Miami Erie Canal Walk

The Miami Erie Canal links the communities in this part of Ohio historically and literally, running through them like an artery, the shallow, slow moving water and surrounding vegetation creating a corridor of beautiful habitat for wildlife. Through the efforts of the state and groups like MECCA, the Miami Erie Canal Corridor Authority and Heritage Trails Park District, the canal towpath is preserved for hiking, and it coincides here in my northwest part of the state with the Buckeye Trail, a hiking trail that loops the entire state. This means there is always a nice place to go for a walk in these parts.

Although I don't often see animals other than the occasional duck or groundhog on the path, I think it's because they hear me coming a long way off. Gourdo and I usually have the dogs with us when we visit the trail. But the scenery is spectacular, especially on these beautiful autumn days.

Extending Autumn

A trip to Tennessee in mid-October extends the loveliness of the autumn season for me. I snapped the photo of this gorgeous orange fritillary sipping on a butterfly bush at my sister's house near Nashville. Here in Ohio my butterfly bush has already dwindled to nothing, so I was delighted with the fragrance and the clouds of butterflies attracted to it down south. Although Ohio and Tennessee both have been experiencing warmer than usual October weather, the Tennessee gardens are still full of roses and bloom. My sister's garden even had a reblooming azalea. Although I wasn't attracted to the fiery, orangey red color of the flower, it's a wonderful breakthrough. For my part, I'm thinking of planting some reblooming irises. I've seen yellow irises blooming now in Ohio gardens. I'm not sure if other colors are available, but irises blooming in October are as welcome as they are in May. Great Spangled Fritillary photo by JulenaJo.

Autumn Sunday

The farmers around us are scalping their fields of soybeans and corn. The hazy dust kicked up by farm machinery lightly coats all of Ohio. We haven't had rain here in Auglaize County for weeks. I've not yet planted the three roses I bought because the ground is too hard to break. They will be ok in their pots until rains come to soften the soil, I think.
Distinct signs of autumn: cobwebs clinging to shrubbery, all strung with dewdrops in the morning; thick fog rolling over the country roads late every night; pumpkins and gourds and apples. Above, a little watercolor I did of deer eating fallen apples--definitely a sign of fall!
Speaking of gourds, my husband, mother-in-law and I went to the annual gourd festival at the Darke County Fairgrounds in Greenville, OH. Last year my husband garnered a fistful of ribbons for his entries there, but this year the lack of rain meant a poor crop. He should have entered anyway as there were precious few entries. Everyone suffered a similar fate with their gourd patch, apparently. As if the lack of rain wasn't bad enough in itself, insects, desperate for moisture, begin to attack any growing thing. Even the hard shells of gourds take a gnawing, leaving them scarred and unusable for crafting.
Even so, we bought fresh seed for next year. Always in the autumn, seeds of hope for next year's garden are sown and begin to grow--a hope that keeps one going through the cold months of winter. Original watercolor by JulenaJo.