On my walk, early this morning, I was greeted by this huge turtle.
He stood still and watched me. I could get up close to take a look at him, and he looked old…maybe he was thinking the same thing about me!
His shell looked soft and scarred. I don’t know what kind of turtle he is, but he was big…at least the size of a basketball.
On my way home I circled back to see if he was still there, but there was no sign of him at all…not even a path through the grass to the pond.
Happy day, Mr. Turtle.
Last week, on a most beautiful Minnesota summer day, we took our bikes up to Edina and biked on the Nine Mile Creek Trail.
The temperatures were just right for riding, the humidity was low, and the sky was bright blue.
My husband rode on this trail with his bike club last year and found it fascinating. He wanted me to experience it, so off we went.
What set this trail apart from other bike trails is there are lengthy stretches of boardwalk…spanning over the marsh and through the woods with lots of shady areas. It runs along Nine Mile Creek but there are landmarks to remind you that you are in the city…a concrete bridge over Highway 100, a stretch along the back side of Edina High School, and other industrial buildings, shops and businesses…and then the trail bends and once again you’re back in the woods.
There were numerous bridges made from wood and one boardwalk was almost a mile long (.85 miles). The bridges are wider than a normal bike trail which added to the beauty of the trail.
It’s always fun to discover new trails…and this one was very unique. We are grateful for the many bicycle trails in Minnesota.
Two words…turtle and Lego… captured my attention last week when scanning through the newspaper. Two words for two different, but interesting, entities…together in one title. It may have caught my attention because we encountered two large turtles on Northfield’s bike trail this past summer, and because of my fondness for Legos.
The article reported of a turtle fitted for wheelchair made of Legos. Now that’s creative!
The article states: “A wild turtle with a broken shell is rolling around on a wheelchair made of Legos while he’s on the mend at the Maryland Zoo.”
The eastern box turtle had fractures to the underside of his shell, and according to the article, keeping the shell bottom off the ground is important for healing after surgery. The zoo’s veterinarian asked a friend, who is a Lego enthusiast, if he would create a custom, turtle-sized, Lego wheelchair to help the turtle mend.
My two boys played with Legos for hours when they were young…it was a favorite play time of theirs and I do believe they have good memories of building cities together, and all the vehicles and buildings that go along with that. We set a piece of plywood on top of a bed we had in our finished basement as a platform for Lego towns and Lego creations. I used to joke that at one time our Lego collection was the most valuable item in our house. We still have Legos, sorted by color, in plastic boxes, ready for the grandchildren to play with someday.
Recently we were at the Mall of America and walked past the Lego store. It’s always fun to stop and look at their displays of oversized figures and vehicles and space ships.
Legos have always made me smile…to see the many different creations, and also, to remember the special memories of my two little boys playing together with their Legos.
I hope the turtle heals quickly…it has no idea of the wonders of Legos.
Last week we were, once again, biking on the new trail in town when we noticed a turtle on the path. We stopped to take a look and discovered this turtle was a different species than the turtle we saw a few weeks ago.
I took a picture, hoping to identify it later. When I first saw the turtle I thought it was a snapping turtle, but I didn’t test it by dangling a stick in front of his face to see if he’d snap. After a quick research, I’m pretty certain it is a snapping turtle. Click here for more information.
I wonder how many species of turtles are in the area along the river, and near the path? Hopefully we’ll see a new and different one the next time.
Last week while riding our on the new trail from Northfield to Dundas we stopped for a large turtle on the path.
We got off our bikes to get a closer look and found it was an unusual turtle…one none of us had seen before. We enjoyed looking at it, and wanted to touch it but decided not to. All the while it just stood there (do turtles stand?) waiting for us to leave.
We took in the wonder of it all, then got back on our bikes and continued on our ride. On our way back the turtle was gone.
The next day my friend did some research and found this turtle is called a Trionyx muticus. Click here for a link for more information. It is a soft-shelled turtle with and interesting snout and apparently considered a “special concern species in Minnesota”, which I think makes for a rare sighting.
It was fun to see this creature on the trail and hopefully it will find a safe place along the riverbank to make it’s home.