More June Celebrations
Another homage to Great Outdoors Month is at the top of the page. Only a few years ago, that overlook was probably the most beautiful view within the city limits of MY Town. You could see most of Spring Lake, Lake Rebecca, the cliffs on the other side, and the bike trail that runs between them. Now the view-blockers are taking over.
I know trees are a big part of the great outdoors, but c’mon, this just ain’t right. The only thing that would be less right is if somebody hired a landscaping contractor to chain saw the offending trees into oblivion.
As you can see, I’m a little conflicted here. I want the view, but not at the cost of the natural order of things. The only legitimate compromise I can think of is to pray to Mother Nature and the God of the Great Outdoors to decimate the view-blockers with bunch of targeted lightning strikes. Yeah, that would be the best of both worlds: Good for the view, and totally natural.
I wish it was National River Otter Month because that would give some legitimacy to the next three pictures. I noticed an unusual wake in the Mississippi River. Thinking it might be a beaver, I got off my bike and followed it downriver to get a better view. Upon closer inspection, I was able to identify it as a river otter–the first one I’ve ever seen in the wild. It is a much bigger animal than I thought. I was thrilled.
gregblood
Hi. My name is Greg and I ride my bike a lot. That is to say, I ride my bike almost every day. I go on long rides and short rides. Sunny rides, cloudy rides, and rainy rides. I like commuting, errand-running, day-tripping, overnighting, and touring on my bike. I ride on city streets, highways, gravel, single track, and snow with equal enthusiasm. Sometimes I ride fast and sometimes I ride slow. I try to keep my feet on the pedals at stop lights and I do not dismount when I hop up on a curb. I have a roadie bike, a mountain bike and a touring bike. I try to accept any challenge a bike ride can throw at me without complaint. But I don't like bugs.
5 response to "More June Celebrations"
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River otter is great!
Very smooth swimmer too, look how even the wake is.
National Oral Health Month? Cool. I have a “clean and inspect” appointment tomorrow, and I was thinking of “International Bike-a-Dentist Day.”
I love how well your bike blends in to the scenery. Funny that you would purchase a bike in ‘view blocker green’ colour given your dislike of them, lol.. I hope the river otter is a sign that river health is improving. Also good to see solar panels on the roof at the dentist.
Have you seen this video of riding in the U.P.? Maybe you’ll enjoy this view of your old stomping grounds. There is a sign for pasties at about 21:30 š
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Emily, thank you so much for the U.P. cycling video. It really makes me want to get up there for a tour, but it would have to be a different kind of tour than the one they did. (I hate to admit it, but part of the reason I didn’t buy a rugged mountain bike is that I’m not as young and tough as I used to be.) About the only drawback to a U.P. tour would be all those darn view-blockers. The aerial views in the video are very scenic, but from ground level, all you see are trees, hills and the road. My version of a U.P tour would stick as close to beautiful Lake Superior as possible.
Interestingly, the pasty shop you pointed out was named “Lehto’s Pasties.” My dad’s mother’s maiden name was Lehto. There was also a pasty shop at the 8:03 mark, and it was named “Joe’s Pasty Shop.” The Feeshko and I have gotten pasties there many times and they might be our very favorites. It is in Ironwood, MI and it should not be confused with the “Joe’s Pasty Shop” of Butte, Montana.
Wow, does Son of Bing Bong look great amongst all the green! Wonderful river otter picture, good you were quick enough to capture him. I am afraid I wouldn’t know a river otter from a beaver. Beavers, btw, have become a bit of a plague here and there are often little fences around tree trunks for protection, mainly in parks.