Sun-Fleck Forest

Day 14: This month of October has been remarkable in providing exceptional hiking weather at least six days in every ten. Admittedly, I have not taken advantage of all of them, but I have done my share, logging close to 120 miles on foot in the last 27 days. October customarily sees more rainy days than this, so every occasion must be savored.

Today, I set off with a mere 2.5 mile route planned (one-way distance). I reached my goal too quickly to my way of thinking, and in the field, set another. With No-Go-In-Snow and Fly Hill behind me, I changed plans twice more, eventually winding up at a favorite "lunch rock" four and a half miles from my car, having gained 2800' elevation in the process. Had I had another hour and a half to blow, I would have continued on to Indian Henrys Hunting Ground, but I did not want to hike the last miles of the return trip by flashlight. Darkness comes early in the forest.

Yet it is that very darkness and the occasional ray of sun which create a habitat for unique species of plants and fungi which depend on "sun flecks." These species cannot tolerate full sun, but neither can they withstand full shade. Transient sun-flecks such as the one shown in this image are sufficient for their photosynthetic processes, if perhaps not adequate to keep a backpacker from straying off the trail as afternoon turns to evening.