Roads End Naturalist

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

Author: Mike Dunn

  • Barking Up the Right Tree – Part 2

    Here are the answers to yesterday’s tree trunk quiz. How did you do? One of the largest trees in Eastern North America. The white, mottled upper trunks and branches make it one of the most recognizable of our trees, especially in winter. I have always called this distinctive tree, ironwood, due to its dense, hard Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Barking up the Right Tree

    Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. ~Hal Borland Melissa and I try to test each other as we walk any trail this time of year with a tree trunk quiz – we try to identify trees by just looking at the trunk at eye level…no fair looking up, unless we are stumped.  I Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Birds in the Garden

    Poor indeed is the garden in which birds find no homes. ~ Abram L. Urban This garden (NC Botanical Garden) is anything but poor if the birds are any indication. Bird activity seems to have increased dramatically the past few weeks. Many seem to be thinking of the coming nesting season…bluebirds singing from atop nest Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • New Beginnings

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    Native plants give us a sense of where we are in this great land of ours. ~Lady Bird Johnson You may have noticed a slight reduction in the number of posts the last few weeks. A major reason is that I have been busy with a new chapter in my life, a new adventure. It Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Joy in Parting

    What Joy Can There Be In Parting? ~A poem by Melissa Dowland; images by Mike Dunn The bluebird perched on the branch right in front of me. I could see his sharp beak, his rusty breast, his snow-white belly. Then he turned And became a dazzle of blue as he flew between the trees and Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Another Winter Season

    We are not the only species who lives and dreams on our planet. There is something enduring that circulates in the heart of nature that deserves our respect and attention. ~Terry Tempest Williams I ended my winter tour season last weekend, a little earlier than usual, but it finished on a spectacular note. I had Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Being in the Moment

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    Our public lands – whether a national park or monument, wildlife refuge, forest or prairie – make each one of us land-rich. It is our inheritance as citizens of a country called America. ~Terry Tempest Williams Sometimes you just need to spend time in a wild place, in your special place. This weekend was such Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Red-belly

    Red-belly ~A poem by Melissa Dowland, images by Mike Dunn Down in my woods grows a graceful old oak With a stout trunk and a crown of branches, Splitting like feathers, reaching for the sky. It has stood, thus, for centuries. Nearby, a smaller maple. Its crown lost in an ice storm, A few broken Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Merlin Magic

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    …we will not care about what we do not recognize. ~Tim Beatley I have spent a lifetime trying to learn about the world around me. Not about the financial sector, or cars, or electricity (all of these, I now realize, might actually have come in handy), but about the natural world, the plants and animals Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn

  • Memories Of The Snow that Wasn’t, But Still Is

    Snow has made everything earthly clear and quiet. My mind is simple and patient. – Tuomas Anhava, Finnish writer The predicted big storm fizzled once again. We certainly live in a region in which weather forecasters are challenged to get it right when it comes to predicting snowfall. Of the predicted 5 to 6 inches, Read more…

    Written by

    Mike Dunn