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The
trail wound through a hardwood forest filled with huge rhododendron
bushes, a sight that I had never seen before. Rhododendrons are
basically an ornamental in New England, commonly seen as part of the
landscaping on either side of a front door. And the related mountain
laurel, which does grow wild in the New England Mountains, is a much
smaller plant. This would be a good trail to take in May or June when the
shrubbery is in bloom. Soon,
as the trail approached the cliffs above the Delaware River, limited views
of the Delaware Water Gap were visible through the trees. I took pictures
looking upstream to the north, and southeast toward the sunrise. Just
across the river in New Jersey is neighboring peak, Mt Tammany, which
forms the other side of the gap. It's pretty much the same height as Mt
Minsi.
As
usual, Muffin was definitely enjoying our hike. She was dressed for the
cold, in both a dog sweater and a scarf. They didn't match, and she looked
like a fashion disaster, but she didn't care. She was on the trail, and
she was warm enough; that was good enough for her.
As
we climbed a bit higher, a dusting of snow began to appear on the
rhododedrons, and their evergreen leaves started to look a bit more closed
up. Rhododendron and azalea leaves are sensitive to the temperature. As
the weather gets colder, they fold down to minimize heat and moisture
loss. When it gets even colder still, they also curl up tight into a
pencil-like shape. |
Rhododendron
forest. Soon after branching off the fire road, the Applachian Trail
meanders through this huge forest of rhododendrons. |
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