Friday, Remi and I traveled eight miles west just into Montcalm County off McBride Rd. to hike in the Vestaburg State Game Area. The early morning weather was mostly cloudy with a temperature of 54 degrees and a variable wind out of the northwest. We headed south on a narrow trail where I picked up the soothing sound of a lovely little tributary of the nearby Pine River. Further ahead, I noticed the left side of the trail was lined with small trees that appeared to be Prickly Ash. After breaking off a leaf and enjoying its fragrance, my decision was confirmed. Weaving through the branches of some of these trees was a vine called Bristly Greenbrier with a few berries still holding on. Presumably, this is the plant into which Brer Rabbit famously begged Brer Fox not to throw him, in Joel Chandler Harris' famous children’s story. While continuing south, I left the trail and descended a gradual bank to the edge of the Pine River where I paused to enjoy the beauty and serenity of this waterway. Back on the trail, I noticed the right side was lined with a shrub I hadn’t seen before called, Ninebark, with its maple-like leaves and clusters of seeds. Its name refers to the peeling bark of mature branches, which comes away in strips. Looking up, I spotted another sign of the season as some maple leaves were loosing their Chlorophyll and beginning to display the red pigment, Anthoncyanin. Next, I entered a large open field lined with mature Aspen and Birch, also dotted with yellowing Milkweed as well as a few unfamiliar evergreen trees called Virginia Pine (Spruce Pine). On the ground, I noticed a few clumps of Reindeer Moss. Finally, we turned around, retraced our steps back to the car and headed home.
Adorning the maple
Green leaf dwells
One among many
One of its cells
Seasonal sunlight
Begins to wane
Chlorophyll factories
Start to refrain
Other pigments
Are showing instead
Color of summer
Is turning red
D. DeGraaf
No comments:
Post a Comment