A walk with friends

The Heritage Roads of Prince Edward Island were cut into the red soil at least a century ago. The Millman Road in the centre of the island is one such road which we visit occasionally to take in the beauty of the season.

We walked that road this past week with some friends who are on the island visiting family.

The Millman Road is in a part of the island which has rolling hills. The old road doesn’t have any homesteads these days but the fields are still planted in rotation every year. This undulating field of corn is just sprouted and within three months stalks of corn will be taller than we are. 

As we walked, the wind in the trees provided music to our ears. That wind kept the mosquitoes at bay so days with a breeze are great days to explore such areas. Birds sang in the trees and while it was hard to see them high in the canopy, sometimes one is lucky enough to see one of the songsters, like this Black-capped Chickadee.

As we turned around to walk back, the fields around the Southwest River stretched before us. 

The ditches along the road were full of blooms, among them the showy lupins which have beautiful variation in colour in that area. 

I am uncertain as to identity of the tall plant with the delicate pink blooms growing with the lupins. 

We continued on to the park at Cabot Beach where we had a leisurely lunch with our friends. However, it rained before we could explore the beach together. We will get together again later this week.

Finally today, I want to introduce you to one of our animal friends along the boardwalk. We first saw this squirrel late last autumn when it was eating at one of the bird feeders. It had the shortest tail we had ever seen on a Red Squirrel, so we called it Bob. 

Over the next several months, we saw Bob regularly. Then it vanished and we feared Bob had fallen victim to a predator.

                                                      Unlike Bob, this squirrel has a normal tail.

Much to our surprise, last month, a squirrel with an unusual tail appeared on another section of the boardwalk. We suspect it is Bob, with a lengthened tail. However, the tip of its tail has grown fur which looks different from other squirrels. Could this be Bob?

We like to think so!

Just three weeks

My intention was to photograph Millman Road over a period of weeks in October to have a photographic documentary of the change in the leaves this autumn. Unforeseen circumstances intervened and it was over three weeks before we returned to the Millman Road again for a short walk. In that time, the autumnal change along the road was massive.

In the early days of October, the canopy was green. In a few areas shots of red were a highlight. 

The road had much the same look as it does mid summer.

Just over three weeks later, a golden tunnel stretched over the red road which was leaf covered in places. 

It is easy to find a scientific explanation involving naturally occurring chemicals as to why leaves change colour.

However, the dreamer in me imagines nature’s awareness of the decreasing light and heat and in a desire to protect herself, she eliminates surface area to huddle against the cold. First though, she gives us a final present, one we will remember until the light and heat return next year and she stirs again.

So we walked amid the leaves, shuffling our feet for the maximum enjoyment of nature’s gift of this season. The old road, cut deep into the rich red soil has experienced many generations do the same, as passersby enjoyed the scenes around them. My husband and I walked in silence with only the rustle of the leaves beneath our feet and cameras clicking.

Words were unnecessary.

Silence

It was quiet when we arrived. Not a breath of wind on a -6 C sunny winter day meant perfect conditions for snowshoeing. We were alone in the area on Islander Day, a winter holiday. We had scouted this old Heritage Road the previous day, wanting a place to snowshoe without the noise and traffic of snow machines. Luckily, snowmobilers don’t ride on the Millman Road. 

My husband and I put on our snowshoes quickly and headed out. 

Most noticeable was the absence of bird sounds and sightings. Our usual trails on the island have many species and numbers of birds, some year round. The Millman Road, which we frequent during the other seasons has always had the same. Not today. The woods were silent, accentuating the stark beauty around us.

The only sound was the crunch of snow with every step. The loose snow sparkled which I was unable to capture with the camera. Periodically we stopped to listen for the silence again, such an unusual experience. The sound of one’s breathing filled the air, a strange sensation indeed in this space. 

We weren’t alone however. Impressions in the snow left by other creatures gave us pause.

What could have made such a track? We speculated with each mysterious set. Hares, mice, skunks, foxes? Where are they now? The thought made the surrounding woodland feel alive in spite of the quiet.

Forty-five minutes later we stopped, having enjoyed every minute. We didn’t over extend ourselves since we wanted to be able to move the next day. The poles added extra effort, more than our usual walking. We will go further the next time we venture out on snowshoes.

