I traveled to Blue Ridge, GA this past weekend for an annual reunion with my three best friends from high school. We have shared every emotion imaginable over the 29 years of our friendship, and I’m just as thankful for them in my life now as I was when we were cruising the streets of Fairburn, GA on Friday nights after football games. What our school lacked in academic rigor (with the exception of amazing English teachers), it made up for in the art of lasting friendships.
On the way to Blue Ridge, my route took me by a segment of the Bartram Trail I’ve yet to complete. I’ve been tackling the Bartram since late December (trip reports here and here) and have hopes to finish section hiking it in the next couple of months. The trail is named after William Bartram, an 18th century naturalist who traveled through the southeast, documenting his plant and animal encounters in vivid descriptions in his book, Bartram’s Travels. The trail itself is a rugged, often unkempt path, spanning about 115 miles in the mountains of North Carolina and Georgia.
It was a blissful day of meandering, filled with both deep and simple thoughts. I have never finished a hike without taking at least one gem to add to my memory bank. While there wasn’t much jaw dropping scenery on this particular hike, small moments of wonder surrounded me–watching a Pileated Woodpecker fly over me and land on a nearby tree, his vibrant red head aiding my observation of him for a minute or two, the cacophony of a nest of baby birds in a rhododendron as I walked by, the cushioned patch of moss I walked through to skirt a large puddle in the middle of the trail, leaves beginning to unfurl from their buds on trees, and a simple lunch beside a cascading waterfall. After a long, cold winter, it was a welcome day of new life and warmth.
Big chunk of quartz!
Do you know how to identify Eastern Hemlock? Look for the two white parallel veins running the length of the underside of each needle. Hemlock needles can be made into a tea rich in vitamin C–no worries, it’s a different hemlock species that killed Socrates!
These Fan Clubmoss go by lots of names–Groundcedar, Running Cedar, and Crow’s Foot. No matter what its name, it’s so delicate and beautiful to find in large swaths alongside a trail.
Spicebush is one of my favorite trees to come across in the woods. The buds are gorgeous in the spring but it’s the scent of the twigs and leaves (citrusy-spicy, almost like grapefruit) that make me swoon.
Lots of Red Maple buds in my sight on this hike
Wild watercress
It’s hard to appreciate it in this photo, but this beautiful cascading waterfall was the perfect lunch spot.