Farm Border Walk: Fighting Flood Damage and Poachers
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.ย. 2024
- If you want to contribute to help my friend Dylan’s family, you can donate here: gofund.me/ca73...
If you want to watch my new documentary about the Back-to-the-Land Movement, go here: • The Myth of Living Off...
GREAT NEWS! Both the PAPERBACK and the HARDCOVER editions of Toby Dog of Gold Shaw Farm are now available on Amazon: bit.ly/TobyBookAz
If you want to buy the NEWEST Gold Shaw Farm shirts, go here: gold-shaw-farm...
TikTok: vm.tiktok.com/...
Instagram: / goldshawfarm
Facebook: / goldshawfarm
Twitter: / goldshawfarm
Patreon: / goldshawfarm
Web: www.goldshawfar...
Send us mail:
Gold Shaw Farm
PO Box 225
Peacham, VT 05862
About Gold Shaw Farm: Gold Shaw Farm is more of a farm-in-progress than an honest-to-goodness farm. Our dream is that someday, we can transform our 150+ acre parcel of land into a regenerative and productive homestead and farm.
Some people live in front of the law, and beg forgiveness instead of asking permission. They believe the laws are for thee, not for me.
Yep, the old boys club
God bless you for helping elderly or frightened neighbors who cannot do the arduous treks to post their land.
Yes, Morgan looks out for others, not just for his own.
(Which is why I thought it kind of silly in another video where he called himself an atheist, even after using the word God in a pretty respectful way. I've been trying to tell people not to just look in churches to find God. In fact often it's easier to find God elsewhere. There are exceptions, and those exceptions are glorious and rare treasures, tending to cluster in areas where being communitarian really does mean something, but I get really tired -- as a God believer myself -- of having to apologize for vain shows.)
You are a good spokesman for your community. I am sorry for your neighbours.
Since you asked:
Scraggs are important to a forest. Not only is the rotting tree providing a home for insects and small animals, but it's giving back to the forest. I didn't know what the term was until I visited a national park here in my State and they had a pamphlet saying how important fallen trees are to the ecosystem. My vote is to leave them alone. You only really need to do something about it if they're in your way, or a fire hazard.
I live in CA.
The "scrags" cause the fires that kiĺl everything.
If you live close to a forest, you need to push the State EPA to get it cleaned up.
There are plenty of places for the bugs to live.
There's only 1 for you.
@@elizabethhowe2110 Your state is a tinderbox because you've neglected to burn your forests for hundreds of years. Don't bring west cost ecology to the east coast. It's not the same style of management required.
@@elizabethhowe2110 Isn't it the lack of small natural wild fire that makes CA's scrags an issue ? I saw this a while ago that maybe the solution was less managed forest but I haven't seen anything CA's fire in a while.
Rotting wood is vital to biodiversity. Take that away and you take away a major component of healthy soil. The environment would degrade quickly if you take it all out
@@elizabethhowe2110 the weather is way dryer there it makes trees hard to decompose by nature and makes dead trees pile up a lot and boom FIRE🔥
Heartbreaking, I feel so sorry for those who have lost their houses.
Keep on your soap box, you deserve to be heard and you make valid points. Good luck in the struggle.
Someone else suggested you get advice from a local university, and I would absolutely suggest this and even take it a step further !
You could have students and biologists come over to your land and do some experiments and research about the waterways. I know as a kid for my biology class I had to do such a thing and it was so so fun, and crucial for my education too.
That “red salamander” is actually an “Eastern red spotted Newt”. It’s in its mid-life part of its lifecycle. They have a really cool lifecycle. I looked them up when we saw some hiking with the kids. They begin and end their lives in the water but have this stage where they look like salamanders. So cool.
animals are not allowed to trespass
About stone walls: Farmers didn’t carry stones out to create walls. They cleared fields and moved the rocks to the edges so they had area to plant.❤
I was thinking they probably loaded them into a wagon and had a horse pull it.
Hey Morgan! About that "salamander."
The eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is a common newt of eastern North America. It frequents small lakes, ponds, and streams or nearby wet forests. The eastern newt produces tetrodotoxin, which makes the species unpalatable to predatory fish and crayfish. It has a lifespan of 12 to 15 years in the wild, and it may grow to 5 in (13 cm) in length. 😊 But a newt is a type of salamander. 😊
Like pufferfish, right?
It is super cute! Thanks for sharing the details.
