9Mar2008

Spruce Hill Hike of 9Mar2008, Sunday, 3 hours, temperature approaching 30F, with 10-12 inches of snow.

The appearance or evidence of life takes on an entirely different significance when viewed in the context of the past couple days of blizzard-like conditions and a foot of snow. As we walked along the edge of the hill top , we happened to cross paths with a small, dark brown spider marching along on top of the snow. I would never have thought that spiders venture out in such weather conditions. I suppose they get cabin fever, too.

The surface of the snow cover on the hilltop had drifted and been blown and carved and painted by the wind that had more than likely reached 35-40 miles an hour with so little to stand in its way. The snow varied in depth from about 14 inches to 4 inches from the isthmus to the pond.

Every step along this hike was a three step process in and of itself. It consisted of first lifting each foot high enough to clear the top of the snow, then the sensation of not knowing how far one's foot would travel through the snow, then the eventual settling into the squishy ooze of the thawed, wet soil at some level below the snow cover. Having hiked all the way to the Spruce Hill isthmus cross country from Baum Hill Road, and after skirting the SE edge of the isthmus and southern tip of the pond, we decided to head home. But we did stay on the hill top long enough to see the sun slip behind the western cloud bank with a golden blaze, and that's when the snow took on that deeply-impersonal, evening-blue tint that is so enchanting in the winter cold.

What a great time to hike Spruce Hill! Oh that I had thought to bring my snowshoes!!!

Wildlife sightings: Red winged blackbird, pileated woodpecker, spider

2Mar2008

Spruce Hill Hike of Sunday, 2Mar2008, 3 hours, temperature 30-40, sunny

Purpose was to fine tune boundary markers and enjoy the warmer temps and sunshine. The forest floor leaf mat is quite a bit more compressed than earlier in the year, resulting from the weight of recent snowfalls. The wet mat is soft and squishy to walk on. As I sat in the woods near the isthmus to catch my breath, two turkey vultures swooped low overhead, eyeing me to see if I warranted further investigation. I kept moving.

As I marked more line, I was pleased to find that the huge basswood stump on the western edge is within the property lines of Spruce Hill, along with many more of the large, mature trees than I had thought. Another discovery was that most of the old logging road along this perimeter runs just inside the boundary line of Spruce Hill. Walking north along this edge and peering west, there is a beautiful view of Paint Creek as it veers directly towards Spruce Hill south of Bourneville and joins with the Upper Twin Creek waters. Anyone standing where I stood could easily see any river traffic coming towards the hill.

The pond has water all the way up past the buttonbush grove, with most of it frozen except for near the tree trunks and pond edge. I would estimate the water depth at four to six inches at the buttonbushes. There are two areas where the pond is being drained by field tiles, with many broken tiles at both drainage sites. With the quantity of water being tapped from the top of Spruce Hill by those continuously running 'faucets', I wonder how much deeper that pond would be had it not been tiled.

Wildlife sightings: American crow, northern cardinal, Carolina chickadee, tufted titmouse, turkey vulture