Leader: Ron Altemus
Members: Robin Garnett, Randy Schoch, Oswald Martin, Gene Villiva, Belinda Acre, Jackie Schoch, Fran Jezisek, Susan Altemus, Dani Villiva, Donaro Gardner
Route: the Friday fav - Indian Head Rail Trail from Livingston Road parking lot east to White Plains trailhead and return
Weather: mostly overcast with occasional peeks of sunshine, temps staying in the low to mid 50s, air movement of 8-9 mph that seemed to be from multiple compass points
AMS: varied by rider. Ride leader came in a tad over 11
Mechanicals/Mishaps: none
Report: another congenial group with good conversations in both directions. Mix of other trails users, mostly skewing to walkers including the mothers group again this week. Very few wildlife sightings - mostly birds including vultures, crows, a hawk, and a bluebird.
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A large number of woolly bear caterpillars were observed on the trail. Folklore says that the wider the rusty band, the milder the winter. The viewer will have to determine what constitutes "wide."
These caterpillars are the larva of the Isabella tiger moth. Per Wikipedia: "The banded woolly bear larva emerges from the egg in the fall and overwinters in its caterpillar form, when it literally freezes solid. First its heart stops beating, then its gut freezes, then its blood, followed by the rest of the body. It survives being frozen by producing a cryoprotectant in its tissues. In the spring it thaws."
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