 18" that started December 18th.  The plow broke a critical part and it took several days to get plowed out of the side roads in ACA...I was finally able to drive out December 24.  Suffice it to say this storm could give that storm a run for the money, so stock up and be prepared should power also go out.

I'll update Friday morning and tweak as needed (unless something warrants an earlier post).  Following are some model runs you can click to enlarge and check ACA's "*" on the map and check the key for totals.

My 'usual' GFS 5-day outlook

3p Monday 'look' by GFS model

3p Monday 'look' by the EURO model






Bob

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

WEATHER UPDATE: 2 PARTS

Eeegads. Per my last post, I'll reiterate that the moisture is a given for this weekend, and a lot of it.  The freezing temperatures, while spotty to begin with on the front side of the system, lock in for what looks like a healthy snow for ACA later on Saturday into Monday.

Before I detail the weekend, we have an issue tonight that may well make for slippery travel Wednesday morning.  A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for 1-2" of snow above 3500', but still some lightly accumulating snow lower, though most of that will be closer to the TN border.  We had a nice heavy dusting this morning that covered my driveway, but there is a good bit more moisture heading in from the NW for tonight.  I'll post an update in the morning once I see what we have. UPDATE @ 5AM: We were saved by the direction, this time.  The snow bands, which have been heavy overnight, were moving west to east, as opposed to NW to SE.  The Smokies are to our west, effectively blocking snow amounts in ACA.  Just another dusting, which suits us all, I'm sure.  However, schools are already closed in Madison, Mitchell, and Yancey Counties where they did get the accumulations. Highs today will hold in the 30s for most of us.

Temps will moderate a little for Thursday and Friday, before the Big Kahuna (relatively speaking) moves in.  The temperature construct is not yet locked in, so the front side of this system could still have rain and sleet mixing in with the snow, certainly below 3500' (the blue roof house on Apple Creek Road).  That would limit initial accumulations.

My favored model is starting to push the 6"-10" envelope for ACA, so it will be interesting to follow the trends on the runs every 6 hours.  The heaviest amounts still show up to the east of Asheville, but even down into the Foothills and western Piedmont there, as well.  Still, it looks like travel will become a serious issue for us later on Saturday through Monday.

For now, I'll close and update as needed.  Might as well prepare for this one, and even if it's a bust (doubtful) you'll have other opportunities to consume all the goodies as our winter has only begun.   :-)



Bob

Monday, December 3, 2018

THIS WEEK'S WEATHER

12-9-2017 at the end of Staymon

Maisy playing in the snow, 12-9-2017

(Click pics to enlarge - this Sunday will mark a year since the above 
pictures were taken.  'Tis the season... ) 

I hesitate to talk so many days in advance about the potential for a wintry mess, but this weekend may well see a significant deterioration in travel conditions.

The first minor event shouldn't impact travel, a very limited chance for snow late Tuesday night.  All models I see are 0-1", and at the moment I have no concerns for the snow part (per travel) here in Apple Creek. What we will definitely notice will be the cold temperatures returning again to end the week.

The bigger issue starts overnight Friday into Saturday.  There will be a system arriving from the Gulf of Mexico that will couple with the cold air that will already be in place, though a bit moderated.  As always, the big question is will we have the critical temperatures thick enough to support serious snowy/icy travel concerns?  At this moment it looks like we'll see it all, snow, sleet, and rain on the front side, even with surface temperatures above 32 degrees (if we should be so lucky).  Cold on the backside Saturday night into Sunday would be prime for accumulating snow at first glance.

The problem with precipitation falling in temperatures within a tick or two of 32 degrees is that the water content is higher and if all snow can accumulate quickly as a heavy wet snow.  If the layer of freezing air at the surface is shallow, it lends itself to more sleet/rain.

Again, this time-frame is beyond what my favored models can see by a day or two, so I just wanted to put it out there for now.  There is no doubt precipitation is coming.  There is no doubt it will be cold. I will post an update probably Wednesday afternoon, so check back.



