Lake of the Ozarks – Missouri

 

It’s a  17,441 acre playground lying just to the south of Osage Beach. Lake of the Ozarks State Park is Missouri’s largest and can provide a pleasant diversion while vacationing in the Lake area. The park has 85 miles of shoreline and two public beaches, plus boat launching areas.  The Grand Glaize Arm of the lake dissects the park with over 85 miles of shoreline.

 

Discover unusual natural features along the park’s lake shore on Lake of the Ozarks Aquatic Trail . This unique “trail” designed for boaters has stops marked by buoys. A free booklet keyed to these buoys explains the significance of each of the 14 marked shoreline highlights. It is available at the park office.

Naturalists present programs in an open air amphitheater from May until mid October, featuring slide shows or movies about natural features found in Missouri¹s state parks. Guided hikes and a variety of other programs are provided as well.

Many lake visitors escape the summer¹s heat by exploring 56° Ozark Caverns. Follow Highway A (between Osage Beach and Camdenton) for eight miles and follow the signs. After paying a small fee, hand held lanterns are provided which enhance the sense of discovering a whole new world of underground beauty. The spectacular Angel’s Shower, a never-ending flow of water which seems to fall from the solid ceiling of rock into two massive bowl shaped stone basins on the cave floor, is one of the many features pointed out by your guide. Unusual animals, adapted to this world of darkness, can be seen as well.

Ozark Caverns Visitor Center opened in 1987 and helps visitors understand the cave environment. The one mile Coakley Hollow Self-Guided Trail near the Visitor Center takes visitors through one of the most scenic and naturally diverse parts of the park. This is one of ten trails in the park.

More info:

https://www.funlake.com/state-parks 

Hiking at Isle Royale National Park: Michigan Upper Peninsula

Located above Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, this half-million acre park consists of 400 islands with a variety of hiking and camping options. Isle Royale camping is only allowed at 36 wilderness campgrounds, all of which can only be reached by watercraft. But in northern Lake Superior, being on the water is as much a part of the experience as the land.

One of the best trails in Isle Royale National Park is the Scoville Point Loop, while the Island Traverse is perfect for longer hikes. You may not see many other people during your stay: Isle Royale is one of America’s least-visited national parks. In our opinion that makes it all the more special.  http://nps.gov/isroHiking in the Midwest in Winter

Love of the Lens – On Location

Badlands – South Dakota 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

A must see destination

By far my favorite, the Badlands National Park is located in the midst of the Northern Great Plains and named Mako Sica by the Lokata people. Here you can get lost….with of 244,000 acres of spectacular landscapes, native mixed grass prairie, a large variety of native wildlife, amazing fossils, wonderful skyscapes and compelling human and geological history.

The Badlands were formed by the geologic forces of deposition and erosion over 69 million years ago when an ancient sea stretched across what is now the Great Plains. After the sea retreated, successive land environments, including rivers and flood plains, continued to deposit sediments. Although the major period of deposition ended 28 million years ago, significant erosion of the Badlands did not begin until a mere half a million years ago. Erosion continues to carve the Badlands buttes today. Eventually, the Badlands will completely erode away.

Love of the Lens – On Location

Full moon tonight over Grayslake, Illinois 🇺🇸

Hiking in Wisconsin – Devil’s Lake Loop

Devil’s Lake has over 29 miles of hiking trails for any skill level including amazingly scenic sections of the National Ice Age Trail.  The trails vary in condition and difficulty from easy to challenging and are not maintained in the winter months. Steep climbs or descents and stairways are common on Devil’s Lake’s hiking trails.

 

For more information visit: https://www.devilslakewisconsin.com/activities/hiking/

Love of the Lens

Good Morning Monday!

Love of the Lens – On Location

Daniel Wright Woods  – Lake County,  Illinois

While March generally isn’t the best of weather anywhere in the midwest, today showed us sunny skies and 50 degrees.  With the warmer weather, the melted snow leaves for slushy, muddy trials and the Des Plaines River closer then we want (literally cutting off many of the paths) at the Daniel Wright Woods Forest Preserve. But nonetheless a very enjoyable experience.

This peaceful oasis among the bustling suburbs offers 4 miles of scenic trails: a short loop for hikers, bicyclists and skiers that circles a pond, and a 3-mile loop for hikers, bicyclists, skiers and horses.

A footbridge spanning the Des Plaines River (assuming the path to get to it is not flooded like today) links Wright Woods to Half Day Forest Preserve. Together they offer some of southern Lake County’s most scenic outdoor recreation opportunities and the Des Plaines River Trail passes through both preserves.

A Little History?

Wright Woods was named for one of Lake County’s first settlers, Captain Daniel Wright. In the early 1960s, these acres were some of the first acquired. In 2004, the 168-acre Lloyd’s Woods addition to Wright Woods expanded the preserve to its current 750 acres.

It provides the opportunity to see the powerful effects of water and fire. Prior to settlement by Europeans, wildfires regularly swept eastward across Lake County, only to be stopped by the Des Plaines River. Situated just east of the river, Wright Woods supports a rich oak and maple woodland that sometimes develops in less frequently burned areas. With large stands of maples found at few other places in Lake County, Wright Woods is a great place to view autumn colors.

 

For more information and location, visit https://www.lcfpd.org/wright-woods/

Shawnee National Forest – Illinois

The Shawnee National Forest at approximately 280,000 acres is the single largest publicly owned body of land in the state of Illinois. It is located in the Ozark and Shawnee Hills of Southern Illinois.  There are many miles of diverse hiking and backpacking trails including the 160-mile River to River Trail. In the southern tip of Illinois lies the rolling Shawnee Hills where 289,000 acres await you to relax, unwind and explore.   Here you will find vast forests, wetlands and rugged bluffs home to a variety of plants and animals. The natural beauty of the area is ideal for all types of outdoor recreation.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/shawnee

• Phone: (618) 253-7114
• Address: 50 Highway 145 S, Harrisburg, IL 62946

Foto Friday

Badlands in South Dakota (which took millions of years of erosion to develop) at Sunrise.

Love of the Lens – On Location

The Volo Bog – Illinois

Summer or winter – the Volo Bog is a place for discovery.  Located in Northeast Illinois, the bog sports a half mile walk on a boardwalk (similar to a pier) and an approximately three-mile trail with views of the tamarck forests.

After the end of the last Ice Age, a chuck of retreating glacial ice lodged itself deep in the ground at what is now Volo Bog. Several thousand years later the remnant lake began to fill with salt and vegetation, creating the wetlands present today.  The Volo Bog is technically known as a quaking bog because vegetation floats atop the open water….that is in the spring, summer and fall.  The boardwalks you see here, take you directly over the frozen wetlands which are very near where you are stepping. 

For more information, visit https://openlands.org/2018/06/05/have-you-discovered-volo-bog/