the sky was full of wings. . .

 

 

Laura Ingalls Wilder's observation of Midwest autumn beauty is a perfect frame for these sky shots I took this morning walking a wooded path, looking for deer again [visit yesterday's post]. Of course they had already eaten their fill and were napping somewhere else.

 

It seems the leaves have turned over night in our area or maybe it is that those that did are so vibrant against our clear blue autumn skies.The deer live among the red trees you see in the distance, below.

 

A contrast with the showy reds are the more shaded trees near the lake and their deliciously sherbet colored leaves. You'd tell me if I've  photographed poison ivy, wouldn't you?

See more world-wide skies at Skywatch Friday.

Heading home

Note to self:

 

1. When you leave your camera at home you insure that there will be a deer sighting; maybe even a doe and a fawn.

2. Always have a Plan B.

This morning I took a walk in the woods around Island Lake to soak up the clear blue sky and the trees just starting to turn, some already bright yellow and red. Hoping to catch a glimpse of the deer I know live in one area, I remembered I'd forgotten my camera. That's when I saw a doe watching me just a few yards away. Along came her fawn and I blessed them both as they just stood watching me. Above is from another summer, same lake and woods with lens.

Still working on Plan B.

Nature is not a place to visit. It is home. 
― Gary Snyder

.

quilting with John Muir

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.  John Muir

Like quilt pieces, the blue sky fits neatly in with the leaf patterns. Beautiful autumn days stick around well into November. Look up into more skies at Skywatch Friday.

Skywatch Friday from the North Woods

These are sky views along the upper north shore of Lake Superior between Grand Rapids and the Canadian border taken in September. The shoreline is so impressive with rocky outcroppings and pine trees but no beaches. Its easy to imagine how this rugged shore could be dangerous for ships.

I've included this view of the lake because if you enlarge it and look toward the bottom of the photo you can catch a glimpse of lake rocks because the water was crystal clear and an incredible blue that day.

More incredible skies here.

wax not, wane not

Autumn is sneaking around trying to act inconspicuous and though leaves are turning, Cosmos are as hardy as ever. I caught these in Maiden Rock, Wisconsin yesterday under a pure blue sky. Take that, Fall!

Stop in the virtual flower shop Today's Flowers for a nice start to your week.

up before the birds

This is the view from my deck this morning facing east as the sun came up through scattered grey clouds.

Across the street, facing west, was that same sun shining on the tops of trees. At first glance they appear to be autumn-kissed but, in fact, are still very green.

Visit Skywatch Friday and be dazzled by skies from all over our planet.

Winter is an etching,

spring a watercolor,

summer an oil painting

and autumn a mosaic of them all.  

 Stanley Horowitz

summer sees red

I saw red all weekend in the Lake Superior Northshore woods where the leaves have barely started to turn. Rose hips and berries look ripe and ready to sustain the forest diners too. See more autumnal reds  @ RubyTuesday.                       


But even alone it was beautiful and he fed the fire to cut the night chill. There it is again, he thought, that late summer chill to the air, the smell of fall.
from Gary Paulsen's novel Hatchet.                              

Skywatch Friday: take it easy

Behold, my kinda' sky: blue, calm, nicely tinting the lake below it.  September on one of Minnesota's 10,000 lakes has a melancholy aspect that maybe only I can see, but. . .

Ernest Hemingway mentions the contrast between spring and fall he experienced in Paris in   

 A Moveable Feast:

With so many trees in the city, you could see the spring coming each day until a night of warm wind would bring it suddenly in one morning. Sometimes the heavy cold rains would beat it back so that it would seem that it would never come and that you were losing a season out of your life. This is the only truly sad time in Paris because it was unnatural. You expected to be sad in the fall. Part of you died each year when the leaves fell from the trees and their branches were bare against the wind and the cold, wintry light. But you knew there would always be the spring, as you knew the river would flow again after it was frozen...

Visit more skies @ Skywatch Friday, after which I hope you'll set down your burdens and enjoy the Labor Day weekend with my best wishes!

word-less Wedn.

word-less Wednesday

word-less Wednesday

Now you see it, now you don't!

Just one more lake reflection photo--I promise--this one is important because it shows how the lakes are beginning to freeze up north here in Minnesota. It won't be long and the fish houses will be up and ice fishing will be in full swing.
See more skies, reflected or real, at Skywatch Friday.

thoughts for Thursday. . .

. . .along my path

In order for the light to shine so brightly,

the darkness must be present.

Sir Francis Bacon

No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace
as I have seen in one autumnal face.
John Donne The most important thing for me is the

direct observation of nature in its light-filled existence.

August Macke

Red apron ties and

Star dusted sugar cookies

First winter frosting.

Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you.

Maori Proverb

The Smiling Pelican part deux

Remember me whining awhile back about a certain bakery not being open during a motorcycle trip to Wisconsin? No pie?. . . Well, when I was in first grade and threw up in Mass one morning my teacher called me a sissy for crying about it. If Sr. Luett Freida could see me now! Yesterday we rode the Wisconsin and Minnesota back roads along the Mississippi River with six other riders from Dave's plant. Clear blue skies, colorful trees and 38 degrees when we took off. It never got much higher than 40 the whole day. Not that I could unbend my knees or unclench my jaw when I got home. But I'm no sissy!
The highlight of the day for me was stopping in Maiden Rock, Wisconsin at the Smiling Pelican Bakeshop on a day when they were open. I would have spent an hour over coffee, trying to decide what to buy, poking around their gardens and the delightful art sprinkled around their tiny shop. Oh, but for the gentle honking of motorcycle horns of the impatient male riders waiting for me outside in the cold.
I managed to grab the busy owners for a quick photo--an amiable, hard working pair. Their operation in this old house, no bread slicer, no credit cards, just wonderful creations and aromas.
Oh, and I did buy a loaf of Cranberry Wild-Rice Sourdough bread and a 2 inch thick piece of pumpkin pie. Life is good!

walk with me

The sky couldn't have been bluer today when I took a walk. I'm glad I decided to go back into the woods a bit because the trees were spectacular. Its those cold nights we have now--with snow predicted this weekend.

I have posted the bench from this spot in the spring and summer but have to say autumn has outdone herself this year.

See more spectacular sky views at SkyWatch Friday.