Bob

Thursday, November 15, 2018

THURSDAY A.M. CONDITIONS

@7:15am - No road issues from Staymon Road down (outside of the mats of leaves on the double hairpin curves).  35 degrees at entrance, 33 now at the end of Staymon, though trees are still white with ice. My deck and steps still have ice, but the driveway warmth held with no ice. Temps will slowly warm today, so no other issues are expected.


Bob

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

SLIPPERY WEATHER ALERT

Early November view after cold front passage

Dawn last week (click pics to enlarge)

6:20am UPDATE - temp has upped 1 to 32 degrees.  Because Haywood Schools are on a normal schedule, the roads should be okay, even in ACA.  If I hear differently I'll post it here.

4:00am UPDATE - I have 31 degrees at the end of Staymon Road in a steady freezing rain with a light ice coating on everything from vegetation to deck to steps to car...just not the driveway (yet).

Haywood County is under a WINTER STORM WARNING (click for link) from 7pm tonight to 1pm Thursday, with the biggest concern above 2500' (which is all of Apple Creek Acres).  This is not a snow event....unfortunately, this is all about sleet and icing, up to an inch of the slippery mess,

There is a lot of rain coming in, about 1.5"-2" (as if we haven't had enough).  The surface temperatures will be key for any developing troubles, and admittedly Haywood County is on the fringe of the biggest concerns and accumulations.  I would have no problem if we didn't get this slop....ice is The Great Equalizer, where no vehicle is safe to drive.

An event like this occurs when the air aloft is above freezing but the surface temperatures are at or below 32 degrees.  The rain falls and begins freezing on contact, which if it really gets going could bring down trees and power lines.

I'll actually be on the mountain tonight, so I will post pertinent updates as needed.  I was concerned that this winter will see more ice events than normal, and here we go to start things off.


Bob

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

POST FLORENCE INFO

cell phone shot of Flo rain on a leaf

Florence ended up tracking over Asheville which greatly helped us avoid more rain and wind.  In fact, we took much more damage in ACA from that Thursday afternoon storm a couple of weeks ago, compared to Flo's no-show for us.  I tallied only 2.11" of rain from Flo, and it was overwhelmingly the steady, soaker variety. Winds were tame, overall.

But on the coast it's a different, devastating story, of course.  I've tried to pull together some data links for those that like to explore the history and effects of Florence, though many rivers are still rising there, so Flo's story is far, far from over.

This is a neat interactive link that tracked Florence from a low of the coast of Africa, turning into an historical Cape Verde system:  
Interactive map for FLORENCE track

This link takes some work...I put in the date September 17 and set it for 7 day precipitation totals.  You can also select county boundaries or whatever you'd like to see:
Interactive PRECIP model


These links are to the latest Public Information Statements that often contain numeric listing of rain totals. Last time I checked they weren't all updated to show the true totals, though, and you may have to click around the "1,2,3,4..." at the top to find the rain total reports:
MOREHEAD CITY NWS
WILMINGTON NWS
RALEIGH NWS
GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG NWS




Bob

Sunday, September 16, 2018

SUNDAY A.M. UPDATE

745pm last evening from the end of Staymon (click to enlarge)

There's not really a whole lot to post about in terms of concerns and changes for ACA.  As I type here before 10am, I've had 0.4" of rain and very little in terms of winds, but the heavier rain and breezier bands will be here later today.  


The center of circulation was over Saluda, SC, forecast to turn NW and come pretty much overhead here in ACA tonight.  The heaviest rains continue to be in the NE quadrant, so of the 3-6" I wrote about Thursday, I'm hedging on the low end for us.  The only concern I have in ACA will be the possibility of a falling tree here or there.

I did make a run down the 4-lane to Walmart and over to Ingles and such this morning.  In both directions, the high speed lane has been recently paved, with the slow right lane roughed up and ready for paving.  That slow lane demands caution as the ponding in that particular lane jerked my steering wheel significantly a few times.  Take the paved lane and avoid the right one should you head out.  

As yet there are no good links to share on storm data due to the persistent weather still pounding eastern NC.  I'll post those as they become available...and any changes for us should there be any.

