Nature at the Camp

Some random photos taken by my kids.

Adirondack forest ecosystems at altitudes of 1000 to 2000 feet are characterized by a mixture of hardwood deciduous and softwood coniferous trees. At the camp, the typical canopy of Sugar Maple, American Beech, Yellow Birch, and Red Pine. In moist patches and along the creek, Spruce and Hemlock. 

Ferns abound in the shady areas under a dense summer canopy.

Fresh water aquatic vegetation essential to life in our creek. 

Towering Spruce line up along the edge of the creek providing support for the banks with their extensive root systems.

Waters have washed away the soils, sand and silt leaving the larger rocks. The creek is mother natures' quarry exposing both young sedimentary rock from millions of years ago, and metamorphic rock from the 1.5 billion year old Grenville Range. Pleistocene glacial activity created deep grooves which became creeks such as ours.

Algae and silt cover the river rocks making good camouflage essential for the many crayfish and trout. 

A future meal?  This is perhaps a young Brook, or Brown Trout feeding on midges that float along the surface.

The hot sun beats through one of the few breaks in the canopy created by the creek.

Not indigenous, but fun nonetheless!

White Campion, considered a weed here, and a vegetable in Spain. The leaves  are harvested and added to soup, omelettes, or eaten plain like spinach.

White Hedge Bindweed, an aggressive climbing weed. This small flower can kill shrubs and small trees by wrapping itself around and strangling them. 

A Pink Hedge Bindweed.

Black Eyed Susans. A tincture has been used for deworming children, earraches,  open sores and snakebites.

Black Eyed Susan and wild Daisies

Yellow Birch. The bark is waterproof and has been used by natives  for canoes, roofing and siding of shelters. The sap, though lower in sugar content than sugar maple, makes a nice fortifying drink. It has been mixed with honey and brewed in ages past. The inner bark can be ground into cereal, usually only in times of famine.

British Soldier, or  Redcoat Lichen, sometimes also called matchstick lichen is actually two different organisms, a fungus and an algae. The fungal base support the red algae top, soaks water and minerals from the rock or wood below. The algae provides vitamins and photosynthesizes sugar. This is among the first organisms to gain a foothold on barren rocky terrain and is considered a pioneer species. A thin layer of dead lichen provides enough nutrition for some other transition species to flourish thus leading to eventual forestation.

Wild Strawberries. Much smaller than store-bought but just as sweet! They grow from the deep south to the extreme north, but tolerate more direct sun the farther north they are found. At the camp, they grow in the thousands in direct sun. Many are unaware that the red part of the strawberry is actually the enlarged end of the flower case. Each seed on the outside is an actual fruit.   

Daisies belong to the Asterid (Starburst) family of flowers. They grow on every continent except Antarctica and are closely related to Sunflowers. Most of us know the white variety but daisies come in yellow, beige, lavender and purple.

Unidentified #3.. Help?

July heat and a cool creek

Dad, the kids and I went up for the weekend to see how things were going with the cabin build project. As we pulled up, I'll admit being a bit disappointed that I couldn't see any changes. Only on walking into the cabin did I notice that the porch had been built. Wow, what a nice surprise! The 10ft depth and 40ft length made it a bold feature of the cabin overall. It looked great from where I was standing on the porch itself and from creekside, it gave the formerly boxy structure a real cabin look. The rafters are log, just as inside, and the header made of 6x6" beam, giving it a hybrid appearance which could be best described as Amish post and beam meets log cabin.

Lots of space to enjoy!

Logs and posts... a good combo

First of many future mornings spent on the porch.

80 ft down, viewed from the creek

With the porch added, there's a more "cabiny" feel

It was mid morning and already hot. The humidity was bearable but in what may be a sign of things to come, the kids and I ran down from the cabin, and started wading around in the creek. The time passes quickly when you mix kids, a hot day, and a cool creek filled with minnows, crayfish, and other delights. After an hour, we set out for lunch.

Looking for crayfish

Back at the guest cabin, dad made slow but steady progress on the shower door we had picked up at Utica. He was frustrated by his lack of progress, but admittedly, we were busy with other things and enjoying ourselves. No deadlines here. We all swam in the creek, even dad, who said it cooled him off for the rest of the evening. I built the dining room table, while my daughter built a chair. My son stoked the fire.

Cool nights meant everyone needed a blanket. Great sleeping weather, indeed. Sunday brought forth another scorcher, which, by mid morning saw me and the kids seeking respite in the creek. What had been a dangerous, raging body of water weeks earlier had been tamed by 10 days without rain. Scarcely a foot deep in most places, the creek was some 3 feet in one particular area we had determined would be our swimming hole. The kids and I spent a good 2 hours splashing around, building a dam of rocks, chasing crayfish, and taking photos of minnows. If the day had been hot, we didn't feel it. So good to have the creek running through the camp.

The day was around 90, the water, around 82. 

The drive up took well over 5 hours thanks to traffic, but hearing my son say, "this was the best trip ever, dad!", made it well worth the effort. "Thanks for buying this land for us to enjoy". Now that's music to my ears.

Fourth of July, 2011

What a great weekend. The kids got a chance to come up and see what was going on. Dad was up too. Mom elected to sit this one out, preferring to come up after there's running water and things are a bit less "rustic" in the guest cabin.

The kids milling about the campfire area

The weather was great with hot humid days, cool starlit evenings, and an downpour at dawn. The neighbors were down at the creek swimming, so I jumped in too. Brrrrr! I should have been in during the hotter part of the day, not after the sun had gone down. Anyway, the kids got wet too and it marked the first time we've enjoyed the creek in that fashion.

Dawn showers gave way to a hazy morning. By mid-morning, hot and sunny.

Our tarp and solar water bag... a makeshift shower

Building the beds for the kids

This tiny window unit turned a uncomfortably hot and humid night into a great one. Thankfully the generator ran for 8 hrs.

This is what it's about...life is good!

We put in some hickory cabinets, an undercounter refrigerator and countertop. Next up, backsplash and cabinets above. The sink goes next to the ref.

Despite the small space (16 x 24ft) we decided a shower and toilet were a must. After a hole was put in the floor, we got use out of this shower stall.