By Susan Ashdown, Rail Trail Task Force member
Late summer has arrived on the Dryden Rail Trail. Suddenly the goldenrod is blooming and flowers from earlier in the summer now stretch their seedheads out over the trail. Soon we will need to put on a jacket to walk or bike on the trail and we will begin to see leaves turning. The changing mood of the Trail through the seasons is part of its magic!
Late Summer Goldenrod
If seeing the Goldenrod makes your nose itch, it is probably not from the goldenrod pollen. This late-blooming flower has sticky pollen, and its bright yellow color attracts bees, butterflies, and other insects to carry it away.
Ragweed
Here is the real culprit—ragweed! It has tiny green flowers and its pollen is abundant, light, and not at all sticky. It relies on the wind, not insects, to take it to other ragweed plants… and to your nose!
Other late summer flowers are appearing as well; jewel weed and thistles, among others.
Asters
Although this picture was taken in September, 2022, asters are starting to appear now. This is probably a New England Aster, but there are hundreds of species of asters and they can be very difficult to identify.
Colorful Fall Leaves
Hopefully the weather will not be as rainy as we move toward fall so that we have another year of colorful changing leaves on the trees along the trail.
Winter
We can look forward to the crisp, cold, clear days of winter, hopefully with just the right amount of snow. The Dryden Rail Trail is a wonderful place to do cross-country skiing, or even snowshoeing!
Spring
Then, before we know it, the small miracles of the spring will appear—first trout lillies (top) and bloodroot (middle), followed by trillium (bottom) and may apples.
I hope you enjoyed this brief journey through the seasons on the Dryden Rail Trail!
Susan is a member of the Dryden Rail Trail Task Force and is lucky to be a trail neighbor. She walks and bikes the Varna section of the Trail frequently, and can often be seen commuting on her e-bike to East Hill Plaza for shopping at the P&C and the Wednesday Ithaca Farmer’s market, or to Cornell to visit exhibits and the library. All photos by Susan Ashdown.
Dryden Rail Trail 