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Dark side of the moon

Poet, thinker, dreamer, writer.

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Lake Calumet: A vision for bringing back life

Dark side of the moon Posted on March 31, 2018 by dlschirfMarch 31, 2018  

25 March 2018

J. and I headed to the Calumet area, specifically Deadstick Pond near Lake Calumet. There’s no public access I can see, and a fence separates the area around Lake Calumet from the frontage road parallel to I-94, Doty Avenue. Collected against the fence is trash—tons of trash. I envision hordes of high school students and adult volunteers spending a few hours a few weekends cleaning up the accumulated trash along the fences at Lake Calumet and Deadstick Pond. The area seems so little traveled that no one may notice, but it’d be a small step toward restoring a semblance of beauty to the area—as long as it isn’t trashed again.

The Calumet area, for many years the center of Chicago’s steel industry, carries an eerie air of a transition zone. Stony Island, a broad, heavily traveled avenue through Hyde Park, South Shore, and other communities, turns into a two-lane, potholed, unmaintained road flanked by tall grasses, nascent parks like Big Marsh, landfills, and the occasional industrial-style building and parking lot. There’s not a house to be seen, nor any sign of a neighborhood.

Eventually, the avenue that further north boasts restaurants, stores, churches, hospitals, and other urban fixtures dwindles down to a cracked, littered pavement that ends abruptly short of a curve of the Calumet River. Traveling down Stony Island can feel like a ride on a time machine toward a future apocalypse, when industry’s mark is visible but faded, and nature is slowly creeping back through the piles of plastic bags and bottles. It’s like the end and beginning of the world.

As J. carefully navigated the potholes, a few cars and trucks sped past at speed—in a hurry to get to who knows where. We stopped on the roadside at Deadstick Pond and peered through the vegetation and fence for a peek at some ducks bobbing along among gray snags. There may have been swans, or plastic bags masquerading as swans.

Next we found Hegewisch Marsh, where he parked by the rail bridge and we wandered down a rough road parallel to the tracks. Many ducks floated on the open water while their passerine counterparts flitted about the bare trees. Along the way I found a lot of scat, most loaded with fur. The open areas connected by the river, rail lines, streets and bridges, along with wildlife-rich marshes, must be coyote havens. I hoped one was following us with its amber eyes as we tread on its territory.

Rail bridge near Hegewisch Marsh
Rail bridge near Hegewisch Marsh
Furry scat—coyote?

Coyote scat? Lots of fur

Hegewisch Marsh

Hegewisch Marsh

We stopped at Flatfoot Lake in Beaubien Woods, also off I-94, which roars over the otherwise serene setting.

Flatfoot Lake with I-94 beyond the tree line

Flatfoot Lake at Beaubien Woods

Flatfoot Lake pier

Flatfoot Lake at Beaubien Woods

On a satellite map, Lake Calumet, the largest lake within Chicago, looks artificial. I couldn’t guess its original contours. It’s surrounded by nearly empty, decaying streets, the occasional vast building, the ceaseless noise of a busy interstate, and other trappings of modern dreams. There are other dreams, though. The Lake Calumet Vision Committee has a dream for the Calumet region that includes biking, jogging, paddling, and sailing, along with a trail connecting the Pullman National Monument to the young Big Marsh Park—potentially 500 acres of new habitat. It’s going to take time, and it can’t happen fast enough for me.

Now if we could only do something about the roar of I-94.

Source: Raising Parks and Wetlands from Industrial Sites along Lake Calumet

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Posted in Adventures, Blog, Photos | Tagged Chicago, photography, wildlife | Leave a reply

Signs of the times, part 3: Watch out for wildlife, hazards, and polite requests

Dark side of the moon Posted on February 10, 2018 by dlschirfMarch 13, 2018  

I don’t see signs about wildlife very often, although this one at Windigo, Isle Royale National Park, warns unsuspecting visitors about the island’s less famous, thieving canine. What do the red foxes of Isle Royale do with the car keys and hiking boots they purloin?

