Eight + Miles Done - I Am Not Running Away

Earlier this year I was told by my orthopedic specialist that I would never do wilderness canoe outings or backpacking trips again due to an injury and surgery complications. I sort of did a canoe trip, but not without considerable discomfort for the next few days. I did it, but it was not pretty. Today was a test for backpacking.

If details can be worked out I will hike with the fellow reclaiming the record for the oldest person to hike…

Two Versions of One Day

What a change we have had for this first day without Daylight Savings Time. We woke to calm, brisk conditions with a heavy coat of frost and even thicker fog. What began as a slow day for me, until I looked out the window, quickly transitioned to a photographically busy morning. I did not want to miss fog photos!

My Path To Another World

Fifteen years or so ago my friends at the Iowa Flood Center told me (and others in the audience) that our weather patterns would change from periodic rains to dry spells followed by heavy rain. Our overall annual rainfall would remain about the same, but the pattern would be dry/flood conditions. Like it or not, so far they have been right.

How this has affected me personally is that the river in front of our cabin is either terribly shallow or out of its banks. Where we used to see water skiing or where we pulled the kids on a tube behind our pontoon boat is now too shallow to run an outboard without churning up mud.

If I was a serious boating enthusiast I would be disappointed or…

For the beauty of the earth,  For the beauty of the skies…

As I paddled this morning on the Wapsipinicon River the first two verses of an old familiar hymn came to mind. “For the beauty of the earth, For the beauty of the skies…” seemed appropriate. From the golden oak leaves to the thousands of grackles calling and flying, to the wood ducks doing their best to…

Wild Life and Odd Weather

After this morning’s weather conditions I am not sure what to expect. First we had fog - plenty of fog. Then conditions cleared so I went out exploring. Under the clear conditions I found trumpeter swans and a lone ring-necked duck...

Thinking of Al (Kristy’s Dad)

Several decades ago my father-in-law took up trout fishing for a hobby. Al tied some flies and I am sure tossed them in the streams, but no matter what I cannot remember him ever catching any trout. I hope he experienced pulling a fighting trout in on a light line, but I do not remember him enjoying trout fishing success.

Today I decided to try my luck quietly dropping artificial insects at some of the streams where Al would go so many years ago. I am happy to say that my trout fishing story won’t…

Definition: Poo Magnet

According to a slang dictionary, a “Poo Magnet” is: “Any person, in which trouble and drama, follows them everywhere they go.”

Right or wrong, I have had a sizable number of friends, family, coworkers, and others insinuate that I might be a “poo magnet” (only they use stronger wording). I don’t agree with them, thinking instead I just happed to come across an unusually high number of unusual situations most people would never see.

For example, yesterday I found a vehicle in a…

Whitetail Buck Jumps Off Ledge

What began as a calm, peaceful hike at Brush Creek Canyon State Preserve changed dramatically when I spooked a whitetail buck that then jumped off a ledge. Emotions ran high for this unusual experience.

See the entire story in this video.

Hybrid, Normal, and Not Too Far From the Dairy

A possible unusual find for the morning was what I believe to be a hybrid mallard duck. Notice how dark this bird is compared to other mallards. I suspect this may have been the result of different species mating. For reference purposes I will include images of “normal” mallards.

This afternoon I was invited on a trip to the Country View Dairy near Hawkeye and West Union. Since we were in the area, our carload visited Echo Valley State Park. Like me, they found the beauty of the driftless region something special. I took more photos of the area.

Extreme Wide Angle Views

Once again I attempted what I have done numerous times before with the same results. I shot all images with a small, fixed-focus camera with an extremely wide angle of view.

Image distortion is evident and I had to “work” the images to make them comparable to my Nikon, but still, the pictures are not bad. I so wish this little camera had the image quality of my bigger gear. Maybe I am expecting too much.

Following is a sampling of what I saw and photographed today.

Seen Today

During my hunter-gatherer duties for the day (I went fishing), I saw a few things of interest.

First was this field of bales in fog and lit by an early morning rising sun. I thought the view was pretty.

Wildlife and Scenes

During my outdoor activities today I enjoyed some wildlife and some pretty scenes.

For wildlife I photographed a rainbow trout and a small portion of a large flock of rusty blackbirds.

The scenery was observed in the Frederika area along the Wapsipinicon River.

Autumn Views at Ingawanis Woodland

For my “Nature FIx” today I hiked at Ingawanis Woodland. Our brisk winds had not yet stripped the trees of their colorful leaves providing for a pleasing outing. I shot photos looking up, down, and all around.

I will share a sampling of images here. To see more photos - with music - click on this link to view a short video.

Autumn Views of Ingawanis Woodland Video

Fleeting Moments

Early this morning I learned a classmate was no longer with us as of a couple of days ago. While we weren’t close friends, we would talk and wave when our paths crossed.

As I drove to our cabin I passed by my classmate’s home before turning down the road toward the river. From behind the wheel of the Jeep I could see warm, bright colors lighting the top half of the trees on the far side of the pond.

Although my drive was short, by the time I reached the shoreline…

Catching Color, Catching Views

Over the weekend one of my grandsons and I went exploring on what we referred to as a “vacation.” Even though we slept in a tent in the living room at home, we were still out and about in Northeast Iowa during the non-sleep hours.

Yesterday I shared images and a video from our trips across the Lansing bridge that is now closed. Today I will post images from other activities. We saw many pretty scenes!

Lansing Bridge - Over and Under Before Closure

Before the closure of the old steel bridge over the Mississippi River at Lansing, my grandson and I took a last trip over the bridge and took a path under the bridge.

Check out the video and the pics!

Lansing Bridge - Over and Under Before Closure

The Setting and the Goal

Rain or shine, my goal when I went to bed last night was to be on the road early this morning to challenge trout in a stream not too far away. I had no idea if there were even any fish in the stream, but I was going to give it my best effort.

As I studied the stream I watched as several trout broke the surface of the water as they gulped whatever was floating downstream. Their behavior guided my bait selection as I opted for a dry fly to maybe entice a strike or two. I was tossing something that appeared like an insect floating on the stream.

Trout fishing is a challenge outdoor activity. In Iowa streams, the fish usually…

The Face in My Mirror

As I quietly paddled my canoe yesterday on the Wapsipinicon River, appreciating what autumn colors I could find, a sizable fractured rock caught my attention. A couple of gentle paddle strokes moved me close enough to the shore to study the rock in the process of breaking to pieces.

Soon after pressing the shutter release button on my Nikon comparative thoughts of my life and the fractured rock entered my mind.

Have you noticed how that face in your mirror is changing? Perhaps a wrinkle or two (maybe more) have etched their way onto once smooth skin. Strands of silver (maybe a complete head of gray) replace younger colors from our youth. There is no hiding the…

Colors On the River (Or Not)

Autumn 2025 is turning out to not be a color-fest - at least not yet. Leaf-lookers must put effort into finding bright colors, but there are some present. Following are some of the views of autumn colors or scenes without color as enjoyed this morning.

Catching Up

After a full weekend of camping, hiking, photography, and fishing, I am catching up on images that I grabbed quick with my phone. Normally I don’t do much with phone images… not even share too many. But, I thought today I would since they seem to be nice views. So, here you go…