Nature – Page 14 – Valerie's Voice

Memorable Hikes – Switzerland 2002

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

In April of 2002, my husband, our youngest son and I went to England to pick up our oldest son, who studied at Oxford for a semester. We were curious to explore Oxford and London and then travel in Europe. After touring in England we took the Chunnel to Calais, France and saw sights in France, Germany and Switzerland.

While in Switzerland we went hiking in the Lauterbrunnen Valley (which is often is referred to as the valley of 72 waterfalls.)

A photo of the hotel and one of the 72 waterfalls in Lauterbrunnen Valley. This is a photo from a brochure picture I had in my photo album. I didn’t have a great photo of my own to share.

After settling into our chalet-style hotel we started hiking towards waterfalls that were inside a mountain. We were intrigued by this. Along the way I was awe-struck by the beauty of a different waterfalls, Staubbach Falls. There was a stream of water falling off a vertical mountain face, cascading about 1,000 feet. I think it’s so spectacular because of its simplistic beauty. I still remember seeing it for the first time…I’m not sure why it impacted me so.

We continued hiking in the valley to Trümmelbach Falls, which was our destination. These falls are a series of ten glacier-waterfalls inside the mountain, made accessible by a tunnel-lift. We were able to go inside the mountain and walk around to see the falls. They were illuminated which was nice. It was fun and interesting.

Another photo from a brochure in my photo album…waterfalls flowing outside the mountain.

After coming out of the mountain we hiked back to our picturesque hotel nestled in this spectacular valley with breathtaking views.

Memorable Hike – Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming 1999

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

Our family took many road trips across country when the boys were younger, mostly to national parks, and we hiked a lot.

A picture – of a photo – of my three guys in the Tetons (from our 1999 photo album).

One memorable hike was in Grand Teton National Park. What made this hike memorable were the butterflies. I find it interesting that I mentioned seeing beautiful butterflies on our hike in Brazil, but on this hike in the Tetons the butterflies were my companions.

One morning we started hiking together along a park trail and after hiking 4.5 miles we came to a fork in the road. For the first time ever, while hiking with my family, I decided to turn around and hike back alone while my three guys continued walking to a mountain lake. This was the first and only time I remember turning around while hiking and I don’t remember why. I do remember feeling safe, knowing it was an established park trail, and that I had enough water.

What made this hike memorable were the butterflies. While I walked alone along the path they fluttered along the side of me all the way back. I couldn’t believe it…they were my escorts, my guardian angels. I remembered it as one butterfly but my journal reminded me there were several butterflies.

My journal also reminded me that the guys continued another 2.7 miles to the mountain lake, Lake Solitude. It was there they turned around and hiked back to the ferry landing. My husband hopped on the ferry, but our two sons decided to continue hiking all the way back to the trailhead for an additional 2.5 miles which made their total 17 miles for that day.

I often think about this story and my butterfly companions. It makes me smile.

Psalm 121: 1-2

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

Memorable Hikes – Brazil 2004

Hiking is a favorite hobby of mine and my husband. We have gone on hundreds of hikes over the years…it is what we like to do, at home and on vacation, so I thought it would be fun to write a series about some memorable hikes. It’s tough to rate them as favorites so I’ll stick with “memorable” and not rank them in any kind of order. I keep a vacation journal so I have notes on most of our hikes (some more detailed than others I’ve discovered). Here is the first in my series of memorable hikes that I will post weekly, for awhile anyway.

Several years ago our son was a Rotary exchange student in Florianopolis, an island off the southern coast of Brazil. It is a gorgeous island and known for it’s beautiful beaches along the Atlantic Ocean. He lived there one year and had a great experience. His host families were wonderful and genuinely cared for him. It was a delight to meet them when our family went to visit after he had been living in Brazil for seven months.

His first host family (mom, dad and one son – their other son was on Rotary exchange in the US) took our family on a hike along Lagoa da Conceição, a large lagoon on the island of Florianopolis. The island itself is beautiful…and to hike along the inland lake was a special treat.

It was a hot day. The trail was semi-rough and we hiked for about an hour and a half. I saw many butterflies along the trail, including a black and purple one. I had already spotted several butterflies on this trip to Brazil, including the beautiful, iridescence blue ones and a lime-green one.

What I remember most about this hike was the destination… as we neared the end we walked down toward the lake and there on the beach were some shade trees, a swing set, a few chickens running around and children playing in the sand. There was a quaint open-air café on the sandy shores of Lagoa da Conceição. It was a great spot to stop, rest, cool off, swing and get something cold to drink, and food to eat. We were the only customers at the café. It was family- owned and run. We found a wonderful place to sit at a table under the trees near the water.

We ordered a beer; it tasted so good because the beer was so cold and the air was so hot, and so were we from hiking in the heat. Next the appetizers started coming – shrimp, squid, and other kinds of fish – all delicious. Then we ordered main dishes for everyone to share family-style. We spent over two hours eating and enjoying our time together in this lovely setting.

And then, to our surprise and delight, they had ordered a boat taxi to bring us back to the trail-head. Instead of hiking back we had a pleasant, relaxing boat ride on the beautiful lake, Lagoa da Conceição.

