Roads End Naturalist

Exploring the natural world as we wander at the end of the road


Author: Mike Dunn

  • Song of the Swamp

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    If prisons, freight trains, swamps, and gators don’t get ya to write songs, y’ain’t got no business writin’ songs. ~Ronnie Van Zant As part of our “farewell tour”, we drove up to Merchants Millpond State Park last weekend. When I was working with state parks, I fell in love with that place and its amazing Read more…

  • Snow Birds

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    Winter perches like a bird. Wings tucked in so the soul is heard. ~Angie Weiland-Crosby Another nice snowfall (it has been many years since I could utter that phrase around these parts). We probably got about 3 inches here and it was a nice fluffy snow (prepping us for our upcoming move to Montana no Read more…

  • Grand Finale

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    The song is ended, but the melody lingers on. ~Irving Berlin After leading my last group over a week ago, we decided to make one more trip to Pungo last Friday (it appears letting go truly is hard to do!). Our friend, Meghan, was with us and we decided to do a day trip for Read more…

  • My Last Group

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    Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. ~Dr. Seuss Last weekend, I had the privilege of co-leading a group of folks to two of my favorite NC places, the Pungo Unit of Pocosin Lakes NWR and Mattamuskeet NWR. It was for a program sponsored by the NC Botanical Garden and New Hope Bird Read more…

  • Salamander Nights

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    The real beauties of nature Whisper Instead of shouting ~Melissa Dowland For those of you not on social media (I posted some of this today on FB)… I cleaned out (removed excessive filamentous algae and some leaves) our two small wildlife pools last Friday in anticipation of the predicted rain, thinking it might be the Read more…

  • Our Busy Woods

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    Life keeps moving, even when you can’t watch. ~Unknown While we have been busy on the road and having all sorts of appointments, the creatures of our woods continue with their busy lives. The trail cameras have recorded a lot of the usual suspects – deer, squirrels, and coyotes. But it is always fascinating to Read more…

  • Soundscapes

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    The sound of birds stops the noise in my mind. ~Carly Simon I was back in my favorite spot in North Carolina this past week – Pocosin Lakes NWR. A lot has changed on the refuge since my first visit back in the early 1980’s. Back then, you could walk almost anywhere this time of Read more…

  • Countdown

    The last time you’re doing something – knowing you’re doing it for the last – makes it even more alive than the first. ~Gloria Naylor This week we headed down to the Pungo Unit of Pocosin Lakes NWR for our annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC). As best as I can remember, I have been doing Read more…

  • Our Busy Neighborhood

    A good neighbor is a very desirable thing. ~Thomas Jefferson While we were in Montana for a couple of weeks last month, our wild neighbors were quite active. The trail cameras recorded lots of interesting snippets of what happens in our woods that we would otherwise not see. Here are a few of the highlights…(enlarge Read more…

  • All Roads…

    Moving doesn’t change who you are. It only changes the view outside your window. ~Rachel Hollis Most of you probably already know about our coming big change (we put it up on FaceBook a few weeks ago). But, if you don’t, here it is. Melissa and I bought a house in Gardiner, Montana, the north Read more…