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Prairie Spring—Western Minnesota’s Felton Prairie
It’s always good to get back out to the prairie…and western Minnesota’s Felton Prairie is always a nice escape from the North Woods. Just a few of my favorites from this mid May trip to Clay and Norman...
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Minnesota’s Wild West—Blue Mounds State Park
Blue Mounds State Park has always been a favorite place of mine. The expansive prairie, Bison herd, rocky cliffs, and Dakota Indian history add to the exotic flavor and very “western” feel in the Land...
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Cactus in Minnesota?—Blue Mounds State Park: Part 2
CACTUS IN MINNESOTA? Yes, actually two species of Prickly Pear Cactus occur in southwest Minnesota…Opuntia fragilis and Opuntia macrorhiza. And Blue Mounds State Park is a great place to see them for...
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Birding North Dakota’s Prairie—Part 1: Grassland Birds
I have a very embarrassing secret…As of a month ago, I still needed Ferruginous Hawk for my Life List! Most of you may be saying “Huh?,” but the birders out there know what I mean. Seeing 600 of North...
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Birding North Dakota’s Prairie—Part 2: Marsh Birds
Last blog post we talked about the prairie birds of central North Dakota’s Kidder and Stutsman Counties, and now we focus our lens on the county’s birds of lake and marsh. Where I live in Northeastern...
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Teddy Roosevelt National Park: Day 1
Ryan Marshik and I busted out to North Dakota’s premiere wildlife hotspot last week. Teddy Roosevelt National Park is a treasure of the upper midwest. An easy 9-hour drive from Duluth, the park is a...
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Backlit Bison Breath and Starry Skyscapes: Teddy Roosevelt Day 2
Day 2 in North Dakota’s Teddy Roosevelt National Park started early…REALLY EARLY! Ryan and I crawled out of our cozy cocoons at 2:27am. Time to try for some Milky Way landscapes! It is always good to...
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Early Spring Wildlife of Teddy Roosevelt National Park
On the way home from Yellowstone, Ryan and I usually camp for a night at North Dakota’s Teddy Roosevelt National Park. It breaks up the 16 hour drive home and allows us to get in some more shooting,...
View ArticleHoar Frost Morning—Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge-March 9-10
There were 20 cases of books waiting for me in Pembina, North Dakota. My printer is in Altona, Manitoba and they kindly brought a pallet of books just across the U.S. border so I wouldn’t have to pay...
View ArticleSnowy Owls & other birds—Glacial Ridge NWR March 9-10
Last week I posted photos of the amazing hoarfrost that greeted me at sunrise in northwest Minnesota’s Polk County on Friday March 9th. This time we will concentrate on the wildlife I saw over these 2...
View ArticleNecedah National Wildlife Refuge, Wisconsin
Whooping Cranes, Karner Blue Butterflies, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Northern Barrens Tiger Beetles…These are the reasons I made my first visit to Necedah National Wildlife Refuge near Nacedah, Wisconsin...
View Article36 Hours on the Prairie: Prairie Grasses & Domestic Sunflowers
[August 17 & 18, 2018: I made a quick dash to the prairies of Western Minnesota in mid August. Much of my time is spent in the boreal forest and bogs of northeast Minnesota, and I was starting to...
View ArticleEaster Flower of the Prairie—Pasqueflowers bloom
April 26, 2019: Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge in Polk County, Minnesota. It had been several decades since I’d seen a blooming Pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens) [Othern synonyms: Anemone patens...
View ArticleSwedes Forest: Lizards & Cactus—Minnesota River Valley July 2019
July 23, 2019 Did you know that within the border of Minnesota lives 3 lizard species and 4 species of cactus? On this quick trip down to the western portion of the Minnesota River valley I hoped to...
View ArticlePrairie Dog Group Back Rub and Peek-a-Boo Burrowing Owls in the South Dakota...
Ryan Marshik and I moved our annual Yellowstone trip to fall this year. We hadn’t “done fall” since 2012. Only late April-early May spring trips from 2013-18. And this time we were NOT going to go...
View ArticleBlue Cliffs & a Salty Lake:Virtual Birding Trip to Blue Mounds and Salt Lake...
July 27-28, 2020 I visit a great Salt Lake on the Minnesota-South Dakota border (“great” with a small g!) where I kayak out to see Red-necked and Wilson’s Phalaropes, 532 Franklin’s Gulls, Eared Grebes...
View ArticleChasing the glittery Olympia
Too much time in front of the computer lately, so a quick trip to Crex Meadows Wildlife Area in Wisconsin was in order. My main target was the OLYMPIA MARBLE, a small white butterfly that doesn’t look...
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