A Loon at Sunrise

This is why I arise early.


It's sunrise over Lake Kabetogama in northern Minnesota.  The air is cool, and there is a bit of a breeze.  It is very quiet, except for the beautiful, sad call of the loon, as it swims across the reflection of a rising sun.

A Superior View

From a hill in Bayfield, Wisconsin, there is a spectacular view of Lake Superior and Madeline Island. The view was memorable at night also, with a full moon overhead creating a silver path across the water.


Flowers seem to like the cool summer temperatures and bloom in abundance.

Herb takes in the view of Lake Superior while in the distance the ferry makes the crossing from Bayfield to Madeline Island.

Apostle Islands: Sea caves

The Apostle Islands is an archipelago of 21 islands in Lake Superior, off the northern coast of Wisconsin.  Devil's Island, one of the northernmost islands, is known for sea caves in its sandstone cliffs.

Voyageurs National Park: Kettle Falls

On the way to Kettle Falls, Herb sits in the left seat while Rick operates the boat from the right seat. 

Cool morning temperatures and a cloudy sky inspired me to wear my nylon jacket when we walked the forest trail to the dock on Rainy Lake.

This is the Kettle Falls Dam.  The U.S./ Canadian border runs through the middle of the dam.

The Land of Sky Blue Water

The first destination of our recent road trip was the border waters of northern Minnesota.  If this scene looks familiar, you may remember it from the old Hamms beer commercials.  The trees on the left are in the U.S., and those on the right are in Canada. 

Long Shadows on the Trail

Our part of the country has been baking under the August sun for pretty much the last couple of weeks.  We have had actual temperatures reaching over 100 degrees in the afternoons.


We have been taking our walks early in the morning when it's a "only" in the low 80s outdoors.  On the day of this photo we walked on the new part of the trail, made of crushed limestone.

Powell Gardens

This morning we took a look at The Weather Channel, and all indicators pointed to a pleasant morning.  The early morning temperature was around 70 degrees, and by noon it would climb to the mid 80s.  Considering that this is August in the Midwest, we were going to have a nice day for getting outdoors.  We decided to go to Powell Gardens, the botanical garden of the Kansas City area.  www.powellgardens.org/ 


After walking through the Butterfly Pavilion (the special exhibit this weekend), we walked all around the Gardens.

Look closely at the small dot at the top middle of the silo.  That's me with my arm raised, waving.  The silo is part of  the fruit and vegetable section of Powell Gardens.  We climbed a spiral staircase to the top, and enjoyed a really nice view.