1 88 Bog-Trotting for Orchids 



stumbled upon the late plants of the Showy Orchis 

 {^Orchis spedabilis) , in bloom — which were fully two 

 weeks past the regular flowering date. They had 

 faded in the hills of Mosholu on May 19th. 



I had heard of Wash-Tub Brook for years, and on 

 Jul}^ 5th started off to explore the valley and the cliffs 

 of Gregor Rocks above North Pownal. A limerock 

 ridge runs from the base of Mount Anthony south- 

 easterly to the Glebe in Witch Hollow region. The 

 soil of the latter is principally black slate, with out- 

 cropping boulders of marble and limerock. In 1899, 

 Mr. W. W. Eggleston of Rutland had visited this val- 

 ley, and reported the rare Rue- Wall Spleenwort and 

 the Purple-stemmed Cliff-Brakes growing abundantly 

 on Gregor Rocks. I followed his path of cliff-climbing, 

 as nearly as possible. Now that the orchid season was 

 practically ended, I was giving my attention to hunt- 

 ing ferns, and I knew I should find them among the 

 limerock cliffs. I had recently collected the Walking 

 Fern in its native haunts. I proceeded up the valley 

 of Wash - Tub Brook, passing the limestone mills 

 northward, toward Mount Anthony and Peckam's 

 Hollow. Another stream, known as Hemlock Brook, 

 flows down from the eastern slopes of Perkins' Hill, 

 and joins the Wash-Tub stream near the lime crushers. 

 All the streams in this western corner of Pownal flow 

 to the Hoosac River, while the streams from the 

 northern summits of the Dome and Mount CEta flow 

 northward to the Walloomsac. 



For the greater part of the valley, Wash-Tub Brook 



