I walk the trail in my backwoods more days than not. I have been walking it on and off for almost two decades. I feel as though I know every nook and cranny. I feel as though I have seen everything it has to offer.
Then, coming around a small bend. At the base of a tree I have past hundreds of times. Something new...
A cluster of Wood Anemone (Anemone quinquefolia) or Wood Windflower has bloomed.
Has it bloomed there before and I just missed it? Has it bloomed in other parts of the backwoods and I just didn't notice?
I make another loop around the trail - venturing off on little side trips - to see if I can find more of it. All I can find is its cousin, Canadian Anemone or Canada Windflower. A flower that I have seen every spring for as long as I can remember.
Why the new arrival? Has something changed that has brought it into these woods.
