When you mention The Trail in this part of Virginia, most folks assume you’re talking about The New River Trail State Park, and not the Appalachian Trail which also passes thru here. The New River Trail is a 57 mile linear park (the only one in Virginia) than runs from Galax to Pulaski with a spur to the town of Fries. The Trail follows an old railroad right-of-way donated to the state by the Norfolk Southern Railroad, 39 miles of which parallels the New River. The photo is of one of two tunnels along the way. This one is approximately a mile north of the Austinville entrance.

I’m not sure if these are the remains of a coyote or a domesticated dog. Nor do I know how it expired or why it chose the Creek for its expiration. My knowledge of animal forensics is practically non-existent, and a cursory investigation on the web has been of little help, though I did find that a skeleton like this sells for as much as 500 bucks.

I plan to call Virginia Tech to see if they’re interested in retrieving the skeleton, which I pray they are, because the prospect of doing it myself is not something to which I look forward. The smell alone is a stomach churner, and the remaining viscera guarantees a condition known as “up-chucking”. The last two photos are close-ups of the skull and hind paw. If any of you are sure of what this is, let me know.

This day-flying moth is a member of the family Sphigidae, the same as the tomato hornworm. It hovers over flowers, in full sunlight, sipping nectar with a long proboscis or “tongue.” The buzzing of its wings produces a sound like that of a hummingbird (another member of this species is called the Hummingbird Clearwing). Its coloration, which can vary widely, is similar to a bumblebee. The moth is usually found in meadows, gardens, brushy fields and along forest edges from March – September. I shot the photo above in the wildflower meadow next to Galena Creek.

In the same area is one of my favorite wildflowers, Impatiens capensis, the Spotted or Orange Jewelweed. The small trumpet-like flowers hang from 3-5 foot plants growing in moist, rich soils in valleys and stream bottoms. Sometimes called Touch-me-not because of the propensity of its seed pods to explode when disturbed, the inside of the stem is used in folk remedies as a cure for poison ivy rashes, though several controlled studies have indicated no anti-itch properties.