Roads End Naturalist

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


Category: Parks

  • Wolf Watching

    ,

    The gaze of the wolf reaches into our soul. ~Barry Lopez It’s hard to believe we have been in our new home now almost three months. Though we have been busy with numerous home projects and family visits, we have managed to get out into the park a few times to enjoy seeing some of Read more…

  • The Soul of the Land

    , ,

    The experience of twelve educators in Yellowstone reflects transformation through nature, friendship, and learning, capturing moments of wildlife and connection that resonate deeply within each participant. Read more…

  • Settling In

    ,

    Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined. ~Henry David Thoreau We’ve been in our new home a little over three weeks now and we are starting to feel settled. It is a different world to be sure. As I started writing this yesterday, it was 4:30 a.m, Mountain Read more…

  • Hidden Beauty in a Crazy World

    , ,

    Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy. ~Anne Frank This past weekend, I drove down to Myrtle Beach State Park (yes, there is such a thing) to visit our good friends Scott and Ann. Ann is a ranger at the park and they both are superb naturalists. The park was Read more…

  • Sharing with Friends

    , ,

    To appreciate the beauty of a snowflake it is necessary to stand in the cold. ~Aristotle This is the second post from our January trip to Yellowstone. After spending a few days scouting the northern range of the park and hanging out with some Montana friends, a group of eight NC friends flew out to Read more…

  • A Winter’s Journey

    , ,

    Winter is not a season, it’s a celebration. ~Anamika Mishra Melissa had another wonderful educator workshop to Yellowstone last month with plenty of extraordinary sightings including a Pygmy Owl, Ermine, and a Bobcat feeding on a Mule Deer carcass (jealous, me??). We planned for her to take some time off afterward and have some friends Read more…

  • Millpond Meander

    ,

    This is everybody’s dream swamp… ~A.B. Coleman (the man who donated Merchants Millpond to the state for a park) Over a week ago, Melissa and I managed a two night get-away to one of our favorite state parks, Merchants Millpond. I think Mr. Coleman was right, this may be everybody’s “dream swamp”. It combines an Read more…

  • Return to Merchants Millpond

    , ,

    Paradise is just a paddle away. ~Author unknown When I worked as a District Naturalist for the state park system oh-so-many years ago, one of my favorite parks was Merchants Millpond State Park in northeastern North Carolina. It is a true natural gem of our state and remains one of my favorite spots to spend Read more…

  • Badlands and Beyond

    ,

    My favorite thing to do is to go where I’ve never been. ~Diane Arbus There is a lot of flat land out there in the middle of the country. And not many national forests to disperse camp in it turns out. But, after leaving IL, we drove up along the Missouri River corridor and stopped Read more…

  • Another One Hundred!

    During all these years there existed within me a tendency to follow Nature in her walks. ~John James Audubon Per my habit of posting such milestones, it is time to recognize another one hundred posts gone by. This makes 400 posts since this blog was born shortly into my retirement. Like the others before it, Read more…