Around the Village in Photos: August 27 - September 2, 2015

Bird Seed Please!

Slim

Happy Hour

Mama?

Hello!

Nasturium

Full Moon August 29 Round Lake

Cape Cod Vacation

After camping, got out of town again to Cape Cod. Such a beautiful place! Took a few pictures...

Purple Haze

Howdy!

View from Coast Guard Beach

Camping at Putnam Pond Chilson, N.Y.

 I got out of town and went camping at my favorite spot, Putnam Pond in Chilson, about 10 minutes from Ticonderoga. We have been going there for twenty years, camping, hiking, bird watching, and kayaking. There are always Loons on the pond, Ravens flying overhead, a one time bear sighting, and lots of wild mushrooms and flowers. There's lots of ponds to hike to, as well as, Treadway Mountain. Take a look.

Red Eft Tattooo

Loon on Lost Pond

Impressive

Berrymill Pond

Putnam Pond

Momentary Tattoo

Love to Camp

Photos around the Village: August 6 - 12, 2015

This is all I've got after running the book sale during the Arts and Crafts Festival but it is SO Priceless: It speaks a week in words and photos and so much more... Read On !!! Read Inside, Read Outside, at the lake, ocean, camp, library, yard, deck, patio, family room, under the covers... READ!!!!!!!!!!!!

Around the Village in Photos: July 30 - August 5, 2015

Living here in Round Lake is Awesome. The people who live here, the wildlife, the open spaces, the lake and woods. We are Very Fortunate! Love Round Lake.

Frog in my Yard

Full Moom/ Blue Moon Paddle on Round Lake

Moon Rising

Moon Rising More

And More

Stew

Lance and Fire Island

Lovely Sky

Moon Rise on Round Lake

Lance's Fire Island and Moon Glow

Out and About: Round Lake Nature Notes Summer 2015

My dog, Athos, pulled me out of the house multiple times a day for ten years. He needed a formal invitation, and at least a mile walk, before he decided to squat. He waited by the door all last winter, ignoring the below zero temperatures. He wanted to go out. We walked all through the village, maybe the woods, the trail in both directions, down to the lake. As he poked his nose here and there, did leg lifts, I looked around. He took his sweet time so I really got to look around. I began to see and learn the rhythm and pattern of the wildlife in the village.

I started to write down what I was seeing out and about. I noted the date and time and place. I composed notes and articles in my head while freezing or sweating and walking along. After awhile I asked Dixie if I could write a nature article for the village newsletter. I was seeing so much. I was reading articles and books that spoke of people, and especially children, getting further and further away from nature and all its wonders. We have so much right here where we live. I wanted to share that and villagers to know that.

I could lead Athos in any direction. My dog, Jamis, has a mind of his own. If he was a human, he would be at Leah's daily, chatting and eating cookies. He does not want to explore. However, Athos was all in. Through thousands of walks with him, I learned where the deer bedded down in the woods, where garter snakes were born in the spring, when and where to see the return of the spring warblers. He sniffed out rabbits, woodchucks and fox. He waited patiently while I photographed owls, hawks, and eagles. He laid on the trail while I attacked garlic mustard invading wildflowers, pulling the mustard out like a crazy woman.

Occasionally, we would catch a glimpse of a fisher. We investigated puddles teeming with tadpoles and frogs on South Lawn. I'm afraid he probably lapped some up. While I tried to figure out where Wood Ducks were nesting each spring, he rolled on his back, ate something nasty, or lunged at a cat. We walked by yards and gardens always seeing something: flowers, wildflowers, birds, butterflies, insects, and of course, squirrels and cats. We did this multiple times a day.

I go to the Adirondacks to hike and seek out nature. However, I have found that since I'm not there on a daily basis, I really don't know the exact location of a bird, or bear den, or wildflower patch, that a guide book or article talks about. Here in the village, day after day and year after year, a pattern emerges, a neighbor lets me know when and where they see the eagle or hear the owls. I get to see and know the big picture.

Thank you Athos for your unconditional love, gentle nature, and daily walks. I miss you immensely, buddy, but I thank you for the wonderful gift you gave me of seeing nature all around me. You trained me well!

Around the Village in Photos: July 23 - 29, 2015

Love where we live. There's always something beautiful or fun to see! I kayaked with friends on Ballston Lake for the first time. Lots of birds and turtles.

Munched: Young R.L. Gardeners LOVE edible nasturiums!

Sluggish?

Duckies: Round Lake Preserve

Great Blue Heron at Ballston Lake

Osprey at Ballston Lake

Painted Turtle on Ballston Lake

Judy's Raspberries are a wildlife magnet