Congaree Swamp National Park, SC

words can't describe it, but maybe pictures will help...

Christmas time!

Lots of fun Christmastime festivities and such... this had to be our poorest, but most fun Christmas ever! It's really true that friends and family are worth so much more than money!

Mike and Mary's holiday party


that's straight gangsta


Casey looks hilarious here!


Dickerson Christmas begins...


Rad quarry in front of my cousins/aunts/uncles house




Title defending champions!


Sunrise and dad's new camper



Mimamma! Mid-eighties and still kickin' it!


House. Party.



Family Christmas Picture 2008

Big Trees in Atlanta

I recently came across a list of "champion trees inside I-285" on the Trees Atlanta website. Mattbott and I had already begun searching for big trees in patches of old growth spread around this city and now we've officially got a challenge on our hands. This list is a couple of years of and some of the information is unreliable in my eyes (with landowners wanted to claim ownership of trees for personal recognition and the rounding of measurements to the nearest foot on CBH, etc...), so we've decided to take up the task of creating a new list. One of our first trips was to a nice cove on the Emory campus...

Large Oak species (Black Oak?) right on Houston Mill


This was really a fun exploration for us


Rare native Star Vine (Schisandra glabra)


My new favorite Tulip Poplar- "Castle Grayskull". This is the largest (CBH) of the species that we've found in the city without any significant flaring/galls/caves at the base.


Felled beech tree


Devil's Walking Stick mini-forest



This was a truly rad trip. There's tons of nooks, crannies, old growth, rock ledges, wildflowers, historical stonework, etc... to see.

Hike Inn Trail- 12.14.08

Speedy, Roly Poly, and me (Mappy) took a much needed 10 mile hike in the North Georgia mountains today. It was overdue to say the least. We opted for the Hike Inn trail at Amicalola. It's very rolling and not too difficult (much to Roly Poly's liking). I really recommend this trail and this Inn to anyone looking to make a quick escape from the city. At 75 miles from Atlanta it's a great spot for a dayhike or a weekend trip.



view from the top of Amicalola Falls- highest falls in Georgia




ground pine and seed heads



this trail is EXTREMELY well maintained with bright green blazes all along the way and nice spots to stop and catch your breath while enjoying the view with nice wooden benches built on the mountainside. There's even mile markers!



on the porch at the Hike Inn... the staff even invited us in for cider, hot chocolate, and cookies and let us thaw out by their wood stove!



view from the porch

Can't wait to go back and hopefully stay the night at the Hike Inn.