This guy was between 5 and 7 feet long. I'm no herpetologist, so I'd love to hear what kind of snake you think it is. I was guessing black racer or rat.
I also saw a huge black bear earlier in the hike. It didn't move when we called out, so that was a little concerning. But eventually, it waddled off after munching on a bunch of vegetation.
All in all, an amazing 10-mile trek through the breezy spring woods.
Did a couple of days of hiking with my buddy last month. As a flatlander, I was so grateful for the chance to spend some time in the Rockies.
The post about the melanistic groundhog promoted me to share this photo.
I had no idea what piebaldism was or how rare it was to see a deer with it. I'm not sure if the stats online are correct, but they suggest about 2 percent of whitetail deer have it.
Again, not sure if this is accurate, but I read somewhere that indigenous groups believed piebald deer were signs that a big change was coming. I just had my first kid before seeing this, so that definitely tracked.
Anyway, really cool sighting. My wife spotted the same deer later that summer. We haven't seen any since.
Did an overnight trip in April, camping at what the state considers a wilderness site on the tea-colored Batsto River.
The New Jersey Pine Barrens is the largest wilderness on the East Coast between Boston and D.C. It's a unique environment, with a lot of cool ecosystems. No virgin forest here, as industry had its way with the land and resources for centuries.
This trip was something like 20 miles through Atlantic white cedar swamps and pitch pine forests.
It might not dazzle like the west at first glance, but it's a place I love more than most.
For me, it's a few things.
A way to burn time that doesn't feel like a digital sugar rush.
Support, camaraderie, and kindness, primarily from /r/stopdrinking.
Niche stuff, like ideas for local hiking and backpacking trips, propaganda posters, and kayaking info.
I appreciate fiction, but I almost always read nonfiction. It's probably because I typically choose the books on topics I'm interested in and want to learn about. But I also love the way a great nonfiction writer can weave a narrative so strong that it's just as much literature as it is journalism.
Some of my favorite examples of nonfiction that do this well: Soul Full of Coal Dust, Toms River, Desert Solitaire (Abbey can be problematic, though, so be warned), The Pine Barrens, This Land, and on and on.
I guess I'm kinda stuck in the environment/nature section these days!
I didn't post much on Reddit over the last few years, but I figure I ought to contribute to the communities I want to see thrive. My friend and I took our kayaks out last week and saw a bunch of beautiful sights, including egrets and great blue herons. Here's a landscape shot.
