I get lax about writing in the blog over winter. We visit every weekend to feed Herbie, but not much of import takes place. However, there is news on the bee front. In December, the hive had so few bees that I didn't think it would survive winter. I saw several times that robber bees would come around when we put sugar water out. But last month I was surprised to see the hive very full of bees! I learned though that these may be different bees than the original because they were much more aggressive around the hive than before. But I saw lots of combs filled with fluid so we have hope of getting honey this year!
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| Liquid seen in combs - soon to be honey? |
On to the topic of the day. I planned a short visit to feed Herbie, but remained for over two hours because the temperature, though cool, was pleasant and the grey skies lightly sprinkled me with rain. I decided to explore and along the way found new donkey-created paths near the creek. It was then I decided to follow our wettest creek (last to dry and first to fill) from property entry to property exit, snapping pictures along the way. Part of the inspiration was seeing many fish in the pond, some longer than my middle finger. Given the pond dries out nearly every summer, I was astonished to see so many fish there. Reflecting on the size of the fish made me realize that the pond has been filled for a longer period than any time since I bought. Die Weide. The land looks vibrantly alive in early spring when enough moisture is present.
I present the following photographs in geographical order, from the west fence entry into the property, through many turns, into a pond, around a sharp bend and on to the exit out the north property fence. I hope you enjoy this photographic survey of one of Die Weide creeks.
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| West Fence Creek Entry (upstream facing West) |
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| West Fence Entry inside ~20ft (downstream facing East) |
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| Near creek junction (upstream facing West) Notice riffle section similar to previous pic |
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| Creek Junction. (downstream facing ENE) Same spot as previous pic reverse direction. |
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| Taken on Pond Dam (upstream facing SSW) |
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| Pond Dam with overflow (upstream facing WSW) |
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| Pond Dam with overflow and creek (downstream facing ENE) |
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| Big Creek Bend (downstream facing ENE) |
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| On top of Big Creek Bend gully (downstream facing North) |
To the North of this area a bramble jungle surrounds the creek. After the time spent listening to rain falling in the creek, I know our next bramble hack attack will be to make a path next to the full length of the creek.
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| Deadfall on creek (downstream left-to-right, camera facing NW) |
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| Creek exit North Fence, low angle from gravel riffle. (downstream facing North) |
