Empty Nest

Typical late July weather around the Hideaway. Hot. Very hot. And humid. Cloudless blue morning skies have turned moist and hazy with scattered afternoon clouds. Brief showers have occasionally spattered the surface of the pond as small swirls of haze spiraled upward, the pond’s cool surface having condensed moisture in the heated air above.

Weather aside, we’ve suddenly found ourselves to be empty nesters. Our Carolina wrens have fled. Those little critters that could barely be seen poking their minute heads out of the nest a week ago, were served their farewell meal and took wing. All within about an hour, as we watched. Mom returned to the nest with a worm following their departure. Apparently confused, she flew away, faced with the eternal conundrum that eventually faces all of us. What does one do with an unused worm?

Two does, each with a pair of twins, have made regular evening visits. They prefer to take their meal on the strip of grass between the pond and the ledge. At times they will wade near the porch and graze on pond side vegetation. Either way, they provide pleasant dinner time entertainment. No cover charge.

Two days ago, a bear wandered into the yard from the woods near the driveway. He stopped for a brief snack from the crab apple tree. Cutting it short, he strolled qickly past the porch and into the woods beyond. Even bears, it seems, have obligations.

This afternoon, a great blue heron suddenly appeared through a break in the trees. It flared out and settled on the opposite side of the island. There, it disappeared for the day, apparently preferring to purloin our small finned friends in private. Noblesse oblige.

Day’s end. A pink and gray sunset closes in the western sky. The quiet little critters of Hideaway Pond settle in as the Catskill Mountain air cools. And night ushers in a waxing moon. Peace.

Please forgive the graininess of some of the photos. Many were taken through a window screen.

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