Jay Cooke Park Showy Lady Slipper

A sure sign of summer is the blooming of the Showy Lady Slipper, the state flower of Minnesota.
This morning I made my annual "Lady Slipper" trek to Jay Cooke State park. During the last days of June, these beautiful flowers grace the forest floor with their pink and white blossoms. They are rare throughout most of the country and are located on only a few spots in Jay Cooke Park. The DNR Naturalist is always more than willing to help one locate the slippers.

On this morning, I arrived at the park about 5:30 AM to make sure the winds were calm and that the dew was still on the flowers. After a short walk through the wet grass the patch of flowers was there on schedule.

The tiny hairs covering the stem protect the plant from being eaten – they contain a fatty acid that is poisonous to many animals and to people, and can cause a nasty rash. So, look but don't touch.

Minnesota Morning

Fresh air, calm water, and distant horizon painted with the saturated colors of a Minnesota morning, is an inviting and calming moment that lingers for years in our minds eye, constantly bringing us back to a simple place filled with pleasurable memories.

The boat dock in the picture seems like an invitation to step in and enjoy the day.

This setting on Gunflint Lake on the Canadian Border is a reflection of God's beauty through His creation. I guess this is God's Country.

Infrared Reeds

Infrared light is just beyond the spectrum of light that our eyes can see, yet with a special sensor, a digital camera can see IR just fine. In an IR picture, greens appear white and blues appear black. An interesting look at our world.

Canadian Twilight

During the summer months on the Canadian border it never really gets completely dark as with these pictures that were taken at 11:30PM.

Looking north across Gunflint Lake, the Canadian shoreline meets the starry night in a soft glow of steel blue. It's been an hour since the frogs stopped their serenade, but, the eerie call of distant loon still echos off the granite rock walls.
Staring into the heavens and letting your eyes adjust to the light, the Milky Way becomes visible.

All a display of God's glory, and an assurance of his immensity.

He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. Psa 147:5

Ugly Betty

With a face only a mother could love, this snapping turtle made its way from the lake to our back yard where it decided to lay a few eggs. The grand kids decided to call here Ugly Betty.

Looks, however, may be deceiving. Snapping turtles are amazing works of God's creations. The snapping turtle is a bold and aggressive hunter. it's massive, sharp-edged jaws are good for grasping many different aquatic and semi-aquatic creatures and it is certainly capable of tearing off a probing finger.
The snappers can grow in weight to more than 40 pounds and live more than 40 years.

Snappers defend themselves in a manner similar to snakes by "striking" at enemies with the speed of a rattle snake. So quick is the movement that the eye is barely able to follow it.

After spending an afternoon scratching through the back yard gravel, the creature made its way back to the lake where it is much more agile and at home.

Notice the beauty mark under the left eye!

Gunflint Moose

Moose along the Gunflint trail in Northeast Minnesota are a common sight and this particular moose did not seem to be bothered by our presence as we snapped pictures from the trail.

 Moose can weigh more than 1500 pounds and they spend most their day foraging for plants and roots that grow in the bottom of the swamps.

Dewdrops on Lupines

The annual blossoming of lupine wildflowers is about a month early this year due to a warm spring. A damp foggy morning is always a great time to photograph flowers and it was indeed a special treat to focus on these beauties as dew drops formed tiny globes that hung from the colorful blossoms.

The amazing lupine actually creates fertilizer and improves soil for other plants by taking nitrogen from the atmosphere and making ammonia via a rhizobium-root nodule system.

God creates functionality and purpose within all of His beautiful creation.