St. Regis Flow With The Dogs - Part 1

I walk along the path by the St. Regis River in Santa Clara, New York every year to see and photograph the Cardinal Flowers, but this year there were none. Furthermore, most of the other flower and tree photos I took were not usable. But the dogs sure had fun and the scenery was lovely, so I'll share the photos I have:

I was taught to call these Spatterdock but my field guide says that is a southern species which holds its leaves above the water. What we have in the northeast is Bullhead-Lily, and its leaves float on the water. It sure is beautiful and the frogs love it, just like in the cartoons:

We investigated the shoreline by the boat launch, then headed back toward our car and turned left into the field to find the trail which paralleled the St. Regis River:

Common Milkweed was just beginning to bloom, but already the air was so perfumed that everywhere smelled like a florist shop:

And the sandy Adirondack soil grew an abundance of Wild Strawberries and Lowbush Blueberries. The blueberries were just ripening, but there were enough ripe ones to snack on. There was also a lot of Reindeer Lichen:

We hit the main trail and turned toward the river access. The dogs knew where we were going and broke into a run:

That brown patch on the right was Haircap Moss with its brown colored fruiting bodies, producing spores:

Daphne, Fergus and Seamus stopped for a moment in the shade:

And then we saw our first river access point and the dogs once again began to run:

Seamus and Jack went right in. They didn't hesitate:

Daphne got wet right up to her chin and looked silly. But we were just getting started. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow:

Autumn On The Rutland Trail - Part 2

The dogs and I were hiking on a section of the Rutland Trail on a fine autumn day (see also Part 1, posted yesterday). The scenery was magnificent:

 I saw these Milkweed seedpods and wanted a picture. As common as Milkweeds are, I seldom see the exploding seedpods. These always remind me of my childhood, when I wandered the fields behind our house:

The dogs were happy and exploring every inch of the trail ahead of me:

 There wasn't much color except for Red Maple saplings:

 Paper Birch grew along the trail:

And Wild Ginger. Alas, I've never seen their odd flowers, which are born beneath the leaves in April and May:

These cones notified me that there were White Pines nearby:

Not that the trees were hidden. Indeed, they were the tallest trees along the trail:

This section of trail runs through wetlands, and water in one form or another borders both sides of the trail. There are "No Trespassing" signs in places, but with all the water, I couldn't see how anyone could stray from the path:

We arrived at the spot which previously had a foot of water covering the trail as the pond on the right emptied itself into the marsh on the left. But this time, someone had built a bridge and we were able to keep exploring. Previously, I'd always had to turn around here:

The pond on the right was large, bigger than it appears in this picture, and beautiful:

But the bushes began to grow up along the trail, hiding the water on both sides:

And we came to another bridge, this one a steel grid with rubber mats over it. We'd never been this far before so I didn't know if it was new or not:

 And despite the late season, I began to find wildflowers in bloom. These were Heart-Leaved Aster:

 Tall Meadow-Rue was not in bloom, but its distinctive leaves gave it away. I'll post Part 3 tomorrow:

Happy Dogs At The St. Regis Access - Part 1

The dogs and I embarked on a short hike at the St. Regis River Access, a state boat launch. There's a nice trail, some of it along the river, which is short and enjoyable:

Though the trail doesn't skirt the river, there are side trails down to the water every so often and we also take them. The dogs love to get their feet wet:

Daphne and Jack ran through the mud by the river to explore:

And then we returned to the trail:

At the next river access side trail, we climbed down some large, smooth rocks to the river:

A man in a rowboat slowly passed us as he headed back toward the boat launch. He waved and said hello as he glided by:

Seamus was fascinated, having never before seen a person in a boat. Fergus, of course, began barking and I had to order him to stop:

Jack and Clover were momentarily interested in the boat, but they had more exploring to do, and that was more interesting:

We left the river and got back on the trail. Luckily, the state keeps it mowed:

Fergus looked extra cute among the tall Milkweeds:

The trail veered farther away from the river and skirted some woodlands:

Jack, as usual, was running in big circles, having fun. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow:

St. Regis River Access Plants - Part 2

I was hiking with the dogs along the St. Regis River and photographing the abundant wildflowers there (see also Part 1, posted yesterday). There was a lot of Heal-All, and it was unusually large and deeply colored:

It was the Cardinal Flower I'd come to see, but there wasn't any to be found - until Jack called my attention to some. He walked right underneath a brilliantly scarlet spike of flowers:

I looked around and found more Cardinal Flowers growing next to the river. There were fewer of them than most years, but enough to get some good photos:

Some of the Cardinal Flowers were just beginning to open:

And some hadn't yet opened at all:

We walked uphill, away from the river, and continued on the trail where we found patches of Moss and Wild Strawberries. Now that we were back on the trail, I didn't know what kind of plants we might find:

We found lots of Yarrow in bloom:

And Cow Vetch, some of it 4 feet high, supported by the surrounding plants:

Wild Blackberries, though none were ripe:

More Common Milkweed. This one was so gigantic that I snapped a photo with my hand to show its size. It reminded me of the Rubber Tree Plants which were popular house plants when I was a boy:

And of course there were Oxeye Daisies. I'll post Part 3 tomorrow:

St. Regis River Access Plants - Part 1

I decided to take the dogs for a quick hike at the St. Regis River boat launch site in Santa Clara, NY. It's a short, easy hike and I can count on finding lots of spectacularly colored Cardinal Flowers at this time of year. To my surprise, there were so many wildflowers in bloom that I came home with a camera full of photos. So I've separated the dog pictures from the plant pictures. The beginning of the hike featured lots of Goldenrod:

And lots of Common Milkweed:

And, like most waste places, lots of Spotted Knapweed:

The sandy soil also supported Reindeer Lichen and Wild Strawberries. Those red spots you see behind the strawberry plants were not berries, but red leaves:

Tree Club Moss (Princess Pine). At least I think that's what kind it was:

There was lots of Meadowsweet growing everywhere at the dry, sandy beginning of the hike:

And Meadowsweet also grew along the riverbank, where the soil was probably richer and moister:

Black-Eyed Susans abounded but I somehow only got this one photo. It was next to a Scotch Pine:

Common St. Johnswort, like some of the other wildflowers, seems to be everywhere right now. It must be a good year for it:

The Chokecherry, Prunus virginiana, was producing fruit but I didn't taste it. I probably should have:

More Chokecherry. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: