A Sunny Sunday Walk

On a recent Sunday, we drove to a park in the next county to walk a section of the Ice Age Trail. This particular loop of trail circles a spring-fed kettle lake and runs through a surprising diversity of terrain, including fen, sedge meadow, savanna, wet and dry forest, and mesic prairie. (In plain English: lots of trees and water and flowers.)

The day is warm, with a fresh breeze blowing. Near the start of the trail, a sunny bridge beckons us onward:

Of course I'm keeping an eye out for wildflowers, and soon spot a woodland sunflower:

Over our heads are the velvety berries of staghorn sumac:

As the terrain segues to oak woodland, acorns begin to appear:

Sunshine filters down through the canopy:

A tall aster blooms in an open spot:

Though we're circling a lake, the lake itself is rarely seen. Here we get a glimpse of it through the trees:

Heal-all blooms by the side of the trail:

And I'm excited to spot a great blue lobelia; I haven't seen one in years:

Clumps of moss dot the forest floor:

A second bridge marks the start of a transition from woodland to sedge meadow:

As the tree canopy slowly gives way, different flowers begin to appear. First we see white snakeroot:

Then evening primrose:

And horsemint:

An outlet stream crosses the flowery meadow:

Next we spy thistle:

Blue vervain:

And glorious swathes of goldenrod and Joe-Pye-weed:

We cross a long boardwalk over a fen, then we're back on a sandy path leading through a short section of trees. Another turn, and suddenly we're out on the windy prairie, where yet more goldenrod is framed by the white berries and wine-tinted leaves of grey dogwood:

Great waves of Queen Anne's lace break against the now-grassy trail:

Sunny yellow cup-plant blossoms reach for the blue sky above:

Huge clumps of black-eyed Susan delight the eye:

And coneflowers wave ragtag skirts in the wind:

After threading our happy way through this glory of wildflowers, we stop for one last photo of goldenrod and black-eyed Susan:

Then the trail turns a final corner and we're back at the parking lot where we started.

What a satisfying Sunday walk!

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Tall Flowers of Summer

If Spring is the exciting infancy of Nature's year, Summer is the lanky teenage phase - somewhat untidy, and marked by surprising growth spurts that seem to happen overnight. It's the time of year when inconspicuous knee-high plants start behaving like the weeds they are, and suddenly the fields are full of flowers taller than I am.

Here are some of my favorite wildflowers of late July and early August, ranging in size from shin-deep to waist-high to tilt-my-head-back-tallness.

Blue vervain has become much more widespread the last few summers. This photo was taken at the edge of a large field completely covered with its blossoms:

Ironweed brings bright pops of color to the roadside:

Also growing by leaps and bounds is this field of corn that I pass on my way to work:

Along the river trail, the knapweed is several feet tall:

With Queen Anne's Lace not far behind:

On a Saturday ride I spy tall purple loosestrife blooming amidst a cloud of knapweed gone to seed:

A bee works busily among nearby goldenrod:

In the marsh, I find a new-to-me flower with a charming name - white meadowsweet:

And feathery blossoms of Joe-Pye-weed:

Many miles later I stop at a favorite wildlife area to see what's blooming this year, and wade through swathes of waist-high wild bergamot to snap this photo:

Flowers growing here include button eryngo:

Coneflower (Ratibida):

And the aforementioned wild bergamot, the thickest I've ever seen:

On the way home I pass a long stretch of extra-fuzzy hare's-foot clover, aka rabbit-foot clover. At less than knee-high, these are the shortest flowers in this post:

What are your favorite flowers at this time of year?

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