MOSS

I'm anxious for fall colors to appear, but they can wait a few more weeks.  This Wisconsin weekend was filled with plenty of sunshine, cool mornings, and a beautiful sunset last night that can't be compared.  I am enjoying the cooler temperatures and moss!

Although Wisconsin doesn't have moss that hangs on tree branches and leaves one wonder struck, we have many different kinds of moss that are beautiful and can be seen nearly year round.  Moss coats stumps, the bases of trees, and low wet places in the woods.

My yard has acidy soil and plenty of shade and moss flourishes here.  I'd rather have a carpet of moss in my yard than green grass that needs continual mowing.  Moss is soft under the feet and easy on the eyes.

A special kind of moss, called sphagnum moss, grows in the acidic peat soil of central Wisconsin marshes.  It has been a source of income for many years and my father and brothers all have had jobs harvesting it.  After the moss is pulled up, it is dried and baled.  Then it is shipped to nurseries, greenhouses, and gardeners throughout the country.   This moss can hold up to twenty times its weight in water.  This little patch of sphagnum moss below is growing near my cabin.

Years ago I planted a moss garden in the yard that includes about six different types of moss.  Through the years the mosses have blended together amid stones and bricks and share their spot with wild flowers in springtime and wintergreen and partridge berries.  With adequate rainfall each summer, I can always count on seeing green when I look at my moss garden.

Celebrating, 
and appreciating,
an incredibly soft and precious plant called moss!

LITTLE TRICKLE

I've wondered throughout the years how this little trickle of water came to be, in the woods south of Tom's Creek.  I'm sitting beside this small drainage ditch today that runs from the south edge of our woods all the way to the creek.  It's lined with moss and ferns and crystal clear water.  Could this tiny channel have been dug by beaver long ago or by early settlers trying to drain farm land?

My favorite part about this "little trickle" is that it's shallow, sandy, and filled with pretty rocks.  I always dream of finding an agate here, but haven't yet.


In dry times this little stream stops flowing.  In wintertime with a skiff of ice covering it, the channel makes a narrow but handy trail for mink or muskrats to scoot down to the creek on.

With clear water flowing through it today, too little to even make a sound, the sunlight casting shadows on the ripples looks so peaceful.    


As I walk back home, stepping over occasional wolf scat and tons of deer tracks that crisscross the trail, the cool breeze blows through the treetops and sunshine lights my path.  It's a beautiful mid September Wisconsin day!

Little stream, full of dreams...
Ripples, sun, and shadows, 
Little pebbles, little sticks and little stones.

Keep on trickling, to the creek, to the rivers, to the ocean...
And when you get there, let the sunset shine on you.

A Princess Pine at my feet beside the little trickle.

THUNDERSTORMS IN LATE SUMMER

 
Today could be one of our last hottest and muggiest days of summer.  I'm sitting in the screen tent down by the pond, listening to the distant thunder and awaiting the chance for some much needed rainfall.

As dark clouds roll from the southwest to the northeast I'm thinking the storm might go around us.  That's a phrase I recall from my childhood.  Either we got lucky, or we didn't, because the storm went around us.

This is the kind of weather that replicates stepping into a sauna.  I have to admitt I've always disliked these kind of summer days.  The word "dislike" brings me back to my childhood as well because Mom taught me to say "dislike" instead of "hate".

Crows and blue jays are raising a rackett this early and prematurely dark evening.  Apparently the humidity doesn't bother them as much as it does me.  As I sit here outside, sweating, I'm thankful for the air conditioner in the cabin window.  Life is so easy these days for us.




Brief flashes of lightening brighten up the sky and the wind is beginning to pick up.  Perhaps it's best I head indoors.

"Ping", "ping", and an occasional "bang" are sounds I hear from falling acorns in the yard landing on our metal roofs as the wind picks up and swirls the tree branches above me.

I love watching clouds and the magic of an approaching thunderstorm... 

As long as tornadoes stay away, 
and blue skies aren't far beyond the gray.

SPIDERS' WEBS FILLED WITH DEW

This morning I'm sitting with my journal across Tom's Creek, near the Nickel Stand, on an old rotting pine tree that took a tumble many years ago.  This damp and cool morn is filled with pleasant sounds and fresh earthy aromas as I enjoy the bright green sphagnum moss around me.  This is a spot I couldn't linger at a few weeks ago as the mosquitoes would've carried me away.  Today, a bugless day, is a gift of late summer.




On my jaunt here,  I noticed a bright and beautiful pink flower or "weed" that shows itself along the creek banks this time of year.  It's called swamp smartweed.


To get up close and personal to this flower, I held my arms high and trudged through the wet ferns, nettles, and briars. My jeans and shoes were soaked, but of course, it was worth my efforts.

After crossing Tom's Creek, now shallow with merely a trickle of water flowing, I continued my walk on the trail through the woods, with half eaten mushrooms dotting the forest floor.  I'm guessing the deer last night snacked on the fresh new growth.  I passed by the Companion Tree and looked up high at its branches while two robins darted off the trail ahead of me.

As I sit here writing on this late August day, there is still a steady choir of crickets chirping.  Chickadees and blue jays are calling to one another in the tree tops as my seat gets damp from the wet log I'm sitting on.  Squirrels are chattering all around me and I love their familiar sounds because I know I can count on them to hang out with me in the woods in all seasons.

A red squirrel has a good hiding place in this deep woods atop an oak tree far above me.  


In the distance, far to the south, I hear sandhill cranes and know they're thinking about a day soon to come when they will head south for the winter.  I hope they wait a little longer so I can hear them a zillion more times this fall.  I hope summer itself stays a little longer!

