A fast walk in late summer ~ wild asters, goldenrod and mosquitos

It has been two months since I was last out for a walk on this trail. I don't know, it seemed whenever the idea for a long walk hit me, there had been a recent thunderstorm and I know better than to take this trail that can get, let's say, a little wet.

They are so pretty. We get more flowers earlier in the year but the wild asters are a mainstay of late summer, handling both the rain we had so much of in August and the more typical hot and dry conditions. We had a very rainy August with the most rain we have had since 1981.

Now if you see a little blurriness in my photos, that wet weather meant we had perfect mosquito breeding weather, and by my second photo they had already found me!

Goldenrod and wild asters. Where the trail is open, there were masses of them, both plants preferring full sun.

I rounded a corner and entered a shadier area. The last time I was on this trail, there was wind damage and many uprooted trees. It seems the clearing is ongoing. At one time, they would have dragged the trees out and maybe they still will but there has been a trend to leaving it and letting it break down naturally.

And as if to illustrate my point, here we have some older fallen timber with fungi growing on it.

I always wonder who puts out the bird houses and feeders.

I have been heading in a direction that I don't normally go, hoping to avoid flooding and fallen trees as my last walk here had been more like a steeplechase. I'll try the path to the right.

Trees had been toppled here too. It almost looks like a lumber camp.

Yes, I could cross it walking slowly along the branches but if I walk that slowly, the mosquitos will eat me alive! I turned around, went back to the fork and went the other way.

More pretty flowers. I realize this would look comical to anyone watching. I jog up to the flowers, take the photo, and run off. Those damn mosquitos are ruining my walk, and since they're not usually a problem, it didn't occur to me to use mosquito repellant.

Where a small side stream feeds the beaver pond, this is its bridge. By now, I was wondering how fast mosquitos could fly.

More wind damage. Trees that took hold as seedlings on shallow soil were toppled when their roots didn't go deep enough to resist the wind.

So... this had me thinking! I usually shrug off minor damage imagining it's a porcupine but I'm leaning towards a black bear. This is the time of year bears are trying to get calories for their winter hibernation. I just never think they are this close to the city even though police had to tranquilize and remove one that found its way downtown a few years back.

There are still a few black-eyed Susans around.

Lovely shots of the water but what craziness has brought me here to find even more mosquitos?

Earlier in my walk, I went up to a single hole in a tree and was promptly met by a half dozen hornets. Not here.

Okay, I had enough of the mosquitos and was walk-running back along the path. The wind picked up a little here so I slowed to catch my breath.

You may not know that mosquitos follow the trail of carbon dioxide to your mouth. I thought I was safe and learned they were still with me when I attempted this shot.

And the parking lot was in sight and I was out of there!

Images

Photos from my Canon SX620 HS on the Old Quarry trail in the Ottawa greenbelt.

Enjoy!
@kansuze