We drove to the sky the other day. It was a warm day for late February, and the gray clouds that surrounded us only allowed the sun to peek through every once in a while. The sky is a big thing, and I’m not sure where it actually starts or ends. Technically, by definition, the sky is the area above the earth where the clouds, sun and stars are. OK, so we didn’t actually drive to the sky, but it felt like we came close!

As part of a long weekend in central Virginia recently, Theresa and I took a day and visited Shenandoah National Park, driving the entire 109 miles of the famous Skyline Drive-from Front Royal to Rockfish Gap. It was beautiful, very brown at this time of year, but still beautiful. It’s a humbling feeling to gaze out on the distant mountains and valleys for miles- looking west past the Massanutten Mountains, as the sun sets over the Alleghenies in West Virginia.

Turn 180 degrees and you can stare over the Piedmont, toward the historic city of Fredericksburg and the meandering waters of the Potomac River. You can see  a whole lot when you’re drive in the sky!

Skyline Drive is an engineering marvel. The vision of the planners in the early 1930’s was to construct a road along the Blue Ridge, where popular new “motor cars” could reach the peaks and give visitors inspiring views from all directions. It was so important that construction began even before Congress established the national park.

Even though the landscape of Shenandoah National Park was dull brown and grey, and most living things were dormant, there was still a sense of awe driving along the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains at 3,000’ +/- elevation, for over 100 miles. We did encounter many deer, including one that wore a radio collar for some type of research, a few squirrels and the ghostly calls of soaring Common Ravens that seemed to echo from each mountain top.

Probably the most interesting part of our driving tour was seeing the many ice formations along the roadway. These large frozen sculptures are created when water runs over rock outcroppings during the day, then re-freezes during the cold nights. Some of them towered almost 20’ high. I couldn’t understand why Theresa was reluctant to stand close to one so I could create a photographic memory. Stop after stop, I kept trying to coax her to get a bit closer, until a large chunk of melting ice came crashing down a few feet from her. I politely asked her to step over the fallen iceberg so I could get a good focus. The last thing I remember was a few choice words, and what I thought was a large piece of hail, came thrusting through the air at my head. The photo opp was done! The falling ice almost claimed Big Blue as well. We quickly stopped in the middle of the road (keeping one eye out for traffic) to snap a couple pictures of a cool-looking tunnel surrounded by ice and snow, when a piece of ice about the size of large basketball made a landing about 50’ from where the truck was parked. When we got back in the truck, we gunned it through the tunnel entrance at warp speed, hoping a landslide of ice and rock wouldn’t cover our trusty vehicle, only to find a safe, secure parking area on the other side of the tunnel!

                                 Like creepy alien critters, water flows under a sheet of ice

The Shenandoah Valley is a special place. A landscape bounded by mountain ranges where the Shenandoah River lazily snakes its way past farms and small towns. And standing to the east, the majestic Blue Ridge Mountains, with a scenic road that connects peak after peak. We will return in one of the green months, and hopefully, in the autumn to enjoy some brilliant fall foliage. But most of all, we look forward to returning to the sky!

Sunrise. Dawn. Daybreak. Early Morning. First Light. Call it would you like, but every sunrise brings new life, new challenges and new opportunities. One quote I found several years ago, simply states, “Every human should rise early at least once per week and experience a sunrise. No chores, no obligations, just wander outside and look, listen and breathe it in.” I agree wholeheartedly! Early morning is also my favorite time of the day, when nature awakens and begins to stir.

 Most critters become active as the sun begins to rise, prompted mainly by the need to find food. Whether it be hunting another animal, or simply searching for seeds or berries, animals must eat, especially after a long night of not eating. Birds are most active at dawn. Visit a Pennsylvania forest in late May or June at daybreak, and you’ll have a front row seat to a magnificent concert of some of our native songbirds. If you ask any hunter or angler when the best time to harvest game or fish is, I bet most will tell you they prefer to be in their tree stand or boat, at first light. There are a few exceptions in the animal world to this sunrise rule-reptiles, amphibians and many insects. These animals are cold-blooded, which means their body temperature is dependent on the air temperature. As the sun rises higher and warms the air, snakes, turtles, frogs and toads begin to move about, and many types of flying insects take to the wing. However, unlike most animals, many humans may not embrace a sunrise like I do, while others thrive in the early morning.

