I am sure most, if not all of us, know what a hayride is, but let me reiterate for those who somehow have just not been enlightened. A hayride is enjoyed while seated on hay in the back of something. The fun part is that YOU do not have to drive and are free to look around without your attention constantly on the road. Hayrides in the Cove are given for a fee on a large flatbed trailer pulled by a truck. Usually guided by a ranger, they can be a great way end to your day.
A brief overview of the Cove history is given by the guide at several points along the way as well as personal anecdotes and insight. It begins before sunset and returns you to the stables well after dark. Be mindful of the season for the temperature can drop drastically in the spring or fall. Hot days can quickly turn into cool nights especially when out in the open air with a wind driven by forward movement.
The majority of the time it is I who drives through the Cove. For this reason, these hayrides are a special enjoyment of mine. Though still not at the slow pace I prefer, they give me a chance to wonder at the beauty of this place. The night air invigorates and the views take your breath away. It is a completely different outlook when seen this way. Instead of just to the sides, eyes can gaze upwards at the tree limbs overhead. It was on a hayride I first noticed the black walnut tree. Quite abundant in the southeast, its leaves grow in such a fashion as to create circular clusters. This pattern only becomes clear when the branches are viewed from underneath the tree.
As the tour makes its way around the loop road, the forest comes alive with countless sounds created by its nocturnal inhabitants. Hundreds of insects seem to compete for who can be the loudest. It is incredible all this noise comes from creatures so small. One of the quietest denizens of the night sometimes seen is the brown bat. They flit about at dusk and are often mistaken for swallows or other small birds. The erratic flight and quick change of directions will reveal their true identity.
Bats are very remarkable creatures that do us a grand favor with all the insects they consume. However, they are almost as misunderstood as the wolf and are just as much a victim of unwarranted bad publicity. Contrary to hype created from movies and books, bats are not out to get the unwary human. They have no interest in us at all, for we are far too big of a morsel to even draw attention. The vampire bat, not indigenous to this area, gets its name because it feeds on livestock, not people. Even then, it is just a bite and not a swarm of bats on the hapless animal. The majority of bites to humans are caused when someone catches a bat and tries to hold it. It is not the bat’s fault. It is a case of self-defense as any other animal would do if cornered. I would strongly advise not to try this, for in addition to painful, bats are known to be carriers of rabies. Though they usually never show the effects themselves, it can be transmitted to anyone bitten.
The mountains and ridges transform as the sun wanes and paints upon them different shades of red and orange. Finally, as darkness begins to take its hold, the stars emerge for their own grand show. If you have never been far away from the lights of the city when night fell, it is definitely never to be forgotten. Literally, the thousands of stars that twinkle in the dark skies above make it difficult to pick out even the most recognizable constellations. A bright moon will take some of this away, but it will still be far beyond what most are accustomed to from the backyards of their subdivisions.
No comments:
Post a Comment