What a difference...

... 10 or 12 degrees can make!

When I went out on my ride Thursday morning, the radio said it was 54 degrees out. This morning they were saying it was 42. So I was curious how different it might be out on the trail today.

Well, first thing I noticed was that I was glad I'd put on a bit more clothing! Thursday I was fine in just my Earth Wind and Rider long sleeve wool jersey, but today I was glad to have a thin Ibex long sleeve wool tee shirt under my Ibex jersey, AND a light windbreaker over that! And honestly, for the first half hour or so, I wouldn't have minded something to keep my ears warmer! Ah well, I warmed up soon enough.

The other major difference was the frogs. On the outbound leg of my ride, there were only a few spring peepers gamely chirruping away, sounding a bit forlorn.  By the time I was headed back home, the chorus had grown in both size and enthusiasm, but it was still a faint shadow of the sounds of Thursday. And most interesting... NO wood frogs singing at all!  Apparently they need warmer temperatures than the peepers to feel like singing.

One very happy discovery though... and a surprise... as I was just about back home, I saw a bird flitting into the underbrush... and it didn't look like any I'd seen of late. Curiosity caused me to stop and turn around, and I'm glad it did, because when I peered into the foliage, I saw a Northern Oriole! I haven't seen one of those in a very long time... such a pretty bird, and sadly not all that common any more, it seems.

All in all, it was a beautiful morning, even if it was a bit chilly at first.  Fewer folks were out to enjoy it, but I'm glad I got out there to enjoy it!