http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/Thoughts to share from White's Creek gorge.ennoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Thu, 30 May 2013 15:18:55 PDTBlogger http://www.blogger.com1597125This is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site, subject to copyright and fair use.http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2013/04/you-say-jessamine-i-say-jasmine.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Wed, 17 Apr 2013 04:46:16 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-9135960237602766863I've always heard it called jasmine in the South that I've lived in. This is one of the domesticated cultivars but it is a native plant. The flowers are quite poisonous and deliciously fragrant. This was taken just a few minutes ago in the soft morning light. 2013-04-17T07:46:16.040-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2013/04/coal-mine-exploration.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 13 Apr 2013 07:05:33 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-767257709619733904Our little pipistrelle bat was still hanging out  in the mine when we went back with headlamps today. We went past where the mine forks, with the right fork being more of a room with wood posts jammed between the floor and ceiling. Several had failed so we decided that wasn't the way to go. We stayed on the main shaft (horizontal) and found a rail structure made of wood. This surprised us but 2013-04-13T10:05:33.205-04:002http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2013/04/todays-walk.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:42:52 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1178751951224192976 It was too nice to stay near the house today so we took a little walk. We wound up going along the old coal mining shelf and followed it past where the flat (ish) part ends. There is an old trail cut that is way too steep for any motorized coal hauler so we're thinking this is old enough to be for mules and donkeys. We were surprised to find a mine that went under one of the rock cliffs. It 2013-04-08T16:42:52.378-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2013/03/dealing-with-invasive-species.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Fri, 22 Mar 2013 06:15:05 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-4358795780402990136We've been working on trapping this sow for a month now. By getting her when we did we took another dozen pigs out of the loop. They are incredibly destructive and displace other native wildlife. This one went over 300 lbs and was well fed. The bad news is that the game camera shows several more. We are thinking of switching to corral traps so that we can catch several at a time. 2013-03-22T09:15:05.587-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2013/01/merlin.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 19 Jan 2013 12:06:53 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-5302339765845745421One of the downsides to living in a house with lots of glass is that birds think they can fly through it. After cringing for a number of years as the little beauties crashed and mostly died, I studied on how to stop them. We have spectacular views here but that doesn't give me the right to kill things just so I can see the cliffs from my couch. What I settled on has worked extremely well.  There2013-01-19T15:06:53.273-05:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/12/new-years-eve-eve-morning.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sun, 30 Dec 2012 12:48:42 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-7048883312226001883 2012-12-30T15:48:42.779-05:002http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/12/seasons-greeting-from-conservation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Fri, 07 Dec 2012 08:12:00 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1540017219079684065One of my favorite organizations has put together a collage of rivers and creeks they have worked in over the last year. 2012-12-07T11:12:00.539-05:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/11/we-walked-up-to-this-old-hemlock.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 24 Nov 2012 07:53:11 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-4570460485101633435We walked up to this old Hemlock yesterday. There are larger trees out there but this one is pretty big. My woodsman guess-timation has it at just under 100 feet tall with a crown of 54 feet in width. I need to take a 100 foot tape and inclinometer out there to get something more accurate, but I'm pretty close. Been an engineer too long. This one will get the treatment when the adelgids hit it. 2012-11-24T10:53:11.428-05:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/11/new-pound-dog.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Thu, 22 Nov 2012 13:23:51 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-5217597987469675260No name yet. 2012-11-22T16:23:51.988-05:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/11/whites-creek-bird.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Thu, 22 Nov 2012 07:35:30 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-6922568983796885727 2012-11-22T10:35:30.671-05:003http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/08/new-wasp.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sun, 12 Aug 2012 13:45:52 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-2770520095037248424So we keep badminton racquets posted around the decks to help with the over population of carpenter bees, which are actually eating our house. They haven't been that much of a problem lately, which is different. So I was out on the back porch and these blades of grass poking out of a bee hole in the white pine ceiling caught my eye. Then this beastie wandered into view. Anybody have any idea2012-08-12T16:45:52.232-04:002http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/08/a-long-range-project.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 04 Aug 2012 12:22:22 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1802002301927293580This has me thinking. Photo from...2012-08-04T15:22:22.683-04:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-day-before-palooza.