Bluff Spring Journal
February 2006
February 2, 2006
Off to the woods early this morning and as usual I was a little behind by the time I got to the area where I was going to hike. I wanted to get to this particular rock point that I had taken photos of from across the valley. My goal was to get there before sunrise. Being a little late I quickly hiked up to the point and about half way up the hillside found out that I was not in as good of physical shape as I thought I was. The sun was coming up and I was still a ways from the point so I resisted the temptation to sit down and pushed on. By the time I arrived at the rock point I was completely out of breath and gasping like a beached carp.
So.. as far as I can find this rock point did not have a name until today. I have unofficially named it 'Breathless Point'. For the obvious description of my condition and for the beautiful view that greeted me when I arrived. Yes, I did get some sunrise pictures and a different view of our cabin.
The decent was significantly less stressful. Guess I need to hit the workout trail. I know Annie our Corgi will be overjoyed. You just say the word 'walk' and she is at the door in a flash. Hope some of her enthusiasm wears off on me.
February 11, 2006
We had decided to sleep in and take advantage of a Saturday morning. But... our Corgi had other ideas. 3:30 am and Annie decides it's time to go outside and do her thing. Of course I hate getting up out of a deep sleep but I'd rather get up than deal with what not getting up to let her out might bring. When I got back to my warm spot in the bed I lay there with my mind racing about the many projects that are unfinished. In about ten minutes my lovely bride exclaimed, "Ok, so I am awake". Annie, our Corgi had obviously awakened both of us and now neither of us could sleep. I ventured an idea about wanting to get a special picture of the moon setting over the Old Mill Pond in the Boxley Valley and got an, "Ok, I'm game" response.
So... up and at'em we went. We had Annie packed along with all our gear and were in the SUV in about 45 minutes. A record for us. Annie had really done us a blessing. It was nice to get to talk to each other in the predawn darkness. Seems we get to going 90 to nothing and don't take enough time just to sit and talk.
We'll those of you who know the geography of the Boxley Valley will have already have guessed the success of my setting moon shot. For those of you that don't have a topo map or the experience of being in the valley, it runs almost due north and south. The long and short of it is that I missed the setting moon shot by about an hour. With the hills on the west side of the valley running from an elevation of 1100 feet to over 2000 feet, the moon sets early in the valley.
So... we got to take a little nap while waiting for the sun and the Trumpeter Swans to awaken. Slowly daylight revealed the Old Mill Pond and two sleeping swans. Occasionally the male would raise his head, take a look around and then bury his head beneath his wing. I posed a question to my lovely wife as to why the female continued to sleep peacefully while the male seemed to be on lookout. She responded with, "That's the way it should be!". Of course she had a slight twinkle in her eye. I surmised that it was just his turn to be on guard and that surely the female had taken her turn earlier in the night. Glad to having that settled I quietly moved out of the SUV and proceeded to take my camera equipment to the edge of the pond. Slowly the pair awakened and being curious paddled towards me only to be stopped by the ice that had formed from the edge of the pond towards the center. Curiosity got the better of the big male and he started to break the ice to have a better look at these less than intelligent humans who were knocking on his door so early in the morning. Proceeding to break the ice he got to within 30 feet and then started feeding. I filled up my 1 gig card and had to put in my second memory card to finish with photos of these magnificent creatures. Just as they had come towards me they then left and swam gracefully back towards the center of the pond to continue feeding. Our early morning meeting was over with the decision of the swans. Such it is with wildlife. They often decide just when and where you'll meet. I'm just glad to have shared a moment with one of God's creatures in this early morning light.
Having been out in the cold for about an hour I suddenly realized that it hurt like heck to bend my fingers all the way to my palms. I guess I had forgotten about the cold in the moment with the swans. Slowly and painfully I exercised my fingers back from numbness and gathered all my gear to return to the SUV. Annie and my beautiful wife were waiting for me with a warm vehicle and congratulations on getting the swan photographs. Off to Jasper to have a warm breakfast at the Ozark Cafe and checkup on the LCITW.
February 25, 2006
It was nice to sleep in until 6:30 this morning. I know 6:30 doesn't sound very late but when you're used to getting up at 4:30 those two hours are like an extra bonus you didn't expect. After a leisurley breakfast we decided to head to the cabin building site to see what had been accomplished during the past week. We were glad to see that the lower deck had been finished and the upper deck was starting to take shape.
With the Buffalo River at one of it's lowest flow levels we headed off to hike the Indian Creek primitive trail near Kyles Landing. This was the first time we had hiked this trail so while it is fresh in my mind here are some details. Take 74 west from Jasper or east from Ponca. Look for the signage for Kyles Landing and Camp Orr. The road is between Mt. Sherman and Low Gap and turns off to the north. Follow the signs to Kyles Landing and park at the lot that is as far up river as you can get. Note: when you arrive at Kyles landing you have to turn right and take the circle drive around to the parking lot. When you see the post at the edge of the parking lot that marks the trail you need to turn to the right and head up river on a section of the BRT (Buffalo River Trail). You will see several trail posts as you head up and over a small hill. Don't be lured away from the trail you are on until you see the trail post that has Indian Creek and an arrow pointing you in the direction you need to go. This primitive trail marker (which in greek means-"hope your butt doesn't get too bruised") takes you along the creek, sometimes up on the hill side, sometimes across the creek and sometimes along narrow ledges that were meant for leprechauns with tiny feet. This trail is listed as difficult but during low water you can follow the dry creek bed without much trouble.
Having found the trail and the dry creek bed we fully believed that today's hike would be more about the view of the huge bolders and steep bluffs that line this drainage. After hiking about 45 minutes (from the trail head) we came across the follow enchanting scene.
The creek was running into a pool and completely disappearing within 15 feet. You often see creeks that flow underground for a distance but this one was a surpise. We thought that with the water levels so low there would be no water at all.
These delightful little waterfalls did brighten our day as we then followed the running creek up the drainage. Eventually the creek did go dry again. It was if Mother Nature was saying, "You can look at this creek for a while, but I'll keep part of it for myself".
We had a great hike with bluffs soaring above us on the right and left. We had to focus on the sometimes narrow footing while all the while wanting to look up to see if we were missing anything. Low water or not this is a hike we'll take again. I can just imagine the dogwoods blooming contrasted with the green moss covered boulders and the sound of waterfalls filling our senses.