Southern Appalachian Naturalist Certification: Plants (May 6-8)

Our "Plants Class" family on a trail walk in GSMNP

I know I've mentioned this program in a previous post, but I just wanted to give some of you a little more information on the Southern Appalachian Naturalist Certification Program(SANCP). This certification program is a series of 8 x 2 1/2 day classes which are taken at the Tremont Institute in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.(Here is the link for more specifics on the classes. http://www.gsmit.org/sancp.)
Upon completion of the program graduates receive a certificate from the University of Tennessee, documenting the 100+ hours of study and class time dedicated to earning the certificate....so that is the background.

With the completion of the Plants class this past weekend, I am now halfway through the program, and my goal is to have 7 of the 8 classes completed by the end of this calendar year. Over the course of the weekend, we keyed trees, group-guided some wildflower walks with some impromptu interpretation, discussed "fern sex"(which is fascinating) and just generally learned a lot about the "green wall out there." Learning in a place like the Smokies can feel daunting, as a result of its bio-diversity....but you just have to keep everything in perspective. You can't learn everything in a weekend, but each class covers a different subject area and provides a great base of knowledge from which to grow. Though some of the weekends have been pretty intense, with a lot of material is packed into a short amount of time, I can honestly say that I can't think of too many other ways I would rather spend my free time(okay I'd rather be fly-fishing, but that is about it).  The quality of instruction is top-notch as the staff of the Tremont Institute and local experts come to help instruct and guide each class. It is really a unique experience to truly immerse yourself in learning about such a wonderfully unique and bio-diverse area.  If you are within driving distance of the Smokies, and have the interest,  I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend checking out this program. It is really pretty special and I can't wait to get down there in July for 2 more classes!

With Thankfulness and Appreciation....Greg (J.A.A.N.)

Celebrating Accidental Naturalists.....Everywhere!

     As I've been writing this blog over the last few months, I've come to the realization (based on some of my traffic stats for the site...thanks Google!) that the name of my blog coincides with other blogs and websites out there, written by others who also consider themselves Accidental Naturalists.
   
     As a result, I have decided to change the name of my blog from "The Accidental Naturalist"(since I realize that this can sound presumptive to some) to "Just Another Accidental Naturalist."(fireworks are exploding, confetti is flying, spotlights are beaming....well maybe just in my mind.)

At first,  I kind of liked the name "The Accidental Naturalist" because that is what I consider myself and I honestly thought this made me unique. What I've come to realize is that it doesn't matter whether I or someone else consider himself/herself THE Accidental Naturalist, I think the wonderful thing is that there are many people out there who have discovered and re-kindled their passion for the natural world and want to share that with others in a variety of different ways. I've realized that there are many Accidental Naturalists and we're all just ordinary people who desire to learn more, and even better, who want to share that knowledge with others..AND we may have never expected to be doing this as a career, hobby or whatever.  It is really inspiring and invigorating for me to know that there are many other people out there who are at various points of their naturalist journey. So let's celebrate some of the other accidental naturalists out there:

Maria Mudd Ruth (http://mariaruthbooks.blogspot.com/), an environmental educator and author from Olympis, WA. Maria...you are well ahead of me...starting out as a writer:) I will definitely be checking out some of your books as they sound wonderful.

Stefan Milkowski (http://northernflux.blogspot.com/2007/04/accidental-naturalist.html) , a freelance reporter in Alaska, studying and writing about how climate change is affecting the Last Frontier. If I am ever in Alaska Stefan, I am going to track you down so we can slay some trout together.






Mareth,  who describes herself as "a tour guide, kayaker and sporadic Alaskan" in her blog. http://notesfromanaccidentalnaturalist.blogspot.com/
I've not done much kayaking Mareth, but if I make my way up to the 49th state, my family and I will give you a call.

You see, I am quite certain many of us  never told our parents that we were going to be "naturalists" when we grow up (maybe a lucky few out there did).....but it in the end, it is the path that has pulled-in many of us.  I'm sure that many of you never dreamed that this is the direction that your life might take, but then you open your eyes to those experiences in life that truly stir your soul: fly-fishing in a cool mountain stream and marveling at a mountain sunset that turns rocks wonderful shades of blue and gray and violet...or the sight of a doe and her fawns moving quietly and effortlessly through the leaf litter of an eastern forest....or the sight of a child just looking at something "common" like an acorn or a "sweetgum ball" with complete fascination.  It is in these moments that I have been inspired to learn more about the world around me and to share it with others. It's why I have chosen to become a naturalist....even if accidentally!

