Pennsylvania Woods and Waters, Early August

After so many days of rain, we had sunshine on the weekend, finally. Saturday was a do-stuff-around-the-house day, but we took Sunday as a fun day, and drove up to Hyner Run, not far from Renovo, for a swim.

First, we stopped in Bellefonte to grab a pizza at Pizza Mia. We'd never had their pizza before, but my husband had a coupon. So we ran by, got the pizza, and I was holding it on my lap, waiting for a place to pull over and eat it in the shade.

But as we drove through town, the Catholic mass had just ended at one of the churches, and hordes of people were suddenly crossing the street in front of our car. A cop was standing in the middle of the road, helping the throngs move along safely.

So out came the pizza and we each ate a quick slice, as we sat in traffic watching the Catholics cross the road. (Is there a joke in here somewhere? I'm not really sure. But yes, the whole situation was as strange as it sounds!)

When we got to Hyner, we decided to go walking in the creek first thing. The last time we were there, I walked in the creek and my husband didn't; he got chiggers, I didn't. We read later that cold water stops them in their tracks. So into the cold water we both went! (Yes, I recommend a good pair of water shoes, with a good grippy sole; I use mine lots.)

The water was higher than usual, with tiny rapids. So unlike last time, when the surface was like glass, the reflections weren't quite so good for pictures. And some of our favorite rocks for sitting on were under water. But the creek was cool and refreshing, as always.

Above is a picture of the area where we stream-walked. There is a rock cairn down in front, and I swear it was there when I got there. I do not build such things, as I know those rocks are home and shelter to bugs and other critters, and moving the rocks disrupts the wildlife underneath. So leave the rocks alone! (But if there is a cairn, I am indeed willing to photograph it.)

And then we went and swam in the pool, and even on a Sunday afternoon, it wasn't too crowded. There was the usual "Marco!" "Polo!" of children playing. When we were done swimming, I went into the women's changing rooms, and I spied a small, black bug in my beach sack.

First I thought it was a spider. So I dumped out the sack to get a closer look. And looked to see - what an intriguing bug! Not a spider. Maybe a wheel bug or something of that nature, only very black and very perky and very small?

I wished for my camera, but generally I don't take it with me when I'll be swimming and my bag will be left unattended. So I merely watched the bug as it left my bag and walked down under the bench where my stuff was lying. What an adorable, jaunty, and sassy little bug.

When I was done drying off and changing, I thought about the bug again. I wanted to check to be sure it hadn't crawled BACK into my swim bag, so I kneeled down and looked up beneath the bench.

To my surprise, a much bigger spider was already wrapping the bug up as a snack! Talk about wrong-place-wrong-time. (Or maybe right-place-right-time, for the spider.) And I came home and looked it up and yes, indeed, it was a wheel bug nymph, Arilus cristatus.

Hold on; there is another snack at the end of this story.  :-) About half-way through the swim, my husband had asked: did I think I could eat some fried chicken in Lock Haven on the way home? Now, one of my personal policies is that adventures themselves are fine and good, but adventures sandwiched between excellent snacks are even better.

And so I allowed that yes, I thought I might be able to choke down some fried chicken. So we stopped and had Kentucky Fried Chicken, with mashed potatoes and gravy, and cole slaw, and it was indeed delicious. And then we headed home.

And everybody lived happily ever after, as far as we know it. (Well, except possibly for the wheel bug. The wheel bug may not have made it out alive.) The rest of us had an amazing journey, from Pizza Mia, to the woods and waters of Hyner Run, to KFC. So here's my soundtrack song: The Who, with Amazing Journey.