Nerstrand Big Woods State Park

On Wednesday, I rode down to Nerstrand Big Woods State Park. What drew me there was the waterfall the DNR website mentioned. Unfortunately, with the drought in recent months, the waterfall has become a trickle.  Still, the fall colors were pretty in the afternoon sun.  There were Indian tinker toy plants everywhere, reminding me of childhood field trips.  A large hornet's nest caught my eye. I made sure to steer clear of that!  The picture I took of it was zoomed all the way out with my DSLR lens.

You can read the DNR's pamphlet for more information on the history of the Big Woods in Minnesota.

Climb, Climb up Sunshine Mountain

 

A panoramic view taken with my iPhone.

No mountains were involved, but that song was the first thing I thought of when I reached the summit of the Mille Lacs Kathio State Park 100ft. fire tower yesterday.  For all the spectacular views, those 137 steps to the top were well worth it!

A zoomed-in view taken with my Nikon DSLR.

It didn't matter which way I looked; the trees were happy and glowing.

Nikon DSLR shot.

View of the fire tower taken with my Nikon DSLR.

I was concerned that my rebuilt knee would be really grumpy after climbing and descending all those stairs.  I took it easy on the way up by taking one flight of stairs at a time and then relaxing on each landing for a minute.  

A sign at the bottom stated that only 6 people were allowed at a time.  You would be right if you think the structure looks a bit spindly.  When I arrived, 6 people were already at the top.  I saw 3 people waiting at the bottom.  Two were waiting to climb, and one lady was waiting for her party at the top to come down.  She wasn't able to climb because she would have severe vertigo on the way down.

Once the group at the top started to descend, the 3 of us started our ascent.  I'm not afraid of heights, but I do have a fear of falling.  Each flight of stairs was reinforced with stiff wire mesh, so I wasn't scared of falling off the side but possibly down one flight.  I kept an iron grip on the railings.

In the little boxy room at the top, there was a lot of shaking due to people climbing and the wind blowing.  Hold it together, Spindly Tower!  I was concerned that all my pictures would be blurry due to the 'bouncy house,' but I needn't have worried.

137 steps up meant 137 steps down.  I steadily descended without any rest stops or mishaps.  I was pooped by the time I reached the bottom and joined my friend on a bench for a little while.  It wasn't until we were ready to leave and I started walking that I realized my legs were like Jell-O.  Dear legs, thank you for letting me know how out of shape I am.  Apparently, they think they need to keep reminding me because my quads have been screaming at me ever since I woke up today. 

A Balmy Christmas Eve – Part 5

 

Last one from our Christmas Eve adventure.  House on fire!

A Balmy Christmas Eve – Part 4

Another from our Christmas Eve light tour.  

A Balmy Christmas Eve – Part 3

Another from our Christmas Eve light tour.  I love this Nativity scene.

A Balmy Christmas Eve – Part 2

Another from our Christmas Eve light tour.  Not many lights in this yard, but the rain-slicked driveway really brightens things up. 

More pictures from Christmas Eve to come.

A Balmy Christmas Eve – Part 1

Christmas Eve, we drove around the Twin Cities looking at Christmas lights.  We had a record-breaking high of 55ºF and it had been steadily raining all day and night.  It was still 51ºF and raining during our adventure.  I was taking pictures without wearing a coat - just jeans and a T-shirt, and I wasn't cold.  In Minnesota, we don't normally still have patches of green grass in December!  

The wet roads added something special to the festive lights.  

More images from Christmas Eve to come.

Minnehaha Dormant

The 5th and final part in a series of blogs for anyone who has ever been to Minnehaha Falls and/or followed Minnehaha Creek down to its junction with the Mississippi River.

Today is a close-up of the limestone shelf where the water would normally be flowing.  Two boys lounging in the lower right give some perspective to the size of that shelf.  I think the moss and sprinkles of fall color are pretty.

I've started reading a newly-published book about the falls and the surrounding area, complete with a number of historic pictures.  It used to be much wider and had many names during the 1800s, including "Little Falls."

Goodnight, sleepy, sleepy falls.  See you in the spring!  

Minnehaha Dry

Part 4 in a series of blogs for anyone who has ever been to Minnehaha Falls and/or followed Minnehaha Creek down to its junction with the Mississippi River.

Minnesota had the driest September on record, which is certainly reflected in the current image on the left.  The one on the right shows an average spring waterfall.

Techie corner

This isn't quite an apples-to-apples comparison between the two images, from a photography standpoint.  The current image was taken with the wide-angle lens on my phone.  (I take a lot of images on my phone these days.  They still aren't as good as a DSLR, but they've come a long way!)  The wider angle leads to perspective distortion.   

The one on the right was taken with my DSLR, with a much narrower field of view.

Below is an image with a red box showing approximately where the image on the right fits into the image on the left.

Muddy Minnehaha

Part 3 in a series of blogs for anyone who has ever been to Minnehaha Falls and/or followed Minnehaha Creek down to its junction with the Mississippi River.

We were almost at the falls in this photo.  Just standing brown water here.  I'm surprised that there weren't a billion mosquitos around.

Minnehaha Rocks

Part 2 in a series of blogs for anyone who has ever been to Minnehaha Falls and/or followed Minnehaha Creek down to its junction with the Mississippi River.

We're heading upstream, if you can call it that, toward the falls.  Even though the creek isn't flowing, I think the boulders are pretty in their own right. 

One thing I didn't realize is that at some point, concrete step-downs were installed in the creek.  You can see one fairly clearly toward the top of the picture.

Minnehaha Puddles

This series of blogs is for anyone who has ever been to Minnehaha Falls and/or followed Minnehaha Creek down to its junction with the Mississippi River.

October 1st, a friend and I went down to see (or not see) the dried-up Minnehaha Falls.  The newscasts say it's been over a decade since this happened last.  

Today's image is below the falls and down the creek a bit, looking toward the route to the Mississippi.

These things run in cycles and the water will come back eventually.  Here are some links to news and history:

• 2022 drought YouTube video
• 2012 U of M project and analysis
• 2009 Minnehaha Trickle article
• 1955 local area history
• Early 1900s history of the falls in general
• Newly released book about the seedier history of the falls

Plashy

I took this last year in Minneopa State Park.  It's similar to another image I took at the same time and blogged last year.

Memorably

From a random Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Twins game in 2004.  It was a work event and we got field access after the game.  That's how I got a close up of the base and Twins logo.  The look on that EMT's face is priceless.

Techie Corner – Digital cameras weren't the greatest in 2004, but mine did ok.  I was using my very first digital camera – a 5 megapixel point-and-shoot Pentax Optio 555.  

Formidability

 

Artfully

 It was a beautiful day today and since I had the day off, I forced myself to get out and enjoy it a little bit.  

Unprecedentedly

According to the news, today will go down in the record books as Minnesota's earliest 3+ inches of snowfall and the 2nd largest October daily snowfall for MSP Airport in the past 140 years of recorded weather history.  

Minneapolis got 7.4 inches officially at the airport and the suburbs got up to 9 inches.  Happy 2020 – the year that anything can happen.

Looking at the weather forecast, however, it should all be gone by the weekend.   

Sleekly

 Flashback to a car show in Hastings last summer.

Queasy

 No state fair this year, but plenty of memories from years past.  I think you can tell who is afraid of heights and who isn't in this image.  It reminds me a lot of a previous blog post of my parents.  

Coitally

 Love is in the air!  These goldenrod soldier beetles are getting it on in style atop some pretty hydrangeas.  Apparently, they are a beneficial beetle because their larvae feed on plant pests.