High Plains Drifting

[Teegate]

All,

A few of us decide to do some “High Plains Drifting” today, and here are a few photo’s and video's from our day. Our fist stop was an old deer stand with a nice view.

Then to a spung that is being taken over by Leatherleaf.

Bob and Jeff deciding our next destination.

Pine Needles in the ice.

Then on to the Governor’s Pond area at the bombing range where Bob and Al are out there somewhere.

The back of the pond.

Bob and Al “High Plains Drifting.”

Now to the video’s. Here is rare site at what goes on during our hikes. Don’t tell anyone!


First Bob


http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/01252009/Ice4.mov


Then me.


http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/01252009/Ice3.mov


Thank you Al, Bob, and Jeff for a great day. Drifting at it’s best!

Guy

 

[Boyd]

Very cool Guy - and some great photos!

 

[manumuskin]

All,

A few of us decide to do some “High Plains Drifting” today, and here are a few photo’s and video's from our day. Our fist stop was an old deer stand with a nice view.



Now to the video’s. Here is rare site at what goes on during our hikes. Don’t tell anyone!


First Bob


http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/01252009/Ice4.mov


Then me.


http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/01252009/Ice3.mov


Thank you Al, Bob, and Jeff for a great day. Drifting at it’s best!

Guy

thats it.the guts gotta go,or at least shrink somewhat

 

[Teegate]

thats it.the guts gotta go,or at least shrink somewhat

Why do you say that???


Guy

 

[bobpbx]

It was a good day, one for the memory bank. Good company, good sunshine, pine plains, and fresh air. How can you beat that?

Guy takes his shot:

Hidden Spung. Deep in the Pine Plains. In real deep.

Guy and Jeff, homeward bound along the Bombing Range property line.

Check out this deer stand. The guy used blue plastic leaves he must have bought at a craft shop. Really. Isn't there a pine barren law against that?

If you are familiar with Governors Pond, this is the source. Absolutely beautiful, wild country back there.

Al is pretty sure he sees a tree that is up to his waist 2 miles in the distance.

Also, I met Freerider at his property on the way back. A nice, congenial guy.

 

[tom m]

Piker 56 and I are going to try and get to the dwarf pines area this friday if I'm off. That's one spot i've never considered hiking around,he said it's real nice.
I wish I could have watched the videos But I can't open them, Dang !!!

 

[Teegate]

I wish I could have watched the videos But I can't open them, Dang !!!

Bob wrote me and said the same thing. Both my wife and I on a Mac and XP can view them. Anyway, see if you can download at this link and view them from your drive. I believe on Windows you hold down the Option key or one of the three keys next to the space bar while clicking on the link.


http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/01252009/


Guy

 

[bobpbx]

This isn't Milleville Toto:

 

[long-a-coming]

What a great day to be out there guys!!!

nice sliding!

 

[Teegate]

This isn't Milleville Toto:

That's a nice one Bob.

Guy

 

[bobpbx]

That's a nice one Bob.

Guy

Thank you my Pine Barren Brother.

 

[bobpbx]

Al, here is that 1833 map portion (courtesy of Ben's Historic Maps) that shows "plains" down your way. What is there now?

 

[tom m]

Hey Guy ,It's the videos I can't upload ,the pics are fine. It might be because of the virus i have in my start menu,it doesn't affect anything except my ability to down load certain things .I Bookmarked that page so i can view it when i get my set fixed

 

[Teegate]

Hey Guy ,It's the videos I can't upload ,the pics are fine. It might be because of the virus i have in my start menu,it doesn't affect anything except my ability to down load certain things .I Bookmarked that page so i can view it when i get my set fixed

Tom,

The video's are at that link also. The bottom two.

Guy

 

[woodjin]

A great trip with great company. It was nice to finally meet Al and I appreciated his company. Here are a few extra pics.

guy posted a pic from a tree stand. This is a pic of him about to take that pic.

Guy, Al, and Bob at a lonely spung.

Into the big wide open

Govenor's pond

Going for a Sunday stroll.

Jeff

 

[RednekF350]

Al, here is that 1833 map portion (courtesy of Ben's Historic Maps) that shows "plains" down your way. What is there now?

That is the location of Belleplain State Forest at present Guy.

Looks like you guys had a great trip.
I wish I could have made this one because that area is unexplored territory for me.

 

[manumuskin]

Why do you say that???


Guy

did you see that profile shot of me in the first video as bob slid past me.it's a wonder he got past me

 

[manumuskin]

This isn't Milleville Toto:

definitely not millville,I'd say 'someone sent me down to Tuscon,so I'd git some work done'
Me,me me Mel Tillis

 

[manumuskin]

Al, here is that 1833 map portion (courtesy of Ben's Historic Maps) that shows "plains" down your way. What is there now?

ok Bob,as common to maps of yesteryear there is some innaccuracies in this map/outside of many stream courses being simplified the stream shown as tarkiln does not exist in that area.it is a much smaller branch that runs through a string of old cranberry bogs and does not end up in the delaware bay but in the tuckahoe river at head of the river and hence winds up in the atlantic by a more direct route.As to that exact area the great cedar swamp is still there and it is no longer cedar but obviously being logged over in the past is now a mature maple swamp.the area shown is around the mosern village of petersburg.this area has some large active gravel pits in it now and houses mostly along the blacktop roads but by an large it is a semi mature oak forest with interspersed pines that are generally larger then the oaks.It's common down here as well as the barrens in oak forests to log the oaks and leave the pine which results in young oak forests dotted with large old pines.We have a lot more white oak down here then in the barrens interspersed with various black oak species and occasionally turkey oak (southern red) and willow oaks in the wetter sunnier areas.We have a lot of cedar swamps that along the salt marsh edges are dying because of rising salt water levels,these make for some real nice photos of dead forests.Their is a nice area near blackwater refuge in maryland that has twisted pine barren forests extending into the salt marshes whic is also quite awesome.
Back to the area in question,I feel the descrition plains was given to it after a large clearcut turned the area into a wasteland,maybe in conjunction with fire.Their are many furnace and forge ruins down here and like the barrens the woods were wiped out repeatedly in the past.There are no plains down here today.If you want big sky down here head for the salt marshes.we have marshes in southern cumberland county that on a clear day you can barely make out the treeline seven miles away but it's definitely not hiking countryWe also have many man made paradises in the form of abandoned sand quarries and gravel pits which makes for a mosaic of ponds which fill up with all types of wildlife.We have a lot of otters,mink,muskrat,eagles,peregrines and my favorites....snakes! down here. But alas when it comes to the plains you guys up there have it all over us southern boys.
Al

 

[dragoncjo]

Lots of good info there Al, thanks.

That area(cumberland, cape) is definetely loaded with wildlife, more so then the pines to the north. But I always find myself wondering what the area use to look like. Whether it was more piney at one point, the lack of good cedar swamps down there disspoints me alot, being that there use to be a bunch. Al so the great cedar swamp down there doesn't have too many cedars anymore? I checked out a spot in Belleplain two weeks ago had a real nice cedar swamp, right off pine swamp road.