Bolt Mountain, West Virginia | The BackWoods Drifter

Suspended

I have to apologize for not posting here. I know that is taboo, apologizing I mean, but for a little while I won’t be putting photos up on this site. My camera is done for and the replacement I had didn’t like me very much. I couldn’t take a clear picture with it either. So it boils down to this, until I can get my hands on a decent camera this blog will have to sit idle. I will write a post on the BackWoods Drifter blog as soon as I start updating this site. Sorry… thanks for stopping by.

A Glimpse Into The When - 2

I wrote a post a while back with the title A Glimpse Into The When. The photo in that post made me think of literal lingering memories, ghosts if you will. I don’t see dead people but I feel…. I don’t know how to explain what I feel. That’s a first for me. Let me explain it this way…

My last time living in Ohio, I was living right beside the abandoned Chippewa Lake Park (some good photos at the link - opens in a new window). Walking the midway after dark, the only thing I could think about were the people that had been there laughing, eating cotton candy just having a good time. I couldn’t help but feel good and at ease because there was nothing there but positive memories, and a lot of them. I was even fond of going into the ballroom late at night. The reason for that is because at night the feelings are a lot stronger. Not because of an increase in perception but more a decrease in perception. At night you couldn’t see the cobwebs or the two inches of dust on everything, broken chairs, busted windows…. The only thing you could see was the moon coming in from high bay windows all along the ballroom walls creating a dim path of light right down the center of the ballrooms dance floor. I would go there and sit on the edge of the stage. How could you not see the people dancing or hear the music playing?


This old deer camp in the head of Martin’s Creek makes me feel the same way. All that remains is the legs of an old table, a couple of chair frames, fire pit and a stack of very seasoned firewood that will most likely never see a match. I can picture a fire in the ring and if I listen I can hear old men laughing and telling tales, every one of them a lie. I can feel the anticipation of the next mornings hunt. There are just a lot of good memories here that were created at all hours of the day. I imagine young boys on their first trip hunting with their dad. The only thing everybody can think about is getting a shot at the biggest buck on the mountain. In some cases any buck on the mountain.

Site Update

Just to let all know, after this post, photos will be changed to open in a new tab / window. I don’t usually like to do that but too many times, when checking to make sure the photos load, I accidentally close the window instead of hitting the back button. That causes me to have to start over.

Trees Are Trees

I went for about a 3 hour hike today. I took about 50 photos and found 4 of those worth sharing. My camera is so outta here at the very first opportunity.

Something else I realized today is that it is hard to go into the woods and take photos that are unique from every other trip. Trees are trees, after all. So…

Sometimes you have to look up…

Sometimes you have to look down…


And sometimes you have to focus straight ahead…


These photos came from the mountains along Breckenridge road. Within one mile of my house.

Bolt Mountain Llamas

For a while now searching Google for Bolt Mountain, my site has been at #2. Second to a site entitled Bolt Mountain Llamas. No relation to this Bolt Mountain. At any rate I was at a friends house yesterday I hadn’t seen in a while. He has a small farm with a few different animals. His name is Jonathan and he obviously loves his animals. I bet growing up his mom never knew what he would bring home next. Three of his animals are llamas. I had never been around a llama before but they are actually kind of cool and at least my friends were quite docile and smart. At least they had the sense to get in out of the rain along with the miniature pony, three turkeys and some chickens. The guy with the camera was standing in the rain. :)

My friend also built this really cool old style workshop. I would like to have one of these at my house only larger. His is small but still pretty cool.
Jonathan and his family actually live in Glen Daniels which is just a couple miles east of here.Now that I have a post about Bolt Mountain Llamas I wonder if I can give the top site a run for it’s money?

Blazing A Trail

The title for this post is an apt one as there were no trails to be found on todays hike. It was actually not the best of days for a strenuous hike with the heat and humidity. Since I plan to hike the Appalachian Trail in ‘08, it would be best to be prepared for all weather conditions. The first two photos below are from where I entered the woods. I really expected to run across a snake today but, in that, I have always been lucky and somehow seem to avoid them. One thing is for sure, this is prime snake country. The photo of the pines is the best one from today, in my opinion. I’m still dealing with a very temperamental camera so I consider myself lucky to capture that photo.

The first photo below, after I got into the woods I could hear this gaswell the entire time. Naturally I went looking for it and ended up with a pretty good shot of the well and beyond. It was really hazy today so it was difficult getting a clear shot of anything at a distance. The second photo was my path back out of the woods. There was deer sign all over this road. They know a good thing when they see it. The last photo is of Mayapple already turning yellow from the lack of rain. It is normally one of the last plants to die in the fall. On another note, I saw no ginseng today and after getting into the woods, didn’t really expect to find it. It was way to dry…

Back To The Mountains

It is definitely time for a Bolt Mountain hike. I have been wanting to go for a few reasons. One of which is to get some photos from the mountains in my immediate vicinity. Another reason is that I have been wanting to check and see how well ginseng has fared through the lack of rain. So tomorrow morning I plan to get up early and head in to the mountains for a few hours before the day gets too hot. I will be taking a camera that I haven’t really had a lot of luck with in the past but hopefully I can get it to perform as it should. Tomorrow, if all goes well, I will post at least one photo from the hike.

Have A Great Day!!!

UPDATE - I didn’t get to go hiking yesterday but will be in the mountains most of the day today.

UPDATE #2 - Third time is the charm. I went for a hike toady AUG 3. Problem was the camera. I actually borrowed it from my dad and for some reason every shot with it comes out blurry for me. So I’m going to the same area again Saturday morning with old faithful. I could have gotten some wonderful pics today. I will tomorrow.

Note To Self - DON”T FORGET BATTERIES!!!