My wife’s parents were visiting us all the way from Romania. During their month-long visit to the United States we wanted to show them some of the local natural beauties of the great outdoors here in Georgia. Being a little older, long hikes were not really an option.

The perfect place for a day trip and a short hike is Anna Ruby Falls in the North Georgia mountains. Anna Ruby Falls is located near the Bavarian themed town of Helen, Georgia. This little town is a great place to stop and enjoy an afternoon lunch and to browse the small shops.

In the immediate area are several wonderful Georgia State Parks: Unicoi State Park, Smithgall Woods and Vogel State Park. And crossing this entire area is the historic Georgia-to-Maine Appalachian Trail. The Springer Mountain trailhead is only forty miles from Helen.

Anna Ruby Falls is a picturesque waterfall nestled within the mountain laurels and rhododendrons. In fact, it is actually a dual waterfall created by two separate streams. Curtis Creek and York Creekjoin at the base of the falls to form Smith Creek. The hike up to Anna Ruby Falls is a short, paved half-mile; perfect for those with accessibility issues. Yet is still maintains a secluded, peaceful Appalachian mountain appeal. There is also a longer trail for those adventurous types. 

A nearby Georgia State Park, Tugaloo State Park was hosting an interpretive program by “Hiss Ministries” by Allen Ash. This was perfect! We were able to combine a day of hiking, a reptile program, and a gospel lesson all into one!
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Lake Hartwell was very low and we were able to walk along the bare banks for several miles looking for things that would normally be buried beneath the water’s surface. We found plenty of cool driftwood, fish parts and an entire deer skeleton. Most likely the deer was shot during one of the park’s quota hunts, but the hunter didn’t find his kill. 

The retention pond behind the public works building is loaded with catfish of all sizes. All summer long we are able to lure even the big ones to the surface. And what do we use to bring this catfish to the surface? Cat food, of course! 

Saturday, 7:40 PM - The lawn and mulch beds around my house are so inhabited by toads in the summer, you practically have to watch where you step at night! 

True toads are toothless and generally warty in appearance. They have a pair of parotoid glands on the back of their heads. 

Unlike any other planet, our specially designed dwelling place is covered in water. There is water in the seas, water in the oceans, water in lakes and ponds, water underneath the ground, water in the polar ice caps… water is everywhere! In fact, NASA scientists say there are more than 326 million trillion gallons of water covering over 70% of the earth’s surface.

Unless you live in a humid part of the world, you may not realize it, but there is even water in the air. Scientists estimate that on a typical summer afternoon, there are about 50,000 tons of water vapor in the air above a square mile of land. (Although I imagine there are at least several thousand more gallons on a humid rainy night in my home town in Georgia!)
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All of the water on our planet is constantly moving and changing states. As liquid water evaporates from the earth’s surface and becomes a gas, it enters the atmosphere where it eventually condenses and falls back to the earth again. This process is known as the water cycle. It is an incredible design thought of by our creator to keep our planet from drying out. Instead of vaporizing into space, the water returns and waters our planet.

Some of our water gets into the air through vegetation. Not only do plants need and soak up water, but they also release it back into the air; a process called transpiration. God designed plants to water themselves! A field of corn is reported to give off enough water to re-cover its own field eleven inches deep. Self-sustained recyclers!

​Because of the water cycle, we are able to use the water that God originally created over and over again. The raindrops that hit your umbrella last time it rained have existed for thousands of years and have travelled this world over and over in various places. The “rain falls into the rivers, and the rivers flow into the sea, and yet the sea never overflows” because of the way God has designed our incredible planet. 

Some random photos from July 2012

My parents live in Driftwood, Texas in the Hill Country Trail Region between Austin and San Antonio. Their property sits on acres of former ranch land turned residential. Because there is no hunting, the Whitetailed Deer abound. At the entrance to their neighborhood, LaVentana, there are several Longhorns pastured.  ​

Photos from one of my annual trips to Driftwood, Texas to visit my parents. I have to admit, although birds weren't a primary interest on my Texas trips at this point in my life, a spark of excitement began to grow for the avian kind. Instead of keeping my lens pointed at the deer and reptiles, birds began to take the spotlight. I recall sitting and watching the hummingbirds feed in the lantanas when a brilliant red Summer Tanager appeared nearby. From this point forward, birds began to appear much more regularly in my photo journals.