A Summer Road Trip, part 5 - Angel Oak Tree

Here we are at our very last stop on this summer road trip!

(By the way, I'm a little disappointed that it took my mom over 2 months to finish posting about this trip. *sigh*)

Anyways, this is called the Angel Oak Tree, located in Charleston, South Carolina! It is estimated to be between 400-500 years old.

The trunk and branches are massive!

Some of the branches even touch the ground, and there are wooden supports to hold them up.

This tree stands 66.5 feet tall and measures 28 feet in circumference. The shade it provides covers almost 17,000 square feet. And from tip to tip of its longest branches, it measures 187 feet.

I see some holes in the tree that would make a good hiding spot.

I can't believe how big and beautiful this tree is. I can definitely feel good energy emanating from this tree.

Let's take a look at this branch which was cut off. It was probably damaged.

Wow, what a finale to wrap up this summer road trip! I'm so glad you could join me on this trip. Stay tuned for the next trip!

Do you have any fun summer plans? Drop it in the comments!

Bluebonnets

HEY Y'ALL!

Today, we are going on a trip to view some wild Texas bluebonnets. These are the state flowers of Texas.

I tried to grow some from seeds, but none of them made it this year. Fortunately, I have found a nice patch of wildflowers today!

Yep, these are bluebonnets alright! They really do look like a bonnet when you take a look up close. There are also some red flowers in this patch. They are called Indian Paintbrush or prairie-fire flowers.

I wonder what this yellow flower is.

Viewing wildflowers is such a popular springtime activity here that many tourists will do anything to get the perfect photo. Sometimes this trespassing annoys the property owners so that they have to mow down the beautiful flowers to stop them from coming. But today, we have found a very generous and kind owner who opened their family farm to everyone for free.

The weather also worked out today!

"HEY YOU!" said a familiar voice behind me.

"Let me guess," I said, without turning around. "Droopy?"

"Yeah, it's me! Funny seeing you here. Again."

If you have been following my blog, you'll know that Droopy and I seem to have the same travel agent.

This tractor is awesome! I think I need one of these for my farm.

And these bales of hay are huge!

The bluebonnets have a light, sweet smell to them. I see bees buzzing around too!

It was such a beautiful day looking for wildflowers!

Armadillo

CRIKEY!

I heard there's been a mysterious creature running afoot in our backyard. Let's take a look! I'm all ready to investigate in my Crocodile Dundee-inspired outfit.

We've noticed some small holes in our garden bed and around the yard. Interestingly, these don't show up until the next morning, so it must have been the work of something during the night but what could it be?

We noticed a hole under the shrubs over here, so perhaps whatever it is has a home here. Let's set out some humane traps with bait. That's cat food and chopped fruit in the dish, both meat and vegetarian options for our mystery guest.

THE NEXT DAY...

Look! We caught something in the trap! I have never seen anything like it before. Do you know what it is?

No, it's not the Loch Ness monster... it's a nine-banded armadillo!

Their body is protected by hard armored plates and they have strong claws for digging. Their eyesight is not very good, so they look for insects to eat using their very sensitive and long tongue. Their tongue can detect worms and other bugs up to a foot underground.

We checked this armadillo, and it's a boy. If it was female, then we'd be concerned about baby armadillos still in the nest. But armadillos are pretty much solitary animals so we think this guy was just chilling out in his little armadillo cave.

I know you want to get out, little guy. We'll set you free soon.

We brought him - we named him Tank - to a nice forested area where he can dig for even more insects. He back had a small scrape on it but it was sprayed with antibiotic before he was set free.

Good luck, Tank!

Mega Road Trip Part 2: Grand Canyon

Our road trip continues...

DID YOU KNOW... You can get a national park pass for $85 and it will give you an annual membership to over a hundred national parks? That's well worth the price, as some park admission fees are $35 per vehicle.

Today we are heading to Grand Canyon National Park! The main parking lot here is just a 5-minute walk away from Mather Point, which offers tremendous views.

The Grand Canyon National Park covers a whopping 1,217,262 acres and shows off layers of red rock that reveal millions of years of history.

"Make sure you get my best side," said a familiar voice.

"Let me guess... DROOPY?" He was asking his photographer to take a photo of him. See? I told you we would run into each other again on this trip.

Here's a photo of Grand Canyon from Mather Point - what a beauty!

I don't know about you, but suddenly I feel very, very small standing here in front of the Grand Canyon. And I bet even Uncle Tibbs would feel small also! It is just a breathtaking sight.

If you look closely, you will see some people standing on the outcrop at the left of this photo. Look how tiny they are!

This park is so huge that they have different shuttle buses taking visitors to other parts such as the North Rim and the South Rim, to name a few. But I heard the views here are one of the best!

Did you know only 12 people have thru-hiked the entire 700-mile full length of the Grand Canyon? The terrain is very difficult, requires rock scrambling, the heat can be intense, and it's difficult to resupply on the thru hike.

 

Alright, one more look at this beauty and then we're off to our next stop!

Billy Goat Trail

Today I am going to hike the Billy Goat Trail in Maryland. Come with me! Here is the trailhead.

This trail has three sections, with section A being the most difficult. That's the one we're doing today. It has a lot of rock scrambling. Are you up to the challenge?

I'm wearing my Bear Cub Scout uniform today. Maybe I can earn a hiking badge for this.

The Billy Goat Trail is next to the Potomac River. During the spring and summer, you can see a lot of kayakers take on the currents here.

Yeah, now we are getting to see some neat rock formations on the side of the river!

Wow, these boulders are huge!

Okay, now we have reached the trickiest part of the trail. It's a downclimb all the way to the bottom.

I'm going to go down... er...

...actually, I'm going to hop in my mom's backpack and let her do this one! She has climbed this many times before.

Okay, here we are at the bottom. I did a good job shouting words of encouragement!

It's a great view, isn't it?

Maybe next year, I can try kayaking.

This part of the river is a bit dried up.

Now we are almost back at the parking lot - look at this sunset over the lake!

Thanks for coming on this hike with me!

Film: A Lovely Day

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, stuffies and non-stuffies...

I am beary happy to announce the completion of a new short film from Beary Good Pictures.  As you might remember, Beary Good Pictures made Mission Impawssible earlier this year as part of Little Fox's video contest.

So without further ado, here it is!  I hope you enjoy it and that you have a lovely day.  (There is background music in this film so you should turn up your speakers.)