ROAD TRIP: A day at Hawk Mountain

We had a marvelous time on Saturday hiking at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Kempton, which is about 75 miles almost due north of Unionville. I hadn't been there for about a dozen years and the changes are amazing.
The first one we noticed was the beautiful new native plant garden next to the visitors' center. It's surrounded by a high fence (the "deer exclosure") to keep out the hungry creatures. The early spring plants were just lovely: we saw trillium, Dutchman's breeches, bloodroot, spring beauty, Virginia bluebells, trout lily, jack-in-the-pulpit, wood poppy, wild ginger, marsh marigold (the native kind) and lots of ferns. Lily pads were lurking just under the surface of the little pond.

Virginia bluebells.



Trillium.




Wood poppy and ferns.

Before heading out on the trail we caught the end of a talk about raptors. The lecturer explained how raptors fly using thermals, and told us how they can lock their talons into their prey, avoiding undue strain on their muscles. The hawk perched on his gauntleted arm was actually the only one we saw that day.
Having paid our $9-per-person trail fee (a bargain), we crossed Hawk Mountain Road and set off along the new handicapped-accessible Silhouette Trail (with a changing display of life-size bird silhouettes set up along the trail).
The well-marked trails vary in difficulty. At one crossroads we were given the choice of the Lookout Trail or the Escarpment Trail, which was described as "rough" and "rocky." Well, that was a no-brainer: of course we took the latter. After about 10 minutes of clambering over slippery rocks (it was lightly raining), I felt like I'd just finished an hour-long exercise class at the Y.
And what spectacular views from the top! North Lookout is 1,521 feet above sea level, and you can see for miles over the valley. I've been there in summer and fall, but never before in spring, and the green of the trees just leafing out was beautiful. 

View from South Outlook at Hawk Mountain.

At the South Lookout we had a lovely conversation with two conservation trainees who are over here from Africa studying, a woman from Zimbabwe and a man from Ghana. Both of them were pleasant and knowledgeable. I didn't realize that Hawk Mountain enjoys an international reputation for its conservation education.
I also noticed that a lot of new railings (made of composite rather than wood) had been installed along the especially steep paths. And along some of the trails are posts with QR codes that you can scan with your phone to find out details about trees and geology.
There were quite a few Cub Scouts hiking at the Sanctuary on Saturday, and they kept us entertained with their chatter and enthusiasm. They were an amazingly energetic group: as we were walking toward the parking lot, thirsty and a little worse for wear, they were still running around the paths outside the visitors' center at top speed. (Like us, though, their leaders were showing some signs of fatigue.) 

ERCILDOUN: Not from around here!

A little ritual we have before heading off on road trips is to stop at Triple Fresh in Ercildoun for coffee and a breakfast sandwich. While we were enjoyed our breakfast while sitting at an outside table, a pickup truck pulled into the parking lot and two men walked past us toward the store.
One said to the other, "Out here, a lot of places have these boot things by the door."
I don't know if he was merely warning his buddy not to trip over the boot scraper or was filling him in about an odd quirk of these strange country folks "out here."

STARS: The night sky

Once again the Chester County Astronomical Society is hosting a Sky Tour for kids and adults at Anson B. Nixon Park, at the Tino Leto athletic fields on North Walnut Street, Kennett Square. The event starts at 8 p.m. Saturday, May 13.
Club members will bring their telescopes for all to use. "Learn about the use of laptops, iPhones, tablets and the best apps to identify and find planets, their moons, nebulas, the constellations, satellites, etc.," reads the press release. Stargazers are asked to bring a small flashlight and to dress for the weather.

MUDDER: Overcoming obstacles

In the next few weeks, you may see some unusual activity as you drive past Plantation Field on Route 82. That's because, for the second year in a row, the Tough Mudder competition is coming to Unionville, and it involves the construction of numerous obstacles that these thrill-seeking athletes must overcome. Last year it looked like a mini-village was taking shape at Plantation.
I was asked to join two separate Tough Mudder teams by my gym friends but did not hesitate to reply, "What are you, NUTS?!" 
One veteran Mudder admits she is worried about this year's new obstacles. For example, instead of just having to plunge into an ice bath (bad enough!), now you have to swim into it under a barrier; there's even a cage placed on top of the barrier so you can't cheat and clamber over it.  
Yet, go figure: otherwise sane people love this event, exclaiming about the challenge and the wonderful camaraderie, and are eager to pay for the privilege of getting wet, filthy, cold and bruised.
It all goes down May 20 and 21.