Cheers to all of the Accidental Naturalists out there!(did you hear the cork pop...or at least the twist off cap of a bottle of Alaskan Amber?)

With Thankfulness and Appreciation...Greg (Just Another Accidental Naturalist)

"Time Away" and New Discoveries

Sorry all that I've been remiss in my blogging duties recently.  Life kind of "took over" during the last 2 weeks, with some travel to Pennsylvania for the Easter weekend and mad studying happening as I finished up my final exams this semester at school. Of course all of this came up right after my last post where I lauded myself for my dedication to getting out to my sit spot regularly for 3 weeks. Oh well...you just have to keep moving forward right.  A few interesting things have occurred since my last post.

My family and I traveled to my parents' house in eastern PA over the Easter holiday weekend.  It was really interesting to me going back since I had more consistently started my sit spot routine. I took a few walks in the woods behind their house over the course of the weekend and it was as if I was truly seeing those woods for the first time.  I mean....they were always there while I was growing up, and as kids we spent a significant time trapsing around in them, but this was the first time that I notice the "ginormous" tuliptree(which I now know is part of the Magnolia family, Magnoliaceae) in my parent backyard and the variety of oaks, including several chinkapins.  

The really cool thing was that I saw how similar those woods are to many of the areas that I've explored in my current neighborhood in the Cincinnati area. It was a neat experience to feel like I've actually begun to "know" more about these woods, even though I had spent more time there as a youngster.  I guess that is part of the power and enlightenment of the sit spot experience. Not only do you gain a strong connection for that place where you spend a lot of time...you begin to see new things and notice details about other places you've been a thousand times.

Sat April 30th - I did manage to get out to my spot over the weekend and was able to spend a good 90 mins or so exploring. It was a bit odd, as I had not been there for about a week and a half and it felt as if I had not been there for a year and a half. So much seemed to have taken place in just a very short time. In the time since my last visit, most of the trees went from just "budding out" with their spring flowers to having fully developed, vibrant green leaves bursting from their branches.  I had never really noticed before how quickly that spring awakening really takes place....it was neat to see that. Also, I had a few good bird experiences that day too. 

 First...I saw one of my usual robins, which was nice as I settled back into my spot.  I watched him for about 5 minutes foraging, but then all of a sudden he alarmed and flew off.  I was a bit disappointed that he flew away and I began to question whether it was something that I did, when an older gentleman and his large black dog appeared from around the corner, walking along a trail.  It was just like JY often cites in his "Advanced Bird Language" CD, how the most common ground birds are such great signals of activity. It was neat to see that happen.

Also, shortly after I settled into my spot I say 2 hawks circling high above my spot and I watched them for a few minutes making the rounds ans scanning the forest below.  I tried to follow them the best I could with my binos, but the soon disappeared from my sight. I have seen these 2 hawks(I think they are Cooper's hawks, but not entirely sure) on several different occasions at the park, hunting together and putting on shows of aerial acrobatics straight out of a dogfight seen in Top Gun(am I dating myself now?) The really cool thing happened about 30 mins later when I had decided to try to follow a bird call that I did not recognize(likely some sort of warbler passing through the neighborhood was my guess) and I stumbled onto some trails I had never explored before.  On this trail, I found a new section of the creek to explore and I discovered some really interesting buckeye trees along the creek bank.  When I was emerging from the wooded trail, I saw the "hawk couple" come flying through the trees over me and land on a tree branch about 30 feet above me.  It was really neat to see them, as I have not really had a chance to see the hawks just sitting in a tree. I got a decent look at them through my binos and was amazed by the size of these hawks.  They were communicating quite a bit and it seemed to me that they were definitely in hunting mode.  During this time, I did notice that the woods got very, very quiet....with really no bird-calling taking place, except for a red-bellied woodpecker off in the distance.(I need to see if woodpeckers are a part of a hawk's diet or not.) 

Well that is my update, and I promise to do a better job over the next few days/weeks getting a post out.  I have really missed my sit-spot time and have definitely felt the impact at work, so I need to get back into the routine.  I will have to start next week though, as I am headed to the Tremont Institute at GSMNP for a "Plants" class, the fourth class of eight in the Southern Appalachian Naturalist Certification program.  This is the first time that my wife and daughter are going to head down with me.  While I am in class, they'll actually be enjoying doing a little hiking in the park. Hopefully, we will get down there early enough on Friday for me to get a little bit of "trout-slaying" in with my trusty 3-weight fly rod.

With Thankfulness and Appreciation....Greg(a.k.a the Accidental Naturalist)