Category: Wild Flowers

First Snowy Hike Of 2023

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Soon as I saw snow flurries in the forecast for the end of Thanksgiving weekend I knew where I would be on that day. The Miller Woods trail in the Indiana Dunes National Park. Aside from a freak snow shower on Halloween day, this is the first snow of the season. First snow is always fun because the plants and fallen leaves at the end of Autumn are still crisp and intact. After a few snowfalls all of the vegetation on the ground tends to get saturated with water and mashed down, which has its own beauty without a doubt. On this day I got out on the trail early enough to catch the first flakes beginning to accumulate on the foliage and ground. It was only a dusting, but still amounted to a beautiful day to be out in nature.

The first few snowflakes starting to settle on a grass seed clinging to a stick. By the end of the day all of these delicate seeds will be all matted down and lying on the ground.
These grasses are just starting to bend over with the weight of the accumulating snow. Eventually they too will fall to the ground.

When I got to about two thirds the way to the lake the snow began to pick up nicely. The temperatures were around 34 degrees, so it was a wet snow which mixed with the sand and coated my boots. No matter, I was dressed appropriately and was quite comfy.

It can be quite challenging to capture the feeling of falling snow on a busy landscape with lots of stuff going on in the background. The blurry reflections of the water in the bottom of the photograph allow the individual snow flakes to stand out better. The brain then interpolates upward and more readily identifies the falling snow in the top half of the image.
This bridge marks a transition from Black Oak forested dunes to more open, sandy dunes. Normally at this point you can hear a low roar of lake Michigan waves rolling up on the beach which is just past these dunes. But there was very little this day and with the snow dampening sound, the land scape was deafeningly quiet.
Upon arrival at the beach the snow was still coming down steadily and the waters of lake Michigan seamlessly blended in with the sky at the horizon. Although I saw no other people along the trail or the beach, this boat passed by silently, showing that there is always someone else out there, no matter the weather.
Colorful Zebra Mussel shells at the beach near the waterline.
By the time I headed back to the trail head the snow had mostly stopped. All along the trail near the lake you find tall grasses and reeds. Since it has not been too cold yet, the wet snow quickly melts on the flowers atop the reeds, weighing them down and leaving them coated with beautiful water drops.
During a pause in the snow, the uniform grey sky and calm waters of this lagoon produce a lovely reflection of the treeline.
Can you spot the deer in this image, she has heard me and just started running for the crest of the dune ridge. There were a pair of them and if they had remained still I would never have noticed them, they blend in with the ground cover so well.

Hike 141 – The Details

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Hike 141 refers to the fact that my recent hike at Miller Woods was my 141st trip to the Indiana Dunes in the last 3 years.  This was also my 27th visit to this particular trail at the western end of the national park.  Obviously I enjoy hiking and photographing this trail.  It simply never gets old and I come away with something new each time.  One of the reasons I enjoy this trail as much as I do is the diversity of ecosystems it spans in just over 1.5 miles.  I illustrated some of this diversity in a series of 3 posts; Miller Woods Trail pt1, Miller Woods Trail pt2, and Miller Woods Trail pt3.  While those posts focused on the nature of the land and how it changes between the trail head and lake Michigan, I also captured many of the little details which I find so fascinating when out in nature.

The reeds along the shore of the lagoon were still flowering. The low angle of the sun in Autumn means plenty of opportunity to capture backlit photos. In this case the flower appears to almost glow.

The seed of a Milkweed plant has caught on a patch of moss, next to a small clump of Lichen. The delicate snow white hairs contrast wonderfully with the earthier tones of the seed.

It is pretty late in the year for pollenating insects. This wasp was barely moving. I didn’t try, but I think I could have picked it up without it stinging or flying off.

November is a great time to mosses. Although they are around all through the spring and summer, they tend to get lost in all of the ground clutter. However with most of the surrounding foliage having retreated and turned brown, the vibrant green of the mosses really stands out. They never fail to produce fascinating up-close photographs.

Another example of back lighting turning something ordinary into something extraordinary. The detail in the structure of the leaf stands out so well in this light.

Yet another example of backlighting. With the low sun in the sky this sort of image presents itself all along the trail, as opposed to summer when the sun is higher in the sky and you would have to get down pretty close to the ground to see this.

This one last seed just does not want to let go and fly off. Leaving home can be difficult.

The patterns, textures and colors of Autumn are very satisfying to photograph.