A thermos of tea waited back at the car. The tea couldn’t have been better as we sat in our camp chairs in the silence. We absorbed it all, the tea which warmed us to the core and the stark beauty of this winter day.

                                                               View across a nearby field

Two weeks

The third of our three visits to the Millman Road, a Heritage Road on Prince Edward Island happened this past Friday. The series of photos, taken May 22, May 29 and June 5, show how dramatically the setting changed in just two short weeks. This time of year sees incredible change on this island.

In those two weeks, trees went from a dormant-like stage, 

 to unfolding leaves,

and are now open for business.

On our first visit, my husband and I were in awe of the walls of grey. 

The grey had begun to disappear a week later. 

At the end of two weeks, walls of green had replaced the grey. Tree trunks looked black more than grey, shaded by the canopy.

It is interesting that the sun was shining on the last day as well, a great welcome to the leafy reality of summer.

Walking down that road now, one walks in a green glow through a tunnel in many places. 

The birds are singing or calling to one another but are invisible among the leaves. It is busy under the green canopy.

Watching nature express herself the last few weeks has been good for the spirit in these trying times.

New green

Our return visit to the Millman Road was under the new green of the canopy which stretches over the road in many places. This new green makes this time in nature on of my favourite times of the year.

We had lunch under the trees on an old road which has grown-in over the years. 

The old leaves from last autumn crunched under foot while all around us, new maple trees sprang upward out of the red soil.

This area has a green glow which inspires a sense of wonder. On this sunny but cold day, the tops of the trees swayed in the breeze making the shadows dance on the road. 

The birds flew from branch to branch too quickly to photograph but the greetings and songs filled the air. Conversation was superfluous.

The birch, mountain ash, maple and oak leaves were small but provided an ample canopy.

Buds of apple blossoms were on the brink of opening 

and other blooms already open provided a white ceiling to parts of the canopy. 

Ahhh...bliss!

Respite

The mild January day was welcome as I made my way down the old Millman Road.

Light was muted by the gray cloud cover and the sun’s position this time of year.

Others have travelled this snow covered road as prints of four small feet and human company are evident in the wet snow.

The open fields are red and white, as the January thaw with rain has taken some of the snow cover. 

On the old road, the red banks are exposed in areas

but the snow makes the gray of the tree trunks prominent.

The trees stand silently together, not a murmur today as the wind is light. 

There is strength in numbers for these gray giants during our seasonal storms.

The colour here is small in scope but worth the search as tiny bits of lichen cling to pieces of storm-broken branches on the road.

A patch of moss adds a touch of green

as do some young firs.

The air is fresh and cool though not uncomfortable, unlike the frigid conditions recently.

The cares of the world often weigh heavy on my shoulders, 

But not today.

Country road

The road is deep in the red dirt.

 

My husband and I were here last October when the leaves were almost spent, the red and orange remnants falling around us as we passed. Today, the dominant colour is green as we walk with the golden grand-dog, Georgie.

 

The Millman Road is in the center of the island, a heritage road which cuts through farmland over rolling hills. The canopy was magical. 

 

The sound of the earth on this day is the wind in the trees while the sunlight dances on the road as it filters through them. It is a feast for the senses.

 

Blossoms are falling today, not leaves. Mountain ash, 

 

pin cherry, chokecherry 

 

and apple trees

 

are in mid to late bloom and in places, petals cover the road. By the side of the road, lupins are in bud or blooming.

 

The forest floor is covered with Wild Lily of the Valley and Bluebead Lily but the blossoms are miniature in this setting. 

 

Their leaves are the dominant feature of the forest floor.

 

Robins land on the road and hop ahead of us until Georgie decides to run towards them. She soon learns how senseless is that endeavour. Woodpeckers have had their way with the trees along the road, as evidenced by the many holes left in the old wood.

 

At the top of a hill, you can look out over the countryside, past the fields planted with various crops, including potato. The countryside below is bisected by the Southwest River which flows into New London Bay on the north shore.  

 

At the end of the road, someone has a garden whose beauty matches what nature provides on the remainder of the road. We walked slowly back to the car, absorbing the essence of the earth as a world of green.