Troutbirder II

Troutbirder II
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Thursday, August 1, 2013

Shooting Star Trail




With the loss this summer of my friend and faithful hiking companion Baron, I was forced to turn to biking for my needed regular dose of physical exercise.  Fortunately there are a number of scenic bike trails in the immediate area.  Thus it was some weeks ago that I traveled to LeRoy Minnesota and the start of the Shooting Star bike trail.  The trail winds its way west through beautiful Lake Louise State Park and then further on across corn and soybean land just north of the Iowa border.  With Barb (Mrs. T) joining us,  hop on board and we’ll take a look…..
Along the way we see an unusual number of that quintessential prairie bird the dickcissel. From the front they look like a miniature meadow larks...
By mid July the prairie wild flowers in Lake Louise State Park are spectacular.
The Pale Coneflowers seem more vibrant than pale.
The Prairie Lilies certainly aren't shy. They stand out from quite a distance as you approach.
Some more Pale Coneflowers this time joined by a strangely named plant called the Rattlesnake Master. It's the tall one in front....
A whole lot of Rattlesnakes?
Along this bike trail if your "in the clover" your looking at our native Purple Prairie Clover.
Or it's close relative the White Prairie Clover.
Even the  
Swamp Milkweed takes on a new luster in this setting. I can certainly see why the monarch butterflies like them.
And speaking of butterflies here is Butterfly Weed.  They practically glowed as we saw them scattered along the trailside. We're about halfway down the trail.  About five miles more to go. I'll be back in a few more days with "the rest of the story." 


 

22 comments:

  1. What a beautiful ride. Thanks for taking us along.

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  2. It looks like a nice place for a bike ride. I always enjoy the wildflowers.

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  3. gorgeous wildflowers! and love the dickcissels when they migrate thru here!

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  4. Beautiful trail to ride.
    We have one near us that has a lot of swamps/marshes. The wildlife along it is so nice to watch---sometimes TOO nice--we look more than ride. Not the greatest for exercise, but sure is relaxing.

    Glad Mrs T goes along for the ride. What a great "date day"

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  5. Sadly, there has been lots of milkweed this year unmolested by the monarch caterpillars. Whenever I see milkweed plants along the road, I hope to see well-munched leaves but there's no sign of monarchs. I've seen only one Monarch this year and I think it may have been an escapee from the butterfly tent over at Como Park--I live close by.

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  6. What a lovely bike ride - thanks for taking us with you! I have to work hard on getting my husband to bike with me - a cool swim in the middle helps.

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  7. I've been always wanting to get back on a bike but alas the knees have buckled but it is truly a nice visual bike ride YOU have taken me on... but did you say, rattlesnakes??!! YIPES!

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  8. What a beautiful array of plants and colors! LOVE these.

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  9. I so envy your nice flat place to ride. I miss biking so much but the Ozarks do me in.
    What lovely flowers. I have tried to grow the butterfly weed several times. It grows easily in a random ditch, just not my yard.

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  10. Lots of beauty to see!

    I'm trying to imagine myself on a bicycle. Nope, can't picture it.

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  11. Gorgeous! I miss those flat bike rides. Oh, and Mrs. T: It would be nice to have a dog running alongside the bikes.

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  12. Well, that's an awesome trail. what a large variety of flowers. next time you'll stop and focus on something else on the trail.

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  13. What a beautiful place for a bike ride! I enjoyed all your wildflowers:)

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  14. Very nice! Glad to see you are getting out and about, even without your faithful companion. I love the pictures of the flowers and will wait for the "rest of the story." :-)

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  15. What a beautiful bike ride!

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  16. What a fantastic bike trail.

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  17. Somehow I missed your post about Baron's passing. I am SO sorry to learn that he's gone. German shepherds are such wonderful companions.

    If you are interested in having another hiking companion (and don't want to face puppyhood again), there are many GSDs needing adoption around the country, either through rescues or through Humane Society's. We rescued a sweet 2 year old black female last summer as a companion for our daughter and she has worked out amazingly well. I believe we were something like her 5th owners and she was only about 2!

    Anyway, your prairie wildflowers are spectacular! Here we live in the center of the Great Plains and I would be hard pressed to find a bike ride with such a gorgeous array of wildflowers anywhere nearby.

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  18. This is one of the thing I love about cycling - the views are so pretty! Did you say something about crashing? I hope you're doing okay!

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  19. simply beautifully captured shots...lovely!

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  20. All the flowers are wonderful but I am especially mad for the prairie lily. I know the LadySlipper is a no-no, but wonder about getting a bulb from this lily, is that permitted?

    Thanks for the ride,

    Jo

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  21. I'm reading in reverse order, since we were off the grid in Crane Lake, MN for part of the week without internet service & I feel behind in reading.
    Coneflower is one of my favorites, I don't really know why - it just looks so happy.
    I like the idea of exploring by bike. I might need to get mine down from hanging in the garage.. I haven't rode it all year!

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  22. Some really nice shots. I am learning new names for the wild flowers from your post.

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