A Newt is also a little girl in the movie Aliens ; )
We had a lot of rain this summer. And a lot of these orange Newts. Funny thing is we don't have any ponds or streams nearby.
Despite not having the law written that way, I'd still suggest buying a can of purple "no trespassing" paint and tagging every boarder tree. It'll make locating your missing signs easier as well as let people know you are above and beyond state compliance. As a bonus, many out of state hunters and fisherman will recognize the paint from a distance save having to hike over and read your signs.
Extra work, however, this suggestion makes a lot of sense! If you take one side every few weeks, The purple will save you time and eliminate anxiety for future annual effort. Also, you can buy water proof hiking boots. Please keep a second phone with you for safety!
Purple paint law is only in a few states. Here in Wa, it doesn't apply.
That said, the law is well known enough to be used as a visual reminder.
We have just moved to our new to us 5 acre of parcel to start a Regen farmstead, that was a Xmas tree farm in the 70's. Marking the trees we are keeping and will start selectively thin and replant to create 40 to 60% canopy cover. The paint we are using is florescent yellow, but will be adding a property line fence with planting.
@@tjeanvlogs9894 It isn't a thing in VT, either. That's not to say that it wouldn't be a clear visual that the owner DOES mark their land and they need to walk parallel a bit to look for the sign. Also, as I already stated, going beyond the minimum requirement would help with any potential court cases and most out of state visitors would recognize and respect it as being marked land. I'm sure many people in VT at least know the intent of the paint when they see it.
It’s too bad you can laminate the signs to make them more resilient - and the print of stickers for the date and signature update
@@katherinekelly5380 You can't. The signs are already plastic and a lamination machine would melt them.
Nothing stick-on would hold up very long in that climate.
Take photos of your signs and post on google maps to let searchers know its posted.. It will also give you a record.
Or he could make a video of him posting the signs. ... 🙂
take photos? i think hes doing one step better by actually filming him do it in motion
@@Flowmaster925 Perhaps they mean posting the photos with geo location pins on google maps? Not sure if you can even do that. Just trying to figure out what Jensissons5709 means.
@@Oxnate Google maps lets you pin photos . Not all hunters watch videos.
@@Oxnate Google maps lets you pin photos . Not all hunters watch videos.
Morgan, you are so good for your whole community! And YOU are a really good guy ❤❤❤
Stay safe❤❤❤❤
That means this is the third year watching! Im totally dedicated!!!!!! Love the farm!
Wow, the landscape has changed so much from the flooding! So devastating for everyone affected! I can't imagine needing to abandon your property because it is no longer habitable, or losing a family member in such a tragic way. 💔
Dear Farmer, My best suggestion is to find a landowner that is retiring and also annoyed by the current hunting laws and back them to replace the legislators blocking having modernized changes. Vote them out.
you will have a lot of company and signatures!
Wow! The damage from the flooding in your area is really evident to those of us who have watched your other sign posting videos! It is profound the power of water!
Vermont's regulations about sign posting really are a detriment to the property owner, and very antiquated! North Dakota has got the great idea!
Thanks for taking us on your annual walk around! It did take my breath away. So sorry for all the destruction.
People cannot figure out that they are the reason you have to post signs. When I was young and hunted we always asked and whenever we were there we informed the landowner. Now these idiots just show up with a dozen people and start hunting. No respect. We asked for permission every year.
And a dozen dogs
Asking for permission is the rational and safe thing to do. My family owned ~150 acres in southern VT. One day someone got injured (atv rolled over on them), and because we knew they were up there we were able to call an ambulance.
Morgan I love the videos where you walk your property. It’s amazing to see the changes from last year or the water caused. Thanks for taking this with you.
I know beavers are very controversial amongst farmers (potentially flooding pastures, damming up culverts that can cause roads to flood), but they're nature's great hydrological engineers. They help keep streambeds from incising into the landscape, they help keep a stream connected to its floodplain, the wetlands they create help absorb water during the wet season and slowly release water into the streams during the dry season, and they typically don't make a single dam, but several, so their dams help slow sediment flow downstream, filter out sediment, and in a flood event their dams slow the water as well. Even if one beaver dam in a stream with several beaver dams fails, they hopefully won't all fail, and at the very least slow the flow of floodwaters.
...and compared to the temporary dams caused by fallen trees that are prone to collapsing, beavers maintain and strengthen their dams, making a catastrophic failure unlikely.
And they’re cute af!
