I wanted Richard to see the De Castro Trail head that I saw on Saturday and for us to walk on the trail together, for as long as we could stand the heat!
That is the river you see between the trees, the trail is quite high here and one little slip...well, you get the picture! It is a steep slope, there is land in between the trees and the river, you just can't see it. The sun was so bright on the water, it makes it hard to see. The trees here were lovely next to the trail. It was as if were in the North Georgia mountains!
Robert de Castro died in 1999 at the age of 91. You may read his obituary here. (Not sure what the 1991 date refers to, perhaps they named their retreat on this property "Kenwood" and that is the date it was built? Again, I am guessing, but I am very grateful for this gift to Rockdale County!) He donated 120 acres to Rockdale County with the stipulation that the land be used for the enjoyment of nature. This land is on part of the trail that connects all the way to the Monastery. You can see it on the map from my last post.
Look at this sign on the trail, it is on a stone that I am sure is from Arabia Mountain . If you look closely, you can see the marks that should be familiar to you if you are a regular reader of my blog! I am glad that this stone was thoughtfully placed here, to honor Mr. De Castro and to also point out the beauty of the rock from Arabia Mountain! And since I have my English heart, you can guess how much it pleases me to see a quote from Dickens!
This is the other side of the rock, the words are on the other side. See the markings on the right?
And see the bench? It is a long slab of rock placed on smaller slabs of rock, all this same beautiful stone.
Can you spot the anole in the photo above? Richard saw this little guy and it was amazing how closely his color is to the green leaves, this was on the Outcrop Trail at Panola Mountain. We also saw red headed woodpeckers and pileated woodpeckers. And the sweetest thing, just before we left, we heard the bird that likes to call Richard's name...we hear it quite often. " Rich-ARD".....sweet, sweet, sweet". That is what it sounds like to me anyway! Hope you hear a bird calling your name today! Here's to the enjoyment of nature!
Nature gives to every time and season some beauty of its own...changes so gentle and easy that we scarcely mark their progress. Charles Dickens
Your photos of the area remind me very much of here where I live...here on Mount Tamborine. Lovely. I enjoy going on walks with you, Kay. Thanks. :)
ReplyDeleteOh! What a beautiful part of the world you have compared this to! My sister lived in Australia and I so much want to see your country!
DeleteYou are most welcome to join this on our walks at anytime! :-)
Oh my, I could just imagine that little critter jumping on me...yikes, my hair is standing up. I love that you and your husband hike all the time. You must be so healthy. I wish my feet were that strong. Blessings to you both, xoxo,Susie
ReplyDeleteThat little lizard it completely harmless, there is a brown recluse spider that you have to watch out for! I just wish we had more time to do our hikes! We work different hours you see, so we can't walk as much as we would like! And my feet! I have walked so much, I look like Fred Flintstone! LOL.
DeleteWhat a lovely scenic walk...totally enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteI did not "see" the anole at first but then I did.....great camouflage.
Just spent some time on your blog and I will be back....so many interesting things for me to check out.
Thanks for stopping by my blog too.
Hello Virginia!
DeleteThank you and I must tell you that YOU have a lovely blog!
You are most welcome here at any time. I hope you will get more rain soon!
Looks a great walk Kay and that's a new lizard for me. As a UK resident we think we know most American wildlife from films but I'm sure that's not the case yet we rarely get detailed American nature programmes over here. Apart from Buffalo, (Bison) Bears, Chipmunks, Roadrunners, Racoons, Bald Eagles and the Simpsons Dog we actually know next to nothing about the smaller woodland creatures in the USA. So familiar yet so unknown. I find that very strange indeed as I know more about the creatures in Australia, China or Tibet.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, the Simpsons dog, that is one famous American animal!
Delete(You really do make me laugh!)
We most certainly have wildlife! Keep reading my blog, Bob, and you know you will be an expert on American wildlife! At least for Georgia anyway!
Another lovely walk. It doesn't look hot with all that greenery, it looks refreshing. Haha, photos can fool you.
ReplyDeleteYou are right there, it was very, very hot. We felt as if we had almost melted after this walk!
DeleteThank you for sharing some of the treasures of your world! For years my arthritis and then my health kept me from enjoying nature much farther than my deck, but this is turning around, thank heaven, and I can walk again! The miracles of modern medicine!
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you are able to walk more! We have friends who are not able to walk very far. That is not to say that can't happen to us, but as long as we can, we will walk!
DeleteLove your header picture, love you and Richard having a day off and spending it like this, love the pictures and descriptions of the De Castro trail and the little green guy!
ReplyDeleteI had a day off yesterday, too, and guess what I did :-)))))
Oh! I bet you went on a long walk too!!!
DeleteYou would love this walk, although, we are already thinking of how it will be when it is cooler and all those leaves are in their pretty autumnal colors!
Correct :-)
DeleteAt the moment, I am so happy about this good summer weather that autumn is still quite far off in my mind.
I DO see the anole, even though I am not good at things like this. It is always fun to try though. We have a few things in common. We both live in the south and love taking pictures of nature! AND love wildflowers. I even love dandelions. I love the Dickens quote, and it is so true!
ReplyDeleteHey Ginny!
DeleteYes, I love your blog and I feel as if we most certainly do have a lot in common! I loved your last post and I tried to think what it reminded me of and today I remembered....it is the song, "Do, Lord"!
"I've got a home in Glory land that outshines the sun....Look away beyond the blue"...Do Lord , oh Do Lord, oh Do remember me"
I have never seen or heard of Fire Pinks before, they are gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI had never seen the Fire pinks until this year either and I was so excited to identify them!
DeleteWow! You have really sharp eyes! I didn't see the anole at all. This is such a beautiful area and the rocks are truly works of nature's art.
ReplyDeleteThe anole was on rock to begin with but when it jumped onto the leaves, we almost couldn't see it!
DeleteI think I learn more about the US from Blogland than I ever did at school or elsewhere since to be honest.
ReplyDeleteThe bird calling Richard's name set me off to my books because I remembered a book entitled "I Heard the Owl Call My Name" but I could't recall anything about it. I found it. It's by Margaret Craven from the opposite 'corner' of the US, Montana.
Thanks, Graham. I also remember the name of that book but I have never read it. I just looked it up too and it really sounds like a book that I would like to read and you have no idea how unusual that is for me since it is a book of fiction!
DeleteIt scares me a bit to think that folks get information about the USA from my blog, I hope I have my facts right! :-) I can only try!
I do enjoy nature and you found the perfect spot to enjoy it. Glad there was plenty of shade for you there.
ReplyDeleteYou might guess that I am a shade loving kind of gal, never have been one for lots of sun, but its hard to avoid in this part of the world!
DeleteLoved the photos!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThere is no better memorial than preserving nature for future generations.
ReplyDeleteIsn't just a wonderful thing for him to leave that land? It is something that should be recognized and appreciated, I believe!!
DeleteIt's so pretty, i don't blame you for wanting to be there every chance you get!
ReplyDeleteI know, we really to love it, and honestly, there were more things we SHOULD have been doing, but this is what we did!!
DeleteWhat a lovely place. To be really warm at 8 AM would make me think twice about setting out for the day but if it was characteristic weather of where I lived, I would get used to it,for sure.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I am a native Georgian but I don't think I will ever get used to the heat!
Delete