We stumbled upon many of these little butterflies on our walk along the Lake Michigan shore. Most were at the edge of the water, trying to fly away, but they were waterlogged and unable to move.
Dan picked each one up and held them until their wings dried, then they either flew away on their own, or he placed them in a safe spot to dry out on their own.
He saved quite a few butterflies that day.
Well hidden in a valley between steep, densely wooded dunes, this early 1960s Ford Falcon slowly disintegrates and returns to the earth.
At least a mile and a half from any road, how this car made it to it's final resting place is a mystery. More than likely, it was left here before the area became part of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.
These tiny, velvet-like Oak leaves fell off a nearby tree. They were not even an inch long, but easy to spot on an old fallen log.
Spotted as we explored an animal trail; Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.
A family of foxes live under a wooden deck in Wilminton, Illinois. This pair played outside their den just after sunset, but wouldn't allow their pups outside until I walked about 100 feet away. Each time I approached, they ran into their den.
The outlook for sunrise photos at Goose Lake Prairie was not good, as we walked up to the cabin. A storm quickly was moving in, but certainly there would be enough time to capture a few images before the rain. As we approached, the rising sun peered through a small break in the clouds - the only break in the sky.
A few minutes later, as we walked back to the car, the rain began.
What first appears to be a reflection of a rock canyon wall, isn't. It's a natural rock formation along the Kankakee River, and the river surface is about eight feet below the indented portion of the wall.
It was a fun walk along the rock wall to get to this point.
The early light a few moments after sunrise revealed a storm on the horizon. A fast moving cloud mass approached Goose Lake Prairie and the oldest structure in the county. This log cabin has endured thousands of similar storms in its long life on the prairie.
The cold waters of Lake Michigan are no place to spend a warm spring day. This turtle has the right idea- bask in the 70 degree temperatures.
In all the years of visiting Lake Michigan, I have not seen a turtle along the shore- until last Sunday. This turtle's shell was at least 12 inches across. I've seen hundreds of turtles in the streams and ponds of the dunes - even saw one in the acidic waters of Pinhook Bog - but this was a treat. Maybe he was washed out of nearby Kintzele Ditch, maybe he lives in the deeper water off shore.
Either way, I hope to see many more in the months to come.
It's odd to see leaves on this tree prior to the blossoms, but the buds on this flowering crabapple tree are not far from opening. In a few days, the tree will be filled with the red-pink blossoms, and the air filled with the sweet scent of these fragrant flowers.
Water droplets the size of pinheads cling to the tiny fibers of a Ladies Mantel leaf. Reversing a 50mm lens gave a much closer macro than stacking close-up lenses.
Record warm temperatures drew us out to the beach once again. We even walked in the water - in March!
Dan stands in tannin-rich Kintzele Ditch, as it empties into Lake Michigan. The stream water was a bit warmer than the lake this weekend. In the past, this area was still ice covered at this time of year.
These trees are actually growing shorter each year! The sands of Mt. Baldy are slowly moving away from Lake Michigan, and burying the adjacent woods. At a rate of four to five feet a year, the shifting sands will soon completely bury the Oak trees.
Mt. Baldy, a 123 foot tall sand dune is Indiana's largest "living" dune. A living dune moves as the winds blow the sands from one side to another. Here, it's easily seen how the forest is being consumed by the dune. The blowing winds on the windward side often expose logs that have been buried for hundreds (perhaps thousands) of years.