In England they are reintroduceing beavers to rebuild flood plains .they have realized how much good they do ❤😊
@@PJ818 When talking about catastrophic failures, you could change "temporary dams caused by fallen trees" governments... Seems that almost every country is soon in trouble because they haven't keep up with the old dams.
Totally agree on the HUGE benefits of having beavers in your neighborhood. They are Great engineers and, as others have said, they continue to maintain their dams.
The before and after pictures were fascinating.
One would think that if you've seen one video posting your property line, you've seen them all, but I am always exited for these videos. It also reminds me that I've been watching your channel for a long time!
These posting laws are 19th scentury kinda laws, update them and let people register their land online, go with the time Vermont, one day this will happen and Morgan will be part of this very good change, especially for old folks.
If you are a landowner you should be easily able to disallow people of going onto your property
shame Vermont hasn't embraced the painting the trees purple which makes way more sense
Yeah these posters could easily be ripped off and the hunters just pretend it's not posted land.
I signed the fish and wildlife petition and mentioned you--thank you
Anytime someone brings that up in VT then all the entitled yokels throw a tantrum.
@@Gala-yp8nx that south dakota has more reasonable hunting rules than vermont is hilarious
In terms of best practice, you probably want to chain saw up the downed trees and remove them from the waterway from a security perspective, they can definitely results in flash floods. From a land management perspective, it can be helpful to leave them as a means of restoring natural river movement.
Re the downed trees on your "back 40": Unless there's a pressing need to do anything about them, I suggest you let them be. Let them rot and go back into the biomass. In the forests here in the PNW, downed trees often become "nursery trees": new trees literally grow up out of them, providing essential nutrients the soil itself lacks. Plus, getting an excavator to the site will cause even more damage to the ground, and to still-standing trees.
I feel bad for the owner of the home that had flooding around it and they have to move. Heartbreaking. Your property is gorgeous and I enjoy all your videos that show you walking through it.
I do enjoy the border walks and talks
Very interesting video. The damage from the flooding--jaw-dropping. So sorry for your neighbors--sounds like a huge upheaval for their lives.
Next time bring a can of purple spray paint with you and mark while you’re at it. Could be ahead of the game later and easier to find if the signs fall off 💜
What you encountered was a red-spotted newt (all newts are salamanders) during its (orange) terrestrial "eft" stage. This terrestrial "eft" stage is the third stage of its four distinct life stages: egg, aquatic larvae, terrestrial juvenile (or “eft”), and aquatic adult.
Those bones you found, my first guess was "wild boar" and then you mentioned you didn't find sir Porkington yet. I may be completely wrong, but you may want to check just in case....
My exact thought.
I was thinking the same... How long Porkington has been gone at this point? Because those bones are quite clean... So the bones could be older and that way not related.
- they seem too clean for Porkington.
God I remember this from last year 😂❤
Can't believe people just walk in your "garden" and hunt
In my state you have to get permission from the land owner to hunt posted or not. That is the way is should be.
@@harpintn IIRC here in VT you can hunt unposted forested land. It's basically an extension of the open fields doctrine to hikers, hunters, etc. Nobody should be hunting in your garden and anyone telling you otherwise is probably trying to pull a fast one on you. Good time to call fish and game, they take that stuff seriously.
@@LordPerique The problem is dogs, can't read the signs, and dog hunters are usually a long way from them.
All the downed trees are creating more, if not slightly different, habitat. Birds and small mammals will find refuge, food storage, and nesting opportunities. Yet some of the leaning trees need to be sawed so that they will not cause calamity down the road. Good job, Morgan. Love to listen and watch.
Great video showing your property.
Flooding damage was powerful. People need to learn about that power👍👍👍
OMG the water damage is unbelievable..Last year when you did a post your land video I told you to take the time and do a 4 wheeler trail all the way around. good thing you didn't take my advice it would be washer away. Thanks for sharing and caring.
Sending out a pack of hounds with GPS trackers is not hunting. It's psychopathic behavior.
Until it's possible to remote-control the hounds too, which would raise other ethical questions.
Now there ARE companies that make (expensive) dog-robots. There is zero ethical question with such a machine, as long as it can be adequately monitored and controlled. Imagine a dog-robot treeing a bear, where every human involved knows exactly what is happening, and is controlling it. That would be different as long as it was actually for hunting where the ultimate shot is made in person.
Boston Dynamics, the company that makes one advanced dog-robot, isn't all that far from Vermont. It stipulates no military use, but ethical hunting is probably another question.
