Hiking

Stebbins cold canyon

Tom and Karole invited me to join them and Doug for a hike up the blue ridge loop trail this weekend. We were able to take advantage of the break in the rain we’ve had for the last few weeks and enjoyed beautiful sunshine as we headed out. It was a great day and the rains had brought out a variety of interesting fungus and mushrooms. We saw some excellent examples of witches butter (Tremella mesenterica) and some strange black mushrooms, they reminded a little of a morel so I thought they might be a false morel but now I’m fairly certain they were grey saddles (Helvella lacunosa)

witches butter

Grey Saddle, Helvella lacunosa

tiny mushrooms-these were only a centimeter or so high.

We passed a family with several young kids walking along with a couple of dogs and a goat! The goat seemed reluctant to cross the stream that was flowing over the trail but the dogs junped right in. We left them urging the goat along and headed up the hill.

Kids on the trail

It’s a nice trail with a lot of steep steps so by the time we emerged ontop of the ridgeline we’d worked up a good appetite. We stopped up at the top to eat lunch and admired the view with turkey vultures wheeling below us.