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This sign, at Hidden Lake Forest Preserve near Morton Arboretum, exhorts you not to panic if Wild Fido follows you. He’s simply giving you an escort through his domain. If this task makes him snappish, simply throw clumps of dirt at the ground by his feet. I’m having visions of Monty Python and “Confuse-A-Cat.”

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Other signs warn you about smaller wildlife, especially the kind that hops aboard. This one, at Michigan’s Grand Mère State Park, tells what to wear to help stave off the dreaded tick. By the time you’re at the park, however, you may not have clothing alternatives handy. The tick shown is terrifyingly big, but the ticks that can share Lyme disease with you may be little larger than a pinhead.

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Pro tip: At Shawnee National Forest, which is tick heaven, I thought wearing a hat would keep them off my head at least. Not so. After a delightful morning at Pomona Natural Bridge, I felt movement in my hair and found a couple strutting under my hat on top of my scalp. This is one of those times when baldness would be an advantage.

Located at a town park near Grand Mère, this sign is not so much a warning as a caution. If you aren’t careful and you spread the emerald ash borer, this will happen to your ash trees. I can attest to the lethal behavior of the well-named emerald ash borer—both tall, mature trees in front of The Flamingo, plus the mature tree that shaded my bedroom at 55th and Dorchester, succumbed to these little green scourges.

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At Hidden Lake Forest Preserve, we’re told it’s too late to keep out another horror, the dreaded zebra mussel. You can be a hero, however, by cleaning your boat and equipment properly so you don’t transplant them to a body of water where they haven’t taken hold. The use of “infest” is a great touch. It reinforces the nearby “No swimming” sign nicely. Swimming in infested waters just doesn’t appeal to me, even if I could swim.

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If you’re about my age, you recall that “only you can prevent forest fires (that aren’t caused by lightning strikes, volcanoes, and other natural hazards). Many parks post the current risk of wildfire danger based on conditions like drought and wind. At Lyman Run State Park in the Pennsylvania Wilds, Smokey the Bear can’t seem to make up his mind.

Smokey is looking droopy here

This version of Smokey opted for words instead of visuals, which makes his message less ambiguous (no broken pointer). No doubt that snow on the ground helps to keep risk low.

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Taking shape on Stony Island Avenue in the remnant heart of Chicago’s steel industry, Big Marsh Park features a bike park (built on slag too expensive to remove), natural areas, and occasional bald eagle sightings. An enticing hill nearby forms a lovely backdrop for a walk at Big Marsh, which is still in its infancy. When you get closer, however, and read the signs, you learn it’s a steaming, seething landfill that’s being “remediated.” There’s no happily running up and down this slope. How I miss the Industrial Revolution.

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It’s not every day you’re warned about lurking unexploded bombs, but for me this was no ordinary day. It was my first visit to Old Fort Niagara in nearly 40 years, which coincided with Memorial Day weekend. Most of the time, the fort is manned by soldiers in 1700s military fashions, but in honor of the holiday other conflicts were represented. I kept my distance from the bomb. Just in case.

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This is one of the odder warning signs I’ve seen. I left the chef alone—after all, he works with sharp objects.

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Slow down. Chicago is under a budget crunch, but do they send out a lone fireman like this? A lone fireman without a steering wheel? Or arms?

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Here’s a warning sign you can ignore. It’s outside Riley’s Railhouse, a train car bed and breakfast in Chesterton, Indiana, that’s a treasure trove of signs.

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From the exterior of the car I slept in:

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At Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore’s West Beach, it looks like the National Park Service is testing which sign or message is most effective at keeping visitors off the dunes. This one shows bare tootsies with the universal “No” slash, helpfully pointing out the dunes are ours.

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A less friendly, sterner, more wordy one admonishes you to “KEEP OFF THE DUNES” and appeals to your desire to “Please help protect and preserve our fragile dune systems!”

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At the beach, this slash through a barely visible hiker shuns wordiness (or words) for directness and simplicity without justification or explanation.