This time of year I especially enjoy the spider webs, filled with dew, that adorn the morning grass.  The webs appear magically everywhere along the woodland trails and the driveway, often empty, but always laced with dew drops.  They bring back memories of my childhood, late summer days, and the start of the new school year.  They also remind me of a time not so long ago with my young son and our early morning walks down our long driveway to wait for the bus.  When we could hear it slowing down out on the highway, about to turn onto our dirt road, I can still hear him saying to me, "Mom, you can go now."

THE LUCKY ONE?

Purple Asters Along the Road Ditch Today

It's a beautiful, cool, and breezy Sunday morning.  I'm catching up on my nature blog after a short trip to Lake Superior last weekend.

This morn I'm in the middle of my walk down the road, taking a rest on a knoll in a sweet spot  with pen in hand.  This pen is from the Holiday Inn Express, and it's a great writer!

It's fun to observe the wild flowers along the road ditches, different ones than in early and mid summertime.  I love the purple and lavender flowers especially this time of year.




Thistles are a pest but, WOW, their bright pink colors
sure catch my eyes and the bees love them too.


Crickets steady chirps dominate the background sounds in my world today and I can hear a few birds singing in the thick stand of spruce trees nearby, but I'm not sure who they are.

Blue colors are peaking through the mainly overcast sky today that's filled with puffy gray clouds.  Cool temps and a few yellow birch leaves dotting the ground where I sit, remind me that fall is near, but I don't mind.  This cooler air is invigorating!
   
Elderberries nearby have ripened and the birds have had their way with them. 

Not only has the local flora been interesting lately, but the fauna has been on the move too in our neck of the woods.  Yesterday morning we spotted the three legged deer with two fawns and a forked buck in the field along our driveway.  She looks great!

A young wolf was captured on our trail camera several times in the past three weeks.  At first we thought he was a coyote, but his long nose told another story.

While I sit and and ponder a little longer, a monarch caterpillar nearby is browsing on milkweed leaves.  Monarchs produce three to four generations of butterflies each season in Wisconsin and the last ones to turn into butterflies at the end of summer get to make the long journey to California or Mexico.  Maybe this caterpillar, soon to be a butterfly, will be one of the lucky ones!

 

Enjoy this last month of summer... open up your eyes and take it all in... whether in a big old woods, or by observing a small patch of nature in your front or back yard.  You'll be amazed at what you see if you look hard enough!  

CARDINAL FLOWERS IN AUGUST

Today was my day to make a trek to the end of the road, visit the East Fork of the Black River, and look for August's gift of cardinal flowers.  My hopes were high before I left home, as each year about this time, this special spot offers a few of these beauties in full bloom.

I put a few light items in my backpack, donned my floppy hat, dosed up with bug spray per my hubby's insistence, and hit the road.  I asked for an hour and a half of time, then a ride back home, and he agreed.

On my walk, I hoped to take photos of butterflies sitting on wolf scat along the road, but my search was in vein.  The town grader recently graded the roads and left no scat behind.  I did spot a few butterflies searching for something, but they were in a hurry and didn't care about my camera.

The cool and humid morning air made for pleasant walking along with the sound of a million crickets.

When I reached the trail at the end of the road the tall grasses and brush were filled with mosquitoes and deer flies but I found my way to the makeshift bridge across the East Fork, sat down to rest and journal, and was not bothered.
I pulled out an old orange Fleet Farm pen from my backpack to write with, but it failed me. 
 

With nothing to pen, I had more time to study the beauty of the river, moss, and flowers growing along its banks.  The cardinal flowers with their brilliant red display did not disappoint me.  They shined in all their glory and made my morning walk all that I hoped it would be!

Old stones from underneath the metal bridge that spanned this creek still remain.  The bridge was removed in the 1930's and now a makeshift wooden bridge sets on the old abutments.  Moss covers the leftover stones so carefully placed there long ago, while the East Fork, with its root beer colored water, keeps on trickling down to the main Black River.

 

To me, there is something 
extra special 
about the 
brilliant crimson color of 
cardinal flowers.  

Every August, 
when they appear, 
I feel a need 
to discover them 
all over again!

NATURE - COMFORT

 
I'm sitting on the bank of Tom's Creek this evening contemplating about life and nature.  The water is barely trickling in the creek bed where I'm sitting, as we've had such little rainfall in the last two weeks.   Frogs are busy leaping about in the water before me while dragonflies drift above the creek's surface.  Deer flies keep landing on my hands as I write in my journal.

I'm enjoying immensely the sounds of crickets chirping in the distance.  It's comforting to me and a reminder that summer will soon be fading away.  The cicadas are buzzing in the treetops again too.  I've heard them for a week or more now, those elusive giant flies that sing so loudly.

Although we go through many changes in the world around us from month to month in Wisconsin, changes in nature are expected and predictable. 

Our lives keep changing also in much more dramatic ways than nature.  People come into our world and exit, sometimes with no time to say good-bye.  We move, we marry, have babies, and watch them grow up and leave home.  Our lives are filled with changes all the time, some good and some sad.  Sometimes bad luck seems to unveil itself in every direction that we turn.  Our lives are often filled with uncertainties.

Nature can be comforting because we know what lies ahead from season to season.  We can always count on nature to give us snowflakes in winter, dandelions in spring, dragonflies in summer, and acorns in the fall.  In nature we can find much needed peace when the crazy world around us won't stop spinning. 

When life seems overwhelming,

When laughter turns to tears,

Take a walk on grassy ground,

And let the blue sky steal your fears.