A Special Corner

This is a special bend in the road on my hike up the mountain.  Here I find fun mushrooms and cool little lichens that could be the center of an elf village.  But the real treasure for me, is the sprouts of American Chestnuts that are just up the slope at this bend.

Almost Gone But Not Quite

The American Chestnuts have almost been wiped out by a fungus, commonly known as “the blight.”  What is generally now found in some, lucky woods, are sprouts of determined trees, still trying to survive.  That is what I have found on this bend in the road.  Sprouts.  I wouldn’t call, what is occasionally found these days, American Chestnut trees, but American Chestnut bushes.

Ocean Waves

The leaf of the American Chestnut has a distinctive, ocean wave edge, and the leaves that I find in the woods right now are a rich emerald green, as in the first close-up shot.  By the end of October those leaves will turn a warm golden brown.  I have to smile whenever I see these leaves – so determined to survive.