Just starting to turn...

I went kayaking on Little Bradford Lake in Gaylord this past weekend. It was cool enough to need a fleece jacket and the lake was calm as glass. Here's a hint of what colors are soon to burst....

Hairy Woodpecker

The Hairy Woodpecker is one of my favorite birds. They are a year round resident in Michigan but you will see them more often in the winter if you put out suet cakes. The bird in this photograph is the female. The male has a red crown on top of his head.

The Hairy Woodpecker is very similiar to the Downy Woodpecker except it is larger in body size and also has a longer beak. It's also a little shyer than the Downy woodpecker.

Lazy Elk

After the previous post of coming up empty on elk, I thought you would like to see a photo of one I took earlier this year. This one is part of a fenced herd in the city of Gaylord. It's still my wish to see one roaming free in the wild....

Looking for elk at dusk

September is a good time to go view the elk at the Pigeon River Forest in Vanderbilt, Michigan. They have the largest herd of free ranging elk east of the Mississippi River. The best time of day to go is early in the morning or at dusk. This time my husband and I weren't able to capture any photos of them but could hear them bugling in the distance. Maybe next time....

Indian Summer Picnic

Welcome to all of you attending Muse Swing's lovely Indian Summer Picnic!

I would like to offer all of the guests a parting gift today! I picked some fresh blackberries in Northern Michigan and I have made homemade blackberry jam for each of you!

First, I triple washed the blackberries. I selected the best of the berries, making sure the ripe, plump ones would be used.

After washing, I put 5 cups of blackberries and the Pectin into the pot and brought to a rolling boil. Once it started boiling, I added 7 cups of sugar and stirred constantly for 1 minute.

I ladeled the blackberries into already heated jars and lids (180 degrees) and lowered into the water bath canner. I made sure the water was 2 inches above the lids. Once it started boiling, I began timing the blackberries for 10 minutes. I then removed the jars and put them upright onto a kitchen towel.

I let it cool at room temperature for 24 hours. I now have fresh blackberry jam ready for all of you!!

Happy Indian Summer!

Church in the woods

Hartwick Pines State Park in Grayling, is a favorite place of mine to photograph. I just love this old church with its beautiful logs.

In anticipation of Autumn

This view is from the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City. I am anxiously anticipating autumn and looking forward to posting photos of Michigan in its full color glory this year.

Missing the Loons already

One of the things I will miss most this winter is the presence of the Loons. Soon they will be migrating and I will no longer hear their haunting call across the lake.

Loons are a favorite subject of mine on my birding blog and it has poured over occasionally to my log cabin blog.

This photo depicts a Loon "social gathering." To learn more about this ritual, please click here.

My "Walden Pond"

For much of my life, I dreamed of living in a log cabin. Reading Laura Ingalls Wilder & Thoreau, seeing Dick Proenneke's 'Alone in the Wilderness', all conspired to put this burning desire in me to own a log cabin - to connect with nature and live a simpler life. I happily married a man who had the same dream and we completed our log home earlier this year in northern Michigan. For now we visit on the weekends.....the next dream is to be there permanently.

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." -Henry David Thoreau

Time to dock

When I saw my neighbor beach his rowboat, I knew this was another sign that Fall is fast approaching.

View of a misty morning

I went out early in the morning on the kayak in search of the loons and was just enthralled by the mist on the lake. Something so peaceful and beautiful at the same time.