Sunset through a beer bottle

click on the images to enlarge

Glen Haven, MI - Part 2

Insects galore
We saw this mink while picnicing on Lake LeelanauIn the above picture (forgive my lazy stitching), you can see the Manitou islands in northern Lake Michigan. From the Leelanau website;

Chippewa Indians Legend tells us of the mother bear, Mishe Mokwa, who fled a great forest fire in Wisconsin with her two cubs. Mishe Mokwa reached the Michigan shore and climbed a steep bluff to await her cubs. The cubs, exhausted by their long swim, never reached land. The mother bear waited day after day to no avail. Finally she died. The Great Spirit Manitou marked her resting place with the Sleeping Bear Dunes and raised North and South Manitou Islands from the spot where the cubs perished.


Sleeping Bear Dunes

Glen Haven, MI - Part 1: Fungi

Rahul, Jeanne, and I went to Glen Haven, which is here.
Below are some fungi that we found in the forest trails
between Glen Haven and Glen Arbor.

I'm not sure that the above photo is of a fungus. It might just
be a strange outgrowth from a fallen tree.

Part II will feature some interesting insects,
so stay tuned.

Cedar Bluff, Southern Indiana

Jeanne and I went to Cedar Bluff today. It's about 10 miles southwest of Bloomington. It was a beautiful summer day, perfect for hiking. Unfortunately, we chose to wear sandals; not exactly ideal footwear when climbing over wet rocks. Even so, I'm glad we got to explore this area before leaving Indiana.

Nola Radish: Years One and Two

Distorted by motion and the camera phone

Note on the pictures: The taller pictures were taken with a phone, the wider pictures with a Cannon. They were taken by me between August 2006 and June 2008 with the exception of the first picture, which was taken by Nola's foster mother when she was about 8 weeks old.

Frog, Leaf, Vulture

Near Bardstown, KY

adjusted contrast

Smoky Mountains

We went to the Smoky Mountains about a week ago. Spring was in full bloom and the land was covered in brilliant colors; lime, bright pink, amber, lavender. I've driven through Tennessee before, but the state's beauty never fully reveals itself until you leave the Interstate and explore the mountains. Truly one of the most magnificent areas I've ever had the chance to wander, the Smoky Mountains are largely untouched by human meddling.

As this is meant to be a picture blog, I'm going to keep the words to a minimum and let the pictures speak for themselves. These were all taken in the Smoky Mountains, near the highest point east of the Mississippi.

Click image for a larger version

Back down from the mountain, we played some guitar on our friend's lawn.
This picture really shows the colors of a Tennessee Spring.

Hope you're enjoying your Spring-time.