Actually the poem says "The stark white ring-barked forests, all tragic to the moon" but this white snow gum forest is not ring-barked, nor is it their normal healthy white ... this is the result of the bushfires that swept through the region in 2003. They are reshooting from the base and will recover but it will be a slow process.
At this altitude snow gums grow low and are usually twisted into fantastic shapes. The stuff of many awesome photographs, typically in the snow.
Musing:
From The Snow Gum by Douglas Stewart
"It is the snow-gum silently,
In noon’s blue and the silvery
Flowering of light on snow.
Performing its slow miracle
Where upon drift and icicle
Perfect lies its shadow."
Mmm, it would be just as common I think, depending on the temperament and the intelligence of your horse. Like good and bad drivers, I suppose.
ReplyDeleteEither way is grim.
ReplyDeleteNot a nice whay to die I suppose. No quick emegergency medical care. Beautiful stone.
ReplyDeleteBeneath Thy Feet
He looks pretty forgotten, though, doesn't he? I like the style of wrough iron 'rope' that once hung around this grave. The grass looks as though it has not seen water for many a long month, although I think this not to be the case. I wonder if this is merely a form of dried off summer growth. I heard there is so much fodder out there that the bushfire threat in the coming season is immense.
ReplyDeleteit looks a little sad.... but i like this pic! and always interesting to read the cause of death..
ReplyDeleteThe iron frame of the grave seems very low! Almost suggests that this grave is not just overgrown but may have subsided over time! At least, it appears that there has been some natural disturbance!
ReplyDelete