My Birthday Cake

Gold Finches

We see gold finches here in the spring and the fall when they are migrating. I don't know where they go to the north or south of us. They are strange little birds that the house cats find easy to catch which I don't like. The first photo is of one I found on the shoe scrapper outside of our front door. It seemed very tired and I assumed hot as it was a very hot day. So I tried to set a bowl of water by it but it flew away. I do hope it servived. The other photo is one I took of a gold finch eating the seeds off of an Apache plume bush near a creek. These cute little finches do eat lots of seeds off of my zinnas, and small sunflowers.

Seminole State Park :: Georgia!

Wednesday March 16, .. - - Because of “Spring Break” I decided to leave Florida. I had looked online and tried to reserve sites at several different State Parks but it seems that just about everything was nearly fully booked. There were sites available for one night at a time in several places but I just didn't think it was worth the hassle to have to move every night!



So, I found this lovely State Park in the southwest corner of Georgia, not far from the Florida and Alabama state lines. Since I was trying to find a place for the night and the next few days through the weekend I gave them a call to make sure they had sites available. Luckily for me, they did.



The campground is on the southside of a lovely lake, which I can see from my campsite, which is quite spacious. You can see your neighbors but they aren't right on top of you as in some places. It is really a very nice place. The temperature today was “unseasonably warm” in the 80s with lots of sunshine. Wonderful after a long, cold winter up north!



A trail winds through the pine forest, follows the boardwalk over the swamp and marsh area then on through the woods for about two and a half miles. The perfect ending to a long day of driving!

Banana Background

An Abyssinian banana (Ensete ventricosum) leaf.

Dogs

Sarah has three dogs. The first and oldest is Sasha the black Lab and Husky cross show in the first photo. The dark German Shepard is Ruby a dog she adopted after she found her almost dead from lack of food and water when she was about 3 months old. The light colored German Shepard is Lobo. Lobo is about 9 and has cancer in his front leg. The vet has no idea how long he might have and right now Sarah is just trying to keep him happy and comfortable. Lobo is a brother to a Shepard I used to have.
In the 2nd photo Sarah is playing a Navajo Indian flute for Ruby. Sarah majored in music in collage with the flute being her favorite instrument.

Harrington circular

Barry led this. With Maureen and Gordon. Grey morning, but we escaped the rain. Just over seven and a half miles.





We set off from Harrington, near the pump, just opposite the area called the Falls, as we did last time. I had hoped for bright sun, so that I could capture the contours better, but the weather wasn't playing ball.





Shaggy ink cap fungus and others in the Falls field, Harrington.Some lettering on the brick built overflow bridge for Newbottle bridge.





Newbottle Bridge -there was once a village - the only evidence is some humps and bumps in a field and this bridge over the River Ise.

A rather well-hidden stile

Inquisitive cows with Desborough (?) in the background.

A slightly overgrown path leads back towards Harrington.





Wildlife spotted - one high speed fox crossing between two hedges with the white tip of its brush clearly visible.

Visitors

We had some handsome visitors. They didn't stay long, though... Jasmine wasn't very hospitable.



When I first got interested in birds, I took a local class, where I learned that I'd been calling these by the wrong name my whole life. It's Canada Goose, not Canadian Goose! Branta canadensis in Latin.

Go see the Friday Ark for more critter pics!