Second Hike of the Season

The weather was begging us to get up and go out this morning. We gladly obliged. Hubby chose the 3.6 mile trail around Beaver Lake. The side paths and visits to overlooks added to the original 2.5 miles the trail guide claims. I collected over 11K steps and my knees felt every one. The trekking poles, Tylenol, Albuterol and Icy Hot made it possible to finish. We have walked parts of it before but not during the same hike. I hope you can enjoy these photos on a large screen. The walk was uphill, downhill, around hills and a small amount of flat land. It was rocky in places and full of interesting root systems. We saw new plants, several fungi (only two included here, white pored chicken of the woods and Russula cerolens) and some animal specimens. I saw my first overfly, if Seek is correct. The red insect is a trombidium and the butterfly is a morbid owlet. My salamander photo isn’t the best. The skink ran away before I got the camera app open. The squirrel entertained as squirrels do. There were mallards, heron, Canadian geese and many song birds. I did not capture either. I saw various dragonflies but they are so elusive. This is a different toad than yesterday’s. The white water lily was my fav shot of the day. There were also summer bluets, star grass flowers, more lady slippers, yellow and lavender iris and yellow water lilies. I hope you found much beauty in your environment today. Stay safe. Drive carefully. Thanks for visiting. I am falling asleep as I type. Please excuse any gibberish. The extra is our traditional selfie that hubby took at the end of the hike. My shower was heavenly after all the sweat and dirt. “The beauty of the natural world lies in the details.” -- Natalie Angier