Although the longest daylight of the year was Sunday with the start of summer, the latest sunset in my area was tonight. But the sun was later in rising so even though the latest sunset, the day was already a minute and two seconds shorter since the start of summer.
Latest Sunset
The second lighthouse keeper to take charge of the Eagle Bluff Lighthouse in Door County was William Duclon. William, his wife Julia and seven sons moved there in 1883 and the sons shared this bedroom on the top floor of the lighthouse. The boys helped with the chores, including the daily trek down to the lake to fetch buckets of water and carrying the full buckets up the 77 steps. There is also a rumored story that the last boy up in the morning had to empty the bedroom chamber pot.
Lighthouse Bedroom
The bright color bracts which resemble paintbrushes dipped in paint gives this flower its name of Indian Paintbrush. The colorful modified leaves is not the true flower but instead the flower is a smaller yellow green tubular hidden in the tips of the orange brackets. It is also considered to be hemiparasitic as its roots intertwines with other plants for water and nutrients. Bees, butteries and hummingbirds enjoy these flowers.
Indian Paintbrush
This cute log building probably has seen a lot of history and if the walls could talk, I bet it would have some great stories to tell.
Cute Log Building
The mother mallard had a tough time corralling her ten ducklings as there were several who were testing out rapid swimming and spinning in the water. It is always fun to watch the ducklings playing in my pond, even if they are little for only a few days.
Mallard Ducklings
Adventures to parks may be one way families are celebrating Father’s Day, although they might have to dodge some welcome rain showers.
Family at the Falls
Watching a pretty sunset over the water is a nice way to end the day and the week. The view from Ephraim’s waterfront has Peninsula State Park on the left and the small 38 acre Horseshoe Island on the right.
Sunset Over the Bay
With the dry conditions, low humidity and strong winds, there was a red flag warning today and hopefully no fires started as this old 1934 Ford fire engine might not want to come out of retirement and have to fight a fire. The Ephraim Fire Museum in Door County also features a 1927 American La France pumper in the former stone fire house built in 1934.
Old Fire Truck
A trip to the beach is a nice treat on a warm summer day, but someone has more creative skills than I do to build this nice sand castle. I hope the waves of Lake Michigan remained calm for a bit to allow the castle to remain awhile before the motion of the water reclaimed and leveled the sand.
Sand Castle
This little flower has many names, like Stinking Bob and Kiss-Me-Quick, but is often called Herb Robert. And the Robert part of the name has several theories including to honor Saint Robert of Molesme, an 11th century herbalist and founder of the Cistercian order. In the geranium family, the flower is native in eastern North American but is an invasive species in western North America especially in the Oregon and Washington area. The mature seed capsule can shoot over fifteen feet when something brushes against it.
Herb Robert
