Railroad Tracks Hike , You Don’t Have To Go Far To See Cool Stuff.

It was a long day at the office. Stayed later than I’d like in the Spring and Summer months and got home late. I was tired and going to just take a short walk around the neighborhood when I changed my mind and decided to hike out the local railroad tracks. 

Wasn’t expecting to see a lot but, as always, nature has a way of surprising you. I hiked 20 miles in two nature preserves this past weekend and I saw almost as many interesting and beautiful things on this hike within a mile from my house.

I first walked by some ponds and wetlands and encountered a number of moths and butterflies fluttering around the many species of flowers that are now in bloom. Not sure of the species I saw but they were beautiful. I’m hoping some of you may help me identify them. 

Many flowers are now in bloom, including daisies, clover, hawkweed, and these beautiful foxglove flower I found. 

And of course when there are flowers there are bees. I saw a lot more today, of many different species, than I have these past few weeks. That is always a good thing since we rely so much on bees to pollinate our  fruits and vegetables.

I was hiking through some wetlands  when I heard something crawling through brush. I thought it was a turkey or duck protecting little ones since it was moving so slowly. I walked in to investigate and found this old timer, a snapping turtle. I was surprised to see one in our area. He wasn’t happy to see me and snapped at me a few times while i was taking his photograph. 

I then visited a few more ponds, but was disappointed not finding any dragonflies in the air. I think it was too windy for them to be hovering about.

I then headed back and was treated with one of my favorite sights when walking the railroad tracks, a passing train.  It was a short hike but full of the wonders of nature. Glad I decided to go and glad I kept my eyes peeled. Here is a link to some more photographs I took of the plants and critters I encountered on my hike this afternoon. https://keepyoureyespeeled.net/photographs-5/nggallery/blog-photos/railroad-tracks-and-ponds-hike-june-9-2015/page/2