Landscape Photography 2013: Jericho Research Forest

Today we ventured into the Jericho Research Forest. I had never been there before, and only knew of it as a distant place my Forestry-major friends traveled to for weekly labs. The air was frigid. Freezing. Raw. I had worn the warmest clothes I thought necessary, after all it had been 40 degrees that morning. Quickly that momentary warmth had faded, and bitter cold settled into our bones within minutes of leaving the safety of the heated cars.

We hiked along the trails, discussing the history of the region, succession species, regrowth, and the University of Vermont's relationship with the land. For this journal entry, I've decided just to show my favorite photos taken from the day, and to explain why I liked them.

The trail was welcoming and inviting.

I like the perspective of looking up. Not necessarily a religious thing, I just think often people forget to do so in today's world riddled with technology and small screens.

One lesson I took home from my plant biology classes was a very simple phrase… "roots do not grow above ground". These roots were obviously subject to natural and human-induced erosion.

This tiny pinecone was lost amongst fallen leaves and pine needles.

I enjoy taking photos of people without people actually being in them. I've found people tend to act much different when a camera is pointed at them, which is exactly why I try to not put faces in my photos. I feel like a planned photo of a person is a lie.

This was one of the older trees in Jericho. It towered over many of the other trees, shading the lower growth from light. I found it odd that it had no branches until the top, most likely from loss of light under the forest canopy.