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It’s sandwiched between even more minimalistic signs with a slash, planted where the dunes start ascending. Don’t. Just don’t.

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Years ago when a landfill near my cousin’s house became a Superfund site (just what you want in your backyard), it was surrounded by an electrified fence complete with warning signs. Noticing there were no insulators, I dared to touch it. In this case, however, I’m certain the area behind the fence is dangerous, and this is as far as I got.

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Normal weathering or resentment over the weapons message?

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Waterfall Glen, a DuPage County Forest Preserve, forms a ring around Argonne National Laboratory, “born out of the University of Chicago’s work on the Manhattan Project in the 1940s.” Naturally, the immediate area around the lab is secured. While I was baffled by this sign about “lock installation” and “any unauthorized lock,” it was the 10 or so locks on the chain that got my attention. Why do people need to add locks to that chain? Why do they need authorization? From whom do they get authorization? Why are unauthorized locks removed? What does it all mean?

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Remember when lead was thought to be safe? I don’t, either. This sign is on an old pump at the remnants of an old general store in the western part of Shawnee National Forest.

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Warning: If you leave expensive stuff lying around, even at an exclusive university, it will walk off. You can bank on it.

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RATS? There are RATS in Hyde Park?

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Posted in Blog, Signs | Tagged photography, signs, wildlife | Leave a reply

Elk, or wapiti, in Pennsylvania

Dark side of the moon Posted on January 2, 2018 by dlschirfJanuary 2, 2018 2

Visiting part of the Pennsylvania elk herd in Benezette, Pennsylvania. December 27.

Elk herd in Pennsylvania

Young elk buck

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Posted in Adventures, Blog, Photos | Tagged 2018, Pennsylvania, photography, wildlife | 2 Replies

The call of sandhill cranes at Jasper Pulaski in Indiana

Dark side of the moon Posted on December 7, 2017 by dlschirfDecember 11, 2017  

When the sun sets, sandhill cranes return from area fields to Goose Pasture at Jasper Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area in Indiana. Turn your sound up. Taken Sunday, December 3, a peak time during migration.

And what a sunset.

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Posted in Blog, Photos, Video | Tagged 2017, Indiana, photography, video, wildlife | Leave a reply

Death of a painted lady, or murder at the butterfly bush

Dark side of the moon Posted on September 21, 2017 by dlschirfNovember 18, 2017 2

On Saturday, I witnessed a murder.

The Hemaris moths are gone (presumed dead), and all that seemed to be left are the skippers and an occasional monarch. On Saturday, though, a hungry painted lady appeared. I spent an hour or more trying to take photos of this favorite of mine, but I’ve noticed they tend to turn their wide rumps toward me. I try not to take this personally, nor the apparent glare of the skipper that landed on my finger as I raised the phone.
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At some point after the painted lady landed on an upper branch, I noticed that it began to beat its wings furiously. I looked and could see only a bit of yellow-green against the purple flowers, but the painted lady seemed stuck. I broke the sprig off with the butterfly still attached. The poor thing went still, its poor legs curled up. I discovered the yellow-green thing had legs. I later decided it was a kind of well-named “ambush bug”—a formidable garden predator that doesn’t discriminate between pests and pollinators.
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This was one of the few times I’ve interfered with nature—something I’d normally not do and would not recommend. I can only plead that I was distraught over being deprived of my colorful little friend. I was reminded that the butterfly bush, so full of life in August, when dozens of moths, butterflies, and bees flitted about, can also be full of death. I have complicated feelings about the murder (anthropomorphism) of my new painted lady friend, but I won’t go into them here.

This painted lady appeared on Tuesday to console me (I’d taken the day off). In return, I tried to scout the remaining blossoms for lurking killers.
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Now, on this last full day of summer, the one creature I saw, a painted lady, flew off when I approached and didn’t return. Another plant down the path that was crawling with a variety of bees only a couple of weeks ago is nearly motionless, with only a few stragglers lethargically tapping into its flowers. There wasn’t even the chatter of birds to relieve the loneliness of the garden past its seasonal prime.

