My neighborhood...the reservoir & watershed

This is my post for Mosaic Monday   and  That's My World

I am showing off my neighborhood which is surrounded by a reservoir and watershed area. My house along one side and the front is just about connected to the watershed. It is like having a park right outside my door. I can walk out of my yard right to the fireroads and to the lake. During the 21 years living here, hubby and I have found our favorite parts of the lake and the watershed that we enjoy. Today, instead of walking to our favorite spot we drove to another part of the lake for a walk.

The watershed and lake are owned by Baltimore city and is one of three reservoirs the city uses for its drinking water. The watershed extends 7 miles east to west and 10 miles north to south.  55 percent of the watershed is located in Baltimore County and is 24,000 acres. This lake sits behind the Prettyboy Dam and the Gunpowder River. Permits are given for Bow hunting in the watershed property September thru January and you can boat and fish by permit. Watershed rangers are now patrolling the three reservoirs. Their main battle lately is the teenage drinking and swimming. It is illegal to swim in the reservoir or ice skate in the winter. Some people enjoy mountain biking and horseback riding on the fireroads. The local Sierra Club has marked miles of trails for hiking.  I have always enjoyed looking for birds and seeing the various species of wildlife. My bird club is helping to do a study on the effect on breeding birds at a clear cut and thinned section of the watershed. It is a three year study to see what grows back in the clear cut area, how much damage the deer are doing on the new growth and the effect on the breeding birds.

This huge black rat snake was curled on top of a broken pine tree. It raised its head and looked at us as we walked past.

This has become another of our favorite spots to walk. The fireroad and trail winds thru these tall pine trees and the trail stays next to the lake for a good distance.

To see more wonderful mosaics and photos please make sure

 to visit Mary's Mosaic Monday  and That's My World. Thanks to Mary for hosting Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of That's My World: Sylvia, Wren, Sandy and Klaus. Thank You also for visiting my blog and post. I hope everyone has a wonderful week.