Although butterflies are around in the spring and fall, to me butterflies mean summertime. In my part of the state, there are two different types of tiger swallowtail butterflies and when they are flying, it is hard to look at the spots to know which type it is. Normally the ones I capture with a photo are the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, but sometimes the Canadian Tiger Swallowtail will adventure into camera range.
Canadian Tiger Swallowtail
Only a few blossoms remain of the Blue Flag growing on the edge of my pond. It is a native iris that grows in wetlands having violet-blue flowers and is one plant that my deer don’t seem to eat.
Blue Flag by the Pond
Taking four years to build, Jacob Tapola Davidson, a Finnish immigrant, finished the wind-power gristmill in 1904, the octagonal shape inspired by his coffee pot. The grinding stones, which came from rock near Amnicon Falls, could grind 300 pounds of grain an hour. By using long poles attached to the green section, the grinding speed was controlled by rotating the mill’s upper section with its 17 foot long sails.
Davidson Windmill
Many activities today revolved around dads on this Father’s Day. One of those family outings, with a father and his children, could involve a nature hike and climbing the rocks above a waterfall.
King of the Rock
The summer solstice today marks the beginning of summer and is the day with the longest amount of daylight hours. I was to have 15 hours and 36 minutes, although the rain today seemed to shorten the daylight, but it cleared in time for sunset. The amount of daylight varies by location and the South Pole had zero hours today while Utqiagvik, AK had the sun up all day long. Other cities like New York has 15 hours and 6 minutes, San Francisco with 14 hours and 46 minutes, and Miami with 13 hours and 45 minutes.
Summer Solstice Sunset
Many of these lady’s slipper blossoms will not get pollinated as bumblebees have learned there is no nectar so not worth the effort to navigate the small opening and approximately only 10% will produce fruit containing thousands of tiny seeds. The plant can live up to 100 years but it takes a long time to bloom the first time and will not bloom every year if conditions are poor, so seeds may only be produced a few times during its life.
Pink Lady’s Slipper
Warm summer days are an excellent reason to go riding in an automobile with an open top, although this old Ford might not go very fast or very far.
Old Ford
On a warm day, there were probably some people cooling off in water today, like these adventurous individuals wading out to the bottom of a waterfall. On my other visits to this waterfall, the amount of water flowing would have been too great for anyone to even think about getting to that location.
Cooling Off by the Falls
While visiting a beach, I look for pretty rocks and interesting pieces of driftwood. This one was a way too big to fit in my bag or car. It reminds me of Stumpy from the movie Tremors and does look a bit like a monster.
Stumpy
During some winters, County Road H in Bayfield County contains of 2.25 miles of an ice road across Lake Superior to Madeline Island, otherwise the ferries transport vehicles across that stretch of water.
Ferry to Madeline Island