And so summer ends and autumn begins.

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Posted in Blog, Photos | Tagged 2017, Chicago, hyde park, nature, photography, wildlife | 2 Replies

Snowberry and hummingbird clearwings, and summer winding down

Dark side of the moon Posted on September 1, 2017 by dlschirfNovember 18, 2017  

During the first half of August last year, I was thrilled to discover not only butterflies at Perennial Garden, but also the little fairy moths known as snowberry clearwings (Hemaris diffinis). I’d seen one of their cousins, the hummingbird clearwing (Hemaris thysbe) in Ann Arbor a few years ago, but never expected to see anything like them here.

I found that great, Eastern tiger, and black swallowtails; red-spotted purples; painted ladies; silver-spotted and fiery skippers; bees; clearwings; and even a hummingbird or two love a particular butterfly bush at the garden. This bush, which had been cut down to the ground after last summer, didn’t bloom fully until early to mid-August—I started checking as early as May! On my brief visits, I never saw clearwings, so I braced myself for disappointment.

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Fiery skipper butterfly

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Silver-spotted skipper butterfly spots Japanese beetle

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Silver-spotted skipper butterfly

Painted lady
Painted lady butterfly

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Monarch butterfly
Majestic monarch butterfly

Red-spotted purple
Red-spotted purple butterfly

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Eastern tiger swallowtail butterfly

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Black swallowtail butterfly

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A bee on a different plant for good measure

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Added Sept. 4: I first noticed this hackberry emperor on Labor Day.

I started seeing a few a couple of weeks ago Thursday. When I pedaled over the Saturday before last at 3 p.m., the bush was swarming with life. I noticed that among the snowberry clearwings a few hummingbird clearwings, with their fuzzy green upper backs, were making an appearance. I was in heaven. I love these guys—even after I noticed they were buzzing one another and throwing each other off choice branches of blossoms.

Hemaris thysbe (snowberry clearwing)

Snowberry clearwing (Hemaris diffinis)

By Saturday there were fewer of the hummingbird moths under the increasingly cloudy skies. I was happy to have seen so many the day before.

I’d made one of the photos I’d taken the background image on my iPhone screen. I’ve changed phones since then, but I haven’t changed the image. I took a closer look at it—and realized that particular photo from last year is of a hummingbird moth (Hemaris thysbe). How did I never notice that? It had the species’ distinctive fuzzy green upper back and lacks the light band near the skirt. While bemoaning that I hadn’t seen any Hemaris thysbe at this butterfly bush, I’d been staring at a photo of one I’d taken a year ago. Brilliant.

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Hummingbird clearwing (Hemaris thysbe)

Last Tuesday I left work early for a doctor’s appointment and managed to get to the garden by 5 p.m. I was happy to have this unexpected opportunity to visit my little fairy moths—especially since they live only a few weeks.

The bush wasn’t buzzing like it’d been on Saturday, and there weren’t any large butterflies around—but there were enough moths for me to get a few photos and videos, including one in slow motion. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that sooner, except I am still trying to get a sharp closeup photo.

While I was standing watching a handful of moths flitting around, I heard a “bzzzzzzzzt” behind my head. I turned to find myself face to face with a hummingbird, separated by only a foot and a half or two feet of space.

As I was trying to get myself together (“Where’s the phone? Where’s the camera app?”), she buzzed around me to take a couple of quick sips at the bush. I have only these mid-distance shots and a memory now.

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Female ruby-throated hummingbird

Now there’s only about an hour between the time I get home, change, get my bike out, and ride over, and sunset. By that hour, the Hemaris moths are few if any. The other day I was watching a hummingbird clearwing when a snowberry clearwing attacked it and carried it away.

I wish I could tell them there are plenty of blossoms to go around for the little time they have left.