Bob

Thursday, September 13, 2018

THURSDAY UPDATE

Since posting a few days ago, several key things have evolved per Hurricane Florence.  It has lost power, down from a Cat 4 to a Cat 2, but at the same time the storm is about 500 miles wide, so big that the International Space Station had to go to a wide-angle lens to photograph it all.  The hurricane force winds extend 80 miles from the center, so effectively a 160-mile swath of sustained winds >74mph.

Too, Flo is slowing in forward speed, which will extend and exacerbate the wind damage and severe flooding likely to occur as it nears the Carolina coastline throughout today and Friday.  The actual location of landfall in a slow mover becomes a tad of a moot point, but it still looks to be just north of Cape Fear, toward Topsail Island.

Where it begins to directly affect us in ACA is mostly Sunday and Monday at this point.  Up til then there will be the daily scattered showers and storms, then breezy conditions will start picking up as we get into the weekend and the remnants move closer to us.  Flo could still be a tropical storm in power as it crosses through the northern Upstate of South Carolina, near Florence (nice irony, huh?) and then a tropical depression by Columbia early early Sunday morning.  From there, it lazily curls back up to the NC mountains by midnight as we head into Monday, all the while making for gray, wet, and breezy conditions for us.

Amounts? I have not been overly impressed with the national QPF maps in keeping up with the changing track and speed and rainfall from Flo, but 3-6 inches is a good guesstimate for us (at least at this time).  It will be breezy, of course, but the only concerns for damage will be trees being knocked down and localized flash flooding from really heavy bands.  I think back to May and the areas that had tragic landslides and such here in the Blue Ridge, musing if the heavy rains might dislodge more events from weakened slopes.

As always, I'll update as I see necessary, probably sometime Saturday.

Bob

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

FLORENCE INFO, FYI

(updated landfall timing in red)

I well imagine some in ACA will be having some coastal visitors come and stay as Hurricane Florence barrels toward Cape Lookout/Cape Hatteras with a landfall Friday. Many mandatory evacuations are already underway, and for good reason.  If you draw crosshairs through the center of a hurricane (N-S, E-W), the worst of the worst place to be is the NE quadrant (Q1 for you math experts). Morehead City up through Hatteras are in the most dangerous situations, and where there are those mandatory evacuations.

While every station/news outlet has endless banter about this storm, I wanted to share with you a catch-all website that is a trove of hurricane information pulled together, for those that like to explore.  Even if you might not understand all the technical information, you'll find this useful:

The following is but a sample of what you'll find poking around there (I'll focus on Florence; other storm data is listed there, as well).  

First, you'll notice the URL is 'spaghetti models', and spaghetti plots are just like they sound: 'noodle' lines of the predicted hurricane path by the myriad  models and algorithms.  Florence has had a tight grouping ever since it's birth (NOT common), and the concerning aspect is this storm will most likely be making a direct, perpendicular hit near the Cape Lookout and Cape Hatteras areas. (click on pics to enlarge)


Spaghetti plots for Florence

The most widely used/seen graphic is the predicted path put out by the National Hurricane Center:



This graphic shows spaghetti-like plots on the predicted intensity of Florence.  While on this run nothing reaches a Cat 5, many are strong 4's, and reaching a 5 status is not out of the question:



You'll find a link to the Hurricane Hunters which provide a wealth of technical data on their slicing of the storm itself:



And, of course, there are links to surface weather maps.  A cold front is bringing us our increased rains right now, but that cold front will soon stall with the strong wind field of Florence, focusing torrential rains for somebody somewhere once it comes ashore and slows down:



All that to say Florence is most likely going to produce catastrophic damage not only from the winds and storm surge, but the flooding rains once inland.

The effects in ACA? It will be breezy for sure, with winds ultimately swinging around to the NE, then N, then NW.  My concern for us is the potential for lots of rain and wind IF the remnants continue moving westward toward the northern Blue Ridge. As I type the QPF predictions aren't alaming for us in the 5-day outlook:


5-day precipitation outlook


In short, ACA is still a pretty good place to be in the Carolinas for this hurricane, barring the remnants moving directly at us.  I'll update those concerns in a later post.