You want to talk psychopathic behavior? I saw a video of a guy coyote hunting, using an electronic call, and a decoy dog. He ended up bringing what looked like a mated pair and shot the male...then his dog proceeded to grab the coyote by the neck and shake. I commented about it being "almost like dog fighting". Now THAT is psychopathic behavior!
I agree with your first statement, but that’s not even remotely psychopathic behaviour.
@@SeekingTheLoveThatGodMeans7648those dog bots are being used by military so that’s false
@@dakotareid1566 sending hounds to chase something up a tree so you waddle out and shoot it in the face is the behavior of a serial killer.
Thanks Morgan, it was a wonderful walk, sorry about the storm damage.
It's a super good point on the app for hunters - good to find open land for hunting.
In fact, possibly that might be a good initial avenue to explore. Just add app postings, if that's not already been done. Lowers conflict for properties that are properly posted. It'd be annoying for hunters too to try to figure out where is accessible and not just based off signage, even with the postings - still fairly easy to miss them in dense woods.
when dealing with fallen or leaning trees its often good to have a treefelling crew come in and clear it. If you want to do it yourself its mostly about going in with a chainsaw and a winch on your tractor. Dealing with fallen trees that could be under tension or leaning trees, is very dangerous and its often best to have someone experienced deal with it. That being one of the farmers in the area or have a crew come in and deal with it.
THIS
will also get you good supply of firewood
Fire wood!
In Oregon, we let the beavers have at it and they might prevent some of that flooding problem too.
Cue the music: 🎶 My buddy Alfred..🎶😄
amazing rock formations in that unearthed river bed
This is over whelming . The destruction and the laws .
Thanks for your soap box . Would not know any of this .
I follow some British channels and they have similar issues with flooding. Their government is assisting their farms and properties by creating drainage basins (large ponds) to catch and retain rain water runoff. They call it re-widling projects. Our U.S. government needs to adopt similar projects (state governments are creating over passes under passes for wildlife to migrate safely across roads and highways).
I really appreciate your camera work and story telling! You are one of the best on TH-cam💚
These are some of my favorite videos from you. I like seeing the woodsy part of your property
Thanks for taking me along on your posting Morgan! I could listen to you all day. Your voice has such a calming effect! The devastation on the properties is very concerning! Should it be left alone, should it be bulldozed? My hope is that Peacham never experiences such flooding again! Take care Morgan!
I think they’re thinking that ease of posting land online will somehow limit hunters from hunting. They are essentially betting on the inconvenience and work involved with posting the land allowing more hunters to go on other people’s property.
Other states don’t allow that freedom with hunting and do just fine. I wish they’d make this update so it doesn’t discriminate against elderly land owners.
I watch and like 👍 all your videos for a couple of years now. But this one here is my favorite in a long time. Thx for going on a walk with me. ❤
I suggest you take the opinion of a waterways specialist from a nearby university. You should make a long term goal of transforming the waterways for safer water management.
Say, over 10 years you clear debris and establish safer water passways. Should be doable with neighbours help too.
I like the idea of this but it will definitely take the support of neighbors since the water doesn't run purely through his land. Now would be the best time to start something like this though since so many people are feeling the raw effects of it. You'd likely get more support to do such things in light of it.
Love this video every year! Morgan maybe consider doing a quarterly hike throughout your land that would be great just to see the land and create some extra videos!
I think the salamander was actually an adolescent newt.
You got Newts! 🎉
Suggestions. 1. Grocery bag or news paper bag your socks. Keeps your socks and feet dry in wet shoes.
2. Small ladder or tree scaling gear, you want those signs up HIGHER so people cant remove them.
3. Take pictures per sign, with the date and a colored dot on each to distinguish each. Then there is a record. A post or a video like this is a good record too!
4. Pat yourself on the back because your awesome!!!!!
Wow it is a beautiful property and this forces you to go on a challenging hike once a year. It sucks but reframing it that way in your brain might help 🤷🏻♀️💚
Its ridiculous that they are allowed to trespass on your land, it should be posted online that its your land and trespassing is not allowed.
bet he knows what happened to the pig.
You’re right that Vermont trespass laws are too onerous for landowners, but online solutions aren’t very effective.
@@snakey319most likely but also Morgan found no blood and even silenced gunshots are loud
People like those guys
just don't care. They
are not good neighbors.
