DAY 227
11.17.07
TREE 151
It got dark before I knew it today. I made a very late lunch and sat in front of the TV to eat it. Then I got sucked into a movie that didn’t end till 6pm. Afterwards I got the proper attire, my camera and ribbon, and headed outside. The night was pretty quiet and still. A partial moon shined overhead brightly.
I walked down my street and onto Route 393. It’s a dangerous road to walk, especially at night because it’s narrow and the speed limit is 55. I got way off the shoulder into the grass. I had my hood up and was wearing all dark clothing so I wasn’t very visible which is a good and bad thing depending on how you view the situation. But I tend to like being hidden so I was happy about it. I walked down scanning for a climbable tree but all I saw were in the dark, or the woods, or way too big and in peoples’ yards. I came to a subdivision and walked around what seemed to be a common grassyarea with some trees. But upon closer inspection I chose to move on and not climb here. Beyond that were many properties and I didn’t want to get caught trespassing. I started to walk to the road to exit the subdivision and saw a big tree with no leaves.
All nice and craggy and it was good because a street lamp was very close and would make for better photos.
As I got closer I saw some bushes in front of the trunk. They were very thorny and embedded in them was a barbed wire fence. But I had already made up my mind and was going to climb this tree. I crouched down and got through a hole in the bush then climbed up onto a wooden post of the fence. From there I could reach the tree without touching the ground. This was good because if I had I would have been trespassing in someone’s backyard. Being in the tree somehow felt like no-mans-land. So I began to climb. There were some good challenges and a few dead limbs to avoid.
I got very high and took a few positions to take shots.
Nothing too exciting however. What got my heart pumping was the dog on this property. Ever since I got in the tree it barked like crazy. I usually ignore that, but as I started to climb down I heard someone come outside and they had a flashlight. I froze. Then I thought I better not stick around and wait to get caught. I was far enough away from the house to not make so much noise. I quickly got down to the post then to the ground. But as I crawled out, the thorns kept hooking me in my haste. My right hand got bloody, but I got away. I walked home as cool as possible preparing an alibi, but there was no need. A very exciting climb. I love risk.
11-17-08: I know I wrote that there were no leaves on the tree. At the top I did find this leaf but it was hooked onto the end of a branch with that hole. It wasn’t attached. I am not even sure if it was originally from that tree.
I’ll also add that I think it was ridiculous to think that being in the tree was somehow not on the guy’s property. It’slike I knew it was trespassing but I wasn’t leaving any tracks on the ground so I was untraceable. That would have been a much more interesting night if I had got caught. And by interesting I mean awful. I was really scared when he came outside with a flashlight. Maybe it was the flash that got the dog going. Honestly, I don’t know how dogs sense me but they always do.
Yesterday was one of those cold days where I never feel like leaving the house. I sat around a lot of the day just getting cold anyway so I finally took a shower to warm up and then headed outside to climb. My bike’s front tire went flat again earlier Saturday night so I went walking to find my tree. I had spotted a line of Gingko trees a few blocks down on Washington Street and their leaves are a nice bright yellow. As I walked through my neighborhood I saw a couple folks and talked to one of them. Besides the smell from the Swift meat plant, this neighborhood is really nice and quiet, friendly too. I approached the trees and picked mine pretty quickly. The one on the corner had the best branches and from the ground, I figured it would have the best view.
At the base of the trunk I looked around to make sure no one was watching then jumped for the first branch and started to climb. The beginning was the hardest part. After that my only troubles was snaking through some tight squeezes. I got very near the top.
I don’t know if I’ll ever reach the very top of a Gingko since the branches are so bendy I would never trust them out on the limbs end. When I took out my camera I could see the pebble covered roof just below
sections of the East End of downtown
a little bit of the old railroad bridge
buildings on Washington
and some of the traffic lights from Baxter Avenue over the roof tops.
Surprisingly, I couldn’t see the Aegon Tower or any of the other taller buildings on downtown. The other Gingko trees were right on my line of sight with them and they were still full of yellow leaves as well. I took a lot of pictures of these great leaves.
It was a great tree and the quiet evening was very serene. I climbed back down and paused a few times to take some pictures.
I did this on the bottom branch to capture the mat of yellow leaves on the ground and a car pulled up to the intersection. It sat at the stop sign for way too long. I believe they spotted me and were just staring. They finally drove on and that was my cue to drop and walk back home.
And speaking of nice neighbors… my next door neighbors Mark and Jerry had Drew and I over for dinner. It was a very nice and funny evening. Lot of good stories and good food. I like this place.
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