Bob

Thursday, September 6, 2018

ACAIHOA BOARD UPDATE

August 25, 2018 sunrise

I was unable to attend our annual meeting, but here is the list and contact information for the new board of directors elected at that meeting.  FYI, with just four elected officers, Keith Patton has volunteered to help the board, as well:

President- Jeff Hintzman  828-400-7921

Vice President- Terry Medford 828-400-9250

Secretary- Carrie Patton carriescollier@yahoo.com

Treasurer- Lynn Strause lstrause@mac.com

----------------------------------------
Last Thursday ACA had a nasty storm sit overhead that dumped heavy rain and gusty winds that toppled a number of trees.  I didn't get home til late that night, sat on the sofa and looked out at the deck to see the upper half of a tree resting on the heavily damaged corner.  Not what I wanted to come home to.  :-/  

But we have angels on this mountain that help neighbors and clear our roads, and for that we should all be very grateful.  Thank you...you know who you are.  :-)

Given the ridiculously wet May we had, the paving companies are still making up for lost time.  I will pass along information per ACA's paving and timing as I get it.

August 29, 2018 sunrise


Bob

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

AS THE OLD SAYING GOES.....

"Praise the Lord and pass the potatoes!"  The county JUST paved the horrid parts of Mauney Cove Road above Hall Top today.  Will miracles never cease...  There will be paving in Apple Creek's future, and as soon as I hear dates/times I'll post them here.

It's been busy on my end, and seemingly quiet on the mountain.  May was ridiculously rainy, though my 12.43" total for the month paled on comparison to other mountain counties that got 20-25" for the month, at the cost of mud/rock slides and a few tragic deaths.  In that respect we dodged the proverbial bullet.  If you've been away, the mountain is incredibly lush, now full of baby rabbits and mosquito squadrons.  Too, I've posted a few pics at the end of this post that I've taken the past few months from home, for your viewing pleasure.

Our HOA president Tom Batchelor asked me to post information on our annual meeting and need to find interested individuals to serve on the board for next year.  If you are interested (or know someone who might be), please contact Tom by phone or email:


(828) 452-9192  or  tom.batchelor@charter.net

He would like to have names by this Friday (yes, Friday the 13th - no triskaidekaphobia allowed!).  Our annual meeting is slated for Saturday August 18 @ 10am, to be held at the Public Library down around the side (where the big book sale is held).  While official notices will be mailed out shortly, go ahead and make a note in your calendar.

As an aside. you may have noticed on the upper hairpin curve a 'new' graveled road put in.  It was an old (short) road that was already there but blocked by rocks and downed trees; this now gives necessary access to lot owners out that way, should they wish to build or sell.  That's all it is.  :-) 
(click to enlarge)
Sunrise from the end of Staymon
...and another dawn color shot from the end of Staymon
...and another...

White-marked Tussock Moth caterpillar

Early morning thunderstorm clouds rolling in

Luna Moth that settled in by my critter light one night

Turk's Cap Lilies in full bloom on the mountain, now
Heavy A.M. fog one summer morning
We can all use a little inspiration, right?


Bob

Monday, April 23, 2018

SPRING WILDFLOWERS

I ventured out into the woods by my house Sunday to survey the wildflower displays.  What amazed me most were the varieties of flowers out together that normally aren't out together....I'll chalk it up to our "spring that won't stay sprung."  Towards the entrance to Apple Creek, the flowers and tree leaves are much farther along than higher up.  There is lots of wild phlox and yellow hawkweed along the road as you turn in, but I only took pictures of plants here at the end of Staymon Road.  There were a couple I saw but didn't get, so I may add some after our incoming rain moves on.  Happy Monday!  Enjoy. (Click on pictures to enlarge)

Wake Robin Trillium
Squirrel Corn
Cut-leaved Toothwort
Dwarf Larkspur

Nodding Mandarin
developing Solomon's Seal
False Solomon's Seal
Blue Cohosh
Smooth Yellow Violet
Canadian Violet
Spring Beauty
Star Chickweed
Stonecrop
Large Flowering Bellwort
Buckeye  - the first tree to produce leaves



Bob