Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
The gardens do not appreciate my absence bicycling around the Delaware and Lehigh Rivers. Coming back to greet them, I can see they have been well-watered by Juana but not weeded. In a little more than a week a few weeds have multiplied into a massive mat that I will spend the next few days […]
It is impossible to capture everything in a blog about what you see on a trip like this. Here are a few vignettes of special sights. Classic covered bridge: This well-kept covered bridge is located in Uhlerstown leading us off the D&L to the D&R trail on the other side of the river in New […]
On our travels along the D&L Trail I found many familiar flowers. Here are my faves in reverse order. 9. Blueweed (Echium vulgre): If this wasn’t so invasive, it would be much higher on my list. Its delicate bell shaped flowers host many a pollinator. It is scattered along the trail. 8. Queen Anne’s Lace […]
“Paddle right,” I shout. “Now left! Watch out for the rock on the right! Pull hard to the left. Keep the raft straight. Everyone paddle hard! We are heading for a boulder!” Ted and I take the day off from pedaling and spend it paddling down the Lehigh RIver in a rubber raft with a […]
We did it! Black Diamond and back. 73 miles. You couldn’t ask for a more perfect day this morning crossing the train tracks in Jim Thorpe heading north on the D&L trail. Following the Lehigh River, we start up a long incline that will not end until we get to our final destination. Between the […]
Passing over the Lehigh River, our departure from Sayre Mansion in Bethlehem is accompanied by the whistle and clacking wheels of an empty freight train below. Another cloudy day greets us for our 40 mile trip to Jim Thorpe, the area where anthracite coal was discovered in the 1800s. The morning ride along side the Lehigh […]
After a lovely breakfast at Porches on the Towpath in New Hope, Ted and I hop on our bikes for our first full biking day on the Delaware canal’s towpath and start north. Leaving New Hope, the path for bike tires narrows and we find ourselves on a high berm between the river and canal. […]
The clouds mute the heat and humidity as Ted and I hop on our bicycles. Starting a new trip is always filled with anticipation as we have no pre-conceptions as to how and where the day will take us as we peddle the D&L Trail. Entering the stone dust path next to the Delaware canal, […]
For the next week or so, my buddy Ted and I will be viewing nature from the respective saddles of our bikes along the D&L Trail in Pennsylvania. Unlike other trips where we have gone in a single direction, we will be starting in Bristol, PA going to Black Diamond, PA and then back over […]
Pruning is a chore that I take on when I am in a contemplative mood or have something I need to ponder. Between the care needed to properly shape a given plant and the issue I need to work out in my head, I am in a happy place outside with a plant that needs […]