Oysters in the Woods

The last few weeks, when I have gone out to the Woods, it has been continuously wet, foggy, overcast and mild to cool. This has been great for fungi. Yesterday I enjoyed again finding a nice display of Pleurotus oyster mushrooms. I broke one off and enjoyed it's flavor and texture.
We've had several light tenth-inch rains. I enjoy having the quiet Woods.. along with a dozen deer. They all seemed to be youngsters, yearlings, only one older doe. I wonder if this is because hunting season had eliminated the older larger deer.. probably not the case.
Yesterday in the elms west of the beaver pond, there was the strong sweet odor of decomposing leaves (?) - I couldn't quite identify it; but I know I have smelled it often before. It filled the Woods, vaguely tannic(?)..perhaps a smell associated with forestry operations.
The East Pond is low..only a half foot of water, maybe a hundred gallons. The water is taking on the gray, cobalt-bluish tint I associate with anoxic conditions. The eastern Wash has long stretches of standing water. In recent rains it has broken through the western levee by a spontaneous dam of woody debris near the mimosa stump. The water flowed west out across a wider area of the Woods.
This is the season of the year when it is best to explore the Woods and find new places. The leaves are gone, so walking off trail is easy. It is fun to just wander, lose orientation and come back to familiar places from a new direction. Towards the end of the day, wandering on the east side, I've noticed the silent flight of a large barred owl I've disturbed. After it regains a new perch it calls as if asking if anyone is there.