Fine Lines of Summer

On the water

Earlier this week I re-explored favorite places in and near the BWCA.  It's the time of year where the sun is nicely warm while the shaded areas can be chilly.  I wore my sun hat but also carried woolies, which were greatly appreciated after the sun set.

Click on the images to see them a bit larger in a slide show format!














I admired a spider web cocooning a group of little ferns on a rock wall above the water.  After moving in close to take several photos, I jumped back a bit when the spider caught my eye.  Sliding the canoe back and repositioning to change angle, I focused on the spider.  When I changed my attention to a small aspen twig further along the wall, I continued to keep one eye on the giant spider, though detected no movement.

Hummingbird (from summer archives)

From the summer archives:

Wise hummingbird pauses

darts down,

hovers.

Clover flutters.

Busy bees and bumbling bees

The bees were busy with the hollyhocks this evening. Moving from flower to flower, their fuzzy bodies come away from the flowers covered in the white specks of pollen. They move efficiently in most cases, but not all. One character had difficulty making it in to the center of a partially opened hollyhock, clumsily hitting the outer petals. Drunk on nectar? And, the bee in these photos did not move more than half an inch in the time I was watching. I can only wonder why... unless there's a bee expert out there who can share?

swimming in cool...

Yes, we've had another steamy day in the northwoods.... Here's hoping the forecast for 70's on Thursday holds true. Please. I'd prefer to be swimming in cool... blue...

birch and evening grosbeak

While I was savoring the light shining through the spring green of the birch leaves, this evening grosbeak set down for a short while, long enough to tease me and my camera eye.

Open to the sun

Unfurl, stretch, reach, bloom.

The season for awakening and growth for all beings has arrived. The daffodils are opening to the sun, and so am I.

Did you notice the fuzzy buzzing creature in the photo? I heard a buzz while sitting in the flower patch but never spotted the source. So, this photo was a surprise when I was sorting through the downloads of the day. Happy Bee.

dance along the edge

curl and crash

in perpetual motion

dance along the frothy edge of turbulence

Chit chat

My slumber while soaking up the heat from the sun-warmed rock was interrupted by the flutter of wings and gentle chirping. Two gray jay friends had arrived. The gray jays have learned that this well-traveled waterway brings their two-legged paddle friends who are likely to have a tasty handout to supplement the winter food cache. So... we chattered back and forth and they made show of leaving but then came back, persistent in their request. These birds are friendly, but only to a certain extent. Two winters ago, for one of my "work" projects, I spent countless hours in the woods searching for a gray jay nest. The gray jays played with me, and I found nests, but always old ones. Clever creatures...

On the rocks

Sitting on a rock by the river, we watched baby ducks swim into the current, diving down and popping back to the surface. A Great Blue Heron glided in as the sun was setting, perhaps to survey the river for fish. We left the rocks for the birds.

Ready, set... dive!

Please, no visitors today!

These turtles slipped into the water shortly after this photo.

Last Saturday

Last Saturday, the end of June, we went for a paddle across Burntside followed by a portage into Slim Lake. Amidst the soaking up of the rays for a full fledged sunburn and the paddling lessons on feathering and figure eights, we mingled with nature, trailing a Great Blue Heron, spooking a deer back to the woods, and attempting to sneak up on turtles who know better than to let other wild life get too close.

Fuzzy Bumblebees

Lupine fiesta

Sitting with the lupines, I listened to the quiet of the evening... and the hum of the bumblebees as they spiraled around the columns. The bees moved efficiently from one pod to the next, quickly and gently opening it and reaching in for the sweetness.

Shell of safety

This turtle was in an unsafe place. With my approach, she went inward. As I picked her up by the edge of her shell to move her, her head moved out and tail and legs started flailing, which, along with the "hssss", inspired a expeditious set-down. She was inspired to find her own path away from immediate harm.

Fishing

Loons are calling, ticks are hitching rides, and all sorts of creatures are fishing... herons, humans...

The town of Ely and the area lakes are starting to liven up with the busy season. The Chocolate Moose is open (cheers all around!!!), and the time to look twice or thrice before crossing the street is upon Ely-ites once again. Ely is a cool place to be... no question of this during the winter months with the well-below zero temperatures, and in the summer we have a plentitude of lakes that serve up a refreshing dip as needed when steamy summer days creep in. Now this cool factor has been verified by a online voting contest, where Ely was voted America's Coolest Small Town for 2010! See BudgetTravel.com.

Whee!

How exhilarating it would be to fly through the air, breeze sifting through my hair, gently skidding to a landing! Of course, I would ideally enjoy such fun on a warm summer day, opposite conditions of the day this photo was taken of the swans on the Mississippi River. (Ah - to have wings... or an ultralight.) The swans winter on this area of the river which is open water, even in Minnesota's January cold, due to the warmth of a power plant upstream.

More spring green...

From Memorial Day: This frog was about the size of a quarter and in the middle of a hiking path. His lack of motion was perhaps due to the face-off with the camera or because he was trying to conserve energy on the very cool day. With a touch of gentle encouragement, he did move to a safer location.

Merganser

A quiet moment in a sheltered bay for this merganser.  As the evening grew dark, I moved to follow the path back and the crackle of past season's leaves caused her to move further from shore.

Spring expansion

The layer of ice is quickly disappearing on the lakes.  During my walk by the lake this weekend, I was mesmerized by the smooth water reflections of the blue sky, clouds, and trees and the feeling of a vast expanse of space.  New dimensions to the world are reappearing just in time, for these mergansers here, for the loons I heard calling on my walk this evening, and for all northwoods creatures great and small who are ready to unfurl themselves after this long winter!