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Fri, 20 Jul 2012 08:14:28 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-2020480343420692694So I invite a few folks out to snorkel and we get kayaking levels. Maybe some folks will want to bring tubes and life jackets. Here's the blue hole at 11 am Friday.  Here's what the peace flag and 680 mailbox look like. Get ready to turn right. 30 feet past the mailbox go up there for a couple of hundred yards. If you miss that turn here's the last one. Turn right and we're up 2012-07-20T11:14:28.931-04:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/07/fire.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Tue, 03 Jul 2012 09:21:47 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-5796891210509664385 2012-07-03T12:21:47.026-04:004http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/06/mountain-camelias-are-going-off-at.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Wed, 13 Jun 2012 14:06:51 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-3903975837933753375 This one is a few hundred yards from our house. It seems to have some disease that is warping the leaves but the flowers are wonderful. This bloom is several centimeters wider than the 6-8cm called for in the yellow stamen variety and closer to the 12 cm called for in the purple stamen varient. See Stewartia ovata. We found three in bloom and two smaller plants. We tagged them at the request 2012-06-13T17:06:51.328-04:002http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/06/signs-of-season.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Tue, 12 Jun 2012 09:57:32 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-7611372364843290970 The Dobson fly is the adult helgramite. The elongated jaws don't pack the punch of the larval jaws but they still aren't much fun as I found out. This male was almost 5 inches long.  Both of these shots are from yesterday evening.  Hummingbirds love these trumpet vines and fly right inside the flower to feed. 2012-06-12T12:57:32.452-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/06/how-to-deal-with-invasive-animals.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Mon, 11 Jun 2012 15:43:10 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1925017947738133724 This wild boar should be ready sometime tonight. Update: Damn, that was good!2012-06-11T18:43:10.116-04:004http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/05/happy-endangered-species-day.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 19 May 2012 09:40:18 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-8639181218669911976Friday I got to swim along with some associates who raised and released several bags full of rare and endangered Conasauga Log perch into the birthplace of their ancestors, their natural and only home, the Conasauga River near the Tennessee Georgia border. The Chattanooga Times Free Press has the story. The orange stripe is a dye marker injected by the CFI staff so that each fish can be 2012-05-19T12:40:18.501-04:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/05/whats-scud.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Tue, 08 May 2012 16:15:47 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-7633211032787356529The small tributaries to Whites Creek are populated with all sorts of interesting creatures. While the large ones get all the hype, the small ones are sometimes more important to the food chain and are indicators of the health of the ecosystem. Most folks don't know that there is a tiny shrimp like beastie called a "scud" living in the mossy water's edge. I find them by turning over moss covered 2012-05-08T19:15:47.198-04:000http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/04/blue-branch.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sun, 01 Apr 2012 00:12:42 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-6242880021146784452These shots are from last Wednesday. The area is about three miles upstream of Whites Creek global headquarters.   2012-04-01T03:12:42.810-04:002http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/03/yellow-trillium.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sun, 25 Mar 2012 18:34:46 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1250488500575737588 Taken today.2012-03-25T21:34:46.791-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/03/spring-on-fleet-feet.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Sat, 24 Mar 2012 06:17:27 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-5269824243782931844 The spring flowers are screaming by at an advanced rate this year. This round lobed Hepatica has already gone away and I just took the shot three days ago. Get out there and breathe deeply, and do it now!2012-03-24T09:17:27.419-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/03/spring-wildflowers.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:41:00 PDTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-3755425694871222690 A round leaf hepatica nods as it wakes up to the day. If the wind holds down I'll try to get a full "facial" of this beautiful spring jewel.   Rue Anemone Often used as a spring tonic back in the day when spring tonics were the rule, Yellow root has a beautiful flower that's hard to catch. A tea made from the roots is loaded with vitamin C and is as distasteful as it is healthy.2012-03-15T11:41:00.881-04:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/03/preventing-environmental-destruction-in.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Fri, 02 Mar 2012 05:02:12 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-1406001745297042920 I can't believe this article and the statements made by these folks. Get those emails to TWRA going folks. TWRA seeks public comments on ATVs at Cummings Cove Wildlife Management Area "Parts of the [Wildlife Management Area] resemble a moonscape, void of vegetation, wildlife and stream aquatic species, once plentiful there," ... So Cummings Cove actually is closed to any 2012-03-02T08:02:12.363-05:001http://whitescreek.blogspot.com/2012/03/evening-flight-to-wisconsin.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Whites Creek)Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:56:36 PSTtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6325606.post-821032548678144612 Taken at 6 pm March 1, 2012 from the deck at Whites Creek Global Headquarters.2012-03-01T18:56:36.215-05:005