It was a lovely day and memorable hike with wonderful friends.

Color

At the Santa Fe Ski Basin: 11,000 ‘ above sea level.

We just returned form a six-day vacation in New Mexico. The landscape is so different from Minnesota, as it should be, and that is why it is fun to venture out and see an area of the country so different from where we live. We had a great time.

In New Mexico the quaking aspens turn bright yellow in the fall, but by this time in October many have lost their leaves. There were still several bright ones popping out among the Ponderosa Pine and Pinon trees on the mountains. We visited two cities: Albuquerque, 5,312 feet above sea level and Santa Fe, 7,199 feet above sea level. The landscape is filled with small scrubs dotting the rocky and sandy soil with Sangre de Cristo mountains as the backdrop. The sky was such a crisp, deep blue. It was beautiful to see and fun to be in the Southwest.

All the while I was wondering if I was missing the mixture of reds and burgundy, yellows and golds, lime-greens and oranges; the colors of the trees in Minnesota during autumn. I was happy to wake up at home in Minnesota to lots of sunshine with many trees still in their autumn glory and fall color all around.

The End of NIght

I finished reading The End Of Night; Searching for Natural Darkness in an Age of Artificial Light by Paul Bogard. Folks on the BWCA trip recommended the book. I requested it from the library and when I picked it up I wondered how a 270 page book on artificial light could possibly hold my interest, but it did. Simply put, it addresses light pollution and it’s affect on our planet, our bodies, our lives. It was written in 2013…who knew there are groups out there advocating for better type of lighting in our cities (all over the world) so we don’t “drowned out” the Milky Way?

I started reading the book at the cabin up on the north shore. While having a campfire on the rocks our last evening, the sky was clear. It was a new moon, therefore there was no light competition for the stars. I have always paid attention to the phases of the moon, especially when we go up north. After the campfire I suggested we get in the car and drive to the top of the hill on Sawbill Trail and turn out the car lights to stargaze. We did. On the hill we were far away from artificial light: no city lights, no cabin lights, no headlights…and it was spectacular to see the beautiful dome of stars.

In church recently I talked with a woman who had just returned from “up north” and mentioned how her young son was amazed to see so many stars in the night sky, unlike what he sees at home. This is one reason of concern in the book.

Reading the book brought back a couple of memories. One evening, when our boys were younger, we were camping in northern MN with two other families. The air was still and the sky was clear. After dark, we all hiked to the small lake in the campground and saw the stars reflecting in the calm, unruffled water. It was a stunning scene and one I have thought of several times through the years.

Another special outdoor, nighttime memory is walking with a friend when the moon was full. At first we joined organized hikes with a naturalist, but after a few months we just started walking on our own on nights when the sky was clear and the moon was full. It was great and we had enough light from the moon to walk the path without flashlights.

I love light, as most people do, but this book gave me a new appreciation for our need for darkness too, and for our wonderful, magnificent night sky.

Movement at Temperance River State Park

One beautiful afternoon during our stay up on the north shore, we walked along Temperance River towards Lake Superior, from the parking area to a wooden bridge that crosses over the river to the other side of the park. While on the bridge we looked downstream to the mouth of the river and there was a young man fly-fishing. As we looked upstream, towards the water falls, our son and his wife alerted us to watch for fish jumping out of the water trying to swim against the flow. It was fun to spot several fish jumping over the course of a few minutes. Some types of fish return to the stream of their birth to lay eggs. To accomplish this, they must swim upstream against the current of the stream. It looked like a tough job.

If you observe closely you can see a fish jumping in this 9 second video. Click link:

IMG_8497

The fish jumping was one of the interesting movements we saw that afternoon.

The other interesting movement we witnessed was on the rocky beach of the state park.

I didn’t have opportunity to get a good photo of this lone dancer on the rock, but I wanted to capture the memory.

We continued hiking to the lake and found a semi-shady spot to sit down and read our books on the rocky beach when I noticed on the other side of the beach a woman dancing by herself on an outcropping of rocks. I was far enough away so she didn’t know I was watching her, but there were others close-by and she would have known they were there, but still she danced with abandonment.

And it brought me much joy.

I sensed her enthusiasm and love for the beauty surrounding her and she was expressing it by dancing. I try to express these feelings by writing and photography but part of me wants to secretly find a hidden beach somewhere and dance to my heart’s content!

“Let all who come to Love rejoice, let them sing for joy! And protect them, so that those who live in your love may dance in your light!”

An excerpt from Psalm 5 from the book Psalms for Praying by Nan C. Merrill

It’s hard to say good-bye…

09/21/17 The sun did it’s beautiful thing again this morning with no clouds to obstruct our view. We leave for home today and I’m sad to say good-bye, although I’m so grateful for the time we had up here in this amazing place. I’m praising God for this incredible beauty.

Our adventures this year included hikes up Oberg Mountain (two times), Britton Peak, Shovel Point, Temperance River (several times, different areas), bike rides on the Gitchi-Gami trail, drives along Hwy 61 and inland roads, eating delicious meals right at the cabin overlooking the lake. We took time to read, reflect and just plain “sit around and watch the lake”. We pieced together a jigsaw puzzle, enjoyed campfires on the rocks… explored new places.

