Huffman Prairie

Friday
I had a medical appointment first thing, but then the three of us had the day free. The temperature was down a bit from the last few days, so we decided to do some hiking. One place I was wanting to visit was Huffman Prairie in the Dayton area, as I had seen pictures on Facebook of the prairie flowers in full bloom. So we decided to combine that with some hiking at Germantown Metropark Twin Valley. We got 5 miles in, though it wasn’t the most pleasant hiking, as although the temperatures were down, the humidity wasnt! However, as you can see from my collage, the prairie did not disappoint - masses of Cone flowers, Prairie cone flowers, Black-eyed Susans, Bergamot, Liatris, Royal catchfly and others.
The Prairie is immediately adjacent to Huffman Prairie Flying Field, which was where the Wright Brothers perfected their flying techniques and machines. When the Wright brothers returned to Dayton, after their historic first flights at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903, they looked for a suitable flying field closer to home. Dayton banker, Torrence Huffman allowed the brothers to use his pasture, which was located eight miles northeast of Dayton, rent-free. Here in 1904 and 1905, through a series of unique experiments, the Wright brothers mastered the principles of controlled, powered flight and developed the world's first practical airplane.
“In 1904, the brothers made 105 flights, totaling 49 minutes in the air with their 1904 Wright Flyer II. With this flying machine, they made the first turn and the first circle in the air. When the brothers returned to the Huffman Prairie for the 1905 flying season, they brought along an improved machine, the 1905 Wright Flyer III. This flying machine, which evolved throughout 1905, could bank, turn circles, and make figure-eights. On October 5, 1905, Wilbur piloted the plane for a world record of over 24 miles in 39 minutes. About two weeks later, the brothers ended their experiments for 1905 feeling that they now had a practical airplane that they could market. In the 1905 flying season, the brothers stayed aloft for 262 minutes in just 50 flights.” National Park Service
In the evening, we drove downtown to one of our favourite Mexican restaurants, Nada’s, followed up by a scoop of Graeters Ice Cream at Fountain Square (see extra)
Step count: 18,941