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Posted in Blog, Photos | Tagged 2017, Chicago, hyde park, nature, photography, wildlife | Leave a reply

Meet the snowberry clearwing (Hemaris diffinis), the garden fairy

Dark side of the moon Posted on September 16, 2016 by dlschirfNovember 23, 2016  
Snowberry clearwing

Snowberry clearwing

While this snowberry clearwing was intent on seeking nectar, I was intent on photographing it. I couldn’t get crisp photos with an iPhone, but this is one of my favorites. It looks like it’s playing hide-and-seek with me, but I have no idea of how this little hovering moth perceives the world. Maybe I was just an annoying anomaly of movement, shadow, or strange colors. To me, they are like garden fairies. I haven’t seen one in a couple of weeks, and I miss them. So long to summer, and hope to see your progeny next year.

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Posted in Blog, Photos | Tagged Chicago, hyde park, nature, photography, wildlife | Leave a reply

Butterflies, bees, moths, oh my!

Dark side of the moon Posted on August 18, 2016 by dlschirfNovember 23, 2016  

Bugs

Click photo for more on Flickr and hit the slideshow icon.

Lately I’ve been lurking at Perennial Garden in Hyde Park, a favorite spot of mine. Right off where the pavement turns in I found a bush where butterflies hang out. I’ve learned it’s called “butterfly bush.” It’s an invasive species, so I don’t recommend it for your garden. (Try something native, like butterfly weed.)

Some days the bush is visited by butterflies. At other times I see more little moths. One day to my surprise a hummingbird whizzed in and out. I’m not sure it even stopped. It (or another) did the same thing the next day, never when I was ready for a photo.

After the hummingbird sightings, I started thinking that my life would be complete if a hawk, or hummingbird, moth showed up. I’d seen only one once before, near the Cascades in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It was a fancy, not even a hope. The next day my jaw dropped when one of these little garden fairies buzzed in. Now I wish I hadn’t waited until August to start my lurking.

My life is complete. Until I figure out how to get better photos or get my camera over there. By then it will be September.

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Posted in Blog, Photos | Tagged Chicago, hyde park, nature, photography, wildlife | Leave a reply

Day 2 in the Pennsylvania Wilds, or elk country

Dark side of the moon Posted on April 10, 2016 by dlschirfAugust 25, 2016  

May 29, 2015

Pennsylvania wapiti, or elusive elk in Benezette

Click photo for more on Flickr and hit the slideshow icon.

Because we’d been to Cherry Springs, we had to get our state parks books stamped. At the park, though, the ranger told J. we’d have to go to Lyman’s Run State Park a few miles away for the Cherry Springs stamp. Getting there involved a narrow, winding road around mountains, constrained on one side by a guard rail unprotected by more than a couple of inches of shoulder — J’s favorite kind of driving conditions. Just as we found Lyman’s Run, a deer crossed the road well ahead of us, then, to our surprise, a fawn on spindly legs appeared and stood in the road, confused for a few moments before wandering off in Mom’s direction.

At the Lyman’s Run office, we told the ranger about the deer. A few moments later, she asked where exactly we’d seen them — a couple desperate to see deer had just come in.

At a beach below the nearby dam, a family or two was splashing about in the water. I always hope that when these children grow up they will want their own children to enjoy the same kinds of outdoor experiences they had.

At breakfast someone had told of seeing elk in Benezette and of a motorcyclist who’d feared for his bike’s life when a big bull elk eyed it. Benezette had been a possible destination, but now it became a must-see. I’d never gone there from the north, and we found ourselves on the narrow, twisting road to Galeton, then on more narrow, twisting roads post what seemed to be a lot of state parks and recreation areas. We had to hustle to get to the Elk Country Visitor Center before it closed at 5 — we just made it, at about 4:40 or so. I was surprised I found it as easily as I did.

We hadn’t seen any elk in town or near the visitor center, so I steered him toward the overlook where the bull elk had looked upon the motorcycle. Nothing. Seating had been added, and a man sitting there told us he’d seen some animals earlier, so we sat down to wait patiently.

