Wooly Bear Redux

   

At the floating bridge near Pond Village, Brookfield, VT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My wife and I spent the weekend exploring central Vermont on two wheels. No, we weren't cruising around on a Harley. We prefer the non-motorized variety, namely our so-called "gravel grinders". These bikes look like the traditional road bike with  drop handlebars, but they allow for beefier tires and have low gearing for humping it up all the hills around our picturesque little valley. Both days were sublime in terms of the weather. When the sun was out from behind the few puffy white clouds, it was warm and welcome as we turned our faces to smile back at it. The afternoon light filtering down through the multi-hued leaves was magical. There is nothing like the quality of sunlight in Vermont in October. It felt like a beam from another world that might just sweep me up and transport me somewhere else. Somewhere with no wars, no political strife, no climate change. A world of hope and promise. 

        On Saturday, we biked out to an unmaintained road that we used to mountain bike in our younger days. We biked up as far as we dared, then parked our bikes against a tree and changed into better shoes for walking and started out along the old road. I imagined horses pulling wagons along this track, maybe hauling apples just picked from a nearby orchard. I imagined a simpler time that may have been tougher in some ways, but easier at the same time.After a round trip of about 4 miles, we re-mounted our bikes for the ride home. With the colorful leaves and fresh air, the miles rolled away with almost no effort. A long swooping downhill was the reward after all of the climbing we had done.

        Sunday started out with a thick layer of fog, but by mid morning, the sun had burned this away to reveal blue skies. We packed up the bikes again and rolled out of our driveway. Soon we were climbing out of the valley and towards the little settlement of "Pond Village". This collection of several residences and the Brookfield Old Town Hall is laid out along a dirt road that connects to the very unique floating bridge crossing Sunset Lake. The Old Town Hall had its annual fall market underway and we had planned on a lunch stop for some soup and bread. We sat outside in the sun on an old tree stump across from the hall and enjoyed our repast and fresh bread. We followed this up with some locally made cookies and coffee before getting back on the bikes for the return trip home. This included another joyful downhill with hundred year old maples lining the side of the curvy dirt road. Views to the distance yielded a tapestry of color against green fields and azure skies. Cows dotted the landscape to round out this Norman Rockwell-esque scene. 

        Throughout the day, we had encountered the wooly bear caterpillars that make their presence known this time of year. Some of them had not survived the trek across the road, but we carefully avoided them and announced their presence whenever we came across them. "Ooh! That one has a lot of brown. Doesn't that mean it will be a snowy winter?" I never remember the predictive criteria ascribed to these little creatures, so I'll believe what anyone tells me. Of course, we kind of hope for a snowy winter so we can enjoy the outdoors on cross country skis or snow shoes. The lore surrounding wooly bears is just another example of humans' desire to predict the future. We would love to know how things will turn out, even though that is mostly wishful thinking. Maybe there is another insect we can use to  assure ourselves that the election will result in a win for our candidate. One that will tell us that the wars will stop and people will treat each other with respect. One that will indicate that our home planet will survive the onslaught of man. When I find those tiny creatures and figure out how to read their patterns, I'll be sure to let you know.

    For now, though, please consider revisiting my blog post from last year about the lowly Wooly Bear. You might learn a thing or two and hopefully be entertained.