My wife and I enjoy eating our lunch in our screened-in back porch. The ceiling fan always produces a nice breeze, and it is so relaxing to listen to the birds along the river.

After lunch, it is almost mandatory to spend a few minutes in the rocker glider and enjoy the peace and quiet. We had just set down in the swing when I noticed something unusual about the two wooden barrel halves we have stacked on top of one another. With the halves stacked together, they look almost like the original barrel, but something was strange looking about the bung.

Looking a little closer, I determined I was seeing the back 1/4th or 1/3rd of a large blacksnake’s back end hanging out of the barrel.

I casually mentioned to my wife, “We have a lunch guest today,” and I pointed at the barrel bung. Once her eyes adjusted and she realized what she was seeing, she quickly moved to the glider seat farthest away from our guest, and let out a colorful metaphor describing our visitor.

Laughing, I said, “That’s no way to talk about a guest. It might just be the answer to all of the marauding chipmunks we have devastating your plants.”

Yes, Chip and Dale… there’s a new sheriff in town. Better watch your step!

B&O Trail opens

On June 5, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Speedway Trails Association (STA) opened the recently completed B&O Trail extension in the town of Speedway and city of Indianapolis.

The new 1.9-mile asphalt multi-use rail trail was constructed by STA with help from a $4.9 million Next Level Trails (NLT) grant. The award was announced by Gov. Eric J. Holcomb in May 2019 as part of the first grant round of NLT. The project included a partnership with The Indianapolis Foundation and Central Indiana Community Foundation (CICF).

The recently completed project extends the existing B&O Trail in Speedway to the east and west. The eastern extension adds 1.7 miles of new trail from Allison Way to Michigan Street in Haughville. The western extension includes a new bridge over Eagle Creek extending the existing trail 0.2 miles west to High School Road.

The final connection to downtown Indianapolis will be a 1.0-mile protected bike lane along the improved Michigan Street corridor. The bike lane, which is under construction, is scheduled for completion in early 2024.

DNR Director Dan Bortner said, “The DNR is proud to partner with the Speedway Trail Association to build this major trail extension and to invest in Hoosiers’ quality of life.”

The project’s next phase of development, which is scheduled for completion in 2025, includes extending the B&O Trail west from High School Road 0.7 miles to meet the B&O Trail Association’s (BOTA) NLT project extending the existing 7.5-mile B&O Trail beginning at Raceway Road and runs through Hendricks County.

The now $180 million program is administered by the DNR and facilitates critical trail connections within and between Hoosier communities.

Including the B&O Trail, 18 NLT projects are complete totaling 58.53 miles of new trail open to the public. An additional 46 miles are under construction, and 138 more miles are in the pre-construction phase of development.

More information about the NLT is at on.IN.gov/NextLevelTrails.

DNR pools and beaches open

Get ready to cool off, Hoosiers. Public swimming pools located in Indiana State Parks are now open, as well as the DNR swimming beaches.

Pools now open include Brown County, Clifty Falls, McCormick’s Creek, O’Bannon Woods, Prophetstown, Shakamak, Spring Mill, Turkey Run, and Versailles state parks. In addition, the beach at Indiana Dunes State Park is open with lifeguards on duty.

The public pool at Cagles Mill Lake (Lieber State Recreation Area [SRA]) opened May 28. The Cagles Mill Lake swimming beach opened May 27. The public pool at Spring Mill opened June 3, excluding Wednesdays, when it will be closed.

Applications are still being accepted for lifeguard positions, which are open to qualified applicants ages 15 and older. For more information about lifeguarding, contact the state park property nearest you listed above. Phone numbers are under “Find a Park” at stateparks.IN.gov.

Beaches offering swimming with no lifeguards opened at Chain O’Lakes, Lincoln, Ouabache, Pokagon, Potato Creek, Summit Lake, and Whitewater Memorial state parks; at Starve Hollow and Deam Lake SRAs; and at Brookville, Cagles Mill (Lieber SRA), Cecil M. Harden (Raccoon SRA), Hardy, Mississinewa, Monroe, and Patoka lakes, as well as at Ferdinand State Forest. The beach at Salamonie Lake is closed to swimming due to low water levels.

For public pool or beach hours at the property you plan to visit, contact the property directly since times vary by location. Directory information can be found at: stateparks.IN.gov.

The aquatic center at Abe Martin Lodge (Brown County State Park) and the pools at Clifty Inn (Clifty Falls State Park), Potawatomi Inn (Pokagon State Park), and Turkey Run Inn (Turkey Run State Park) are open for registered guests.

Readers can contact the author by writing to this publication, or e-mail to jackspaulding@hughes.net.

Spaulding’s books, “The Best of Spaulding Outdoors,” and his latest, “The Coon Hunter And The Kid,” are available from Amazon.com in paperback or as a Kindle download.