Within about 10 minutes a female showed up at the edge of the woods and tucked into the field vegetation. Soon she was joined by a second and then a third, who also seemed to materialize from nothing. None of them strayed far from the wood’s edge.

We’d seen elk, if only a small number, if only at a distance. J proclaimed himself content.

We returrned to Benezette, driving around for a bit and spotting the top of a deer’s head among the high grasses along the river. Even the picnic area, jammed with elk during my December visits, was populated only by a few people and vehicles.

After eating at the Benezette Hotel (where J got an elk burger to go), we called it a day, knowing we had a long way to go. On the road out of town, however, elk began popping up in front yards, including three bulls in velvet. By now the residents of Benezette and beyond must have given up on any kind of garden or landscaping and let the elk have at their yards.

We stopped at length in front of several houses, sometimes in awkward spots ahead of road curves. I worried about being rear-ended, but the few times we saw cars, they slowed down and stopped too. The elk are hard to resist.

On the way back we noticed several popular fishing spots and some vintage bridges. Oh, to have a creek nearby to visit every day . . . preferably an uncontaminated one. In Pennsylvania, you never know.

For the last leg of this day trip, Google Maps helpfully steered me toward a long gravel road overrun by creatures that, in the growing darkness, could have been toads or chipmunks or something else — they scooted across so fast it was hard to tell. After two to three miles we came to the main road to Frosty Hollow, where a sign invites you to detour four miles up the gravel road (the way we’d come) to Jackson’s Bargain Barn & Gift Shop (open Thurs., Fri., and Sat.). When we’d passed the sign earlier, J had pointed it out and wondered if anyone (like us) would ever choose to go up that road. Ooops. Thank you, Google Maps (and for trying to take us down a footpath at Chestnut Ridge Park). We got back as rain began — no need to debate a return to Cherry Springs. Sitting on the barn porch, watching the rain come down, ended the day in the country perfectly.

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Posted in Adventures, Blog, Photos | Tagged Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania state park, photography, wildlife | Leave a reply

Day 9 in Minnesota: Devil’s Kettle and Kadunce River

Dark side of the moon Posted on January 25, 2015 by dlschirfAugust 19, 2016  

August 9, 2014: Grand Marais to Judge C. R. Magney State Park to Kadunce River to Baptism River Inn On which I spend a goodly amount of time seeking the devil or at least his kettle After some confusion about … Continue reading →

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Posted in Adventures, Blog, Photos | Tagged Minnesota, Minnesota state park, photography, waterfall, wildlife | Leave a reply

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The Archer’s Tale by Bernard Cornwell
England in the Late Middle Ages (1306–1536)
 by A. R. Myers

Recent reading

2018
10 April: Northern Tales: Traditional Stories of Eskimo and Indian Peoples selected and edited by Howard Norman
17 February: Northanger Abbey and Persuasion by Jane Austen

2017
29 October: The Journals of Lewis and Clark edited by Bernard DeVoto
9 July: Thirty Indian Legends of Canada by Margaret Bemister
9 March: Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope

2016
30 November: Diana of the Dunes: The True Story of Alice Gray by Janet Zenke Edwards
6 November: Thirty Indian Legends of Canada by Margaret Bemister
15 October: 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann
17 September: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
16 June: The Scarlet Letter and Other Writings by Nathaniel Hawthorne

2015
22 November: The Wild Trees: A Story of Passion and Daring by Richard Preston
3 November: Type Talk: The 16 Personality Types That Determine How We Live, Love, and Work by Otto Krueger and Janet M. Thuesen
16 August: Margaret of Anjou: Queen of England by Philippe Erlanger, translated by Edward Hyams
9 August: Monkey by Wu Ch’êng-Ên, translated by Arthur Waley
6 May: A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War by Victor Davis Hanson
25 January: The Return of Martin Guerre by Natalie Zemon Davis
4 January: The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights by John Steinbeck

2014
2 December: Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
14 September: The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. LeGuin
11 March: North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

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