Also, during the big
game hunting season;
there are a lot of yahoos
that come onto the
countryside from the
city. They managed to
get a hunting license
by going to a course
and a firing range but
they know nothing
about the country or
the people who live
and work in the country.
I have friends in the
Adirondack mountains
of NY state that paint
"COW", in large letters
on both sides of their
cows and their 2 horses
with day-glow orange
spray paint during hunting
season.
Some of those urban fools
believe that cows only exist
in the black/white coat color
of the most popular dairy cow
(i.e. Holstein Freisan)
There are 450+ known breeds
of cattle (cows) world-wide with
many coat colors (with the
individual adaptability of
each breed for the region
that the animal breed (or
hybrid breeds) originated.
This fellow's Highland (a beef-
meat, breed) cattle originated
in a climate very much like
Vermont. They were a good
choice because of their
climate adaptability and
their size as well as disposition.
Some breeds require grain and
can not survive/thrive without it.
Some breeds are huge (like purebred
Holstein Friesens, a dairy cow =
highest milk production per breed)
Some also have rather cantankerous
dispositions because they were
bred to be semi-wild (or became "feral")
and adapted to living on sub-par grasses
for forage and also developed a heightened
"wild" instinct to protect themselves from
predators.
@@goreandhoodies3626 My silenced rifle isn't much louder than my car door. Especially deep in the woods you wouldn't hear it from his farm house.
Morgan, I would like to suggest you invest in a portable sawmill. With all the downed trees, you could mill your own lumber for projects, have lots of slab wood for firewood or to sell, and sawdust for bedding for the farm animals. My friend has one and he does all of the above, plus mills lumber for his neighbors, and sells it for less than the box stores do. Sometimes he cuts lumber for a percentage of it for his own use or to sell. Just another possible income source for you, plus being able to clean up a lot of the downed trees before they rot or become bug ridden.
Brings back my childhood. I was always walking in the woods
Thanks for taking us with you.
ANY WATER on property you own is pure Gold! Another resource. ( PUN INTENDED!)
Water rights are more of an issue in the west.
I absolutely love your vids Morgan.
You're such a variety of yourself, it's like watching you be the professional you and the young you and all the other yous, including the Farmer you.
❤ luv you all much.
NevadaMontana Edmonton Alberta
I'd recommend leaving the extremely flooded areas as a floodplain. For the other areas that you plan on using economically (be it woods or farmland), I'd suggest to get treefellers in.
With trees that died in summer and/or remanants of a catastrophe like a storm or flood there are plenty of nasty surprises hidden. This is work for the pros.
I 100% agree with you regarding digital posting Morgan! It would make things sooo much easier for everyone involved.
Wishing you and your family health and peace.❤❤❤
That road river actually looks so beautiful.
Hi Morgan, Maybe you can work together with some kind of Forestry school in Vermont, to let them develop a plan and put there hands together for some in the field education?
The flooding is crazy. I’m glad you’re OK.
Disregarding the “sign” Requirement. Walking the property yearly or twice year is a good idea,
I appreciate how you are bringing discussions of civil engineering dynamics into this, like stormwater conveyance and storage -- and how tools like nature-based solutions (i.e. a park with bioswales) would be the more responsible land-use there by the brook.
seeing all the exposed culverts and the destruction of the roads does two things to me: my memories of landslides I saw as a kid, and now I have Post10 in my head going:”Whoaaa would you look at that!”
Considering the impact of climate change, our New England states need to work cooperatively on watershed management. Nice video, thank you.
Perhaps the bones were all that remain of Sir Porkington???😔🥺
😢
Bless You, Morgan, for being so proactive in your community and especially for helping your neighbors with everything from updating signs to reminding us of the ongoing fund raising efforts for those who have lost homes and loved ones 🙏❤🙏
Really appreciate this video and showing us another aspect of having a farm. Thank you for taking the time and effort since I can only imagine how many takes and set up you had to do to capture everything!
Looks like a good side hustle for some young, fit Vermonters. Crews of 2 or 3 (just to be safe) with a small electric chain saw, signs, markers, paint, stapler, etc. can hire themselves out to mark a property. As you have observed there are lots of people who are not physically able to manage it themselves but would like their land posted. If they manage to clear a trail that can be walked bordering a property, it's a win for the owner and makes the job easier next year.
Some might be willing to do it for permission to hunt there, but that's a whole other tangent.