GOOD-BYE: A life well lived

As a lot of you know, we lost one half of the senior Tally-hos on April 4, my Dear Old Dad. The support we have received from the community has warmed our hearts. It's amazing how many people knew and loved Dad, from the good folks at Hood's BBQ and the Last Chance Garage, to the kind mail-lady, to Dad's airport buddies and the people he worked with for so many years. 
We are hearing so many wonderful "Dad stories," but the one that we hear most often is Dad's standard reply to "How are you, Jack?" An enthusiastic "Better for seeing you!" was his apparently universal response.
I've even heard from several "Unionville in the News" readers who never met him in person but have told me they'll miss reading my little anecdotes about him. I'll miss writing them, too . . . and having him demand his (never-collected) $5 per item.
Thank you all -- readers, friends, neighbors, my Y family, Facebook friends -- for making this path a little easier, especially for my mother.

NEWLIN: A small bridge reopens

After a year of being shut, the stretch of Green Valley Road between Powell Road and Brandywine Creek Road in Newlin Township is once again officially open to traffic.
In May 2016, PennDOT declared that the small bridge over Sweet Creek, a tiny tributary to the Brandywine, was unsafe because the steel beams underneath had deteriorated. They have fixed it, but it doesn't look much different other than the new asphalt on the road and the shiny metal guardrails. But what a beautiful back road Green Valley is, especially in the early spring! I saw a hillside covered with may apples and yellow trout lilies, a wonderful sight.

TRACK: A big meet at Rustin

On Wednesday the Tally-ho clan (very sadly, minus our patriarch) headed to West Chester to watch the Young Relative and his UHS teammates compete in the Rustin Invitational track meet. It was a huge multi-school meet, with kids from everywhere from Oxford to Souderton to Germantown, but it was well managed, with only seconds of downtime between heats.
The YR and his teammate did extremely well in what ended up being a very fast race and were pleased with their performance.
In any case, it was a lovely warm day to sit in the bleachers and enjoy family time while watching the athletes. One youth was coming off the track toward the bleachers and, instead of walking around to the gate, simply hopped over the chain-link fence. He didn't need to run to gain momentum; he simply jumped over it, matter-of-factly, like a white-tailed deer, and cleared it by a considerable margin. His less ambitious friend held on to the top rail and clambered over.

CRAFTS: Tied up in knots

Who remembers macramé? On Friday at the Kennett I saw a woman wearing a pretty blue top with an intricately knotted design on the back.
I told her it brought back happy memories of the 1970s, when macramé was a popular craft and we all created elaborate plant hangers and friendship bracelets, often accented by wooden beads. I recall making a purse for myself, but the knots were too far apart and things kept falling out of it.

FRAUD: Be careful out there

On Saturday night, just as I was thinking about heading to bed, I received a text saying that my main credit card had been used to make a payment of 55 cents at the "PHLLPSBRGINN" (I'm assuming that's the Phillipsburg Inn). My credit-card company's algorithms had flagged this as a "nibble" by some scam artist to see if the account was valid.
Rather than responding to the text (just in case it, too, wasn't legitimate), I phoned the company and they closed the account. I thanked them for letting me know so quickly.
Two questions:
1. Who on earth makes a credit-card payment of 55 cents?
2. And where is the Phillipsburg Inn? There's one on Route 22 in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. An online review said it was "without question" the worst hotel the reviewer had ever stayed at.

CHANGES: Goodbye to Tender Touch

A few local changes that equestrian friends will want to know about:
After 21 years, Brenda Hillard has decided to close Tender Touch, her gift shop and consignment shop for tack and riding apparel in Ercildoun; its last day was Saturday, April 15. Brenda said although she is closing the shop, she plans on "keeping the business name, networking and doing some shows and Holiday Open Houses . . . I will call consignees as I get all sorted, along with paperwork."
And Pisano & Son Riding Boot Repair is closing its store at 108 West Market Street, West Chester, as of May 1. Boot repairs will still be done at the Phoenixville shop (702 Eland Village), shoe repairs at the Malvern one (5 Channing Ave.)