I needed a good trail hike to work out the soreness from Sunday's Knoxville Marathon and decided to try a little known trail only 9 or so miles from my house that I had never hiked. It turned out to be a gem of a trail and today I'm starting to feel like winter might finally be over. I found at least three Louisiana Waterthrush singing along the trail (and got great looks at one working the edge of the creek across from me) along with a host of butterflies, wildfowers, insects, and reptiles along the way. Other birds included Northern Rough-winged Swallows, Great Blue Herons, Wood Ducks, and Belted Kingfishers. Bring on Spring!