It was wonderful to be with our son, his wife and our five-month-old granddaughter.

Three seagulls on the rocks outside the cabin.

There were many seagulls in the air and on the rocks, an eagle that flew by several times, hummingbirds at the cabin feeder and a few ducks floating along.

It was fun to see this barge heading out to sea, sailing past a beach we were exploring for the first time.

We always enjoy having a jigsaw puzzle out on a table to slowly piece together during our time in the cabin. There are many puzzles available at the cabin. I chose this Tall Ships puzzle to remind me of my kayak trip watching the Tall Ships parade last summer.

We saw a lot of fall color on the inland trees this year, and we had several varied weather patterns: wind and rain and rough seas, and some gorgeous, clear, autumn blue skies…all makes for a wonderful week on the north shore of Lake Superior.

Our lunch spot…can’t find a restaurant with these views!

We’re going home relaxed, renewed, rejuvenated and rejoicing.

Sigh…it’s so hard to leave, but my heart is full.

Neighborhood Butterfly Garden

I stopped in at my neighbor’s garage sale. They have a six-year old granddaughter so I thought maybe there would be some things of interest to me. But first I came upon their small garden along their driveway. Standing tall was another beautiful hibiscus blooming bright pink alongside sedum in full bloom, with a metal sculpture in the middle of it all.

On that metal sculpture was a little, lime-green tree frog, and fluttering all around the sedum were Painted Lady butterflies. My neighbor said it was like having their own butterfly garden – there were dozens of butterflies swarming around – and they have been for several days. At times a few would land on his finger.

Franklin Park Conservatory Butterfly Garden, Columbus OH

I’ve been to several indoor butterfly gardens. It’s a fun experience to walk through hanging plastic strips into a room where several species of butterflies are happily flitting around you, some landing close by or, on your body. What a great idea for a botanical garden or arboretum to create the space for butterflies and then invite the public to see and experience the wonderful creatures.

And mentioning butterflies…last year a friend found a chrysalis on his house and I took a photo of it. I was so amazed to see it up close and then to see the Monarch wings through the chrysalis. Click here to see a two minute YouTube video of a Monarch emerging from its chrysalis. The whole process of their transformation is amazing.

There are so many interesting facts about monarch butterflies…as there is for all creatures. Nature is absolutely fascinating and sometimes unfathomable.

And the Lord God made them all.

A Prairie Walk

It felt like a fall day. Instead of going to our town’s annual celebration downtown we chose to hike on quiet prairie lands with the only sounds being our voices and the wind rustling through the trees and grass. Clear, blue skies full of sunshine added to the glory of the place. The setting has two picturesque, historic churches facing each other in a well-kept, hill-top cemetery with interesting headstones and scenic views. At the edge of the cemetery is a huge, old burr oak tree. It’s so majestic!

The trail is a wide swath mowed through tall prairie grasses that have a touch of gold to them. Scattered throughout are native, autumn wildflowers in bloom, and off in the distance are trees with hints of fall colors on their leaves. We took a long, leisurely walk and imagined ourselves back in time when many settlers came to live on the prairie in Southeastern Minnesota.

We talked with a volunteer out collecting seeds for planting on this otherwise unoccupied trail. He is on the Preservation Board that concentrates on preserving this prairie land and the two churches. He told us there is a Cemetery Board to care for the cemetery upkeep. Both boards rely on volunteers. We visited with him for a while and thanked him for his work.

The path progressed along to the back of the property, bordering Minnesota Scientific Natural Lands and a state park. A couple years ago we discovered puffball mushrooms along these property lines; white mushrooms the size of soccer balls. We looked for them again this year but only found one misshaped one…hopefully it just the beginning of their growing season and we’ll spot more on our next walk through the prairie…we will go back.

Autumn is in the air.

My Hibiscus

On my daily walk in the neighborhood I pass many manicured lawns and beautiful gardens. In one yard there is an amazing hibiscus in full bloom with flowers the size of dinner-plates. It’s stunning. Back home I check out my own hibiscus and it too, has many blosoms. And it’s beautiful in it’s own way…it’s blooms are not meant to be the size of big plates.

During the summer my hibiscus enjoys a wonderful home on our deck. It is a flowering plant that cannot survive the cold Minnesota winters so I need to bring it in the house during the winter. It is a plant I have cared for for many years and every year I threaten to throw it into the compost pile instead of bringing it indoors! Although I love my outdoor flower gardens in the summer I’m not too interested in indoor plants. I have two: a pothos that trails down my cupboard in the kitchen and a Christmas cactus that a friend gave me…which was started by her grandmother years ago in Norway. Those two plants are hardy and survive with little attention from me.

So every fall I have to decide if I’m going to bring the hibiscus indoors for the winter. I have a friend who is the hibiscus’ advocate. She encourages me to keep the plant alive. When I went out to water it the other day it had so many blooms…I think the hibiscus has a sense that it needs to perform to save its life. So I guess I’ll keep it over winter again but I won’t bring it in until the last possible moment.