A Great blue Heron takes off at sunrise

My wife is a morning person. Many days she reminds me of the old promotion slogan for the Army, “Doing more by 8:00 am than most people do all day,” including me! Almost every weekday morning, she’s up early with the two beagle boys before there’s even a hint of sunlight. She’ll finish a couple reports for work, throw in a load of laundry and make plans for that night’s supper-then quietly jumps in her car for work and heads east toward the rising sun! When not working, she simply enjoys watching the sun rise, and often joins me on the weekends for an early morning birding trip, or local hike. On the other side, is my daughter, who still enjoys the outdoors, but does not classify herself as a morning person. She prefers to sleep in a bit later and will wait to hear about my morning adventures and stories after she’s had her coffee and the sun is much higher in the sky. But our children have seen the sunrise on several occasions. In spite of some peaceful objections, we’ve always tried to catch at least one sunrise together as a family during some of our past vacations. We’ve been blessed to watch the sun rise over some special places, such as the north rim of the Grand Canyon on a brisk November morning, over the rolling waves of the Atlantic from the warm sands of the Turks & Caicos Islands, and sat in awe as the early morning sun peaked over the Wasatch Range in Utah. We shared some early morning rays of sunshine together in the rainforest of Belize and witnessed a fantastic sunrise over the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior in Northern Wisconsin.

I think most people who rise early would tell you one of their favorite things about sunrise, is the sunrise! There are so many wonderful places to view the rising sun and each location can create a special memory, even in your own backyard. Every season can bring new views and fresh vistas as the sun rises over the eastern horizon. As an outdoor photographer, I see a warm, orange sky at dawn in June, or a crimson horizon on a cold winter morning like a canvas that’s been freshly painted, begging me to take its picture.

As Mark Twain once wrote, “A sunrise is like a new opportunity, if you wait too long, it will be gone!”  So, jump out of bed, throw on some clothes, get outside and watch the sun rise. I promise it will be well worth it! Enjoy!

I walked slowly along the frozen streambank, the thin sheets of ice that stretched out over the flowing current echoed with loud cracks and knocks. I knew the sounds served as a warning not to venture out any farther, or risk going home very wet and cold. But, I had to get a bit closer to check out the tracks that I discovered on the snow-covered ice packs along the edge of the stream. What animal could have made them? The clues were right in front of me. They were small, about an inch long, showing five toes with claws. The pattern in the snow revealed the animal’s gait (how it was moving). It looked as if it was running, only pausing to investigate an old tree root. The animal was hunting. Then just as quickly as I found them, the tracks were gone, disappearing at the water’s edge. The nature mystery continued.

As I took a step forward, the layer of ice I was standing on suddenly collapsed. My trustworthy, winter boot sunk to the bottom of the small creek like a lead anchor, as frigid water began to pour in. Not only did I proceed to shock my warm, comfy foot, I also made enough noise to scare away any other living animal within one square mile! However, I could easily see across the stream to the other shoreline, and there was no trace of any animal tracks-another clue. I had briefly considered the tracks might have been made by a squirrel, raccoon or even a skunk, but if they had decided to cross the stream I would have easily located their tracks coming out on the other side. So, by process of elimination, it had to have been an aquatic mammal, which could have slipped off the ice and gone under water. In Pennsylvania, that would narrow my findings to possibly four animals-a Beaver, Muskrat, River Otter or Mink. I knew this tributary was too small for a Beaver or Muskrat, which prefer lakes, ponds or deeper, slower-moving rivers or creeks. Lastly, the tracks of a River Otter are much larger, about 3” in length. The source of the prints in the snow had to be from a Mink.

A fresh snow reveals fox tracks leading to a local stream.

Mink are members of the Mustelidae family. Here in the Keystone State, its relatives include the River Otter, Fisher, Striped Skunk and Weasels. In other parts of the U.S. the Badger, Wolverine, Martin and Ferrets are also members of this family. All of these mammals have glands that can produce strong “musk” smells, the most famous is the skunk. Mink are small, slender, mostly dark-colored mammals that live near water. All the ones I’ve seen here in Pennsylvania are chocolate brown-colored, with a small white patch under their chin. I have observed Mink in the Adirondacks in New York that are more slate-gray color.

Mink are carnivores and will eat a variety of food, including fish, frogs, crayfish, mice, snakes or birds. If available, they’ll also prey on muskrats. They live near water, finding an old tree root along a streambank, hollow log or pile of boulders to make their den. Its fur is thick, soft and covered by oil guard hair, which makes it coat waterproof.

In 2015, I was privileged of seeing many Mink in my travels. Maybe it was simply because I got “out and about” more last year, visiting the places they inhabit, or just lucky to be in the right place at the right time. We even have one regular (we think it’s only one) that wanders frequently near our office, which sits along the Perkiomen Creek. Each one I’ve watched, never sat still very long. They would hop and lope along a waterway, zig-zagging all over the place, in and out of holes, fallen trees, rock piles and diving underwater. They reminded me of a small child, full of energy and curiosity, playing on a playground. If they did stop, it was only long enough to eat whatever they caught. These sleek, beautiful animals truly enjoy “living on the edge!”