Babies, Blooms and Butterflies - Point Beach Segment Part 2

One of the things I decided that I didn't need to drag along with me on my 6-7 mile portion of the Point Beach segment was my zoom lens.  Whatever I leave behind, I always wish I had brought it.  On my journey along Sandy Bay Road I spied a family of Sandhill Cranes and a zoom lens sure would have come in handy!

Look again, not just one chick, but two!  Even though I couldn't see them very well they were adorable from afar and one even kept stretching up and flapping its little wings.

Even though I adore wildflowers, I enjoy landscaping too and I don't think I've ever seen as many daffodils in one yard as the ones I saw on Sandy Bay Road.

At Viceroy Road I cut back in to the woods.  At this point the Ice Age Trail is merged with the Rawley Point Bike Trail, which I've ridden before with Wayne last August and by myself back in July of 2012.

goofing around off the trail

The IAT splits off again and dives into the woods, swooping up and down the remnants of old sand dunes.  Lake Michigan used to be Lake Nippissing 5,0000 years ago and the water was 30 feet higher than it is now.  All of this was underwater, and the ridges and swales that define coastal Lake Michigan in northern Wisconsin are what was left behind as the water level dropped.

I've walked this section of the IAT before when I camped here the first time, so it all looked familiar, right down to the access points to the beach.  I could tell when I was getting closer to shore because the temperature would drop, it felt like I walked in to a freezer!

The plants really change as you move back away from the dunes, going from reedy grasses to shrubs like the Bearberry and Juniper, and then the trees pop up along with the wildflowers and the ferns.

I even saw one butterfly resting on a sandy spot, probably trying to dry its wings with all the damp and fog we were experiencing.

Back at the park entrance I retrieved my bike that I had locked to a tree and rode 4.5 miles back to my car.  One of the mailboxes along the way had a lighthouse instead of a red flag, how cool is that?

Friday night I started the segment by doing the back end of it first and it was my favorite part of this weekend.  Well, except for the Sandhill Cranes.  You know I stopped at the same spot on my way out of town this morning and there they were!  This time I had my camera properly outfitted and got the shot I wanted without even leaving the car.

Last of Point Beach to come, and then I did the short Dunes segment at the other end of Two Rivers on my way home this morning too.  We leave Wednesday for Minnesota, no more Ice Age Trail for a few weeks, I can't wait to see what we find along Lake Superior!