A LONG ANTICIPATED WALK BROUGHT SMILES TO MY FACE!

After being in lockdown for the past four weeks we decided that it was time to see our son @ryan313.
With his family also doing the right thing, even before mandatory stay at home and social distancing rules were put into place, he had removed the most precious gifts from harm's way, his family.

We both felt that a week or so at the farm wouldn't put anyone in jeopardy, and spending some time together would be good for all of us. Just by the location of the farm, we felt that the most secure place for all of us would be in Upstate NY. Getting the heck out of New Jersey for a short respite would be a good thing.

My old home state NJ, is 2nd to my new residency NY, in the number of people infected by the coronavirus. With most of the cases in NY City or nearby suburbs, the Upstate county I live in presently has identified only four people who have contracted the virus. With thousands of acres of wilderness void of people, lockdown and social distancing would be replaced with long-awaited hugs, more hugs, outdoor activities, games, and conversation

Prior to my son's family arriving I decided that whatever my grandchildren asked Pop to do, I was in. They both love the outdoors and after being cooped up in the house for the past month, they were raring to go, as was I.

With the grandkids ready to bolt, I asked them to point out anything that they thought was really cool as we made our journey. Along the walk, it was special to see them taking in all of the beauty that surrounded us. What captured their eyes was neat to record on camera.

So, off we went.
Over the bridge and through the woods, it's off to Mother Nature's House we go.

The first thing that caught their eye was this Red Pine tree with some very large woodpecker holes around it.

I had spotted this tree earlier in the week. Knowing that we would cross paths with this bit of @amazingnature, I waited for them to point it out. Bingo, they had located the first of many things to come.
As we surveyed the tree, my grandson called our attention to a loud thumping off in the distance.
As we honed in on the sound, we saw what I had expected made the large holes, a
Pileated Woodpecker. Before I had a chance to snap off a pick, the woodpecker took off into the woods.

After we got home we looked up the Pileated woodpecker and found pictures that duplicated what we had discovered.
https://pixabay.com/images/search/woodpecker/

While spending several quiet minutes in the same location, a pair of black crows were making all kinds of threatening sounds as we waited for the woodpecker to return. Crows are very territorial, and when you happen upon their breeding grounds, they can display some very distinctive threatening sounds. They weren't at all happy with us. In this pic, I thought that I had gotten a photo of one of them landing on the top of these pine trees.
Before getting on with our walk, I asked my grandkids if they had ever seen any pictures of a pirate ship, which they had. Then I asked them if they knew what they called the lookout point, which is positioned high above the deck of the ship, where pirates would be able to see better.

Immediately I got an answer as my grandson yelled out, crows nest. It was like a light went on as he pointed to the top of the tree where the squawking was coming from.
Schools may be closed, but there are so many ways to learn. Experiencing something first hand and learning while doing it, is an exciting way to ascertain knowledge.

It was time to move on.

The trail we were walking on, is the same trail we use to get to the blueberry bushes.

As we started up some rather steep terrain, the kids pointed out some barbwire fence that had been embedded in a tree for some time.

With my granddaughter in the lead, she came across a common site for me, but not so common for them.

They knew what they were looking at were the droppings from a deer, but asked questions about how long ago the deer had been here. It was cold that morning and the droppings were still soft and hadn't changed color yet. I told them that the deer had been here within the last hour. That news increased their enthusiasm, thinking that we may get a chance to see one.

Now, this was a find, climbing trees is in their DNA.

We had made it to the water and would be heading upstream.

This was a place we had visited once in the past, and I knew we were all in for a treat.

My granddaughter found this interesting greenery, and she thought they may be baby pine trees. I told her that they were in fact a type of fern.

My grandson took the lead at this point in the walk. He was no longer walking, but racing to one of their favorite spots on the farm.

As soon as his sister caught up to him, it was game on!

With strict orders to stay dry,🤷‍♂️😊, we set up an obstacle course that included some rough terrain and just a few slightly hazardous parts. The goal was to complete three laps around the course, WITHOUT FALLING IN THE STREAM.

When we left for our journey, I questioned why grandson on why he was wearing a helmet. His exact answer was, "you'll see Pop". Good planning kid! You know how boys are, rough and tumble, and there was a lot of tumbling going on.

Falling in the water was a penalty, and the lap would have to be done again. Pop does wear glasses and I didn't see any foul here.

The little guy took an early lead with sis right behind.

A smart kid my granddaughter, checking out how her brother was navigating the terrain.
She was watching every maneuver, and you can tell from that little smile on her face she was hoping he would slide off into the abyss.

No fear, I'm glad he wore the helmet.

After sliding off the embankment several times, his sister had taken the lead.

The orders to stay dry were not followed, as both of them had fallen into the stream several times, one time landing on their backs in the moving water. What's a Grandpa supposed to do yell? I was yelling, but it had nothing to do with them getting wet, it was me cheering them both on as they were having a ball.

After about an hour of playing by the stream and in it, it was time to get back.

What a beautiful, fine young lady my granddaughter is turning out to be. Wouldn't you agree, you had better! 😁

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We were just a couple hundred yards from where the blueberry festival happens every July, so we decided that we would take a quick look before heading home.

En route to the house, we spotted this tree, the only one still bearing last year's leaves.

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Knowing her way home, and freezing, my granddaughter made double time getting back to the farmhouse. This old stump was not too far off of the beaten path. Our favorite grandson, as we like to tell him was still hanging out with Pop. He always gets a kick out of us calling him our favorite grandson, reminding us that he is our only grandson.

We checked the stump out and I reminded him that this would make the perfect home for a fisher.
He knows all about the Fisher Cat from reading a previous blog and from me telling scary stories about them around the campfire. Most kids like scary stories, at least my grandchildren do.
Every time we sit out at night at the farm, they all want Pop to tell scary stories, and I've got some good ones.

What a simple and wonderful time. Our kids have been coming to this neck of the woods for many years now. They all have such a great appreciation for what goes on beyond the comforts of home. To be able to see my grandchildren growing up with the same type of appreciation, respect, and inquisitiveness for all that Mother Nature has to share with us, warms me to my bones.

I WONDER WHAT THEY HAVE PLANNED NEXT.