Atlantic Canada 2013

In June I took a big trip to Atlantic Canada.  The trip was prompted by my sister's husband who was going to take a fishing trip to Minnestoa with his friend.  Jill commented, "If Bill gets a trip, then I want a trip."  I asked her, "Where would you want to go?"  She said, "Well, I've always wanted to go to Prince Edward Island where Anne of Green Gables takes place."  I said, "Well, I'll go with you." 

We settled on an itinerary and by the time we left for Halifax, there were five of us willing to travel many miles by airplane, marine ferry, and a minivan.  Our itinerary expanded to include the Atlantic provinces of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland.

One of our first stops in Nova Scotia (after a quick trip to the sporting goods store) was Peggy's Cove, which was not originally on our itinerary, but was added thanks to my dad's friendliness toward the young woman sitting next to him on the plane.  She recommended this quaint little town, and it was worth our time.

Another stop in Nova Scotia was the 300-year-old French Fort Louisbourg.  One of the most expensive European fortifications in North America, it defended a fishing village and commercial port that supported more than 4,000 French colonists.  The British wrested control of this site from the French by the late 18th century.

Our next province was Newfoundland (pronounced like "understand").  We took a ferry to the Rock, and I got to see several seabirds for the first time, including Northern fulmar, Wilson's storm-petrel, and Northern gannet.  It was a rough crossing, and several in our group got seasick.  Our first destination in Newfoundland was Gros Morne National Park.

We spent several nights surrounded by mountians in Woody Point at "Aunt Dorothy's Place."  This was my mom's favorite place to stay, complete with front and back porches, including a view of scenic Bonne Bay.  One afternoon my dad spotted a school of porpoises.

It was the perfect location for numerous hikes in Gros Morne National Park.  An eerie fog occasionally settled in.  We were prepared and unstoppable hikers, however.

One of the geological features of Gros Morne is the Tablelands region, made of peridotite from the Earth's mantle.  The poor calcium and rich magnesium of the Tablelands make it more difficult for much to grow.  

But we did see orchids!  Yellow lady's slippers.

Another highlight from Gros Morne was our boat tour of the Western Brook Pond, a freshwater fjord, cutoff from the ocean by a bog.  There was a 2-mile hike from the parking lot to the boat dock.  Mom and Dad get high marks for hoofing it to this remote location.  Again, the view was unforgettable.

As we planned our itinerary, mainly by reading through various travel guides, we were delighted to learn that icebergs and vikings could be part of our trip.  We booked an iceberg tour in St. Anthony and viewed a massive iceberg at close range.  This iceberg travelled 1-2 years from Greenland before reaching nothern Newfoundland. 

We also visited a reconstruction of the first European settlement in North America.  L'anse Aux Meadows is the location of a Norse settlement established 1,000 years ago.  It was discovered in 1960 and designated as a World Heritage Site in 1978.

To prepare for the expereince in Newfoundland, I listened to The Shipping News on audiobook.  As it turns out, we stayed in the house where Annie Proux wrote the book, now appropriately named after the main character: Quolye's House.

I will confess to being responsible for adding Newfoundland to our itinerary.  I was inspired by Scott Widensaal's book Return to Wild America, which includes a chapter on a major seabird colony in Newfoundland.  Cape St. Mary's is home to some 70,000 nesting seabirds, mainly Northern gannets, Common murres, Thick-billed murres, and Black-legged kittiwakes (I took the picture of the Atlantic Puffins in another location - the Bonavista peninsula in Elliston).

   

Bird Rock is a blustery 1-kilometer hike from the visitor center along a very steep cliff.  The ranger was emphatic: "Don't get off the trail."  Again, Mom and Dad get kudos for making the effort! 

Upon returning to Nova Scotia (this time the crossing was much calmer), we drove along the scenic Cape Breton Highlands.  One night Mom and Jill and I enjoyed some fresh lobster and snow crab while being entertained with a live performance of traditional Acadian music on fiddle and guitar.   

A tour of the Glenora Distillery was a planned stop from the beginning.  It is the only single malt distillery in North America.  Not only is the adult beverage delicious, but the lunch was tasty too. 

Finally, we made our way to Prince Edward Island to see a rendering of the house that inspired Lucy Maud Montgomery when writing Anne of Green Gables.  But there were other activities including a tour of the Cows Ice Cream factory, an exquisite lunch at the historic Dalvray-by-the-Sea resort (I had the lobster roll), a bike ride along the north coast, and stops at the Cheese Lady shop specializing in Gouda cheese. 

 

Ironically, Bill did not go on his fishing trip, but Jill got her trip anyway.  Here's a slideshow of our grand voyage.

Spring Woodland Flowers 2013

An afternoon walk in the woods revealed several early May wildflowers.  Of course, as a preacher, I love to see the Jack-in-the-Pulpit pop through the leaf litter.

 

Prairie Trillium (which is a woodland and not a prairie plant) suggests the Holy Trinity. 

 

 

The delicate Rue Anemone is also called "windflower" because it moves with the gentlest breeze.

 

 

Cutleaf Toothwort is lovely and attracts many kinds of bees. Passenger pigeons (extinct since 1914) used to eat the tubers.

 

 

 

Churchill Woods F.P. is one of my favorite places in DuPage county. 

 

Snowshoeing in the Porkies 2012

The last trip I took in 2012 was to the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.  Just after Thanksgiving, there was already about a foot of snow.  Here's a scenic view of Lake in the Clouds. 

