Translate

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Nature Notes: Nature on the road and trails

I got home yesterday from a road trip to the North Carolina mountains.
natnotefDSCN7240
I live in central NC and it's interesting to see how much farther along the western mountains in my state are in terms of fall foliage.
natnoterDSCN7290
This time we stayed in Brevard, NC which is near Asheville in the southern end of the NC mountains range. The northern NC mountain range are usually a week or so ahead of the southern NC mountain range in terms of fall colors.
natnoterDSCN7298
The two shots above and one below are from the Graveyard Field Trail
natnotnDSCN7314
I thought we might see some bears  because camping had been closed at that site although the trails were open.
natnotfDSCN7197
When I read the sign about why they closed camping at the Graveyard Fields, it said that a bear had ripped open a tent gone inside to grab some food and that people were inside the tent when it happened.
 natnotfDSCN7203
The sign went on to say that no one was injured in that incident but that it was the latest of a string of recent human and bear encounters that made them decide to temporarily stop people from camping there.
naturenotefDSCN7166
The next shot is of Bearwallow Falls which is in a different forest from the Graveyard Field trail.
naturenotefDSCN7173
It's not unusual to see black bears in these mountains and they rarely bother people unless the cubs are threatened.
naturenotfDSCN7178
Still, I wouldn't want a bear coming in my tent when I was in it.
natnotbDSCN7436
The shots above and below are ones I took in the NC Arboretum in Asheville.
natnotbDSCN7438
The trail below is also at the Arboretum.
natnoteDSCN7411
In addition to enjoying the fall trees on the trail at the arboretum it was a bonus that there were still some flowers and butterflies. 
natnoteDSCN7422
Driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway is always fun. 
natnotDSCN7553
Below is a shot of Looking Glass Rock that I took from the Parkway.
natnoteDSCN7529
It's nice to be a passenger in the car and be able to take photographs.
natnoterDSCN7536
Every now and then Bill would spot something he thought I might want to photograph at a stand still and he'd pull over.
natnottDSCN7566

12 comments:

Maude Lynn said...

Breathtaking shots!

Rambling Woods said...

Beautiful scenery Carver..and that is scary about the bear..glad everyone was OK..thank you for your supports..hugs..Michelle

Desi Traveler said...

Beautiful colors of fall... every picture depicts the bounty of mother nature and the change of seasons...

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Incredible colors! Yeah -- very scary about the bear (I wonder what's happening that made it go into the tent when they usually don't bother people)...whatever it was, I definitely wouldn't want to camp there. Thanks for the wonderful Fall tour.

eileeninmd said...

Carver, beautiful shots from your trip. The NC mountains and colors are gorgeous. Some bears are becoming use to people feeding them or leaving trash out which can become a big problem for people and the bears. Great post, thanks for sharing!

Laura said...

so much beauty carver!

Judy said...

Awe, these photos make me want to head back to NC. Wish my son still lived there.

Jewaicious said...

Scary moments with the bear.

The photos are lovely, filled with fantastic textures and tones. The butterfly shots are delightful.

Mildred said...

Great series and very beautiful scenery!
Love the autumn colors!
Thanks for sharing.

***
Hope you are having a fabulous week****

Cezar and Léia said...

The landscape is breathtaking!I love the butterflies and the beautiful trees!
Léia

DeniseinVA said...

Beautiful scenery and nature shots Carver, and as much as I love bears, I wouldn't want one coming into my tent either ;)

Jessica said...

Great post! I love travel and hiking posts. I wish I could get up that way and explore some more. It's been too long. Thanks for sharing :)