Sunday, September 20, 2009

Daytrip

A few days ago Zachary and I both had a day neither of us had to work. We drove up to Door County, to take in the sights and explore some parks. We traveled up the Lake Michigan side, staying on roads that hugged the shoreline. An US Coast Guard base caught our attention in Sturgeon Bay. A long concrete pier lead you near a red lighthouse
The water was so clear, you could see brown trout and other fish swimming along the pier.

While snaking along the coast line, we passed a lot of bicyclers. A lot of them. After a while we realized it was the Door County Century event. You can ride up to 100 miles on the peninsula. That is impressive. My butt is pretty sore after 10 miles.
The first park we took in was Whitefish Dunes State Park. The beach was filled with swimmers and sunbathers, soaking in the last few days of summer.
Zachary and I hit the trails.
Next we meandered to Newport State Park on the peninsula. Newport was quite a bit quieter than Whitefish. Door County is a tourist driven destination, but these state parks allow for the peninsula's natural beauty to shine and be preserved.
Wildflowers on the shoreline.
The sandy shoreline gives way to a rocky face as the coast bends.

Finding a suitable rock that looked free of sunbathing snakes, we had a picnic. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and bananas.
Mr. Seagull noticed our picnic on the rock. Keeping about 7 feet away, he waited patiently for us to leave to inspect the rock for tasty leftovers.
I think I took about a dozen shots of this Monarch, trying to get a clear shot of it with his wings wide open. Between the breeze and the bees, it didn't happen. But I like the way this one turned out anyway.

A day well spent.

1 comment:

Julie said...

What great pictures! And beautiful weather!