We hiked about 1.5 miles with all of our gear to the cabin at Lake in the Clouds.  No electricity, no running water, no plumbing.  We had to cut our own wood to keep warm. 

 

It snowed every day.  Fortunately, we brought snowshoes.     

 

 

 

The scenery was awesome.  Here's a video of some frozen falls along the Presque Isle River, which empties into Lake Superior.  At the end of the video, there's some of the snowfall at the Lake in the Clouds cabin.

 

  

 

How's this for contrasts?  Here's a picture of volcanic rock that was scoured by the glaciers over 10,000 years ago during the Ice Age. 

 



My one regret from the trip was having my camera in the car when we saw a big beautiful Gray Wolf on the road.  It was a magnificent creature.  Wolves are an important part of a healthy ecosystem.  Here's a short video from PBS Nature that describes what reasearchers have learned about wolves at Yellowstone.

 

          

 People in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota, have leanred to live in harmony with reintroduced wolves.  Unfortunately, there is open season on wolves in Wyoming, just a decade after their reintroduction.  Call on the Administration to End the Slaughter of Wyoming Wolves with this link to the Sierra Club.

Tundra Swans 2012

 A few years ago, I heard about the annual migration of thousands of Tundra Swans along the Upper Mississippi River in early November.  This year I got to see over 10,000 swans.

 

 

The River is a gorgeous place.  Here's a view of it from Trempaleau National Wildlife Refuge.  and yes, this is the Midwest...it's not flat everywhere.  The power of water has done more than carve the Grand Canyon.  The bluffs in the background were formed by this ancient flow.

 

This group consists of three adults (the whilte ones) and three juveniles (the grey ones).   They were stopping near La Crosse, WI, from the breeding grounds in the high Arctic to their wintering grounds along the mid-Atlantic.    

 

They feed on the tubers in the riverbed like arrowhead, wild celery, and sago pondweed.  Those long necks make it easier for them to access the starchy bulbs.

 

Here's a video my sister and I took (most of it is from her).

 

 



Chicago Air & Water Show 2012

This year rain did not ruin the 54th annual Chicago Air & Water Show.  Last year when Alan came up from Indiana to watch it, we rode our bikes along the lakefront trail to a spot near Fullerton Ave., but we ended up spending 2 hours crowded under a bridge breathing boat motor fumes trying to dodge the spray from a windy downpour before we ave up and went home.  This year Alan brought Joan and the four of us took the bus to North Ave.  We arrived early in order to get a good spot.  The weather was ideal -- sunny with a light breeze off the lake.  We were front and center, and the show was incredible. 

Some 2 million people attended the Air and Water Show, the largest free public event of its kind in the U.S.  It started with the Chicago Fire Department's spray display on the lake.  The CFD Air/Sea Rescue unit serves 37 miles of lakeshore, extensive riverways, and Chicago's harbor system, which is the largest in the U.S.

There were various stunt planes.  The Lima Lima Flight Crew is a group of local pilots based in Naperville, IL.  They performed a variety of formations from the six ship wedge and double arrowhead to the basic finger four and diamond formations.

Here they are performing.

The U.S. Coast Guard performed a water rescue with a helicopter.  I have been grateful for the advice and watchful eye of the Coast Guard when paddling on Lake Michigan during 25 mph winds and choppy waters.  Fortunately, I have not personally tested their rescue skills.

A variety of stunt pilots also performed, including Jack Knutson and Rob Holland, the Firebirds from Ohio. 

For many people, the stars of the show were the Blue Angels of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.  The Blue Angels team is famous for the diamond formation and breathtaking daredevil stunts.

Their precision flying is also graceful.  In this video, you can even see the sun sparkling on the jets.

We had a great time.  As much as I love Lake Michigan, I usually avoid crowds, and I have never spent all day at the beach, but this show was worth it!  This year's show has special meaning because it marks the 200 anniversary of the War of 1812.  Here's a video postcard of the 2012 Chicago Air & Water Show. 

Lake Michigan Dunes 2012

During the drought and heatwave of July 2012, Jill and Joe and I visited the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (IN) and Warren Dunes State Park (MI). 

A sturdy breeze brought welcome relief from the heat.

The high sand dunes are some of the most rugged and beautiful natural features along the shoreline of Lake Michigan.  Sand dunes in the Great Lakes region comprise the most extensive freshwater dunes in the world, so enormous that they can bee seen from space.  

At Warren Dunes we ascended 200 feet to the top of one of the sand dunes (above).  The shifting sand and blasting sun made the hike more difficult.  On our way up, we found a few rare Pitcher's Thistle plants, a federally threatend species endemic to the Great Lakes region (now extinct in Illinois except for a few reintroductions).  It was awesome to see these rare plants!

In Indiana and Michigan we hiked through oak-hickory woods.   At Indiana Dunes we walked through a virtual shrub forest of ripe wild blueberries. Small but flavor-packed fruit!   Eventually we made our way to the shore.

 

It was so much cooler by the lake.  What a beautiful, peaceful day!

Lead Plant & Mosquito-Eaters

A couple of years ago I planted a lead plant, a native prairie shrub.  This afternoon I noticed that one of the branches was in bloom for the first time ever!  The leaves of this shrub from the bean family are silvery.  The flowers are dark purple with bright orange stamens.

I also noticed a female Eastern Forktail damselfly perched on an Obedient Plant leaf (left below) and a male Blue Dasher dragonfly on a withered rose bloom (right below).  Both dragonflies and damselflies feast on mosquitoes.  Eat 'em up!