Boy the air conditioning felt good when we got back into the car.
Off the dirt road and on gravel, headed to the highway.
From a distance I thought all the orange along the road was tiger lilies, but it was sumac already beginning to color.
It is sad to see dead trees, yet they make a statement about the cycle of life as well as an elegant, striking background.
From here: destination DNR Wildlife Area and Food Plot.
So many people had been posting pictures of Sunflower Fields that it made me wish there was one nearby that I could visit.
Then I found a DNR map showing all the locations of Sunflower Fields this year and saw that there is one in Adams County!
Of course I had to find it.
This field is not as impressive as some, but it's a start and I'm sure the birds will love it.
There are still quite a few weeds and grasses mixed in as well as other wildflowers. The purple ones among all the yellow is Ironweed.
The field is at the end of Kale Avenue on the north side of Lake Icaria. There is a parking area. Signage shows it as a DNR "Wildlife Management Area Public Hunting" zone.
We followed this path to the sunflower field and on down to the lake.
I was actually on the way back when, unbeknownst, Bud took this photo of me - always on the lookout for another photo op. I love the image.
No matter where, I always find plenty of things to stop and take a picture of....
....like the fungi and lichen on these trees.
And this blue Damselfly on the stem of a spent Dandelion.
There were many of these blue damselflies darting about.
As well as a number of Pearl Crescent butterflies.
This butterfly gets its name from the light colored crescent on the underside of its back wing.
There is a jetty at the end of the trail which is where I took this panoramic view of the lake looking west. There's also a good view looking east showing how big the lake really is and a part visitors probably wouldn't normally see unless they are in a boat. The lake covers 650 acres and was completed in 1978 - the year the kids and I moved back home.
I remember that they predicted it would take two to three years to fill the lake. Then we had a really big rain event that filled the lake almost overnight. We practically lived at the beach the summer of 1980 when it was so hot.
Another view from the jetty. This one looking across to a similar structure at the end of Kale Avenue.
Note all the large chunks of limestone used to construct the jetties. Iowa's land was once under the sea, which accounts for the many limestone deposits.
It isn't unusual to find fossils in limestone which is what I was looking for when I saw this:
A really big rock that I wish I could have brought home.
Just look at all those pretty, sparkling crystals.
I'm content with the rocks I did find and I have this photo to remember the "one that got away". 😉
I don't remember how many farmsteads disappeared under the water to form Lake Icaria, but when I looked at this post and back into the underbrush at what I thought could be timber from a foundation, it did remind me of all the houses, barns, and out buildings that are no longer there.
I was not familiar with this bush. My best guess is it is either some species of Dogwood or possibly Arrowwood Viburnum.
But that's the fun of finding something new. It leads me to discover things I do not know about.
Two more new plants and best guesses:
The American, or, Tall Bellflower.
And the dainty little pink Rough (or Smooth?) Hedge Nettle.
Pictured here with the web of a Grass Spider.
Another damselfly - this one Brown.
This is a good example of how you can miss half of what is there to be seen.
Going toward the sunflower field, this colony of yellow Lotus wasn't visibly noticed from the road. Going back on the same road, they were right there.
I'm so glad we didn't miss these beauties.
We made one last stop before heading home. This one at the old reservoir so Bud could take a photo to send to son Mark. This is where, when he was just a little boy, Mark fell into the water, or as he tells it, "Dad tried to drown me." Mark had on a pair of overalls. His Dad calmly reached down and plucked him out by the suspenders.
The event has become one of those family legends.
Even with the heat and humidity, did I have a good time?
I think you can see the answer to that question by the smile on my face.
It was a wonderful morning outing and we were only gone three hours.
No comments:
Post a Comment