The Pocket – July 29 2025

Bill and I headed into The Pocket for a mid-summer walk. We started out on one of the side trails, mostly out of curiosity, but it turned into one of those trails that promises it’s going somewhere and very clearly is not. We cut our losses and returned to the main path.

We saw a few wet spots and a nice spring opening.

The trail eventually widened into a big meadow clearing. The vegetation height was ridiculous. Shoulder-level grass, a ticks wet dream. At a certain point, it stopped being a trail and became the concept of a trail. So we hopped into the dry creekbed and let the landscape guide us along instead. Other than some random dancing that ensued (definitely not from us tripping on rocks) our plan worked perfectly.

At the turnaround point, we decided we didn’t want to miss the waterfall — that’s always where the good micro-habitats sit — so we headed back down into the cooler air and the sound of running water.

Down at the falls, the first notable find was a crawfish working slowly along the pool bottom. Just doing its thing

A little farther along, a Southern Two-lined Salamander (Eurycea cirrigera) showed up under a log.

There were fungi everywhere if you paid attention. Some bursting boldly from the leaf litter, others squeezing out of cracks in old fallen wood.

And then, the highlight: a Watersnake stretched out along a shallow run, completely unbothered. Excellent banding. Overall, a great short summer trip!