Edna began this SR Walkers blog some years ago. She is leaving and the Lodge wants to continue the blog. Since I am still going Outside they asked me to take it over. With apologies to Edna and wishing her the best I have agreed to accept the hand-off. So begins "Hike with Joe"...
A bakers dozen SR Walkers donned their rain gear and headed out to St. Louis Canyon as the planned trek on the east side of the Park was largely under water. Five minutes out the rain stopped. It turned out to be a great day for a walk in the woods!
Kay is commenting on Ron's "rain skirt". He prefers the term "rain kilt".
Most were never aware of the upper-upper falls on Aurora Creek.
The usual Upper Aurora Canyon falls were a roaring echo down the canyon!
The Sac Canyon Falls pretty much filled the available space.
A trail bridge view down Sac Falls into lower Sac Canyon.
The Mayapple colonies bring a quick layer of green over the brown forest floor duff.
There is boss Edna on her last walk as Activities Director.
A white pine reflection on the St. Louis Canyon trail.
The "green tunnel" around the trail is rapidly forming.
The moment you become thankful for your waterproof boots!
Reaching the canyon headwall is always the pause that refreshes.
The 83-foot St Louis Canyon waterfall is responding vigorously to 4+ inches of rainfall.
The sedimentologist in me appreciates the bite of sand the creek has removed from the bank to begin its journey to the Gulf of Mexico.
When fast moving water escapes its confined banks it spreads out, slows down, and drops its sediment as an alluvial fan. I have seen alluvial fans with sediment sizes from clay particles up to boulders. Lower angle fans that remain mostly below water we call "deltas".
A very nice trailside colony of nodding white trillium.
A picture of a nodding blossom pretty much requires an upskirt shot.
These catkins now littering the ground are the male flowers of oak trees.
I leave you with this quote from John Muir - "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks".
Loved your first blog, Joe. The pictures are fantastic.
ReplyDeleteSuch a surprise to hear Edna is leaving. I've enjoyed her blog very much as I can view the sights at Starved Rock year round through her thoughts, words, and photos (I live an hour away from SR; I was last there in 2016). This blog is a great initiative by her and a wonderful legacy. Glad you are taking up the mantle, Joe, and already I am enjoying the unique spin you have sprinkled into your captions (such as lessons in sediment science!). Also glad to see you continue to feature some botanical highlights. Will miss Edna's input in this web page, for sure, but hopefully I can follow her hiking adventures in her personal blog, Hike with Edna. :)
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