step inside nature
Here are fourteen trail cam videos of deer, ravens, bears, squirrels, and a coyote. All the wildlife is enjoying the warm autumn weather in the Carolinas.
Have fun watching the videos!
Kind Regards,
Debra & Kurt
Table Rock Mountain has been voted one of the top leaf peeping destinations in the Southeast. Click here for more information. Wherever you go, you will see a colorful burst of yellow, red, orange, brown, and vibrant green.
Enjoy!
Hello Everyone!
On these trail cam videos, you will find a mix of adorable deer with 3 sets of strange and mysterious eyes in the background.
What do you think these strange and mysterious eyes are in the background?
A: Deer
B: Coyote
C: Ghost
D: Other
Please let me know.
P.S. Back by popular demand. ❤️ 👍 I added more bear trail cam videos! An old bear hangs around the back of the woods. He loves looking for bugs as a midnight snack. He has large butt as he stands right in front of the camera on the last two videos.
Enjoy!
Hello Nature Lovers,
October is a very active month for wildlife here in South Carolina! There is a biological change that causes wildlife to move around a lot. Here are five delightful trail cam videos of a coyote, deer, raccoon, and a white squirrel. Also, see the previous post about the white squirrel from the neighborhood click here.
Warm Wishes,
Debra & Kurt
Hey Everyone!
The bears here are ‘hangry’ during their hyperphagia state. Read more here. And oh boy, did they enter that stage of angry-hunger! They have been wandering around the neighborhood eating my neighbors’ grapes off the vine and smelling the delicious food from the camper’s trailers that are about 1 mile away.
During hyperphagia, bears need to eat ten times the calories they would normally consume which is about 20,000 calories a day.
Bears can smell over 20 miles away for any delicious food or carcass on the side of the road. Our trail cams captured the black bears sniffing behind our home in the woods for anything yummy to eat.
Read more about the bear’s sense of smell from the Section Hiker here.
Enjoy the trail cam videos! 🙂
Warm Wishes,
Debra & Kurt
There has been major excitement since the queen’s drop scone recipe had been released to the public. These drop scones are a wonderful combination of a donut and a pancake all in one. The drop scones are also known as “Scotch pancakes.” Since I have a restricted diet my goal was to switch to a gluten-free version and join in on the fun. So far, the results are delicious! So, I will proudly take this opportunity and crown myself the gluten-free queen of drop scones. 👑 😂
But fear not my friends, I have added the original recipe too.
The first step is to make some caster sugar. Caster sugar is a type of fine granulated sugar that’s widely available in the United Kingdom. It’s not quite common in the United States and may be hard to locate.
Gather all the dry and wet ingredients. Note: I whisked the eggs beforehand to make a better mixture.
The gluten-free flour I used is King Arthur Baking Mix. Here is King Arthur website.
Feel free to use any of your favorite gluten-free brand.
Mix all the dry and wet ingredients together. Make sure the batter is smooth. Note: You may notice some bubbles from the batter after you add the butter. That is a chemical reaction with the baking soda and cream of tartar. Cream of tartar is a dry acid and when mixed with butter or water, it reacts with the baking soda to produce carbon dioxide gas.
Set the batter aside for 3 minutes. This helps the ingredients settle and the batter will become thicker.
Heat a large non-stick pan on medium heat. Use a large plastic spoon, scoop batter into the pan. Try to leave space for a second scoop of batter.
Cook for 2 minutes or until the drop scones form bubbles. Then gently flip them over and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
Enjoy!
Hey Friends,
An older male black bear has been hanging out in the back of the woods near our home. Plus, a young female bear has been showing up around the neighborhood.
Last time I saw her she had stolen a plastic bucket from my front porch around 5 a.m.
See the previous post.
Anyhoo, enjoy these exciting trail cam bear videos!
Much Love,
Debra & Kurt
(Please Note: Trail Camera time was set wrong …it is a.m. not p.m.)
A pink glow radiated in the evening sky in South Carolina from Hurricane Ian, as it touched down in Florida on that frightful Thursday. The outer-bands of the storm hovered high over our cabin. The leaves on the trees had a fluorescent green glow from the pink clouds. The woods became eerily quiet as the birds and small woodland critters prepared for the storm.
I hunkered down and nervously watched the weather forecast. The uncertainty of where the storm was headed in South Carolina was gut wrenching. On Friday, the storm had returned and pummeled the beaches of the South Carolina coast. The trees were bending from the strong wind gusts and there was a slight chill in the air.
The sun shyly peaked from the clouds on Saturday morning. Luckily, there was no damage in the area, just a few tree branches on the ground.
I’m deeply saddened by the destruction Hurricane Ian left in Florida and South Carolina.
Here are a list of reputable organizations that accepts donations for those severely impacted from the hurricane. (Click on the links below to access their website.)
These disasters are a constant reminder to love and hug everyone around you and to appreciate the present moments. Things might change forever within the blink of an eye. Life is always uncertain. The only thing that is truly certain is what you hold dearly within your heart.
With Love and Gratitude,
These majestic birds get their name from the humming noise their wings make in flight. Hummingbirds flap their wings 10 to more than 80 times per second. Here in South Carolina, we have four species of hummingbirds, the ruby-throated hummingbird, rufous hummingbird, black-chinned hummingbird, and calliope hummingbird. The most common one I have seen in my backyard is the ruby-throated hummingbird. The ruby-throated hummingbirds’ wings flap about 53 times a second. The males have ruby-red throats and the females have white throats.
Overall, research indicates that the hummingbird can fly 23 miles in one day. Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backward. They can see ultraviolet light plus RGB (Red, Green, and Blue) due to the fourth cone in their eyes. Hummingbirds can see red and green colors very well. Plus, hummingbirds can recognize humans that feed them and change the contents of their feeder. They are in desperate need of nectar in the fall season for energy to fly back to Mexico or Florida for the winter. A few remain in the winter along the coast. In the spring many of them fly over the Gulf of Mexico back to the U.S. in one non-stop flight.
If a hummingbird crosses your path, or visits your home, know that it is a blessing. Throughout history, hummingbirds have been associated to be a symbol of light and joy.
