When I was a child, one of the places we went on vacation was Lost River State
Park in West Virginia. We stayed in a cabin, hiked the trails, and played in
the swimming pool. I live a lot closer to it now and I’ve been back many
times.
I was worried when I read about wildfires there, and one of the trail shelters was
damaged. I was relieved when the fires were finally out. On Thursday, I drove
out there. There was a crew clearing downed trees, and I had to stop for their
trucks for a few minutes.
Things were normal at the visitor center and the picnic areas were undamaged.
The fire had burned up to one side of the main road. Firefighters kept it from
destroying buildings. I took a walk along Howard’s Lick Trail. The lick (or
creek) was bubbling along with water from recent rains.
The creek itself looked fine, but the hillside nearby was blackened and there
was a smell of burnt wood.
It was sad to see. But the forest will recover. The creek is still pretty.
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| Tuesday Treasures / Travel |
Love the creek very much in deed
ReplyDeleteI don’t know whether Black-backed and Three-toed Woodpeckers occur that far south, but if they do check the burned areas for them. They are known to occupy such clearings after fire. Great birds to discover.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think we have those species, but I did hear what sounded like a woodpecker in the distance.
DeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteNice walk, the creek is beautiful.
I hope the burn area recovers and will be beautiful.
Take care, have a great day!
...fire are becoming our new normal!
ReplyDeleteI know a wild fire left a scar for a couple of years on a mountainside visible from Chimney Rock near here. But it's invisible unless you're walking the trails and can still see a bit of scorch on some trees.
ReplyDeleteFire and floods. To echo Tom, our new normal. I have to think all that smoke in our atmosphere year after year isn't going to be a good thing, either. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteSo nice to see you in your post. I was surprised to hear about this wildfire, wrongly thinking that we had had enough rain to keep these things from starting. I learned something, you just never know when one of these things starts. Always sad to see the effect it has and those firefights, we will never ever be able to repay them for what they do.
ReplyDeleteThe smell of fire seems to linger long after the fire is out.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful forest, what a shame to turn to ashes after a fire. Fortunately the forests are recovering🌼🌳.
ReplyDelete