Mark Twain Lake

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from

The Photo Ranger!

 

 

Many types of thorns complicated this adventure.

 

 

 

The air temperature was about 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

 

The wind made it feel much colder.

 

 

Looks like running water, but that's completely frozen solid.

 

 

Lonely tree out in the lake

 

 

Major squirrel stash on shore

 

 

The snow covered moss is quite pretty.

 

 

That rock looks a bit like a skull.

 

 

Another hidden green patch

 

 

Some of those burrs actually got inside my coat!

 

 

Lots of great driftwood

 

 

A red burst

 

 

Some creature's little nook

 

 

Interesting breakage

 

 

Very nice shell fossil

 

 

Collections of little rocks

 

 

First sighting of the Bald Eagle!

 

 

There he is again, near the tree tops.

 

 

And there he is flying over the water.

 

 

What an array of fossils!

 

 

Incredible remnants from trees long gone

 

 

For a moment, I thought this driftwood was a giant's femur.

 

 

Red soil

 

 

There's another speck of green down in the hole!

Powder Valley: Hickory Ridge Trail

 

 

I took the long loop, naturally.

 

 

 

Those ramps off in the distance are the Interstate 44 & 270 interchanges.

 

 

Moss growing right there in the cracked asphalt...

 

 

The side of a boulder

 

 

A bucket stump!

 

 

A pretty lady

 

 

Make that two.

 

 

How long have those rocks teetered there?

 

 

Amazing roots along the water's edge

 

 

Nice hoof print in the moist creek bed

 

 

Another bucket stump!

 

 

The buck is straight ahead, under the setting sun.

The doe is to the left, near the boardwalk.

 

 

You can almost see his breath; and look at the sunlight on his antlers.  Majestic!

 

 

His friend was just down the trail, blocking my path for a few moments.

Powder Valley: Tanglevine Trail

 

 

Tanglevine, eh?

 

 

 

No kidding.

 

 

 

Interesting cut

 

 

Another nook

 

 

Looks like good swinging, but that's poison ivy!

 

 

Many kinds of life

 

 

Thick tangles

 

 

More climbers

 

 

Yikes!

 

 

Those vines must be 100 feet long!

 

 

Snake like...

Powder Valley: Broken Ridge Trail

 

 

A pretty afternoon; still I had on a hat and gloves.

 

 

 

Little nooks and hiding places was certainly a theme today.

 

 

 

Another in a log...

 

 

 

Our eyes met.

 

 

 

She's being coy.

 

 

A little fuzzy, but so lovely...

 

 

We need rain.  That's a creek.

 

 

There's a little water back there.

 

 

Double!

 

 

Dark moss

 

 

A shining path ahead

 

 

Yours truly

 

 

Yes, I love moss.