9:22 water likes to take the path of least resistance . if you can channel it out with something , maybe along boundary of pasture with it .
many waterscape company could help you make stone banks to prevent further erosions . plus they can help you make more sustainable, mosquito-free and ecofriendly duck pond (like aquascape) than just some stagnant muck that it is now .
In my state, all you have to do is paint a purple stripe around the trees every 100 ft to indicate no trespassing/hunting.
It's easy to see throughout the video, that the small creek which becomes a raging river needs more space to spread out. Dig another 10 feet back into the eroding banks on either side, then take the dead trees and make beaver dam types of structures with them. Look further upstream for an area to dig trench to divert water to a low-lying area, as well as overflow channels (above the normal water level) for rain events. You want some areas around the creek to be flood plains. Tough in the hills, I know, which is why a public project to dig reservoirs & storm overflow drains is warranted.
I enjoy this walk too
Loved you're '2 cents!' ... You're reasoning is worth GOLD (no pun intended) if they'd listen to the wisdom!
Keep sharing ...
Thank you!
I hate the Vermont laws that make this necessary for you to do, Morgan. But I admit, I do so enjoy going on these tours of your land with you.
Even if Vt changed to the "Purple Paint equals No Trespassing" along with the town registration you wouldn't have to replace or mark every sign, every year. A drone flight along with a quick walk through in dense areas with binoculars to ensure the tree has not fallen over would be easier. Those who break the law can't easily remove your sign and claim they didn't see it.
Morgan, I know it must be a tough trek and I agree it’s crazy that you have to do this but I do enjoy the walk updating signs every fall. Thanks for taking us along.
I always enjoy this annual walk-about with you.
Talking to a lawyer about your changing property borders is a good thing.
I don't think his borders are changing. The course taken by the stream has changed and moved on to his land.
Morgan, your property is beautiful. Looking forward to my trip to VT in October, including Peachum.
BTW thanks for helping the older landowners ....👍
Beautiful walk❤
In regards to the deadwood in streams, I’d look into getting the opinion of a biologist who specializes in northeast riparian areas (universities may be your best bet). You could be messing with some ecological processes, but also working in the mucky confines of walls of sediment and loose tree root systems is just a gamble in its own respect so you’d wanna be sure any work that needs to be done is going to be effective in the first place.
Good old chain saw. A ranch I worked on we cut down fallen logs blocking the creek. Usually we left logs unless someone wanted to buy fire wood, but they had to sign a weiver to get it.
I look forward to the early autumn walk in the woods.
The property boundary app is a great idea. The hunters know it is they're just wanting to trespass. Having the trail by using the app would be encourage them to stay legal in their ventures forth.
My father taught me how to walk the land. Cut yourself a sturdy staff ( up to shoulder high not too heavy). It makes walking treacherous areas banks water rocks etc to have that third point of triangulated balance and can keep you from falling. It works. You can leave them in the woods for the next time through too.
That’s nuts you have to update signs there. We have signs that remain and don’t need to be dated. My no trespassing signs are visible from the roads and are posted at entry points but other than that those are enough.
Keep going on the soap box, Morgan -- you make excellent points to are advantageous to both sides of the hunting debate. Also, my jaw dropped when you showed that red salamander -- what an amazing animal. Loved going on your walk with you, even though it is silly that you have to update your posted signs every year. Silver linings :)
It would be well worth having an expert advise you on water management on your property.
Whilst I know/understand why you hate to have to do this Morgan, I always enjoy your posting video. As a foreigner to the USA I always find these antiquated US/state laws fascinating
These videos are always cool! It was interesting to see the damage from the flood, it's always sad to hear about the things that happened. I'm sorry that you get trespassers.
Time to bring your washing pan and look for gold in the stream
Serendipitous, its in his name, maybe meant to find a gold vein on the property.
In Texas , signs and purple paint. Unless someone has a hunting lease or signed up for a public land hunt, It is pretty much assumed hunting without permissIon is tresspass. A sign or purple is needed for prosecution. Spraying purple on tree might not be nice to look at, but everyone knows what it means. It is needed if your property is adjoining a hunting area.
That posting law is absurd and definitely discriminatory.
I enjoyed seeing your "nature walk". It sounds like you would benefit from waterproof hiking boots like I bought when the family was planning several days of mountain hiking. It is good to be prepared for multiple terrain and weather conditions.
Water proof is water holding once the water gets in though. In my experience, well draining shoes and good socks allow you to not care about having wet feet while hiking