Winter Lingers at Otter Pond

The calendar says that spring is just ten days away, but another hard freeze in these mountains finds few signs of reawakening. Sunrise at Otter Pond this morning found a deep blue sky and few areas of green. If you click on the photo to see the large version, you’ll see a utility pole and transformer in the very center. My home is just thirty yards past the pole, just over that ridge.

Certain types of oak leaves cling to their branches all winter, and provide a rusty color for otherwise barren woods.

After a night of steady rain, clouds and fog lingered in the mountains less than a mile west of the house on Friday morning. The large stand of Loblolly Pine softens the
ruggedness of the Hickory Nut range. A deserted Fibber Magee Drive leads deeper into the valley and the dense forest. The smell of pine and wet decaying leaves adds a freshness to the cold air.

• March 11, 2012
• Hickory Nut Mountain, Our Trees and Plants, Winter
• 2 Comments