Happy Monday and happy new week! I am trying once again to grow this type of Columbine. I was able to find one in good shape and cheap enough that if it doesn't come back I won't have lost much. I love Columbines but they are very finicky it seems. They die back to the ground during dormancy. Mine seem to keep at least a few leaves until winter. They are in the genus Aquilegia which is Latin for Eagle and so named due to their flowers resembling talons.
It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog! Once again I am focusing on model trains and my N Scale layout to be exact that I got running again this winter after an, at least, 10 year pause. N scale is pretty small and finicky with how it runs so I got a bit frustrated with it and got interested in the total opposite scale, G. After seeing some things on YouTube of how others get their trains to run well and seeing that my locomotives still worked after sitting idle for so long I decided to try to get it up and running again and it has been very successful. I did just have to redo a section of track this past weekend due to some warping of the board but it is running even better now, I just have to landscape that to get it to look better. The Santa Fe Blue Goose that the hubster got running for me better than when it was new by re-soldering a couple wires on it. The mountain in the rear is not snow, it is just in progress. The town that you can just see a bit of on the left is my current project where I am doing the streets and sidewalks.
I have a video of this locomotive and my diesel on YouTube HERE if you would like to watch. It shows a good share of the layout and has more information in the description about it as well.
While I was in Pennsylvania, another hike I went on was the Pole Steeple Trail which is in Pine Grove Furnace State Park and in the Michaux State Forest. It was quite the steep trail at the end due to the choice we made and I had to rest a bit a couple times. LOL There was a pretty impressive view after we made it to the top of the entire park including the forest and Laurel Lake. The view is pretty impressive and worth the exertion. The rock is quartzite.
It's Friday, TGIF! The Redbuds are in bloom and have made the area quite lovely. The buds are red but the blooms are more pink. I captured this image in late afternoon and it had some lovely bubbly bokeh in it. Sharing it today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!
Today's image is of a neighborhood cat with gorgeous eyes that I saw recently while on a bike ride. It posed very nicely for me but wouldn't let me get close enough to pet it. 😒 I don't think it was totally wild as it looked well fed.
It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog! Today's flower is a favorite and is just in it's last stages of blooming. This is Wild Plum and usually blooms March to April. Mine opened in very late March and is about done. They smell wonderful while blooming. The fruits will appear in August or September and are about 1 inch in size and are sweet and juicy though I find the skin a bit tart and it's fairly tough. I rarely get to eat any because the birds get to them first.😒 They can form dense thickets and their roots help protect against erosion. I am keeping mine a bit tamed and not letting them spread as much as they are trying to.
About a couple of weeks ago now, while on a bike ride I spotted a bird in the road. It ended up flying closer to me in a field off to the side and I was able to capture a few images of it. This is a bird that I get to see every now and then called a Horned Lark. It's horns were not visible but it is a male due to the facial masking which females lack.
