We finally made it up to hang out with Park on Saturday and after discussing for a couple minutes where we wanted to go, I mentioned Chandler has been wanting to explore an abandoned place for some time now. He was on it, calling and getting permission to trespass (squee!) on a couple of different sites! The first was an old sand plant and the other was a derelict summer camp.
It POURED rain off and on all day, then cleared off, then rained again. At one point Park said, "Getting wet is just part of getting outside!" While I normally do all I can to avoid rain and I looked like a drowned cat and my poor choice of cotton everything left me damp the whole time, I could not have cared less. It was awesome! A Top 20 day for the year for sure.
First, we headed to the old sand plant to take some location shots. It was straight out of Power Rangers! It was also hot as blue blazes and we wandered around a bit getting sun struck. Ben even got a sunburn on his neck. My sunscreen melted off just in time for the rain to kick in, hahaha
Feeling less jealous of Katy's desert adventures!
Chan, upon getting an invite to do more exploring of abandoned areas. The 'ooo' of approval.
Staghorn sumac, makes a great drink!
deer
I was taking a shot of this thistle and a butterfly came and went like a blink. I liked the blur of it.
Look, a picture of Park!
(middle left side, on the rocks)
This would be a great swimming hole, super deep!
Fruiting horse nettle
Matt and Chan are on the far side of the water.
Turkey, Park thinks. I think something bigger that flew off, see how the tracks end?
I loved the illusion of the tracks ending at that puddle, like it drove off the face of the earth.
Tussock Moth Caterpillar
As with any furry caterpillar, NO TOUCHY.
We left the sand plant in the rain, hung out under a tree for a while, it was a tulip poplar-the Tennessee state tree, Park was quick to point out, hahahaha. Matt id'd it right away!
We walked back to the vehicles and hopped in, it was still raining, but not too hard.
