Muggy Monday Morning - First Half

 

Last year during the Covid-19 pandemic we did our best to avoid crowds, self-isolated, etc. In order not to go completely stir crazy, we started taking little getaways into the natural world.

It was so nice to get fully vaccinated and start seeing family and friends again; returning to 'normal'. But now with the Delta variant getting so bad, we're back to wearing masks and taking little trips out and about instead of sitting home all day long.

Monday morning was hot, humid, muggy and foggy, but we had already planned a nearby outing, so off we went.

This was the first photo I took in Adams County, NE of Carl. I could imagine it being the site of a former homestead.

Next stop was on the bridge over the Middle Nodaway river East of Mt. Etna.

Which is where I took this foggy, dreamy picture of a very low river.

It's also where I was gobsmacked to see my first ever Pileated Woodpecker - and just missed getting a photo of it.

Then a drive up the winding hill and a right turn onto Mt Etna Trail, remembering when I was young and my folks took us to see the "Slide Off" above the river and the very early graves of people buried in that impressive spot.

Down the Trail a little farther to this beguiling view of the Middle Nodaway River Valley.

It occured to me that this would be the perfect spot from which to shoot a quadriptych of four seasons.

Is there anything more seductive during a drive in the countryside than an old dirt road? Not for me.

This country byway should have a more attractive, descriptive name than 140th Street.

I would call it Lenora's Lane in remembrance of a dear older friend who shared with me her memories of taking this route when she traveled from her job in town to her home in Mt. Etna.

A small meandering stream, responsible for draining the surrounding watershed, on its way to empty into the river.

Wildlife tracks were plentiful and birdsong here was profuse.

It was so peaceful, even though there was some construction going on a half mile away.

I love Honey Locusts. Their perfume is delightful when the trees blossom.

But be very careful around them. Watch out for those thorns. They can be lethal.

A field of Chicory and Queen Anne's lace with a soybean field and the greenbelt along the river in the distance.

In the foreground, some more Chicory and the buds and bloom of, I believe, a Tall Thistle.

There are so many varieties of thistle it is hard to identify them all.

If this is a Tall Thistle, it is one of the plants native to North America.

Thistles are an important food source for our state bird, The American Goldfinch. 

Back on the road, turning another corner, driving down past another bean field, I spied something out of place. "Stop. Stop. What was that? Back up."

Are those alien pods?

Nope. Just an escaped balloon bouquet. From what? A wedding? A birthday party? 

And from where? How long, how far had they floated to land here in an out of the way soybean field?

From the first photo to this one had been 45 minutes.

Earlier I asked if there was anything more seductive than an old dirt road.

It turns out the answer is: "Yes. An old dirt road with rocks, a lot of rocks, a lot, a lot of rocks."

We had not planned on doing any rock hunting during this hot, humid morning, but the addiction is real. "Just for a few minutes", we said.

The last picture taken before moving on was this one of  a couple Partridge Pea plants.

Our "few minutes" picking rocks had turned into forty minutes. 

These are the pretties which came home with me.

Doesn't that one second from the left beneath the largest rock look like the plastron (underside) of a turtle?

There is something unique about each of the rocks I kept.

 

This is what they look like on the other side.

I try to stick to the littler rocks and not bring home anything too big, but I couldn't resist that largest stone.

Let's face it, I'm a rockaholic.

Tomorrow, the second half of a Muggy Monday Morning.