Day 319 - A Walk in the Woods

(Click any photo to enlarge.)

***Scroll down to see my offer for Red Cross donations.***

Moss Spore Forest

Carpet of Ferns

I met Sally at her home in Howard County, in a neighborhood off Tridelphia Road.   The Benson Environmental Area borders Sally's property, and she offered me an early morning walk there.  After applying bug spray, Sally and I and her little dog Sweet Pea took off for our walk.

Daddy Long Legs

Sun Streams Through the Trees

This area is completely wooded, with just a few trails.  When not used by walkers, the trails are used by horseback riders and the local wildlife, as evidenced by the tracks we saw in the muddy areas.  Sweet Pea totally enjoyed herself, running out of sight at times, up hills and down. 

Mixed in with the trees are outcroppings of quartz.  In places, the forest floor was covered with ferns.  A rocky stream runs through the property, but I did not want to take any chances by attempting to jump it, so we walked a different way, passing by remnants of jack-in-the-pulpits, fungi-covered logs, and the ubiquitous poison ivy.

Perfect Web Work!

Closeup of Spider in Web

We came across at least two large, beautifully formed webs -- perfect circles with evenly spaced spokes and connectors.  They glowed with an iridescent shimmer in the morning light.  The sunlight illuminated one of them just perfectly for my photos, but the other one was more in shade.  Thank goodness Sally spotted it before walking into it.

Streamside

Thank you, Sally, for accompanying me on this walk and for leading the way.  It was the perfect place to walk on a hot summer morning.

Save the date!  Monday, September 2, will be the last day of my year long photo walk project, and I'm planning a big celebration walk with anyone who wants to join me!  September 2 is also Labor Day, so many of you will have the day off.  The walk will be in downtown Frederick, around 9 a.m., followed by a brunch.  More details will be posted on my blog as they get confirmed.  But mark your calendars, grab your cameras, put on your walking shoes, and join me for my final Daily Photo Walk.  Let's jam the streets of Frederick with photo walkers! 

Click on any photo to enlarge it.

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Forward me by email any receipt for an online donation made to the Red Cross for disaster relief, and I will send you a 5x7 print of your choice from any of my daily photo walks or from my website.  Offer good until September 2, 2013.

Visit my web site: camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email:  cam.miller@comcast.net

Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:

1. walk every day
2. the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
3. post a photo every day
4. use whatever camera is easy and convenient for walking comfortably; always have a backup camera at the ready in case of mishaps (I use the Nikon Coolpix P7700)
5. no weather excuses
6. walk only where it is safe to do so