Various rock formations on the cliffs bordering the St. Croix River by the Interstate State Park have names, although a few take some imagination to see why they were named that, but it is easier to see a face in this rock formation which called Old Man of the Dalles.
Old Man of the Dalles
The bright yellow and orange flowers provide a cheerful display on a summer day.
Cheery Flowers
On a nice summer day, some people enjoyed water activities on lakes and rivers during the dog days of summer before the season ends and the school year resumes.
Boating on the St. Croix
The clouds at midday were an interesting mix; puffy white ones but with some dark clouds too and wispy clouds in the middle. And some of the darker ones let some raindrops fall this evening.
Cloud Mixture
While some summer flowers seem to last a long time, like Black-eyed Susans, others make a brief appearance and then vanish, sometimes for years. My one lone Lesser Purple Fringed Orchid plant is about done blooming for the season, with just a few blossoms left on the top of the plant to dance in the wind.
The Last Dance
The tree looks a sentinel, standing watch over the fields and crops growing in late summer.
Field Sentinel
This summertime wildflower won’t catch your eye like bright yellow or pink blossoms as it looks more like a sticktight waiting to grab you. Native to the tall grass prairies of central and eastern North America, Rattlesnake Master common name comes from the fact that some Native Americans used its root as an antidote for rattlesnake venom. Fibers of rattlesnake master have been found as one of the primary materials used by Midwestern Native Americans in the ancient shoe construction. And while it looks like it has white blossoms, it doesn’t as the rattlesnake master captured a yarrow plant in its clutches.
Rattlesnake Master
One thinks of kittens in the spring, but new batches of kitten arrive through out most of the months, like this kitten born in early summer or my former house cat, Dutch, who was born on this day in August.
Summertime Kitten
With several nests of orioles, apparently most of the babies survived as there is a dozen or more young orioles lined up on the porch waiting, not always very patiently, for their turn at the feeders and I have trouble keeping them filled.
Young Oriole Eating
Rolling hills covered with Purple Prairie Clover would be pretty to see, and many animals eat them for food like pronghorns. It is nutritious and is “considered one of the most important legumes in native grasslands on the Great Plains.” The pretty plant is used for re-vegetation on reclaimed land, preventing erosion and fixing nitrogen in the soil. It also had a number of uses for Native Americans.
Purple Prairie Clover
