The Lazarus Woodpeckers

 Did you ever see a woodpecker rise from the dead?  While hiking in Shenandoah Saturday, I was watching two downy woodpeckers across the river, and, well, I'll just describe it using my nature journal entry:

Back in Shenandoah

 It's taken me nearly six months to get past my gall bladder issues, but I finally got my gallbladder out the end of September and started doing some easy and short hikes a couple of weeks later.  About 10 days ago, I felt like I could handle a basic hike in Shenandoah, so I hiked about five miles, most of it on the Gasline Fire Road.  This was a new trail to me, and so it counts towards my SNP 500 quest which got rudely suspended last March after I had coronary stents placed.

I don't think that I will post every hike here, at least not the very short ones, but I will try to keep my blog going now that I am back on the trails.  I've only hiked about 65 miles this entire year!

When I got to the park, it was pouring.  My radar app had showed a band of rain that looked like my hiking area would be on the border of it, but the rain area moved westward just enough to give a soaking and steady rain.  So, I hung out in my car and relaxed for about an hour waiting to the rain to pass, which it did.  Here are some photos from the Gasline hike:

This being an old fire road, the going was pretty easy.  I lost and gained about 700 feet over about 2.3 miles each way.

There was some kind of a weather station party way down the hike.

Now and again, I had some partial views, but most of the hike was through forest.

More nice, easy walking ahead of me, although the fall foliage was about a week past peak.

Near my turn around point, I had to wade across this stream.  There was nothing to cross on, but I was prepared and had brought my water shoes.

The water is cold in November, but I only had to hike another 500 feet or so to the park boundary, then I got to turn around, cross back over, and put my boots back on.

On the hike back up, the skies were beginning to clear up.

Sassafras leaves are so pretty in the fall.

One doesn't see many flowers in November, but this common self heal was blooming.

After getting back to my car, I ate lunch, and then drove a mile or so to my next hike, the Bucks Elbow Fire Road.  This is a very short hike, about 0.3 miles out and back.  It's a pleasant fire road with maybe 100 feet of elevation gain from the parking lot.

Shenandoah National Park boundary, my second of the day.

It feels good to be hiking again!  What a year!